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There’s so much to blogging than just writing. I’ve learned that blogging is keeping up with ideas, drafts, SEO notes, Pinterest plans, and content you won’t use until next season. I had so many ideas, but I didn’t have a real system to manage them all until I found Capacities. It’s now the backbone of how I organize everything for my blog and my life.
If you’ve never heard of it, Capacities is a personal knowledge management (PKM) tool—think of it as a digital workspace where you can think out loud, organize your ideas, and actually find them again later. I’ve tested a lot of apps over the years, but Capacities has completely changed how I work and manage my life.
If you’re looking for a practical Capacities PKM setup guide to keep your work and life organized and moving forward, this one’s for you. Here’s how I’ve set mine up for success.
Table of contents
Read more about why I switched to Capacities: Why I Switched to Capacities Notes—and Can’t Stop Raving About It
Start With a Simple Structure
Before starting your PKM setup, understand that Capacities works a bit differently than traditional note-taking apps. Instead of folders, you create objects. These could be pages, people, blog posts, images—whatever makes sense for your workflow.
For my setup, I have a few key objects:
- Daily Notes for daily tasks and journaling.
- Weekly Notes for key objectives, brain dumps, and events.
- Goals to help me stay on track. I have Annual, Monthly, and Quarterly Goals.
- Blog Posts for organizing my blog post essentials, such as keyword, KD/SV, meta description, Google and website URL, etc.
- Ideas for random thoughts, keyword inspiration, and learning random stuff.
- Social Media for repurposing blog content into Pins, Threads, Reels, etc.
- Affirmations for motivation and self-love.
- Gratitude for appreciation.
- Books to organize my TBR and Currently Reading lists.
There are more, of course, but these are the main objects I use consistently. They are a great start if you are unsure of which objects to create first. Each object type has its own template(s) to jot things down quickly and consistently.
Create Templates to Save Time
Templates are great for saving time, so you don’t have to recreate the same layout every time when you open a new page for your object. Capacities allow you to set up multiple templates for each object, improving your PKM workflow.
Setting up a personal knowledge management workspace is perfect if you’re working on multiple projects at once. Depending on what I make for a particular blog article, I make multiple social media arrangements. It helps me keep my notes neat and presentable.
Besides blogging, here are some examples of what my templates look like. I hope these templates offer you some inspiration.
Daily Notes Template
Every morning (mostly weekdays), I start my workday by opening the Daily Note. This is where I list my daily to-do tasks and routines. It’s where I focus on my affirmations, gratitudes, and where I can do some quick journaling.
I link my tasks to other objects using the @mention feature. That way, I can always go back later and see how the idea or project evolved.
At the top are my daily prompt, gratitude, and affirmation, then my morning routine and a brief journal entry. Because I adore quotes, I also have a quotation every day. I prefer to start my day this way, although all of these are optional.
Other stuff on my Daily Template include:
- Today’s Mission: priority tasks for the day.
- Social Media Networking: to stay connected and engaged with other creators.
- Today’s Side Quests: for smaller tasks
- Today’s Events and Reminders
- Chores
- Afternoon Check-In: a quick mental health check-in
Then I finish my Daily Notes off with an Evening Routine, followed by some final thoughts to end the night.
Weekly Notes Template
I can arrange my weekly goals, projects, and crucial events using my weekly template. I’ve also included a space for any tasks that need to be done next week.
Additionally, I have a weekly overview that lets me see what’s going on throughout the week. Moving items around is simple, and when I pin it, I can see it as a side panel with my Daily Notes or other items.
Blog Post Template
Even though I have a Google Sheet with a list of keywords, I find it difficult to manage. Furthermore, it will become even more overwhelming if I include additional information. I continue to use my Google Sheet for keyword research, then transfer the results to my PKM setup on Capacities, which is both aesthetically beautiful and functionally well-structured.
I mark my articles with their Google Sheets number and the keyword, and arrange them so that I can easily find anything. They are also tag-organized, which makes it simple for me to automatically classify everything and link them to more specific pages on those details. This isn’t something I can do easily on Google Sheets.
For a template, I simply create properties. A property is a custom field you want to track for that type of object. So, while properties help you track details, templates help you save time and stay consistent when creating new entries.
- Status
- Trends: when the keyword is trending during specific months
- KD/SV
- Published Date
- URL
- Google Link
- Title
- Type of Blog
- Category
- Related Keyword
- Meta Description
- Images
What’s great about Capacities is, if you decide to add a new property, it will update that property on every entry created in that object.
Below the property, I will create specific social media templates for the content I create. This shows me which content is going where and when it was scheduled. I recommend you create a separate template for each platform you use. This will help streamline your Capacities PKM setup for every content you create.
Note that you can have multiple templates and use specific ones for each entry, but all the properties for each object remain constant until you permanently remove them.
Social Media Template
I create a separate object strictly for each of my social media content, and they are all linked to my blog posts object. This allows me to keep track of all my content and repurpose them accordingly.
This is my current properties setup for my social media template to streamline my Capacities PKM.
- Image
- Article URL
- Threads
- Alt Text
- Description
I have a template for specific platforms, so I can document what I write for that post. Personally, this is for my peace of mind because I like to document it all. However, this is optional if you don’t want to do this part.
Goals Templates
I love setting up my goals on Capacities, because I can easily access them. Being able to see and break down my goals helps me stay on track.
