# Folders as Silos **Topic-based folders are silos**—and **silos kill creativity**. This is one of the most important yet counterintuitive principles in [[Personal Knowledge Management (PKM)|Personal Knowledge Management]]: organizing by topic (what notes are ABOUT) creates silos that limit your thinking. But organizing by type (what notes ARE) provides structure without constraint. ## The Problem When you file a note in a specific folder, you're making a permanent categorization decision: - Your note about "productivity" goes in `/Productivity/` - Your idea about "writing" goes in `/Writing/` - Your concept about "creativity" goes in `/Creative/` This creates problems: ### 1. Exclusive Categorization A folder structure forces you to choose ONE location. But what if an idea bridges multiple domains? What if a concept is equally relevant to productivity, creativity, AND writing? You're forced to pick one, artificially limiting the idea's context. ### 2. Evolution Barrier Your interests and thinking evolve. The categories that make sense today won't make sense in 5 years. But notes trapped in old folder structures become artifacts of outdated thinking. You either: - Leave them in obsolete locations (can't find them) - Reorganize everything (endless, futile work) ### 3. Collision Prevention **Creativity happens when unexpected ideas collide.** New insights emerge when concepts from different domains meet in surprising ways. But siloed notes rarely collide. The productivity note never meets the philosophy note. The business idea never encounters the physics concept. Each stays in its box. ### 4. Retrieval Dependence You can only find notes if you remember which category you filed them under. But months or years later, you might think about that concept differently. Filed under "marketing" but searching in "psychology"? You'll never find it, even though it's relevant. ## Why Folders Feel Right (But Aren't) Folders appeal to our desire for control and order. They look organized. They satisfy our need for neat categorization. But this satisfaction is deceptive. We're optimizing for the feeling of being organized rather than for actual creative output and knowledge retrieval. ## When Folders Actually Work: Type vs. Topic Here's the critical distinction: **folders organized by TYPE work well and scale. Folders organized by TOPIC create silos and fail.** ### Folders by Type (Good) Type-based folders categorize information by what it IS, not what it's ABOUT: - `/Articles/` - published or draft articles - `/Notes/` - permanent notes and atomic concepts - `/Projects/` - active project documentation - `/Daily Notes/` - daily journal entries - `/Templates/` - reusable templates - `/Assets/` - images, files, attachments **Why this works:** - The categorization is objective and clear (an article is an article) - No evolution barrier (an article doesn't become something else) - No exclusive categorization problem (something is clearly one type) - Easy to find (you know what format you're looking for) - Scales indefinitely without breaking down **Note:** Systems like the [[Johnny Decimal system]] take this further by adding numerical structure to type-based organization (e.g., 10-19 for "Projects", 20-29 for "Resources"). This provides even more clarity while maintaining the type-based approach that avoids topic silos. ### Folders by Topic (Problematic) Topic-based folders categorize by subject matter: - `/Marketing/` - notes about marketing - `/Psychology/` - notes about psychology - `/Business/` - notes about business - `/Personal Development/` - notes about self-improvement **Why this fails:** - Creates the exclusive categorization problem (ideas span topics) - Becomes outdated as interests evolve - Prevents cross-domain collision of ideas - Makes retrieval dependent on remembering original categorization ### The Hybrid Approach: Best of Both Worlds The most effective structure combines type-based folders with other pathways: **Use folders for TYPE:** - Provides clean, scalable structure - Makes technical organization manageable - Separates different formats appropriately **Use other methods for TOPIC:** - **Tags** - add multiple topic keywords to each note - **Links** - connect related concepts across folders - **Maps of Content** - gather thematic collections - **Search** - find based on content regardless of location This creates multiple pathways to resurface information: - Browse by type when you know the format - Search by topic when you need specific knowledge - Follow links when exploring connections - Use MoCs for thematic navigation **Example:** An article about using psychology in marketing lives in `/Articles/` (type), but has tags `#psychology` and `#marketing` (topics), links to relevant concept notes, and appears in your "Marketing Strategy" MoC. You get