Go From PARA Method Beginner to Second Brain Pro with Obsidian MD (Free Setup Templates and Course)
Summary
TLDRThis video script outlines a method to enhance the PARA (Projects, Areas, Resources, Archives) system using the note-taking app, Obsidian. It guides viewers from basic folder organization to advanced techniques like linking notes and utilizing templates and queries for automated organization. The tutorial aims to help users transition from folder thinking to a more dynamic and interconnected note system, ultimately building a 'second brain' for efficient knowledge management.
Takeaways
- 📂 The script discusses the limitations of using folders for organizing notes and introduces the PARA method as a more advanced system.
- 🔗 The PARA method leverages the power of links to overcome the limitation of folders by allowing notes to be referenced in multiple places simultaneously.
- 💡 Level 2 of the PARA method suggests using notes to organize notes, rather than relying solely on folders, by utilizing headers, bullet lists, and other organizational tools.
- 📝 Level 3 of the PARA method involves personalizing notes with different properties, enabling automatic organization and retrieval of notes when needed.
- 🧠 The video emphasizes the importance of moving beyond traditional folder-based thinking to a more dynamic and interconnected note-taking system.
- 🛠️ The script introduces the use of the templator plugin in Obsidian to automate the creation of note structures based on predefined templates.
- 📝 Templates are used to classify and personalize notes, adding properties such as status, tags, links, and deadlines to enhance organization and retrieval.
- 🔍 The use of data view queries in Obsidian is highlighted to further organize and display related notes within a note, effectively turning a note into a dashboard.
- 📚 The PARA method is presented as a fraction of a larger system needed to fully capture, organize, distill, and express knowledge within Obsidian.
- 🎓 The video offers a free email course for viewers to learn how to set up a comprehensive system for knowledge management using Obsidian.
- 👋 The presenter, John Maverick, encourages viewers to like, subscribe, and stay mindful, indicating the end of the video and a call to action for engagement.
Q & A
What is the main issue with using folders to organize notes in a digital age?
-Folders are a physical organization method from over a hundred years ago and are limited in the digital age because they can only store a note in one place at a time, which is not flexible for organizing interconnected information.
What is the PARA method and how does it relate to note-taking in Obsidian?
-The PARA method stands for Projects, Areas, Resources, and Archives. It's a system to organize notes in a way that mirrors how our brains naturally work, and in Obsidian, it can be implemented beyond just folders by using links and properties to create a more interconnected note organization.
Why should we consider using notes to organize notes instead of relying solely on folders?
-Using notes to organize notes allows for more flexibility and interconnectedness. Notes can be linked in multiple places, overcoming the limitation of folders which can only contain a note once, thus allowing for a more dynamic and organized system.
How can Obsidian's linking feature help in organizing notes in a way that reflects natural brain organization?
-The linking feature in Obsidian allows a single note to be referenced in multiple places, similar to how the brain makes connections between different pieces of information. This helps in creating a more associative and accessible system of note organization.
What is a 'template' in the context of Obsidian and how does it help in note organization?
-In Obsidian, a template is a pre-structured note that can be automatically used when creating a new note. It helps in note organization by ensuring consistency and the inclusion of necessary properties or fields that are relevant to the type of note being created, such as a project or an area.
What is the purpose of the 'Data View' plugin in Obsidian and how does it enhance the PARA method?
-The 'Data View' plugin treats Obsidian notes like a database, allowing users to create queries to filter and display information based on specific properties. It enhances the PARA method by enabling users to automatically organize and view related notes, such as resources or projects, within a single note, effectively turning it into a dashboard.
How can properties in Obsidian notes be used to further classify and personalize notes?
-Properties in Obsidian notes can be used to add specific metadata to each note, such as status, tags, links, and deadlines. This allows for a more detailed classification of notes and makes it easier to filter and sort them based on their attributes.
What is the significance of using different emojis to represent the status of a project in Obsidian?
-Using emojis to represent the status of a project in Obsidian provides a quick visual indication of the project's progress. For example, a red emoji might mean the project is not yet started, yellow indicates it's in progress, and green signifies completion.
How can the 'templator' plugin assist in automating the process of creating structured notes in Obsidian?
-The 'templator' plugin in Obsidian automates the creation of structured notes by loading predefined templates when a new note is created in a specific folder. This ensures that each note has a consistent structure and includes all necessary properties relevant to its type.
What is the benefit of setting up queries within a note to display related notes based on their type?
