A Beginner's Guide to Notion
Notion is a versatile productivity tool that combines note-taking, task management, and database functionality. This guide walks you through the basics of using Notion, including duplicating templates, customizing your workspace, and using its advanced features like database relations and roll-ups.
Quick Reference Guide:
Duplicate a Template
Templates in Notion serve as pre-designed pages or databases that you can replicate and customize to suit your needs.
- Access the Template: Navigate to the public Notion page containing the template you wish to duplicate.
- Click the “Duplicate” button located at the top-right corner of the page.
- Locate the Duplicated Template: The duplicated template will appear in your workspace's sidebar under “Private” or “Shared”, depending on your workspace settings.
Tip: Ensure you’re logged into the correct workspace before duplicating.
If you purchased a template from ADHD Gummy Bear, be sure to duplicate your template WITH CONTENT included so that you can retain the pre-created records, widgets, and other reference content. Check out Move & duplicate content on the Notion Help Center
Unlock a Page or Database
Locked pages or databases prevent accidental edits. To make changes, you'll need to unlock them.
- Navigate to the locked page or database.
- Click on the “...” menu in the top-right corner.
- Toggle off the “Lock page” option.
Tip: Lock pages to maintain structure, especially in collaborative environments.
Change a Cover Image
Personalizing your page with a custom cover image enhances its visual appeal.
- Navigate to the page where you want to change the cover.
- Hover over the existing cover image and click “Change Cover.”
- Choose an image from the available options:
- Gallery: Select from Notion's pre-loaded images.
- Upload: Upload an image from your device.
- Link: Paste a URL to an image.
Use the reposition tool to adjust the image placement, then click “Save.”
Modify Database Properties
Database properties define the structure of your data, such as labels, select options, and multi-select values.
- Open the database you wish to modify.
- Edit Properties: Click on the property name you want to edit. In the dropdown menu, you can:
- Rename the Property: Click on the property name to edit it.
- Change the Property Type: Select a different type (e.g., Text, Number, Select).
- Add or Remove Options: For Select or Multi-select properties, add new options or delete existing ones.
Tip: Consistent property naming conventions enhance database organization.
Change a Database View
Notion allows you to visualize your data in various formats, including Table, Board, List, Calendar, and Gallery views.
- Navigate to the database you want to modify.
- Click on the "+ Add a view" button next to the current view name
- Choose the desired viewtype (e.g. Table, Board, Calendar, Gallery, etc)
- Enter the name for the new view and click "Create".
- Adjust filters, sorting, and other settings as needed.
Note: Each view offers unique ways to interact with your data, enhancing flexibility.
Update Relation & Roll-Up Properties
Relations link entries between databases, while roll-ups aggregate data from related entries.
Steps to Update a Relation Property:
- Open the Database entry (you can edit any property from any record or open the default template for your database).
- On the relation property field, right-click on the field and choose 'edit property'.
- To change the related database, select the 'type' and choose 'relation' as the type again, but now you can choose a new database. Add or remove related entries as needed.
Steps to Update a Roll-Up Property:
- Access settings by clicking on the roll-up property within the database.
- Adjust the roll-up configuration by selecting the relation property it references (the related database you wish to pull data over from). Choose the specific property you want to display, as well as determine how you want it to appear under 'Calcultate':
- Show original: will display all values associated by your Relation regardless how many are related to record.
- Show unique values: will filter related values to only show the ones which are unique, any individual duplicate values would be hidden.
- Count: ability to count values based on additional settings to: count all, count non-empty values, unique values, empty, not empty.
- Percent: display the percent of empty or non-empty values
Start with the basics, or explore advanced features to become a Notion expert:
URLs above will open the external Notion Help Center in a new browser tab.
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