# Using Proximity Everyone tends to forget how we use the proximity between notes to build relationships. Organizing by proximity can be weak and arbitrary (airplane flight sitting next to total strangers) or strong and meaningful (airplane flight next to your family). It just depends on what level you apply it. There are 3 basic levels of proximity. **1\. Organizing by Proximity in the main folder:** - _Alphabetical_: Sure “Apple” and “Banana” start next to each other and hold a strong relationship. But over time that proximity will change; because years later the list looks like “Apple”, “aqua”, “aqualung”, “arabesque”, “arachne”, “arbiter”, “arc”, “arena”, “aries”, “arise”, “Arkansas”, “Banana”. So relationships that start out strong can weaken over time.  - _Chronological:_ If you sort by creation date, the proximities between notes won’t change but they are inherently more arbitrary (random), except for their temporal context (which holds varying value depending on the context). - _Topical_: If you want several notes all about the same topic, you might even consider “baking in” that topic into the filename. While this may be useful in small doses, be aware, this creates rigidity in your PKM system. So when might you want to use it? Maybe for a book or a workshop/course like this one: - LYT Unit 1 - LYT Unit 2 - LYT Unit 3 **2\. Organizing by Proximity in the same subfolder:** - Notes in the same subfolder will have a closer relationship since they are grouped in the same vicinity. But this comes at the cost of being silo-ed from the rest of the note library. **3\. Organizing by Proximity in an MOC (Map of Content):**  - Notes in the same MOC are very likely to be closely related, especially after they are manually sorted in some form of relational positioning. This is the best way to apply the power of proximity. _**Using just a single note, you can identify and build relationships between notes.**_ --- ### Question You are already using proximity in obvious—and not so obvious ways. In your notes, write out a few ways you are currently using proximity in your PKM system. How do you feel about each usage? Let’s discuss below.