-Setting up queries within a note to display related notes based on their type allows for a more organized and accessible overview of interconnected information. It turns a single note into a dashboard that not only contains content but also provides a dynamic view of related notes, enhancing the overall organization and navigability of the note system.
Outlines
📂 Upgrading Organizational Skills with Obsidian
The video script introduces the limitations of using traditional folders for organizing digital notes and proposes a transition to a more advanced system using the Zettelkasten method within the Obsidian note-taking app. It outlines three levels of expertise: Level 1 involves basic folder organization, Level 2 introduces linking notes to overcome the limitations of folders, and Level 3 suggests personalizing notes with properties for automatic organization. The script guides viewers through setting up a basic folder structure in Obsidian, identifying the problem of single-folder limitation, and transitioning to using notes as a more flexible organizational tool.
🔗 Embracing Links for Enhanced Note Organization
This paragraph delves into the use of links within Obsidian to reference notes in multiple places simultaneously, which is a significant upgrade from the limitations of folder organization. It demonstrates how to create a note for a project and link it to relevant resources, thereby allowing for a more interconnected and dynamic organization system. The script also discusses the process of converting folders into notes and using headers, bullet lists, and other formatting options to organize the content within notes more effectively.
📝 Personalizing Notes with Templates and Properties
The script moves on to Level 3 of the Zettelkasten method, focusing on personalizing notes through the use of templates and properties. It guides the viewer through installing the Templator plugin in Obsidian to automate the creation of structured notes. The process includes creating a 'Project Template' with properties for status, tags, links, and deadlines. The video also covers how to set up templates for 'Area' and 'Resource' notes, emphasizing the importance of classifying and organizing notes based on their type to streamline the note-taking process.
📊 Utilizing Data Views for Advanced Note Management
The final paragraph introduces the DataView plugin in Obsidian to create queries that function like database queries, allowing for advanced organization and retrieval of related notes. The script explains how to set up queries to display related resources and projects within a note, effectively turning the note into a dashboard. It also demonstrates how to create tables and lists sorted by various properties such as status, deadline, and alphabetical order. The video concludes with a call to action for viewers to sign up for a free email course to learn more about setting up a comprehensive knowledge management system in Obsidian.
Mindmap
Keywords
💡PARA Method
💡Obsidian
💡Folders
💡Links
💡Templates
💡Properties
💡Data View
💡Kanban Board
💡Second Brain
💡Community Plugins
💡Knowledge Management
Highlights
Folders are just the first level of the PARA method and are limited in the digital age.
Obsidian is a favorite feature-rich note-taking app for enhancing the PARA method.
Level 2 of PARA overcomes folders' limitations by organizing notes like the brain does.
Level 3 allows personalization of notes with properties for automatic organization.
A free second brain and lessons on incorporating the PARA method are offered at the end of the video.
Folders are created in Obsidian for each part of the PARA method: Projects, Areas, Resources, and Archives.
Prefixing folder names with numbers helps maintain order in Obsidian's alphabetical sorting.
Thiago Forte recommends creating folders based on projects, areas, or resources in life.
Folders cannot link a single note to multiple places, which is a limitation.
Level 2 introduces links to reference a note in multiple places.
Instead of subfolders, notes are used to organize notes for greater flexibility.
Headers, bullet lists, and other formatting tools allow for more organized note structures.
Links within notes create a more dynamic and interconnected note organization.
Templates in Obsidian can be used to automate the structure of new notes.
The Templator plugin helps in creating templates for different types of notes.
Properties within notes allow for classification and personalization of each note type.
Data View plugin treats notes like a database, enabling queries to organize and display related notes.
Queries can be set up to display related resources and areas within a project note.
The video provides a comprehensive guide to setting up a second brain in Obsidian.
A free email course is offered to learn how to set up a system for knowledge management in Obsidian.
