you're doing it wrong | my simple notion setup as a graduate student
ฝัง
- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 16 พ.ค. 2024
- → my simple notion setup
→ grad school edition
→ clean, minimalist for students
Hi friends,
I use Notion as a college student and content creator to help me get things done. And it's awesome. However, Notion really only started working for me when I (1) stopped depending on other people’s templates and learned how to use it myself, and (2) stopped overthinking the aesthetics, and (3) kept it super simple. If it is complicated, I’m not using it. So, in today’s video, you’ll get a tour of my Notion, insight into how I use it as a PhD student but I’ll also be including a few quick and easy tutorials along the way to show you how exactly I made Notion work for me, and hopefully work for you too.
A template is available at the following link.
hollyjane.notion.site/Dash-80...
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→ Subscriber count → 4,888
→ Say hey via email → enquiries.hollyjane@gmail.com
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Time Stamps
00:00 - 02:44 - Sassy Intro
02:44 - 03:45 - Dashboard Tour
03:45 - 05:53 - The Everything Calendar aka SAVIOUR
05:55 - 08:20 - The Everything Calendar Tutorial
08:20 - 10:00 - The Filter Feature on my Dash
10:00 - 10:50 - Weekly Schedule - Template Button
10:50 - 11:50 - My PhD Page Tour
11:50 - 13:25 - Synced Blocks
13:25 - 16:00 - Simple Aesthetic Tools
16:00 - 17:41 - Conclusion
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✨ MY AFFILIATE LINKS ✨
These links are a FREE way for you to support my channel (seriously, it doesn't cost you a thing), so if you are keen to purchase something you might have seen on my channel, and are in a position to support me, just find the item below and click on the link! I earn a very small commission from any purchases made via an affiliate link, so thank you in advance for your support 😇
→ My iPad stand The Magflött Magnetic iPad Stand: bit.ly/hollyjane_CJP
→ Sync your Google Calendar BOTH WAYS with Notion-Automation: bit.ly/hollyjane_NA
→ My Vlogging Music from Epidemic Sound: bit.ly/holly_janeES
→ Ana Luisa NY Jewellery shop.analuisa.com/so-hollyjane
✨ FAQ ✨
What type of content do you make on this channel?
I started off making Study With Me videos, then the channel evolved with some PhD Vlogs and Advice Videos, and then I started to document a little bit of my cancer journey... So now I make an unequal amount of all three :)
How old are you?
I'm 31 in theory, but thanks to cancer/the pandemic putting life on hold for a couple of years, I genuinely only feel about... 26?!
Where are you based?
I'm Irish, and a PhD student at an Irish university but I am currently in MANHATTAN, BABY!!!!!
GIRLLLLL, WHERE did you get that fancy iPad stand?!! (actual question I've received multiple times)
The iPad stand I use is the Magflött Magnetic Stand designed by the family-owned CharJenPro company out in California. You can check out their stunning designs by clicking here:www.charjenpro.com/hollyjane, or you can support my channel - at no extra cost to you! - if you purchase a stand and use the code hollyjane at the checkout. Thank you in advance for your support!
What type of cancer are you getting treatment for?
Stage IV oesophageal adenocarcinoma
What drug are you on?
An immunotherapy drug, called Nivolumab (Opdivo)
What type of PhD research are you carrying out?
Historical research into records of children's musical culture in Ireland
Which university are you carrying out your PhD research at?
All Hallows, College, Dublin City University
![how I use notion as a graduate student | It ain't all aesthetics [2023]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/tAJWxtBSaFQ/mqdefault.jpg)
![how I use notion as a graduate student | It ain't all aesthetics [2023]](/img/tr.png)
![ใจดำกับฉันก่อน - วงทัพห้า [Official MV]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/I48wa4qurAU/mqdefault.jpg)
LMAOO "think abt the people who put lots of effort into their notion dashboards imagine if they put that much effort into themselves"
you just got a new subscriber
I wish someone had just said that to me when I first got started. The website GIPHY honest to god gives me mild ptsd 🤣
Also, THANKS FOR THE SUB! :)
Most helpful tutorial I’ve watched to date, the simplicity is really helpful!
Oh, wow - I’m so glad! Thank you, Abbi :)
Love this! Thanks much
You’re welcome, friend!
Brilliant. I love your perspective on Notion!!!
Thank you!
This is so helpful! Thanks so much ✨🗓
I’m glad you found it useful! 😃😃😃
Love this channel... Very useful notion tips... But better yet a lovely approach to simplifying things and making them useful🙏
Thank you!!
This is exactly what I've been looking for! Everything else I've found is overly complex and makes my head hurt. Thank you!
Glad it helped!
Love your simple approach to Notion as well as your commentary 😄
Thank you! 😃
This was so helpful! Thanks.
You're welcome, I am glad it helped!
Just discovered your channel the other day, love your channel and the information your provide.
