The CODE method—Capture, Organize, Distill, Express—is Tiago Forte's four-step model for turning information into output. Capture and Organize behave much like other PKM workflows: save inputs reliably and place them in a structure such as PARA. The novelty of CODE is the explicit emphasis on the back half of the pipeline, where most personal knowledge work actually breaks down.
Distill means progressively compressing notes to their most essential ideas, which is the same as note compression in other traditions. In practice, it is done in layers: layer 1 marks standout passages, layer 2 bolds the most important, layer 3 paraphrases them, layer 4 reorganizes the result, and layer 5 rewrites the takeaway in your own voice. This layered compression is progressive summarization. The risk of skipping layers is keeping more noise than signal, so retrieval stays slow and the saved notes are no cheaper to re-read than the originals. A useful target size is the minimum viable note—the smallest self-contained note that still conveys a useful idea and can later be expanded without becoming unfocused.
Express is what CODE exists to enable: producing a creative output—writing, teaching, designing, or building—that draws on the notes captured and refined. CODE differs from classic GTD precisely here, because GTD centers on managing tasks and commitments while CODE centers on finished creative work. A protected, low-interruption creative hour is one mechanism for protecting this step, and weekly reviews can ensure that active notes are actually being driven toward output. Good notes shorten the distance between raw inputs and coherent writing because ideas are already partially shaped; a strong PKM principle is to store information in ways that make future action easier, not in ways that simply feel organized today.