Does Your Lab Notebook Suck?

Change Your Mindset! A guide to lab notebooks for scientists who hate taking notes.

YOU ARE A SCIENTIST

Whether you are a senior postdoc or an undergraduate intern, if you are in a lab doing experiments, you are a scientist. One of the most important things a scientist does—if not the most important thing—is keep a strong, comprehensive record of their experiments.

As a scientist, regardless of your experience level, you are actively contributing to the scientific community. When you conduct lab experiments, you gather data, make discoveries, and create a body of knowledge.

Keeping detailed, accurate records of your experiments is essential for several reasons, including the following:

• Reproducibility: If your experiments are to have any validity, they must be reproducible. Detailed records allow other scientists to replicate your experiments and verify your results.

• Continuity: Science is a cumulative process, with each discovery building on previous knowledge. Your records will allow future scientists (and future you!) to understand and build upon your work.

• Efficiency: Good records allow you to track what you have done, what worked, and what did not. These records help you avoid repeating mistakes and progress more quickly.

Your records are your legacy as a scientist. We all know we need to keep them. However, knowing that we should be doing something is not the same thing as knowing how to do it—or why it is important that we personally do it. We also might not enjoy doing it.

This guide provides practical advice on some of the psychological barriers or mindsets that may prevent scientists from updating their notebooks regularly and comprehensively and how to take action to resolve these issues. It is one thing to know something is important, but it is another to feel personally invested in it.

Addressing these mental barriers can help scientists understand why maintaining a lab notebook is not just a chore but a vital part of their role, turning a task that may feel daunting or tedious into something manageable and meaningful.

Click the above image to get your digital download or subscribe to continue reading the full guide!