What's the sweet spot for the number of tags you should have?

MindLedger

It depends is probably the answer. The advice is don't overtag, but is there a rule of thumb, common consensus as to what the upper limit should be?

patriq

I kinda wonder the same thing, since I can't really get good grasp on how to use tags. The videos about tagging and collections are somewhat helpful but I still lack a good tagging strategy.
I feel like I have to get it right from the very start in order to make the tags useful. Especially since putting all notes in the same folder will later make them really difficult to find if I haven't tagged them correctly.

So for me, overtagging is the solution at the moment. It will be easier to remove tags later (if necessary).

MindLedger

patriq I've overtagged and realise in some cases I had two or three notes that only used a specific tag. I'm gradually working through them , consolidating/renaming/deleting. A hypothetical question. if I have a #recipe tag for say 80 notes, I could create a whole load of detail tags: #spicy, #cold, #hot, #salad, #appetiser, #dessert, #indian, #mexican, #japanese, #chinese, #french, #italian and so on. That's 12 tags that might not be used on other notes. I might have three recipes that are tagged Mexican and two that are tagged Spanish, so is it maybe better to make sure "Mexican" and "Spanish" are keywords in the title/subtitle rather than creating a detail tag? I then use search and the relevant keyword, e.g., #recipe Mexican or #recipe Spanish. The question is: when to create a detail tag and when to opt for a keyword?

BeckyBarnes

I added a number to the front of some tags and know that I always need to have a #1-tag and #2-tag plus whatever other tags I want on that note. The reason for the number is two-fold: it groups them all together and as soon as I type #1- a list of options to choose from pops up. All notes have one of the #1 tags and one of the #2 tags (listed below) . Some only have two tags while others might have 5 tags. It just depends on the note.

#1-System, #1-Personal, #1-Family, #1-Work

#2-Agenda, #2-Collection, #2-Hub, #2-People, #2-Projects, #2-Reference, #2-Someday, #2-Task, #2-Template

Here are some examples from my system:

✱ Home ---> #1-System #2-Reference #ForeverNotes #ForeverNotesJournal #Active

✱ My System Hub ---> #1-System #2-Hub #Setup

✱ Health Hub ---> #1-Personal #Health #2-Hub

✱ Productivity Collection ---> #1-System #2-Collection #Productivity

✱ December ---> #1-System #2-Collection #ForeverNotesJournal #Month #Active

✱ Marriage Hub ---> #1-Family #2-Hub #Marriage #Wife

P: XYZ Report ---> #1-Work #2-Project #Reports #Active

Mailbox Landscaping I Like ---> #1-Family #2-Reference #Household #Yard

BeckyBarnes

@"BeckyBarnes"#p351Here's a screenshot of all my tags

BeckyBarnes

MindLedger I didn't realize we could search something like #recipe Mexican or #recipe Spanish. That's super helpful!