My Five Favorite Evernote Uses

 ©iStockphoto.com/Luis Carlos Torres

Perhaps you are a fan of Evernote, as I am. I use it for everything. It’s my notepad and my filing cabinet, and I can access my files from anywhere.

In case you don’t know Evernote, here’s a quick overview. It is a filing system in the cloud. You can keep your files in Evernote and they sync seamlessly between your computer, your smartphone and your tablet. You create a “note,” and then store your note in a “notebook.” These virtual notebooks keep your notes organized. You can also add tags so you can easily search for items. You can even create stacks of notebooks, which is a great way to keep similar information together.

For instance, I have a notebook stack titled “Students,” and in that stack is a notebook for each of my students. In that notebook, I can have as many notes as I like. I keep track of a student’s repertoire, billing, deadlines. I even store copies of letters of recommendation I have written. And whether I’m in my studio or away from home, I have the information at my fingertips.

My latest Evernote filing project has been to keep track of my solo concert repertoire. I upload a note for each piece, with the complete program listing, including opus number, composer’s dates, etc. I also include any program notes for the work and the performance timing. In my notebook stack of “Recital Programs,” I have a notebook with solo programs filed by year. Each program is a separate note, and each piece in the program is listed as a tag. This way, when I review my repertoire, I can instantly look up every program on which I performed that piece. And when I put together a program to be printed or sent to a presenter, I have all the information I need at my fingertips. No more looking up information in different places, or having to wait until I’m back at home to look up everything.

Even better is the ability to email a note to someone directly from Evernote. You can also share notes to work in a collaborative context. And I can forward relevant emails from students or clients directly to the appropriate Evernote notebook.

So what are my five favorite Evernote uses?

1. My Student Roster. As mentioned above, I keep each student’s records in a separate notebook, and all of them in the “Students” notebook stack. This has been a real time-saver for me.

2. My Concert and Gig Information. Each performance has its own notebook in which I file all my correspondence about the performance, including copies of the contract. I use the performance date as the title of the notebook. I organize those notebooks into notebook stacks by the type of performance.

3. My Concert Repertoire. I can’t believe I didn’t think of this as soon as I found Evernote! This is a link to my note for Edmund Schuëcker’s Mazurka.

4. My Online Recipe Collection. I love to cook and to research recipes online. This is where I file them, with tags for the main ingredients. My latest find is this Oven-Fried Chicken recipe.

5. My Purchase Receipts. I hate having to print out all those email receipts from online purchases. Instead, I just file them in Evernote until I no longer need them. If I need a hard copy, I can print it, Otherwise, I just hit delete!

Do you use Evernote? What’s your favorite tip?