Awesome, thank you! and WELCOME!
I love the minimalist view of your layout.
Thank you!
Thank God I ran into your videos. You have just changed my whole grad life. Thank you so much for this videos. Just what I need in my life right now. Your work looks well put together
Glad they help, Winnie!
Holly, it was just FANTASTIC! Thanks a lot!
Ah, YAYAAAYYYYY!!!! I’m so glad it was helpful, Paula 😀😀😀
@@HollyJaneYT I do have a question (not life-death but intriguing): When we open the sidebar on your template, your Pillars (college, work, health) are nested on Dash board as if they were pages. However, they are also nested under the Pillar. How did you do that? I managed to replicate your template, but those items in my Pillars are not being displayed in my sidebar under the dashboard. Thanks a lot!
Thank you so much for this video! I fell down the 'Notion TH-cam rabbit hole' and got so overwhelmed by the complexity of the aesthetics and micro-organisation of every detail of one's life that I was completely scared off using the software. I'm similar and function better with clean and simple. Like you said, at the end of the day, it's about actually doing the work!
Glad it was helpful, Jacqueline!
you're hilarious - The column portion of the edit had me cracking up. Thanks once again for a great video, filled with humor and lots of wonderful hacks and tips! You're the best and I hope you wake up today and have a wonderful day 🥰
Glad you enjoyed it, Margaret! :)
So freaking practical!!! Thank you so much, and this is late since I just found you, but welcome to NYC!
You're so welcome!
Loved Your Dashboard, I keep tasks for the day and ongoing sprints on my Dashboard
Same here! My dash is a constant work in progress!
This is the best video that I have seen, I am actually beginning to get it now
Glad it helped!
Thanks Holly, you're a life saver! This year I tried to use notion and I simply failed. Your notion tutorials became the most helpful tutorials for me. Now I'm going to set up my notion before my grad school starts. You're the best!!
So glad to be of help!
I love your minimalistic Notion template. I'm just now figuring it out at the final stages of my dissertation. So far it's been working for me for note taking (zattelkasten notes)!
It works for me too! I hope the final stages of your thesis go well for you ❤️❤️❤️
@@HollyJaneYT Thanks so much, to you too!
I'm so happy I came across this video, I had spent the past few weeks reattempting to use Notion again for my upcoming semester and was just about to give up. The templates I was using were either inefficient for what I wanted to accomplish, too busy (the overemphasis on aesthetics is incredibly distracting to me) or just not practical for everyday use and I would eventually stop updating them and using them altogether.
Your template is wonderfully simple and efficient, and I spent the morning tweaking it for my own personal use and actually came up with something that works for me. Thank you so much!
You’re so welcome, Pax - I’m delighted it was useful :)
OMG thank you for saying it! I don't have time to master some of the elaborate template/database combos I've tried to shoehorn our life into. I'm an undergraduate nursing professor, a doctoral student, a homeschooling mother of 9, we have a small mini-farm, I'm a 4H leader, and I need to be doing the things. This is absolutely brilliant. Subscribed!
Glad it was helpful!
Hi :) I just found your channel today and it's been a breath of fresh air! So inspiring but in a realistic way. At first I was intimidated and kinda jealous of the PhD student who could also be my therapist because she had all her shit together and then I saw the goofy, down to earth, normal side. Anyway, I just wanted to say I'm a new subscriber. I almost never comment on things. I feel weird.
Oh my gosh, what a lovely comment! Thank you Alicia, glad you’re here 🤓🙃
Lmfao at your “sassy intro”. I’m here for it! Subscribed💞💞💞
Thank you Jackie! :)
My notion can do anything and everything. It tracks (and connects!) ALL THE THINGS!!! ... so I stopped using it like a year ago b/c it was overwhelming.
I, too, am in my PhD (year 3!) and was looking for something to connect Zotero to, at which point I found your exceedingly helpful video. Several videos later, I find myself here and absolutely *love* your minimalist approach to Notion. From the PhD, minimalist approach to Notion, Zotero, and live study sessions (which I haven't been to yet), you're doing everything I set out to do a year and a half ago, but you actually succeeded! Haza!
Well, you've helped yet another person out in the world, have a new subscriber now, and I'll probably be seeing you in one of your future live study sessions :)
Have a wonderful day over there and best of luck in all your ventures :D
Thanks for the lovely comment! :) hopefully catch you at a stream when they’re back up and running next month :)
Fab tutorial, thank you! And the column bit cracked me up - I’m forever checking how words are supposed to sound bc I seem to sound things differently! ❤️xx
Glad it ain’t just me 😅🫠
@@HollyJaneYT Definitely not just you! Hope you had a fab time with your family ❤️xx
I am overwhelmed
Don’t worry - we all were at some point ❤️
Thank you so much for this - it was incredibly helpful! I especially love that you schedule your week/month with more flexibility. I think 'productivity advice' often espouses time-blocking and rigid daily schedules, but I find this approach so much more effective to align with my energy levels. I would be interested to see what you store in your 'Useful Academic Phrasing' and 'PhD Garage' pages, as well as your other pillars? And I am looking forward to your tutorial on syncing Google Calendar with Notion!