- Annual Goals focusing on my vision for different areas of my life and my blog for the year.
- Monthly Goals to help me break down my larger goals into smaller, more actionable steps.
- Quarterly Goals to break up my annual goals into specific, smaller goals while still allowing me to see the big picture.
Read my article on how to set goals: Mastering SMART Goals: A Simple Guide to Success
These simple templates keep me from forgetting those small pieces that matter as I trot along day by day. I used to spend hours trying to figure out what I should do to stay on track for my goals. Now, I am more focused and can jump right into my tasks with a clear path ahead of me.
You can create templates for anything—Pinterest descriptions, email drafts, product pages if you’re selling something, or even a “What worked this month?” monthly recap.
The Magic of Linking
Linking is where Capacities really shine. This is the biggest reason why I no longer use Notion to manage my life and my blog. The linking feature on Capacities pulls the weight for all my organization in my PKM setup, especially in a way that works efficiently with my thought process.
Let’s say I create a new blog post. I can link it to my goals and social media notes, and even attach it to my Google Docs so I can draft or edit it later.
As I stated earlier, I can link one entry to several other objects. This removes the idea of folders and allows everything to be connected in a way where it is easy to find.
I use this for my blog posts, books, affirmations, gratitudes, quotes, and new ideas objects.
Tagging for Easy Filtering
Tags allow you to organize every entry you make. Some of my tags include productivity, home life, article categories, and monthly trends. I use tags to categorize the type of blog it is, when it’s trending, and track its status.
Later, when I’m looking for specific blogs to write about in August or for Self-Care, I can click on those links, and it will show me all the articles with those tags. I don’t have to sift through all my folders or notes; everything is already organized for me to easily find.
This feature has streamlined my work efficiently.
Resources and Research
If you’re anything like me, you save screenshots, links, and quotes all over the place. In Capacities, I’ve started dumping all of that into its own specific objects.
It includes:
- Bookmarks to articles I might reference
- Books that I’m currently reading or want to read
- Notes from books or podcasts
- Quotes, words, or affirmations I want to use
- Recipes I’m gathering
- Websites to other articles I learned or got new ideas from
Each item is tagged and connected to relevant projects, tasks, or blog posts.
Capacities Visual PKM Setup
Table View
Capacities allow you to view your objects in different ways. I use the Table View for my blog posts because I organize everything by keyword, and I sort everything by property. This allows me to see specific information quickly, and I sort it by title since everything is numbered according to my Google Sheets.
List View
This is a simple view with just the title. I’ve set my Daily and Weekly Notes in this view because everything is titled by date, with the most current dates at the top.
These objects have the same templates and properties. So, it’s less overwhelming to have all the entries organized this way.
Gallery and Wall View
My Social Media, Books, and Goals objects are organized in Gallery View, which is not too different from the Wall View. These views are more visually pleasing and allow you to view specific properties in as a small card.
The Wall View automatically condenses any entries with little to no information compared to the Gallery View, where everything is a set block size.
Seeing the visuals helps me spot gaps—like if all my upcoming posts are productivity-focused and I’m neglecting decor or lifestyle. It allows me to find specific posts more easily.
I also have my Affirmations, Gratitudes, and Quotes objects in these views.
Why I Recommend Capacities
After using Capacities daily for months, I decided to become an affiliate—not just because it’s a great tool, but because I actually use it to run my blog and life. Capacities is the tool I’ve been searching for in the past few years as a PKM for all my work and my life.
If you sign up using my affiliate link, you get some awesome perks:
- Free trial of Capacities Pro for 30 days, where you can test out all the features before committing.
- Direct support of my work – I earn a small commission at no extra cost to you, which helps me keep writing helpful content and testing tools like this
I only recommend tools I use myself, and Capacities has been worth every bit of learning and setup. If you’ve been looking for a smarter way to organize your blog ideas, content plans, life, ideas, and seasonal projects, I think you’ll love it too.
Use my affiliate link to try Capacities Pro and see how it fits into your life.
Why Capacities PKM Setup Works for Me
I’ve tried Notion, Trello, and plain old Google Docs, but they never quite fit how my brain works. Capacities give me structure without boxing me in, and allow me to be creative with user-friendly features.
Capacities have helped me:
- Keep track of ideas and notes without losing them.
- Write faster by connecting content and templates.
- Actually helps me keep track of my content on multiple social media platforms.
- Plan ahead and stay on track with my goals without overwhelming myself.
- Actually enjoy the backend of blogging again. I’ve been able to keep up with publishing one blog post every week!
This Capacities PKM setup guide is about finding a flow that works for your creative brain, your family life, your goals, and your energy levels. Start simple. Add what you need. Leave the rest.
And if you’re a blogger looking for a smarter, calmer way to manage your ideas and content, Capacities might be just the home your workflow needs.
Wow, this is the first time I’ve heard of Capacities, but I may have to check it out. I agree with you and have also used trello, google docs, etc and there is always something missing! Thanks for sharing!
Really interesting! I’ve never heard of it before. Definitely going to check it out. A managing system is so important to keep track of things. Thanks for this review!
You’re welcome! I love it so much!
This is so interesting! I’ll have to check this out and become more organized.
You’re welcome! It’s helped me become more consistent in my blogging journey!
Those were powerful tools! Also I love the color scheme of your blog. Just try to fix the look of the comments UI in mobile.
Thank you for the feedback! I appreciate it!