From the archive: I wrote this in 2019. Evernote has changed a lot since, so some steps and screenshots may look different today. For current tips, get my newsletter free every Monday.
In October 2019, I shared 10 Evernote Hacks with Francesco D’Alessio over on the Keep Productive YouTube Channel (video below). It’s a great, fairly quick (13 min) way to get a high level list of features and strategies that will improve your use of Evernote. If you want to go deeper, I’ve provided expanded resources for each of the points I made below the video here. Enjoy!
My 10 Evernote Hacks + Expanded Resource List:
1: Use Evernote’s full-featured desktop application on your Mac or Windows machine.
Download the free desktop client for your platform here: www.evernote.com/download
Also discussed in more detail as Tip #1 in my free Embracing Evernote Guide.
2: Understand what the default notebook is and make sure it is named what you want it to be named.
Tip #4 in my free Embracing Evernote Guide.
3: Process your default notebook regularly - don’t let notes accumulate there.
This concept is adapted from the teachings of David Allen, author of Getting Things Done®: The Art of Stress-Free Productivity. Learn more about the 5 steps to stress-free productivity here, Evernote for GTD here and join my free GTD Book Club here.
4: Organize with notebooks not tags
Further details on my perspective are found in this issue: The Great Debate: Notebooks vs Tags in 2025
Learn why you should organize with notebooks for GTD in Evernote.
5: Use note naming conventions to purposefully name your notes and prep them for search success
Watch one case study example of how this helped me during a trip to the MINI dealership in this YouTube video.
6: Use Evernote’s advanced search parameters
7: Learn how to use note links
Tip #5 in my free Embracing Evernote Guide.
8: Use Evernote’s web clipper to create notes from web content.
Download Evernote’s free web clipper for your preferred browser here: www.evernote.com/webclipper
9: Create notes from 1) emails and using the unique email address associated with your premium Evernote account, from 2) Scannable using iOS, and from 3) Evernote’s camera found in both the Android and iOS versions of the app.
Find a strategy to use your unique Evernote email address: Tip #6 in my free Embracing Evernote Guide.
Evernote Camera: Evernote Android mobile app and Evernote iOS mobile app
10: Learn key commands to move effortlessly around Evernote
Learn more in this issue: I’m faster at Evernote than you (and why this matters)
Bonus tip: Use the Table of Contents feature to build a roster of notes in a notebook
☀️ Starting Fresh with Evernote Challenge. A few times a year, I run a live challenge that takes your Evernote account from a hot mess to clean and fresh, without deleting your notes or starting a second account.
Get my free Monday tips to hear when the next one opens. Or join the Academy for immediate access to the most recent challenge, and go all in with Evernote.