The “q” trick Download MP3 of “MPU 023: Workflows with Merlin Mann” I mentioned this on the Mac Power Users’ podcast where I recently talked about my workflow. It’s really simple, but very powerful. Since both Simplenote (on my iPhone) and Notational Velocity (on the Mac) excel at incremental searching, it pays to create many very small text files rather than a handful of big ones—as I’ve mentioned, many of my 600+ txt files are one line long. This makes the incremental search functionality doubly powerful since you can quickly narrow down to exactly the file you want just by typing just a few unique characters or words. My trick is to end the file name of all my most frequently used or referenced files with a certain number of “q”s. Why? If I type “qq,” I whittle down to 15 or so greatest hits. If I type “qqq,” I narrow down to an even more rarefied handful of really important files. And, so on, until “qqqqq” takes me to exactly one “agenda” file where I throw anything I need to capture or do today, but only have a second to grab. Why “q?” It’s right under my left thumb on the iPhone. No English word I use contains more than one “q” Dumb little trick. Giant time and finger saver.
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The “q” trick

Download MP3 of “MPU 023: Workflows with Merlin Mann”

I mentioned this on the Mac Power Users’ podcast where I recently talked about my workflow. It’s really simple, but very powerful.

Since both Simplenote (on my iPhone) and Notational Velocity (on the Mac) excel at incremental searching, it pays to create many very small text files rather than a handful of big ones—as I’ve mentioned, many of my 600+ txt files are one line long.

This makes the incremental search functionality doubly powerful since you can quickly narrow down to exactly the file you want just by typing just a few unique characters or words.

My trick is to end the file name of all my most frequently used or referenced files with a certain number of “q”s. Why?

If I type “qq,” I whittle down to 15 or so greatest hits. If I type “qqq,” I narrow down to an even more rarefied handful of really important files. And, so on, until “qqqqq” takes me to exactly one “agenda” file where I throw anything I need to capture or do today, but only have a second to grab.

Why “q?”

  1. It’s right under my left thumb on the iPhone.
  2. No English word I use contains more than one “q”

Dumb little trick. Giant time and finger saver.