Notion database settings

This page documents my preferred settings for standing up a Notion database. If you’re building out your own extended mind system and want a concrete starting point, this is mine. A few things to keep in mind as you read:

• These are preferences, not rules. Use what works for you and discard what doesn’t.
• Notion adds new features regularly. I’ll update this page as relevant changes roll out.
• For a foundational explanation of databases, metadata, and views, see the building blocks of your system.

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The master template

Rather than build a new database from scratch each time, I maintain a master database template with all my standard settings already in place – metadata fields, views, icons, sort order, page template. Whenever I need a new collection, I duplicate the master and layer in whatever modifications that specific collection requires. It keeps every database consistent from the start and eliminates a long list of small decisions (and clicks) I’d otherwise make over and over again. View and copy the template: amandamashburn.notion.site/extended-mind-system.

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Visual defaults

My overall aesthetic for Notion is clean and consistent.

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Icons

Databases get a dark grey notebook icon – indicating a collection of pages. Pages get a dark grey page icon – indicating a single entry, the lowest level of the container. Page templates within a database also get the dark grey page icon by default. The logic: by standardizing icons across the board, the occasional deviation becomes meaningful. If I change a database or page icon to a yellow star, that’s a visual flag – something worth highlighting. If I change it to a yellow broom, that’s a reminder to clean it up. Those signals only work because everything else is the same. At roughly 3,000 pages in my Notion space, assigning a unique icon to each one would mean 3,000 small decisions introduced into my workflow. Two decisions – notebook for databases, page for pages – and I’m done. The exception serves as the signal.

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Colors

All tags default to yellow. If a secondary color is genuinely needed, I use grey. That’s the full palette. Same reasoning as icons: when every tag is a different color, color stops carrying information. When everything is yellow, a grey tag means something. Database headers are plain black. Pages have no header image. I find cover photos add visual noise without adding value, and the decision of which image to use for each database is one I’m not interested in making.

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Typography

Pages use Serif font, normal width, and normal font size. For text heavy pages (e.g., knowledge articles) – ‘full width’ is toggled on.

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Standard metadata fields

Every database in my system starts with the same four fields. For the full explanation of what these fields are and why they’re in every collection, see the building blocks of your system. What follows here is the configuration specifics.

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Name

Required. No configuration needed beyond ensuring it’s the first column.

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Created on

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Last edited

I set every database to sort by last edited in descending order by default. Whatever I’ve touched most recently sits at the top – a natural reflection of where my current focus is.

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Tag(s)

A few configuration notes specific to tags: Single color. All tags are yellow. When I started using Notion I assigned different colors to different tags – until my tag list grew past the available colors and I realized I was spending real mental energy on a decision that added no value. Yellow across the board, done. AI autofill. I turn on AI autofill and Generate new options for the tag field. In the What to generate field I use the following prompt: Read the page title and content, then identify high-level themes it covers. Prefer broad category tags over specific details, and choose fewer tags if unsure.. AI will sometimes surface a category I wouldn’t have thought to assign on my own. It also removes the cognitive overhead of categorization from my workflow – I review the suggestions, keep what fits, and adjust what doesn’t. Keep tags broad. A useful test: would I still reach for this tag five years from now? Hyper-specific tags accumulate fast and clutter the list. Broad, durable categories stay useful. Never leave the field blank. If there’s genuinely nothing to assign, mark it NA. A blank field is ambiguous – it could mean no tags apply, or it could mean the field was skipped. NA removes that ambiguity.

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Additional database settings

A few settings I apply to every database beyond the metadata fields: Count on name field. I add a count to the name column so the total number of entries is visible at a glance. Hide vertical lines. Cleaner visually. Open pages in side peek. For all views. Keeps context without fully navigating away from the database. View tabs: text only. No icons on view tabs – keeps the tab bar clean. Black page header. Applied at the database level.

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Standard views

Every database starts with three views. Additional views are created as needed – duplicated from the table view and modified. The primary table view always stays intact.

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Table – all entries

The default view. Full picture of the collection at all times.

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Gallery

A grid of index cards. Same underlying data as the table view, different lens.

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TODO

A filtered table view that surfaces only pages with TODO in the title – a quick list of everything that needs attention. One useful Notion behavior: if you create a new page directly from the TODO view, Notion automatically prepends TODO to the page title.

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Standard page template

Each database has a default page template applied to new entries. Mine: Icon: Dark grey page icon Font: Serif Width: Normal for pages with less text (e.g., recipes, quotes). For text heavy pages (e.g., knowledge articles) – ‘full width’ is toggled on. Comments: Disabled Set as default: Yes – so every new page opens with these settings already in place

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Last update: 2026.04.17

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