Evernote: An Ecopreneurist’s Second Brain?

I’ll admit it: I am a chronic trier of new software. Being on Twitter, I am soaking in shiny new things to try. And I do. Often. And almost as often, they end up collecting virtual dust on the shelf, tried briefly, not proving sticky enough  to become part of my work or fun flow, or compelling enough to displace what I already use.

Such was the case for Evernote. It seemed so promising – a place to hold and make searchable all the random bits and pieces of your life, work, business. But for me, Delicious, with it’s simple interface and singularity of focus – tag enhanced bookmarking – fit and continues to fit the bill. For me.

And yet, last night when the internet was out, I began looking through the things I’d collected on Evernote – images of business cards, email articles from the network of Presidio, the sustainable MBA program I’m a graduate of, bits of wisdom from the web on management, and clips from articles I’d found about an advance in nighttime storage/alternate use of solar technology – all of which got me inspired to create new possibilities in my business, GreenSmith Consulting.

But it was the final, earliest note, that brought it all together.

From Evernote itself, it had three images on it, two were photos with writing (on a shirt and on a cheese wheel), the third was handwriting. They invited you to try searching for the words on them. And in doing that, it found them. Then it hit me: You could use Evernote to take pictures, not paper.

Let me explain. You’re out and come across a business card, a flier, a book, a newspaper headline at a cafe, a convention, the airport. Normally, you’d have to either take that flier, or write down some bit of whatever you’ve come across, with the hope you’ll remember/make use of/know where to find it when you’re back at the office. And even if you do, it’s another bit of clutter that may not see use later when it’s needed again.

With Evernote, you snap a picture with your cell, or use your computer’s camera to take a picture, tag it, and then there it is, in a central, web enabled yet not web dependent  location. Save paper, increase utility, and if you like, share it with your friends or colleagues. For free.

They do have a paid version, which boosts the monthly upload allowance, expands which file types can be input beyond images, audio, ink or PDF, and skips ads in public notebooks. At $5/month or $45 a year, it would seem a good investment for those who find themselves, well, invested in this service.

So if you’re looking for a second brain to store all the inspirations, ideas, resources, and business cards you come across, Evernote is definitely worth a look. Here’s where you can learn all about Evernote.
Readers: What tool(s) do you use to organize the universe of information you work in?