My Craftsmen's Corner: Obsidian
Welcome to "My Craftsmen's Corner," a series in which I share the tools that have become my allies in the journey of knowledge and discovery. Today, I'm excited to introduce you to a tool that has transformed my world of thoughts and ideas: Obsidian.
Obsidian is a unique knowledge base that works on top of a local folder of plain text files written in a format called Markdown. For those unfamiliar, Markdown is a simple way to format text that is easy to write and easy to read. You can read more about Markdown here Markdownguide.org. Obsidian is like having a magic book that stores all my thoughts, ideas, and knowledge. You can learn more about Obsidian on their official website Obsidian.md.
As an agile toddler, Obsidian has become my "Second Brain," a term coined by productivity expert Tiago Forte [1]. This Second Brain is an external system that helps me store and systematically recall the insights I've gained over time.
One of the ways I use Obsidian in my work is to store and organize psychological theories and research. For example, I have notes on various theories of motivation, each linked to relevant research studies and practical applications in the workplace. This interconnected web of knowledge allows me to quickly retrieve and apply psychological insights in my work and on this blog.
In one memorable instance, while preparing a workshop on team dynamics, Obsidian's ability to link notes helped me make unexpected connections between motivation theories and conflict resolution strategies. This led to a comprehensive and well-received workshop that combined these elements in a novel way. You can find the workshop here Operation - Thunderstrike
Obsidian is more than a storage system. It's a dynamic and interactive "garden" of knowledge. Each note I create is like a seed. As I nurture these seeds with new information and link them to other notes, they grow and connect, forming a lush landscape of ideas.
In the agile environment, Obsidian excels as a tool for collaboration and knowledge sharing. Its ability to link and cross-reference notes makes it easy to track ideas and insights, fostering a culture of transparency and continuous learning.
For those of you who are new to Obsidian and want to go a little further down this rabbit hole, here are some helpful YouTube channels that have helped me plant the first seeds in my Obsidian garden and help them grow.
- Linking Your Thinking
- Nicole van der Hoeven
- Joshua Meyer: Playlist - Obsidian Tutorial Zettelkasten fĂĽr Beginner
In the meantime, I invite you to explore Obsidian and experience the joy of watching your garden of thoughts and concepts grow. Remember, every great garden begins with a single seed. And if you have experiences with similar tools or questions about Obsidian, feel free to share them in the comments below. What other tools are you using to manage your knowledge garden? How have you watched your knowledge garden grow and evolve over time?
🌱 Happy Gardening!