What do we do? There are infinite methods, tools, apps, and only so many hours in a day. Do you just keep trying tools/methodologies till one clicks with you?
Fell into that trap before. You recognize that no note taking system is perfect, so you just pick one that doesn’t get in your way. After shuttling between a bunch, I was most productive just using Apple notes for a long time. I use Obsidian now. Feels good and doesn’t lock me in.
What do we do? There are infinite methods, tools, apps, and only so many hours in a day. Do you just keep trying tools/methodologies till one clicks with you?
It's the same in the productivity world as it is in the programming one. Problems never have a perfect solution and you have limited resources and different bottlenecks. People come up with different things, that work for them, that might not work for others.
You can find interesting things if you overlap Software and Personal Behavior resources
Personal resources: time, energy, friction, memory, agency
Software resources: time, computation complexity, memory, business logic
I spent a long time searching, and then trying to invent my own "perfect" system. Where to archive done items, how to organize item priorities, what date format to use, etc.
I saw the system as this external thing that if I could get it just right maybe my life would be solved (exaggerating obviously).
Eventually my focus shifted from the system itself, to my interaction with it. I realized that it wasn't about having a system, it was about removing as much friction as possible.
Yes. Find one that works. Don't strive for perfection in it. And then move on. Don't keep obsessing over organization if what you are doing is working.
As someone who never enjoyed reading non-fiction books (and still doesn't), I've talked about this topic with someone who successfully devours books on the topic of "How to be a great boss". Their suggestion was that while there are many Greats, each with a devout following of their own, you as a non-convert aren't really expected to deeply study GTD and the like and then either Join The Club or better have a good reason not to like this magnum opus. That space of books can be enjoyed simply by lightly reading them, seeing what sticks with you - personally - and then moving on. Since the subject and the methods on offer are so broad, it is really ok to just think "meh" and not waste anymore time on PARA etc., if in that specific case the method just doesn't resonate with you. This is how I arrived at my very slimmed down version of Bullet Journaling - it was supposed to solve my problem and I realized that it's ok not to be a stationery influencer with forty shades of pastels arranged in slightly chaotic groups so they look nice on the Insta.