In 2019, I wrote a post on Notion and now it’s 2020 so that means: Updates!

My Notion setup has changed in the past year. From having a complete database to having just simple to-dos items for tracking my projects.

But let’s start with the important updates. Along with these updates, there were bug fixes and more mobile stability added. So the app works better on iOS and Android devices. One of the most important updates to Notion was removing the block limit. I had multiple workspaces just so that I would not go over the 1000 block limit.

Backlinks

Although Notion’s backlinks don’t work like Roam, they are very useful and powerful. Within each page, links, where the current page is mentioned, are shown at the top.

New Shortcuts

The plus sign and two square brackets will start a new page or link to a current page. The plus sign is used to create a new page. Two square brackets are used to reference pages. The at sign can be used to do both, but also be used to mention people and dates.

Content living with other Content

Have a task or item that you want to reference on another page or database? Well, now it can live everywhere. Going from a database to pages. A to-do or bullet from a page could be put into a database or another page.

Templates

I am pretty sure there is a template for everyone. Notion created and community created templates. From personal setups to even engineering scrums, there is a template for any type of setup you need.

Notion vs

Asana

Asana is a project management tool and Notion is that plus more. Asana is aimed to help keep track of tasks and projects for teams. But Notion offers the same thing. Notion can be the hub of everything that a team needs.

I wrote a post on how I use Asana, Notion, and Bujo, and guess what: I don’t use Asana anymore. It became tedious to take the project name and dates just to have them appear on my calendar. Now I just add them to my calendar, removing Asana from the equation.

Databases

Using Notion as a database is close to using Excel or Sheets. I don’t use a database in the traditional way you would for Excel. I use it to organize projects and tasks. Notion has the capability to be as powerful as Excel.

ClickUp

ClickUp is different from Asana and Trello. It tries to do what Notion does as far as having multiple views. It also integrates with your calendar app. ClickUp is constantly changing to fit any project needs. Somehow, this app is getting closer to be like Notion. Documents so you can type out thoughts and important notes. The setup is still confusing but there are templates to help you get started.

How I Am Using Notion Now

Nothing’s changed since my last post. No, something did change. I quit using Asana and ClickUp. Notion is my official hub for everything except documents. Since the block count is not relevant anymore, I have no limit on what I can do in Notion. I have come to rely on Notion’s notifications for reminders for tasks and due dates. Even though dues dates mean nothing to me. I still move those dates back further. At least I won’t forget about the task altogether.

Organizing Projects

Databases serve a great purpose. This is the center for project management. The database can be viewed as a table, board, list, calendar, or gallery. It can have filters for each view, showing certain fields. So having everything in one database and filtered helps with managing projects.

Take your project and go deeper within a page. Give details for the project. Make to-dos and notes. Just make a brain dumping ground for the project. Organize the page layout by putting blocks in columns.

At first, I just put everything into one database and categorized each item based on a project or topic. Then I saw a video from Thomas Frank on how he set up his workspace. I went and got this template and started using it. I threw out my system and used his. He set up the databases as notebooks. So each notebook represented a subject in his life. There was a page where each notebook was filtered with the important items. If you need some direction on where to go for your Notion setup, you should go and check out his template and other templates that are available to duplicate and make your own.

I have also created a hub for all the information and notes for my life. There is a page for my blog and website and a page for web development. These pages have links and notes that pertain to these topics. Everything is sorted into lists that helps keep things organized.

Here’s the post from 2019:

Why Notion, But Why Not?.

Notion and Asana + Bullet Journaling