# Practical tips

1. Make sure the information question is concrete and that you already have an idea of what an answer might look like.
2. Think first about possible resources and then make a shortlist of what seems most relevant to your question. Google is not your only option!
3. Find out what kind of tricks a search engine or database offers and how you use it to formulate a search based on your keywords.
4. If you have found something that is already in the right direction, see which terms they use to continue your database search. Also use the snowball method and citation method to find more information sources.
5. Keep a search log to quickly find out what works and what does not, and to remember where you've found something. And try new things like another resource or a new search trick in the search engine you use the most.