This read is part of Community, an intended series of essays where I share my thoughts and experiences about communities emerging from PKM (personal knowledge management endeavors) and cohort-based courses (CBCs). I consider this PKM Interplay - where I have cobbled the various sources of approaches, methods, and philosophies about PKM - directly, indirectly, and even seemingly unrelated.
TL;dr. When finding out that BASB’s Tiago Forte enrolled in the next LYT Workshop, I shared thoughts with the BASB community platform (using Circle) - about how BASB and LYT co-exist for me. I was introduced to BASB before LYT. Below I’ve edited and updated excerpts from a few of my BASB Circle posts. I have added links to help provide more context. For example, some terminology is specific to the use of Obsidian, or very specific to BASB or LYT.
Other experience. Colleague Tyler Suzuki Nelson (newsletter sign-up, on Twitter) shares about his perspective - Folders vs. Links for PKM and Update on the Structure of My PKM - having been enrolled in LYT after BASB in 2021.
The two cohort-based courses
I have taken LYT and BASB within the past two years. To me, BASB and LYT speak to folks who may be up-keeping their personal knowledge management (PKM), while for some, it may be folks just learning about PKM. And both CBCs have active communities around the respective course material.
LYT. Cohort 4a, in September of 2021 was my first of Nick Milo’s Linking Your Thinking (LYT), described as a -
“hands-on workshop that will teach, train, and support you in building a custom knowledge management system you can trust”
I joined Cohort 4a after BASB Cohort 12. am re-joining LYT’s upcoming workshop, which begins 08 February.
BASB. Cohort 11, in September 2020 was my first of Tiago Forte’s Building a Second Brain (BASB), described as an -
“online course on capturing, organizing, and sharing your knowledge using digital notes”
I followed on with Cohorts 12 and 13. I entered Cohort 13 after taking my first LYT workshop. Time permitting, I will rejoin BASB Cohort 14.
Just a bit over three weeks ago, Tiago tweeted he signed up for Nick Milo’s Linking Your Thinking upcoming Workshop 7.
Excerpts from my BASB Circle posts
CONTEXT: A BASB colleague who also is a LYT alum expressed his take on the differences between LYT and BASB. He gave two examples of BASB vs. LYT - the PARA folder (hierarchy) approach vs. one without folders and progressive summarization vs. sensemaking. Below is my reply to him.
I share your two similar observations, as well as your share -
how one system might influence another
To add to your bullets, perhaps also Milo's PKM Planet that parses out (somewhat) PKM. IMO with his take on/analogies of PKM, he pulls together how one identifies as and experiences being a note-taker/note-maker. Make sense?
Short version
BASB 11 helped me discover an even better relationship with time and revisit digital tools and my GTD practices. (my testimonial for BASB) I am thankful BASB and the community around BASB continue to offer insights and support. LYT philosophy with its PKM planet/archetypes and sensemaking resonated quite a bit with me. (In 2015, I came across sensemaking and Harold Jarche's take on PKM. I took his workshop then and build upon that, as well.) And as an improviser, I imagine that is partly why a lens on sensemaking resonates.
Story time/long version on where my BASB + LYT coexist
Entering BASB 13 (after 11 and 12), I felt and observed the shift and influence of LYT on my BASB lens. In fact, while I was in LYT (Cohort 4a group, Crew 22), several aha moments popped up. I shared about my LYT journey as part of the show & tell opportunity. (LYT show & tell slides)
BASB has helped me overcome some of the friction I've had with not having a shared language (e.g., PARA, CODE) across my tools and technologies. Having this kind of "straightened out" the posture of my existing PKM workflow. LYT, I suppose, inspired me to repurpose and reshape my PKM workflow and perspective, esp. with archetypes idea. (Nick’s thread about the PKM Archetypes)
I came into BASB 11 (Sept 2020) with a robust enough analog + digital hybrid, with GTD foundation and folder structures. And while my analog is not quite Zettelkasten, what I've cobbled through the decades is like-kind . . . note-taking in "chunks" with the capacity to readily navigate notes + readily cross-pollinate + make seemingly disparate connections.
