Before writing a note about someone, ask what you'll want to remember about them next year. Write one thing, maybe two, then stop.
The idea
More data doesn't equal better relationships. It just means you have more data. I've watched people spend 20 minutes updating a profile after a casual lunch, while not reaching out to anyone in three months because they're too busy being digital archivists. The book pushed capturing as much as possible. My newer filter is one ridiculously simple question: What do you want to remember about this person next year? Not next week, not next month. Next year. That question cuts through the noise.
How to do it
After a meaningful conversation, or in your weekly review, ask the question.
Write down one thing. Maybe two if you're feeling ambitious. Then stop.
Filter by how you naturally show care. Celebrators track birthdays. Gift senders track addresses and kids' names. Check-in people track health and life changes.
Ignore the rest. A birthday message from someone who couldn't care less about birthdays is noise.
Example
What passes: they're going through a divorce, so you don't ask about their spouse. Their kid just started college, so you check in about the empty nest. They lost their mom last spring. The name of their rescue pit bull, because they light up talking about it. What fails: their coffee order, unless you plan to surprise them with that exact latte at next year's conference.
Watch out for
Write what you want to know. Skip what you think they'd expect you to track.
Your CRM is supposed to help you be more human. If a detail doesn't match how you naturally operate, it's digital clutter.
Relatable: In Relatable it's a one-line note on the contact, and asking Whiz what you know about that person brings it back before you reach out. A notes app can hold the line just as well. How-to: Manage a contact's profile, What Whiz can do for you.
Related frameworks
Notes the Recorder Can't Take: Let AI keep the transcript, then spend two minutes on four questions: how you feel, when their energy shifted, your energy, what to remember.
The A-List Essentials: For your top people, decide what you'll actually use (birthday, address, family names, outreach interval), then fill in only that, before building fancy tags.
Capture, Summarize, Act: Capture next steps and personal details, condense them soon after, delete the rest, then act on the next steps and file the keepers.
The Will I Use It Test: Pick whatever relationship database you'll actually use, from spreadsheet to CRM to whiteboard, and drop anything you don't.