During my many attempts at understanding the Zettelkasten methodology and trying to implement the foundational principles, I discovered a book on my library shelf that already held everything I had hoped to accomplish. [1] The book contained footnotes, and the organization [2] that published the series of books painstakingly cross-references all volumes with nine different kinds of footnotes. [3]

The notations included cross-references to the other prominent publications and related information that could help discover critical ideas. Another footnote led to dictionary definitions for unfamiliar terms, and yet another link sent the student to discussion topics. Editorial explanations helped clarify any meaning that may need a slight nudge here or there. It was too good to be true.

I first tried footnoting my Zettel notes in mid-October 2020, and after a few sputtering starts, I finally settled into a steady rhythm that helped make my Zettelkasten come alive. However, there are many reasons the Zettelkasten methodology was a struggle for me to adapt. The first and primary one was I had too many notes. By the time my note-taking and journaling system [4] halted, I had over 30,000 entries. In addition, not all of the entries were in my own words [5], although I had a fair amount of notations regarding my feelings toward many of the passages; I was having difficulty going back through the massive pile of notes.

The second issue came wrapped in the smallest of bundles: The Principle of Atomicity. Many of my notes fulfilled the "single grain of knowledge" [6] notion; however, many did not. A beautifully crafted paragraph by the original author, and I hesitated to strip it down into a half-dozen zettel notes, all trying to reference each other.

The use of Footnotes to me provided an elegant answer to a common question. How do I captures notes, put them into my own words, and reference other messages within the Zettelkasten? I used "editorial explanation" footnotes to capture thoughts and ideas in my own words. I was providing context for the statement before linking to another note and describing what the reader can expect by following the link within my footnote. Using footnotes, I could give easy references for definitions of unusual words and indicate if a word was peculiar to a country or a time. [7] And most importantly, I could make footnote notations within the paragraph itself going in a dozen different directions, all from the same starting point.

Two problems caused me to postpone or, at the very least, reduce my excitement regarding my seeming discovery of footnotes for the Zettelkasten. First, the note-taking system I was currently using required the manual updating and keeping of each footnote, which quickly became highly tedious. Second, in excitement to share my newfound approach, I posted a description on the main Zettelkasten forum page. As you can imagine, one person met my system with much scorn and ridicule, particularly [8], and soon another joined her chorus.

I was "lazy" for not following the suggested Zettel outline provided by the website and when nobody else chimed in or at the very least defended the individuality of the approach, I apologized to the author of the question and silently slipped into the background. I had, by this time, grown tired of the forum, and this was the final straw. I have not done much with my notes since then, although I still capture ideas and make them part of my database. I had technical problems with TheBrain and decided to transfer my notations to Obsidian, and until three days ago, I was walking down the same path I had for the past fifteen years as far as my memos were concerned.

On Thursday, November 10, 2022, Jamie Todd Rubin posted a blog article entitled "Some of the Best Things I've Read Online in 2022." [9] I would read his article on November 13, 2022. It wasn't the article that caught my eye, but the 21 footnotes attached. The footnotes were fun and informative to read. Jamie is a prolific blog writer, and I have enjoyed reading many of his past posts, so when he referred me to a prior post he had written on footnotes, I, of course, followed the link. [10]

The post "Some Notes About Footnotes" [11] contained the basics of footnotes; [12] However, Mr. Rubin says he pictures a footnote similar to an "author pausing... to lean over... and whispering something like, 'Joe himself told me this story after drinking an entire bottle of vodka.'" [13] I was caught again on the advantage of using footnotes in writing.

By the third day, I became acutely aware of the tedious nature of footnotes (again). [14] I finally decided to see if Obsidian help had any answers to my footnote problems. They do, and it is magical. I haven't been able to figure out the "simple" Obsidian footnote yet; [15] however, the "inline footnote" is custom designed for how I handle my Daily Notes and Zettelkasten. [16] I'm excited about footnotes, so don't be surprised if you find my blog articles swell with slight pauses to expand on what I think about Joe drinking an entire bottle of vodka. [17]

Written November 16, 2022

Update: November 20, 2022. Due to strange programming that only allows you to see the footnotes in Reading View, I switched to the community plugin “Footnote Shortcut” by Alexis Rondeau and Micha Brugger. The plug-in doesn’t have the “inline” footnote that I enjoyed as part of my notetaking; however, it offers a quick drop-down, bounce-back feature.

References:

1. Scriptures with Topical Guide and selected concordance and index

2. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints

3. Support Materials. (n.d.). Retrieved October 12, 2020, from http://rikers.org/lds/manuals/ap1/52.html

4. TheBrain.com

5. A seeming prerequisite in the Zettelkasten world.

6. Gescho (2019, September 4). Retrieved from https://zettelkasten.de/posts/lattice-of-thoughts/

7. Does anyone say "Profligacy" anymore? (Extravagance: the trait of spending extravagantly) Besides Ralph Waldo Emerson.

8. She was a "furry," and always used purrrr and other animal sounds when writing her forum responses. I didn't judge.

9. [Some of the Best Things I've Read Online in 2022 – Jamie Todd Rubin (jamierubin.net)](https://jamierubin.net/2022/11/10/some-of-the-best-things-ive-read-online-in-2022/)

10. [Some Notes About Footnotes – Jamie Todd Rubin (jamierubin.net)](https://jamierubin.net/2021/04/02/some-notes-about-footnotes/)

11. Ibid

12. Such as " 'Ibid' could save some confusion by changing 'ibid' to 'ditto.'"

13. Ibid

14. Attempting to do them manually as I had in the past.

15. Go figure.

16. Enter in the same position you would make a regular footnote; only add the '^' outside of the text you want to be placed in the footnote (bracket with box symbols).

17. [Some Notes About Footnotes – Jamie Todd Rubin (jamierubin.net)](https://jamierubin.net/2021/04/02/some-notes-about-footnotes/)