![[goodbye-evernote.jpg]] <div class="caption"> Image generated by Gemini </div> 01/25/2025 This might be heresy to share this here, but I use Evernote. I know. Seriously, I have used Evernote since 2008. Next to Microsoft Office apps and Logos Bible Software, that is longer than any other app in my toolbox. I have over 31,000 notes stored in Evernote, and in 2020, after reading a couple of articles on [Interstitial Journaling](https://nesslabs.com/interstitial-journaling), I started to keep an Interstitial Journal in Evernote. In the last 3-4 years, probably since the introduction of [Roam Research](https://roamresearch.com/), the notes app field has gone through a renaissance. Today, we are probably entering a Golden Age of note taking as AI starts to get really good and more reliable. ### It Was the Best Of Times, It Was the Worst of Times During this time, Evernote has had its ups and downs. Once the King of the Hill, the app went through almost a decade of steady decline. The developers were long on promises and short on delivering updates. What was once the undisputed champion became the object of mockery and ridicule. When Bending Spoons purchased the app at the end of 2022, they began the Great Purge of '23. They increased prices dramatically, and for most of 2023, Bending Spoons simply let Evernote bleed users. Whole new communities developed on various forms with everyone sharing their “I’m finally leaving Evernote” stories. It was so bad, that at the start of 2024 someone created an “EvernotePositive” forum on Reddit with a clear mission: “A tiny community to recall, reminisce of Evernote's glorious past and rich history, fighting through its turbulent present and hoping for a brighter future.” Like old, retired guys who get together for coffee and drive their restored 1970s Chevy Caprices, we gather on Reddit and talk about the good old days when Evernote was great. We share our war stories of our time in v. 10, the great security breach of ‘13, the privacy crisis of ‘16, and all the comrades we lost during the Great Purge of ‘23. Those were the best of times and the worst of times. As any surviving Evernote user will tell you, things aren’t too bad right now. Bending Spoons has [delivered on their promises](https://evernote.com/blog/100-improvements-2024) and Evernote could be on the verge of a new era of popularity and prosperity. Key influencers like Tiago Forte still stand by Evernote and the app and Francesco D'Alessio [lists](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZsTe66ypwB0&t=494s&ab_channel=ToolFinder) Evernote as the number two “second brain” app behind Notion and right before Obsidian. So why this post? ### Saying Good-bye to Your Trusted System One of the key productivity principles put forward by David Allen is the importance of a trusted system. Based on his now famous quote, “Your mind is for having ideas, not holding them.” Whether you follow the GTD framework in 2025 or not, the value of a trusted system is indisputable. Learning to trust your system, however, takes time. In order to let your “mind become like water,” you need to trust that when you put a note or task in your system, it will surface when you need it. If you can’t trust your system, then your mind will need to keep track of where something is at or remember when you need to do something. Suddenly, the back burner of your mind is simmering constantly and the kind of “mind like water” peace Allen is describing is lost. For many years, Evernote has been my daily driver. Everything I need to know and depend on is in Evernote. It is my trusted system. At the same time, I desire the modern capabilities of Obsidian, especially the ability to connect thoughts together. This concept, introduced to 21st Century Audiences by [Sönke Ahrens](https://www.amazon.com/How-Take-Smart-Notes-Technique-ebook/dp/B09V5M8FR5/ref=sr_1_1?crid=1IKHB7XR6HC6I&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.P4lnuc7hsz-rV2Jw_ea9aRrq_pcURCqsr7-5F_fLDZNg6a15UaXEu4VSUUFtRVyruOtlqMwubfD9DigIINmZXw9WMmqx8-lBTVBkFtteMstsMyIY-vYCCuBOlEpfs34tiOoQbhg-oUeiL-MjIMF6MqoOuMjI1Dx2dXxFLVWmqapJ9_uOnYl-YJcUWCGjVsCDzn4Q6Ntq2xzCb0vV3hEoGFUf1yH-aYOwiVRxVVniKWQ.8e7Ox8C_ReeF3rMq6Ne_tv8xwAmwUVBAjJIOtTSb5cU&dib_tag=se&keywords=sonke+ahrens&qid=1737758278&sprefix=sonke+ahrens%2Caps%2C133&sr=8-1) and then empowered in a modern notes app by by Conor White-Sullivan with Roam Research, is a game changer. In frees modern writers and researchers from the search bar and permits a whole new generation to build knowledge connections and create new content. Plus, with the advent of AI, we are on the verge or the Second Information Revolution. These are exciting times. More than anything, the purpose of this essay is to help me flesh out my thoughts as I start to let go of my old friend Evernote. Intellectually and logically I know it is the right decision, but the rest of me is grieving in a sense. My fingers and my brain are hardwired for Evernote, so much of it is just second nature. But, it’s time to look towards the future and working to develop new muscles and new thought patterns to eventually land in a place where Obsidian is a trusted system. It takes time, so give it time. It will be worth it.