Stephen Bynghall sets out his view of personal knowledge management (PKM) and how to make it work for you.

What is PKM?
There is no generally accepted definition of what personal knowledge management (PKM) actually is.  Even if there was it would still mean different things to different people, depending on their own priorities and activities. 

Some of the areas PKM touches upon are:

• Personal effectiveness and getting organised
• Dealing with information overload
• Using technology and the web
• Learning and development (including CPD)
• Personal networking and managing relationships
• Making sense of an increasingly complex and fast-moving world

An attempt at a definition
Here are two succinct descriptions which are useful in describing both the concept and the type of actions involved in PKM.

On his website, knowledge management David Gurteen described personal knowledge management as “taking responsibility for what you know, who you know – and what they know.”  

Wikipedia, citing academic Janis Grundspenkis, defines PKM as a “collection of processes that an individual carries out to gather, classify, store, search, retrieve, and share knowledge in his/her daily activities.”

Examples of PKM
Some examples of PKM activity might be:

• Organising a series of links and RSS feeds on iGoogle for current awareness
• Working out a system on how to prioritise which emails to respond to
• Having regular meetings with different colleagues to keep on top of different subject areas
• Keeping in touch with your contacts in a more organised fashion
•  

Thinking about PKM
When you’re thinking about Personal Knowledge Management and the type of systems, techniques and tools which could work for you, there are some things worth bearing in mind. These are:

• PKM is personal to you
• A PKM “system” is never going to be perfect
• Flexibility is important
• It’s not just about technology
• Managing relationships is the most important aspect

This time it’s personal   
The most important word in Personal Knowledge Management is personal.  What might work for one person does not necessarily work for another individual or their particular circumstances. 

PKM has to work for you and what you do.

It’s also worth remembering that everybody already carries out PKM to some degree. Some of these activities probably work very well.  Does any of it really need fixing?  If you’re happy using a hugely complex spreadsheet to generate your weekly shopping list and it works well for you, then carry on.

Managing your own expectations
PKM techniques and tools tend to be introduced in response to a problem, but it’s important not to regard them as a miracle cure. No system is perfect and expecting it to be so inevitably leads to disappointment and perhaps the perception that the system has failed.

For example in dealing with information overload, you may use a system to prioritise the way you respond to emails. This may make it far more manageable, but it’s still not going to reduce the number of emails you have. Any issue with information overload may principally be a reflection of being involved in too many projects.

Be flexible!
A system may not be perfect, but you may be able to make it better or adapt it to make it work better for you. Also your circumstances might change. For example you may be doing a lot of travelling for a period, and using a mobile device in a different way may help you.

The role of technology
For many PKM has become wrapped up with how to use technology. This is partly because we interact more with technology as individuals, but also because the internet and the growth of application-rich mobile devices, has given individuals access to a sophisticated set of PKM-related capabilities.

When thinking about how to apply PKM it’s worth divorcing it from technology. This helps not only to manage your expectations – an IPhone  app is not going to solve all your problems – but also means taking a more holistic look at knowledge sharing in general.  Reading, talking and filing pieces of paper may actually be your best PKM solution.

Managing relationships is important
We live in a very connected world and all personal knowledge management activities are likely to incorporate aspects of managing relationships with other people. Meaningful knowledge and its transfer come about through interaction.

The importance of relationships in PKM behaviours can be seen in how we use the internet. This is not only through the use of social networking sites which cover both the professional (LinkedIn) and personal (Facebook), but also in the decline in the use of search and the growth of social tools.

It’s easier to find relevant content by reading a blog, through a subject-relevant RSS feed or from a recommendation of somebody you trust than doing a search for it.

In fact if your PKM activities do not involve anything to do with managing your connections, then it might be worth asking yourself if you are taking the right approach.