Some simple things to keep in mind when starting out with Obsidian

baileys-obsidian-method.md

Obsidian Workflow Primitives

• Optimize for speed of capture, speed of retrieval, and then organization, in that order.
• Just because Obsidian can do something (because it can basically do anything) doesn't mean it should. Think of Obsidian as Apple Notes with super powers. Don't overcomplicate things.
• If in doubt, just create a new file. Don't be afraid to create new files even for small things. You can always 'update' or merge them with other files later (look for 'merge' in the command palette).
• Use a single 'scratch-type' note as your home base, and put most of your todos there. I use the Weekly Note from the Periodic Notes plugin as my homepage.
  • Tip: I use the 'Homepage' plugin to make my Weekly Note my 'default state'
    • 
  • See: https://stephango.com/todos
  • Specific tasks associated with a project can go on the project-specific page. This is not that serious, though. Just keep it simple. If you want to find all open tasks in your vault, search for task-todo:"".
• Write first, organize later. Your Obsidian workflow should match your speed of thought and not get in the way. You want to eliminate any thinking that doesn't get the thoughts in your head into a file. If you're wasting time thinking, "Where do I put this note?" before you've even created it, you're wasting your brain power!
  • Don't use too many folders, just make sure the file exporter is set to sort by Modified time (new to old) and let the organization happen naturally.
  • Use the 'Create unique note' command heavily and just brain dump!
• Optimize your notes so you can find them later (because what is the point of writing something if you can't find it).
  • [[YYYY-MM-DD]] ([[2024-02-26]]) everything so you can find it.
    • Tip: Write @today in your editor to link to the current day's note.
  • Be very descriptive with your note and meeting titles. They don't have to be pretty. This is your single player vault, not something for other people. Make it pretty when you convert it to a Google Doc or something.
    • Don't be afraid to even have full sentences as your file titles.
      • Here is an example of a real note file of mine: 2023-11-03 1509 Things to check on when you get back from vacation
• Ignore most of what you see on YouTube about Obsidian. People LOVE making things overly complex and tweaking everything too early.
  • 99% of what you see on the internet about creating the "perfect" Obsidian vault/system is noisy productivity porn. Don't overdo the properties and data view. Just write.
    • If the tip doesn't make it much easier to find the file later, it's probably noise.
• Only use Obsidian for simple task management. Tasks that need reminders or complex due dates should likely go into a tool that is made for that.
  • Until Obsidian supports this as a first-party plugin/feature, I'd avoid the task management plugins.

Important Obsidian Commands (and the Hotkeys I have them set to)

• Apply Template: CTRL + T
  • I keep it simple and use the default Template plugin
• Command Palette: CMD + P
• Quick File Switcher: CMD + O
• New Unique Note (like this one): CTRL + CMD + N
  • I keep it simple and use the default Unique Note plugin. (YYYY-MM-DD HHmm format)
• New Meeting Note: CTRL + CMD + M
  • This is the most complex workflow I have. I use the 'QuickAdd' plugin to title my meeting notes in this format: {{date}}.meeting.{{VALUE:What is this meeting about?}}
• Cycle Check Box/Bullets: CMD + Enter
• Keyword Search Vault: CMD + SHIFT + F
  • Obsidian's Search Guide