As I exited BASB 11, I shifted my folders into PARA and reshaped my PKM workflow. (Tiago’s series on the PARA Method) I very much appreciated how Tiago shared CODE. And I made a concerted effort to try out what were right-sized digital tools for my approach. SIDE NOTE: My bullet journal routine (using A5 and/or Traveler's Notebook) has been a solid element, as well.
Upon LYT, with the BASB foundation, as with anyone else's system/process, I chose to agree to disagree with some of both programs and customized around features. I've been observing what naturally emerges, what feels bumpy, and see what is fun.
That said, going back into LYT, shortly after BASB 13, will be fun. And I've been patiently spending time with Obsidian, Craft, Amazing Marvin, and my pen/paper . . . all which surface most frequently. I am super curious to see what emerges!
CONTEXT: A BASB colleague who also is a LYT alum expressed her take on the differences between LYT and BASB. She shared specific examples of how BASB and LYT are separate for her, with overlap in some things that they address. Below is my reply to her.
I SO APPRECIATE what you shared. Well-stated and clear distinctions you make.
Have you seen the LYT life design group/conversation? I like the group/conversations.
I agree they are separate beasts, yet (and where) one may help inform the other yet not codependent. It's interesting that while I have friends whom I'd def recommend BASB because of the CODE element (esp. for what you hit upon - express/produce), some of those same friends - I don't think LYT would be their thing at all.
You shared -
“LYT helps you be reflective and take time to think.”
- yes to this, many times over. Even though there is the MOC element, that's like a framework that can emerge as part of one's "reflective and time to think" learnings, eh? (Nick explains MOC, Map of Content)
On merging your vaults ... exciting! (A vault is one’s collection of notes within Obsidian. Explanation in Obsidian.) I am considering approaching next LYT as newbie, so I'd start another vault. Also, I decided to go more in on Obsidian for this cycle (putting Craft on pause) and am in Flight School. I bootstrapped learning via Nick's beginner videos and Bryan's videos and bits and pieces from Discord community. Def have more to learn.
If I recall, you mentioned the benefit of the sensemaking workshop . . . and I agree and encourage folks to go to that. Dan L (Nick's co-pilot) mentioned they are looking at doing one before the next sensemaking workshop.
CONTEXT: While I was still in LYT, a BASB colleague asked what I thought of LYT so far. Below are excerpts of what shared.
I like it (so far, because am still going through units) very much for a variety of reasons I'd not expected. I did attend nearly all live sessions. Foremost for me is that LYT experience has resulted in my further repositioning my established PKM workflow and is providing a different/new way to think about PKM (that "PKM Planet" survey). I found myself revisiting the trajectory of and influences on my PKM, beyond when I did so in BASB11. Taking the LYT workshop has been transitional and transformational, to some extent. LYT provided an environment that had an experiential component as I shifted and learned, and having the crew was nice.
I was in a crew that I liked, e.g., reserved, pensive, thoughtful, most used Obsidian in some form, and quite a variety of reasons for taking LYT. Several were in their PhD program or post doc, and most quite intensely input learning & ideation.
Also, I have old school habits as well with analog project notebooks and journals, while also using Craft + Mem (raw notes for work only) + Amazing Marvin + Otter, with some artefact/archived uses of Diigo, Evernote, Nimbus, Notion. (I have been slowly migrating out of Evernote to Nimbus.) Because many of my "notes" are directly to email or directly to .doc for the intended deliverable, I'm retraining myself, so to speak, to do some of this in Obsidian (or Mem or Craft, use basis) as part of going to "one hub" as resource. I am quite proficient accessing notes simply with my laptop file manager and emails (folder/project PARA styled) and obviously recognize benefits of the home & MOC framework.