🌴231. Index Cards > Google Docs

Description

Today I broke my own rules from The 2-Hour Workshop Blueprint… then remembered why they exist. I tried to type a workshop outline straight into a doc at the café (hello, friction and tab-opening). So I shut the laptop, ordered a long black, and went old-school: one idea per index card. Suddenly the ideas poured out, the structure revealed itself, and now the only problem is what to cut.

What I cover

Why linear tools (docs/slides) can choke early-stage ideas
My café routine: long black, closed laptop, stack of coloured index cards
“One idea per card”: how that unlocks subtopics, sequences, and linkages
Using symbols, tiny sketches, and 2x2s on cards to spark connections
Sorting → building → writing transitions (in that order)
How to avoid research rabbit holes while ideating
When I still use Post-its vs when index cards win

Try this (mini playbook)

Leave the laptop shut.
Set a 45–60 min timer.
One idea/story/data point per card (no full sentences).
Mark research items with a “?” and keep moving.
Cluster cards into themes; promote/demote subtopics.
Lay your “through-line”: intro → 3–5 beats → close.
Draft only transitions next. Slides come last.

Little cheats I use

Symbols: ➡️ transition, ★ key line, Ⓠ audience question, ☁️ story, ? research later
Colour code: e.g., blue = data, yellow = stories, pink = exercises
Quick visuals: Venns, simple graphs, 2x2s sketched right on the card
“Stuck?” rule: swap the card, don’t open a tab