Obsidian Note Formatting Skill

Obsidian Note-Taker

This skill helps create properly formatted Obsidian notes with consistent structure, frontmatter, and organization.

When to Use This Skill

Activate this skill when:

• User asks to "create a note" or "document" something for Obsidian
• User provides information that needs structuring as an Obsidian note
• User mentions their vault, knowledge base, or Zettelkasten
• User wants to capture an idea, meeting notes, or technical documentation

Core Workflow

1. Determine Note Type

Ask the user or infer from context:

• Technical Documentation: Architecture, guides, how-tos, system docs
• Business/Ideas: Brainstorming, concepts, project ideas
• Personal Notes: Meetings, reflections, daily notes
• Research Notes: Literature notes, source materials

2. Select Folder Placement

Based on note type, suggest location:

• Technical → 1 - Main Notes/
• Ideas → Personal/Thoughts & Ideas/
• Personal → Personal/
• Research → Research/ or topic-specific folder

Ask user to confirm: "Based on this being [type], I'll suggest placing this in [folder]. Is that correct?"

3. Generate Frontmatter

Create YAML frontmatter following this template:

---
date: YYYY-MM-DD  # Today's date
status: capture    # Options: capture, develop, refine, complete
type: note         # Options: note, guide, architecture, workflow, idea
tags:
  - tag1          # 2-4 relevant tags based on content
  - tag2
---

4. Apply Template Structure

Use the appropriate template from references/templates.md based on note type.

5. Format Content

• Use [[wikilinks]] for internal references
• Use [text](url) for external links
• Maintain proper heading hierarchy (# > ## > ###)
• Include "Related Notes" section at the end

6. Find Related Notes in Vault

Before finalizing the note, search the user's Obsidian vault for related notes:

Use the Obsidian MCP tools to find relevant existing notes:

# Search vault for notes related to the topic
mcp__MCP_DOCKER__obsidian_simple_search(
    query="[key terms from note title/content]",
    context_length=50
)

Then add the most relevant notes (3-5 maximum) to the "Related Notes" section as wikilinks:

## Related Notes
- [[Actual Note Title 1]]
- [[Actual Note Title 2]]
- [[Actual Note Title 3]]

If no related notes are found, you can omit the "Related Notes" section or leave it empty for the user to fill later.

Quick Templates

For immediate use without loading references:

Technical Note

---
date: YYYY-MM-DD
status: capture
type: note
tags:
  - technical
  - [topic]
---

# [Title]

## Overview
[One paragraph summary]

## Key Concepts
- Concept 1
- Concept 2

## Implementation Details
[Main content]

## Related Notes
- [[Related Note 1]]
- [[Related Note 2]]

Idea Note

---
date: YYYY-MM-DD
status: capture
type: idea
tags:
  - idea
  - [domain]
---

# [Idea Title]

## Problem Statement
[What problem does this solve?]

## Proposed Solution
[How to solve it]

## Next Steps
- [ ] Action 1
- [ ] Action 2

## Related Ideas
- [[Related Idea]]

File Naming Convention

• Title case with spaces: System Architecture for Auth Service.md
• Remove special characters: : / \ | * ? " < >
• Keep under 60 characters
• No underscores or hyphens in filenames

Tag Suggestions

Suggest tags based on content domain:

• Technical: architecture, api, database, security, devops
• AI/ML: ai, llm, claude, automation, agents
• Business: business, startup, revenue, strategy
• Personal: meeting, reflection, planning, learning

Format: lowercase, use hyphens for multi-word tags

Validation Checklist

Before presenting the note:

• Frontmatter present and valid YAML
• Date in YYYY-MM-DD format
• Status is valid option
• At least 2 relevant tags
• Title clear and under 60 chars
• Content follows template structure
• Wikilinks properly formatted
• Folder placement suggested

Output Format

Present the complete note and instructions:

Here's your formatted Obsidian note:

[COMPLETE NOTE CONTENT]

📁 Save to: `[folder]/[filename].md`

Would you like me to adjust anything?

Saving to Obsidian Vault

After presenting the formatted note, ask the user if they want to save it to their Obsidian vault.

Step 1: Present Note and Ask for Confirmation

After showing the formatted note, ask:

Would you like me to save this note to your Obsidian vault at: `[suggested-folder]/[filename].md`?

Step 2: If User Confirms, Save Using MCP Tool

Only if the user confirms (says yes, save it, go ahead, etc.), then use the Obsidian MCP integration:

mcp__MCP_DOCKER__obsidian_append_content(
    filepath="[suggested-folder]/[filename].md",
    content=[complete_formatted_note_including_frontmatter]
)

Step 3: Confirm Success

After successful save, inform the user:

✅ Note saved to Obsidian vault at: `[filepath]`

Step 4: Error Handling

If MCP save fails:

1. Explain: "I couldn't save directly to your vault"
2. Display the formatted note content
3. Suggest manual save: "You can copy this content and save it manually to: [filepath]"

Important Notes

• Always ask before saving - Never save without user confirmation
• The filepath should match the suggested location from "Output Format"
• Include the complete note with frontmatter in the content parameter
• If user declines to save, that's fine - they have the formatted note to copy manually

Example Workflow

For a technical note titled "Testing MCP Integration":

1. Format note with frontmatter:

   ---
   date: 2025-10-20
   status: capture
   type: note
   tags:
     - testing
     - mcp
   ---
   
   # Testing MCP Integration
   
   [content here]
   

2. Determine folder: 1 - Main Notes/

3. Save using MCP:

   mcp__MCP_DOCKER__obsidian_append_content(
       filepath="1 - Main Notes/Testing MCP Integration.md",
       content=[complete note from step 1]
   )
   

4. Confirm: "✅ Note saved to Obsidian vault at: 1 - Main Notes/Testing MCP Integration.md"

Advanced Features

For complex requirements, see:

• references/templates.md - Detailed templates for all note types
• references/folder-structure.md - Complete folder organization guide
• scripts/validate_frontmatter.py - Validate note structure