Staying Curious and Inspired: The Power of Commonplacing

4 Mar 2025

How many times in university or else have you come across something thought-provoking, thinking – “I have to note this down or else I’ll forget it!” – or – “I need to remember to look this up later, I don’t have the time now.” – without actually following up on that little piece of knowledge you gleaned from your daily encounters? It happens every single day. We regularly neglect new ideas and minimise spontaneous learning in favour of efficiency and productivity in our professional, academic, even personal lives. Naturally, this is normal but having a tool to help you incorporate this kind of learning and novelty into your everyday life can have an amazing positive impact on your personal growth and help you bring intentionality into your days. This little habit is called commonplacing.

A commonplace book is essentially a personal learning journal kept by your side at all times. It is a place where you write down concepts and information you have learned, quotes you have read that sparked your interest, phrases, random observations, thoughts and ideas. Imagine it like a sketchbook for your ideas or a library of your knowledge. There are no rules for the content – you can have a themed commonplace book or a general one – anything that serves the purpose of your learning. It is a great creative practice to help you with organisation and clarity of thought. Keeping commonplace books was especially popular during the Renaissance period and it’s long, continuous history leads to many great authors and thinkers such E. M. Forster or John Locke who even wrote an entire book on his method!

So, how do you keep a commonplace book? Get yourself a small, compact notebook that will fit in your pocket or bag easily. Then, decide how you’d like to space out and organise your entries. Make an index page and number individual pages so that you can navigate between concepts easily. You can also organise your book by alphabetical order, topical sections, or let the practise be completely free-spirited and organise it retrospectively. Bear in mind that common placing is supposed to be more eclectic and readily available so don’t overthink it too much. You are free to fill your book with all sorts of boundless, fascinating content – quotes from your favourite novels, ideas from articles you read recently, intriguing concepts introduced by a lecturer, something your friend said in a conversation, phrases in Latin, vocabulary additions, observations from your evening walks, etc. This practice makes you into an active reader because you are intentionally looking for things that interest you. It helps you be more present in your life and receptive to reality and yourself – aiding self-discovery and building awareness.

University is the perfect environment for commonplacing. Every day you come across new notions in your lectures or during research. Additionally, studying purely within the bounds of your degree can sometimes feel tiring, therefore commonplacing helps you claim your learning journey and introduce new fields of knowledge. Be curious and note down things that truly interest you. This builds more comprehensive systems of understanding and can in turn improve your academic thinking.

Commonplacing is a fun, spontaneous, and beneficial hobby so give it a try and see how you feel!