Transcripts
if all you're doing to implement the
pair method is create folders to put
your notes in then you're severely
limiting the capabilities of your second
brain the truth is folders are just the
first level at which you can use the
para method
folders were made over a hundred years
ago to organize physical files in
cabinets but now we're living in the
digital age so in this video I'll help
you level up your pair system and take
you from Level 1 folder beginner to
level 3 information expert using my
favorite feature Rich note-taking app
obsidian
in level 2 we can overcome the main
problem of folders by organizing our
notes the same way our brains naturally
do
and in level 3 we can personalize our
notes by adding different properties
which we can then use to automatically
organize and find our notes when needed
if you stay until the end you'll get a
chance to download and try out the
second brain I'm making in this video
and you'll also get free lessons on how
to incorporate the other parts of the
code method
anyways it's time to finally unlock the
power of a second brain
but to do so we need to start at the
basics let's start from level one which
is folders and work our way up in
expertise
so in obsidian we can go to the left
sidebar over here and we can find the
folder view which we can use to create
folders for each part of the para method
so if I just click on this button create
a new folder make one for projects make
one for areas resources
and archives since this is sorted in
alphabetical order
we'll actually have to prefix them with
the number since we're sorting based on
actionability projects goes first then
areas third resources then last is
archives so from here on out you're
pretty much done Thiago Forte recommends
you to create folders based on each
project area or resource in your life
but before you do so I want to outline a
problem with using folders so let's say
I had a project I was working on which
was a video on how to use a pair method
in obsidian very random idea I have no
idea where I got it from and as part of
this project I had a note on how to use
folders in obsidian but at the same time
let's say I also had a resource or
obsidian itself because I have other
notes on how to use the app
how to format notes in obsidian I don't
know about you but this note on how to
use folders in obsidian should be
accessible in both this project folder
and this resource obsidian folder
but unfortunately folders are not made
to do that since a note will only be
able to be stored in one folder at a
time that's why I wanted to introduce
links which is level 2 of the para
method
with links you can reference a note in
multiple places at once but to achieve
this we have to go against Thiago
Forte's advice instead of making
subfolders for each project or area of
our life we need to make notes yeah
that's right we're going to use notes to
organize notes instead of seeing them
just as things where you put text in you
can also try to see them as a more
customizable version of folders for
example instead of creating a folder to
keep all notes related to this video
project I can create a note instead so
I'm going to create a new note called
para method in obsidian inside my
projects folder and with a folder we
could only organize the notes via
alphabetical order as seen by when we
were trying to create the para folders
but now we can choose how we can
organize our notes through the power of
headers bullet lists and more so now I
can model the structure of my note
organization based off of my script
which has different levels of using the
pair method and then inside I can have
subheaders for the different levels so
level one is where I would include using
folders in obsidian and here is where we
can start making links to create a link
you just type the left square bracket
twice and as you can see
you can now type in the name of any node
or select it from here so we can choose
how to use folders in obsidian now if we
click on it
we go straight there but that's not all
our folder kind of comes to life now as
we now have a space to think and record
other information we can now add
contacts as to why we included this note
in this outline
and say easiest way
to set up Pera but is also the most
limiting and we now have
the ability to include other information
like maybe the titles I want to use
the thumbnails
and the script in its entirety and of
course the main reason why we did switch
to using notes instead of folders We can
now go to
resources create a new obsidian note and
then also make a link to how to use
folders in obsidian
as well as the other note already in
there which is how to format notes
so now I can take both of these notes
and drag them into the root folder and
safely get rid of these folders so yeah
just look at the difference instead of
only using that subfolder as a means of
organization we can add life and other
ideas into it so yeah congratulations
you've taken the first step to stop
thinking in folders next it's time to
add some personality to each part of the
pair method and to further connect all
this information together we can agree
that projects areas and resources are
all different so why do we create each
one based off of a blank note
we need to be able to classify each node
type and personalize each node based on
its type this brings us to level 3 of
the pair method using templates and
queries to automate this process and
establish the structure to do this
though we're going to need a bit more
assistance so we can head to settings
and turn on community plugins for more
features first I'm going to look for the
templator plugin which lets us
automatically
create the structure of a node whenever
we create it so I'm just going to
install enable the plugin so now we can
close this and first we'll need to
create a folder to store all these
templates in so I'm just going to create
one called templates let's first create
a template for the project note
so we can go to the top here and create
a folder to store all of our templates
in and in here you right click create a
new note I'm going to name it project
template so with obsidian notes you can
include different properties in them
and to do so we can just open up the
command palette which is control or
command p
and we can search up property there's a
command to add file property and we can
also do this just by pressing Ctrl and
semicolon so if I click this we can
create a property for status and in the
status we can use different emojis like
red to mean that it's not yet started