structure without silos. Organization without isolation. Clarity without constraint. ### Ready for a System That Does This Right? The [[Obsidian Starter Kit]] implements this exact hybrid approach out of the box. You get: - **Type-based folder structure** - Pre-configured folders for Articles, Notes, Projects, Daily Notes, and more - **Powerful tagging system** - Templates and workflows that make multi-topic tagging effortless - **Maps of Content** - Ready-made MoCs showing you how to gather topics without creating silos - **Johnny Decimal integration** - Optional numerical organization for even more clarity Stop reinventing the wheel. Get a battle-tested system that combines structure with flexibility from day one. [Get the Obsidian Starter Kit →](https://store.dsebastien.net/product/obsidian-starter-kit) ## The Better Approach Instead of topic-based folders, use: ### Type-Based Folders (Limited) Use folders only for TYPE distinctions: - Articles, Notes, Projects, Daily Notes, Templates, Assets - Keep it simple - 5-10 top-level type folders maximum - This provides structure without creating silos ### Non-Exclusive Topic Organization For organizing by TOPIC, use methods that allow multiple categorizations: - **Tags:** A note can have multiple tags, existing in multiple contexts simultaneously - **Links:** Create [[Map of Content (MoC)|Maps of Content]] that organize through relationships rather than hierarchy - **Search:** Find based on content and keywords regardless of location ### Emergent Organization Instead of prescribing topic categories upfront, let topic organization emerge through: - [[Connecting ideas|Links between notes]] - [[Map of Content (MoC)|Maps of Content]] that gather related ideas - Tags that create flexible, non-exclusive groupings - Search that finds based on content, not location The goal: Use type-based folders for structure, but rely on tags, links, and search for topic-based discovery. This creates multiple pathways to information without the exclusive categorization trap. ## Evolution and Adaptability **Whatever TOPIC structure you create today won't work in 30 years.** Your interests will evolve. Your way of thinking will change. A rigid topic-based folder hierarchy that makes perfect sense now will feel like a prison later. But type-based folders remain stable (an article is always an article). And a link-based topic system adapts as you do. A note can belong to multiple topic contexts. Relationships can be added or changed. Tags can be updated. Organization evolves with your thinking—without requiring massive folder reorganization. ## Practical Implementation If you're transitioning from topic-based folders: 1. **Keep or create type-based folders** - Articles, Notes, Projects, Daily Notes, etc. 2. **Don't reorganize everything immediately** - that's another form of over-engineering 3. **Start with new notes** - file by type, organize topics via tags and links 4. **Move old notes opportunistically** - when you encounter them, refile by type and add topic tags 5. **Create Maps of Content** - gather related notes through links, not topic folders 6. **Add tags liberally** - multiple topic tags per note create multiple discovery paths 7. **Trust the hybrid system** - structure from types, flexibility from tags and links ## The Creative Payoff When notes aren't siloed by topic: - Unexpected connections emerge during search or browsing - Ideas from one domain inform problems in another - Your thinking becomes more integrative and original - Serendipity becomes a feature of your system - Multiple pathways lead to the same information (type, tags, links, search, MoCs) You maintain structural organization through type-based folders while enabling creative collision through tags, links, and Maps of Content. This is where real intellectual growth happens—in the connections across topics, not in rigid topic categories. ## Master the Principles of Effective Organization Understanding type vs. topic organization is just one aspect of building effective knowledge systems. The [[Knowledge Management for Beginners]] course covers the complete framework: - How to organize information for long-term retrieval and use - The principles behind different organization approaches - When to use folders, tags, links, and Maps of Content - Building systems that scale and adapt as you grow Stop guessing at organization. Learn the principles that make it work. [Start the Knowledge Management for Beginners course →](https://knowledge-management-for-beginners.com) ## Related - [[Avoid complex folder structures]] - [[Challenges with folders and tags]] - [[Categories are limiting]] - [[Connecting ideas]] - [[Map of Content (MoC)]] - [[Cross-pollination of ideas]] - [[Creativity is just connecting things]] - [[Johnny Decimal system]] - [[Obsidian Starter Kit]]