Hey Zoe! Thank you so much for the kind words - yes, I’ve learned that a flexible, soft approach to productivity is much more conducive to my mental health. I have to stay organized but I don’t need to be rigid it about, like you say. I’m glad this was helpful! I’ve a tour of my PhD section video come up next week so hopefully that might be useful too! 🙃
If its complicated, Iam not using it......absolutelyyyyy!!!!
You get it 🙂🤓
Would love to know how you organize your research in Notion. Starting my doctorate next week and your videos have been inspiring and hilarious!
Best of luck, Nicole! I've put that on the list, its coming towards the end of the month/early September :) Thank you for the lovely comment!
Thank you for this great tutorial Holly! I love the blooper section :v
What do You think about Notion's reminder feature? Do you use it on a regular basis?
Notion has a REMINDER feature?!!! Hold my coffee, I’ll be right back 🤣 how did I miss this? Do you use it?
@@HollyJaneYT hehe yeah! You can type in almost any kind of block
@tomorrow 9 am
and it will get highlighted in blue. If you click again, Notion will display a small calendar to adjust the reminder.
It's not so user friendly to me :s but I've used it a few times.
@@fenixrock okay - I’m going to trial that for a bit and I’ll update you!
@@HollyJaneYT Anywhere there's a Date property (if that doesn't show up, then Add Property), if you open it and click the Remind item, you'll be asked how soon you want the reminder.
I don't like how rigid the Reminders are (you only get 5 options) but they do help.
Awesome 🤩 😎 👏🏾 video
Thank you!
Holly, this was fantastic! Thank you for making this tutorial! I am a grad student, new to notion, and I have really enjoyed your simple explanations.
I have almost finished setting up my notion for the semester, but I want to connect my google and outlook calendars into one calendar in notion. Do you have any advice on that or any suggestions of where to learn how to do that?
Also, your tutorial on connecting Zotero to Notion 🔥🔥 Thanks!
Hey Grace! The tutorial on how to two-way sync between Google Calendar and Notion is coming on Monday :)
Also, thank you for the lovely comment! If you want to get started straight away yourself with the Notion/Google Cal sync, dm me on Instagram and I’ll send you the link I use!
@@HollyJaneYT yesss!! 🙌🏻🙌🏻 I’ll dm you so I can read about it and then watch your tutorial 😉
Thank you for sharing your workflow! One quick question, how do you create a "box" around "what I need to do today"
Hey! Make it a call-out and then change the colour of the call out to default! :) Hope that helps!
Thank you so much for this Holly! I have a question about the literature review. How do you incorporate it in your notion ? That is the first thing that I would like to do
Video on it coming up next week ❤️
@@HollyJaneYT You are loved. Thank you so much !!
What I am looking for is a single (Mac) application that integrates calendar task and note taking with pdf (and text and photo and video and audio) annotation and discovery/reference/citation management and outline/presentation/writing and all referencing a single data base of everything I am and ever have worked on or referenced (oh, and tightly integrated with a browser). I want to be able to collapse my work within this application to any granularity of summary and see all of my content as linked network graphs or timelines or graphs in a way that allows me to easily see my work and process trajectory. I want an all in one work environment. No, I do not want a handful of separate apps with stovepiped data and documents. One integrated environment. All of my work. Full stop. Any suggestions? Does Notion have PDF notation functionality built in (can I import PDFs and or other media and then let me draw on them, copy and paste text and illustrations, write margin notes, set links in and out)? Does notion have saved-search (Smart Folder) functionality for locally and globally? Does Notion integrate reference and citation?
If I never had someone else's template, I definitely never would've started using it! 🤣 I hate bullet journals/ line-less paper/ etc so I need a structure with planning materials
(Lol I use the term "hate" so that people won't try to convince me otherwise)
Saaaaame! (About the templates - not the bullet journals…) 🤣 at the end of the day, we need to find/develop workflows and systems that suit our personalities and needs as students. Hope this helped a little!
Hi! This is great! Is this the latest template with your Google calendar integration?
Yep, am hoping to get another up this summer but this is the latest for now 🙂
Hi! How do you recommend one learn Notion so as to not rely on too many templates? I’m using one now I sold a kidney for and I might actually use Notion if I’d been able to create what I paid someone else for.
Hey Amberly. Honestly, it’s like getting better at any skill. Practicing it and consistently using it. Watch tutorials on TH-cam. Use templates but know how they work. Give it time!
Thanks! New sub :)
Hello! :)
14:19 fuck, im in love now 🫠
😂