# 3 - Addresses for continuation cards
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Address anxiety is treated as a common beginner roadblock; the solution is to use rules that aim for “good enough” coherence rather than perfection.
Briefing
Old-school Zettelkasten users often stall because they fear “messing up” alphanumeric addresses—one wrong placement feels like it could doom the whole system. The practical fix is to stop chasing perfect organization and instead follow two simple rules: place a new card next to an existing card it has a strong (or at least good-enough) relation to, and use continuation letters/numbers to encode how the new card relates to the specific card it continues.
The address anxiety is common among beginners, and it’s echoed in guidance attributed to Scott Shepherd in his anti–net Zettelkasten guide. The transcript frames the core problem as roadblock-level: people hesitate to start because they worry about numbering mistakes. But the approach advocated here treats mistakes as acceptable and focuses on rules that keep the system coherent without demanding a single “correct” location for every idea. The first rule is grounded in a “golden rule” for adjacency: put a new card closest to its most similar neighbor. Similarity is treated as the most important relation, but not the only one—cards can also be placed near each other when one idea explains, is caused by, or sets up an opposing position to another.
That said, the method rejects the idea that every card must have exactly one perfect home. Starting with broad subject areas—such as using the outline of academic disciplines (as Shepherd recommends)—can lead to imperfect fits, but that doesn’t break the method. The transcript borrows the “good enough” concept from Donald Winnicott: organization should be “good enough,” meaning the new card can be found near an existing card with a strong or adequate relation. The goal is idea development, not building a rigid map where every note has one and only one rightful location.
Once adjacency is handled, the transcript turns to the second rule: how to assign continuation addresses when a new card continues an existing one. If the existing card (card 1) ends with a number, the continuation card (card 2) should end with a letter; if card 1 ends with a letter, card 2 should end with a number. This alternation encodes continuation direction and prevents ambiguity when multiple related notes stack under the same topic.
The rest of the transcript demonstrates these rules using a philosophy course Zettelkasten structure maintained in Miro and visualized in MindNode. The course branch “Examine Life” splits into folders like “Happiness” and “Money,” and idea cards are distinguished by a hyphen in their addresses. A worked example shows an idea card about money making you happy if spent the right way, followed by two response cards: one about giving money to others (ending with “1A”) and another about satisfying basic psychological needs (ending with “1B”). The transcript emphasizes that the “A” vs “B” ending reflects which card is the stronger continuation of the original “1” card—if the continuation relationship flips, the “A/B” placement should flip too.
The takeaway is not that Zettelkasten must be flawless, but that it should be navigable: good-enough placement plus consistent continuation addressing is enough to keep the system useful and growing.
Cornell Notes
The transcript argues that Zettelkasten beginners often freeze because they fear numbering mistakes will ruin their system. The remedy is to prioritize “good enough” organization rather than perfect placement. First, place a new card next to an existing card it has a strong (or adequate) relation to—often similarity, but also explanation, cause/effect, or even opposition. Second, when a new card is a continuation of an existing card, use an alternation rule: if the existing card ends with a number, the continuation ends with a letter; if it ends with a letter, the continuation ends with a number. Examples from a course Zettelkasten show how “1A” and “1B” endings reflect which related card is the more direct continuation.
Why do many people hesitate to start an “old school” Zettelkasten, and what counter-strategy is offered?
What is the first rule for where to place a new card relative to existing cards?
Why isn’t the goal to find a single perfect location for every card?
What is the second rule for continuation addresses when a new card continues an existing one?
How do “1A” and “1B” endings work in the example about money and happiness?
Review Questions
- When placing a new card, what kinds of relationships (beyond similarity) can justify putting it next to an existing card?
- In the continuation-address rule, what ending should a continuation card use if the card it continues ends with a letter?
- In the money-and-happiness example, what does changing which response is the stronger continuation imply for the “1A” vs “1B” endings?
Key Points
- 1
Address anxiety is treated as a common beginner roadblock; the solution is to use rules that aim for “good enough” coherence rather than perfection.
- 2
Place new cards next to existing cards they relate to, prioritizing the closest relation (often similarity).
- 3
Adjacency can also reflect explanation, cause/effect, or opposition—not only “same topic” similarity.
- 4
Zettelkasten organization is for idea development, not for enforcing a single uniquely correct location for every note.
- 5
When a new card continues an existing card, use an alternation rule: number→letter for the continuation, or letter→number.
- 6
Continuation letters like “A” and “B” encode which related card is the more direct continuation of the original card, so the endings should match the continuation strength.