Microsoft OneNote is a powerful note-taking toolif you know how to use it.
The credit goes to the humongous number of features offered in the app.
However,organizing notescan get tedious in OneNote if you arent familiar with all its organization features.
So, we will tell you the best ways toorganize your notes in OneNotein this post.
Microsoft has two OneNote apps OneNote and OneNote 2016.
You shouldcheck the differences between themand see which one you are using.
The following tips for organizing notes will work in Microsoft OneNote on Windows.
you could use them on other devices as well.
Create Multiple Notebooks
I like OneNote because it offers a hierarchical folder structure.
At the top, lie the notebooks.
Initially, you will have just one notebook.
But you’ve got the option to create as many as you want.
Each notebook consists of multiple sections and pages.
To create a notebook, choose the Notebook name at the top.
Then, tap on Add notebook option at the bottom.
Similarly, it’s possible for you to create additional notebooks in OneNote.
Do checkseven useful tips for OneNote notebooks.
Tip:Facing sync issues with OneNote?
Find outhow to fix OneNote sync error on Windows and Mac.
Create Sections and Section Groups
hit the Notebook to open it.
Sections will greet you.
you’ve got the option to create sub-sections inside each section.
you’re able to further create a subsection for each chapter.
To create a section, launch the notebook and select Add section at the bottom.
Name it as per your need.
you’re able to rename it later.
To create a subsection, right-punch space below the sections.
hit New section group.
Name the section group.
The section groups will have an arrow next to their name.
Drag the existing notes that you want to add in the section group.
To create a new section directly under the section group, right-punch the section and select New section.
Use the small arrow next to the section group to show or hide the subsections.
Create Pages and Subpages
Now, sections include pages and subpages.
You will write your actual content on pages.
Each page has a title that defines the content inside it.
give a shot to use a relatable and descriptive title for your page.
Page titles are added at the top of the page.
To create a page, tap on the Add page option at the bottom of the page area.
Alternatively, right-punch space and select New page.
To create a subpage, right-hit a page and select Make subpage from the menu.
The page will be made the subpage of the page above it.
Alternatively, use Ctrl + Shift + Alt + N keyboard shortcut to create a new subpage.
Right-choose the subpages for options like promote and collapse subpage, if need be.
Use the small arrow next to the page to show or hide the subpages.
Interestingly, you’ve got the option to create a subpage from a subpage as well.
Just right-press a subpage and select Make subpage.
So expand as you go.
take a stab at add numbers to your page titles to identify them oruse emojisfor better visibility.
To add an emoji, use the Windows key + period (.)
shortcut to launch the emoji panel on your Windows PC.
Take the help of the search feature in OneNote to find your note.
press the search icon on the left side of OneNote and key in any term present in your note.
A list of notes containing the search term will be shown.
press the note that you want to open.
press the second drop-down box under your search box to choose where you want to search.
Search can also come handy to find tags, as shown next.
Use Tags
Tags in OneNoteare a way to mark your sentence or paragraph to index and find them quickly.
Consider them aslabels for your notes.
OneNote offers several pre-defined tags such as definitions, starred, to-do lists, etc.
Take the example of definition tags.
you’ve got the option to even create custom tags.
To create a tag, place your course anywhere in the text that you want to tag.
Repeat the procedure to untag.
it’s possible for you to even right-click and tag your text.
To find the tag, initiate the search in OneNote and click once on the Search box.
The Tags used in your notebooks will appear.
If you dont see your tag, punch in the name and search.
opt for tag to see the results.
you might use this functionality to add subsections and subpages.
Just drag and drop the section or page to its desired location.
you’re able to reorder items within the same or different sections and notebooks.
Then, choose the new destination.
Sort Pages
OneNote offers several ways to sort your pages.
To do so, press the sort icon at the top of the page list.
snag the mode as per need.
Color Code Your Notes
To easily identify your sections and notebooks, you’re free to color-code them.
you could use the same color for similar types of sections.
Always choose the color that you could easily identify with.
Then, right-opt for section or notebook name and select Color from the menu.
Then choose your desired color.
Pro Tip:you’re free to also change the background color of your page.
For that, go to the View tab at the top and select Page Color.
you might even create bulleted and numbered lists and change font style and size.
you’re able to also highlight the text for better visibility in your notes.
You will find all of them under the Home tab.
Tip:Thinking of switching to OneNote from Google Docs for writing your documents?
Know thedifferences between thembefore you switch.
Align Text
For better readability, it’s possible for you to align your text in OneNote.
For that, use the alignment options from the top bar under the Home tab.
Drag it towards the right to change the alignment.
Resize Notes
When you add notes in OneNote pages, you will notice a box around your data.
you might resize and move this container according to your need.
Click anywhere on the text to make the box visible.
When the box appears, resize it using its borders.
Then move the container.
With one hit its icon in the Start Menu, you will be able to access your desired item.
That will differentiate it from the rest of the collection.
The unread notes title will be bold.
This feature can come handy for students as well.
If a certain chapter is yet to be read by you, just mark it as unread.
When you mark a page as unread, its corresponding section and notebook will also be marked as unread.
To do so, right-grab the page and select Mark as unread.
Link Pages
One of the best ways to organize content in OneNote is by linking the pages or sections.
If you have usedNotion, you must be familiar with linking pages.
Find outhow Notion fares against OneNote.
Clicking on the link will immediately initiate the linked page.
you’re able to use it to jump from page to another within OneNote.
For best use, add two-way links, i.e., on both pages.
That will help in switching back quickly.
you’ve got the option to also create a Table of contents page linking each page.
The link will be copied to your clipboard.
bring up the page where you want to paste it.
Then, right-click and select paste.
hit the link to switch pages.
Archive Notebooks
If you are looking for the archive feature in OneNote, you wont find it.
Thats because it goes by a different name Close notebook.
you’re free to hide your entire notebook from the main panel of OneNote by closing it.
terminate the notebooks that you dont require now.
The data in them will remain as it except you wont see them.
you’ve got the option to always add them back.
To close a notebook, right-punch the notebook name and select Close this notebook.
Bonus: Password Protect Your Sections
Have something important inside your notebook section?
Lock it with a password.
Password protection is available for sections only.
All the pages inside in a section will be locked.
Right-choose the section and select Password protection.
Learn in detail aboutpassword protection of OneNote sections.
Next up:Do you love Microsoft OneNote?
Check out 12 additional tips and tricks for OneNote to use it like a pro.
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