yellow to mean it's in progress and
green to mean it's finished next we can
add a property called Tags to classify
what type of node it is to differentiate
between the different notes we have
so in this case it will just be project
I'm going to press enter and it'll
create the tag and lastly I'm also going
to have one called links which can let
me link it to the higher order node it's
related to in this case a project will
be part of
my projects node so I can link it to my
projects but you can also add a deadline
and we can change the type of the
property from text to A Date to better
fit the occasion
if I click on this calendar icon I can
choose maybe next week I don't know why
it looks like that but we'll just ignore
it and lastly to connect it with the
other notes in the para method we can
include an area property in this case
this will most likely be used for videos
so I'm just going to link it to my
YouTube channel from there we can just
include the structure we had in our pair
method in obsidian video note
to include titles thumbnails and the
script so now we can go to settings
templator settings set the template
folder location to templates enable this
setting that triggers templator on new
file creation and in this folder
template section we can set it so any
note created in the projects folder will
automatically use the project template
so let's test it out if we right click
on projects and then create a new note
here we go our template gets loaded up
I'm actually going to transfer
the contents here into this new node
just so it uses the template named the
spera method in obsidian and we can fill
out the remaining properties
so status is in progress because I'm
technically doing it right now
area is my YouTube channel
since I'll be uploading this video to my
YouTube and yeah now that we have that
finished let's create the templates for
the other notes as well
so right click on templates new note
name it area template and now I can use
the shortcut to create a property which
is control semicolon
and as you can see we get recommended
properties that are already existing in
other notes but for an area we just need
tags so we can label this as an area
note and we can add links to link it to
my areas and lastly we can also create a
resource template this one also isn't
that actionable so we don't need status
we just need tags
can I make a tag for resource and we
also need to maybe add an area it's
related to and there we go just need to
go to settings
templator and set up the folders to also
use the templates so yeah with this new
classification we can take our links to
another level
right now all the links are viewable
through backlinks which we can see by
opening up the right sidebar if we go to
how to use folders in obsidian we can
see all the notes that are linked to
this note but being the nerd I am I want
to further organize them based on the
Note type and see the results in the
note itself rather than in this Pane and
through this the note doubles as a
dashboard of all related notes
not just the content inside of the note
to do this we can set up different
queries to differentiate the related
notes so to do this we will need another
plugin I'm going to go to community
plugins browse search up data View and
as the summary suggests this plugin
treats our obsidy involved like a
database that we can query from
so I'm going to install it and enable it
and exit so for this to work we'll have
to create some areas and resources with
our newly created templates
so I'm going to just copy the contents
here delete it and then
recreate the obsidian resource
paste the content and set the area to my
YouTube channel and for areas I will
create a new note for my YouTube
channel so now
in my project notes
for pair method in obsidian I want to
have a new header
to show all related resources and to
only look for resource notes we can
create a query and to do so we just need
to type three backticks which will
create a code block
type in data View
since we're going to be using code for
data View and we're looking to list all
of the related resources
so we're going to type in list and and
now we only want to see notes that are
related to this note so we can type from
and then two square brackets to indicate
that it has to be linked to this note
specifically
and
we're looking for only resource notes so
the note has to include the resource tag
so if we exit no note show but if we had
a new note like the pair method and we
had it linked to this pair method in
obsidian note we head back look at
related resources and it's there
so now instead of having to
make the link on both notes you only
have to create it on one and it will
automatically track when you visit this
note so we can add this to our project
template and let's create some queries
for areas and resources as well for
areas it would be quite handy to see
what projects I have ongoing in this
area so we can do something like objects
and then we can create another data view
code block this time we can create a
table and this time we can show
properties like the status and the
deadline of the project and we can make
sure that it's linked to this note and
that it is a project and if we check out
what it looks like the pair method in
obsidian project note shows if you want
to take this one step further and create
subheaders and organize them based off
of the status maybe you wanted something
like a kanban board you can have this
subheader as not started and we can
change this to only include files where
the status
contains the red square and it won't
show anything because pair method and
obsidian has the yellow Square to mean
it's in progress so if we create the in
progress header and do the same thing
then change the icon
and exit
we see the project here and last but not
least we can use these queries to also
just show all the different notes of a
certain type and so I'm going to turn
this my area's link into an actual note
and let's say in here I wanted to
make a list of all the areas I have
sorted by alphabetical order just like
so so to create a query like this we can
just type in the three back ticks data
view we can do list
from any note any note with an area tag
and we can sort the results based on the
file name
by descending order so if we exit we see
that we have the area template showing
here so I'm going to also add another
condition where the note isn't in the
template's folder and I'll get rid of
the area template so now if we were to
create another note let's name it my
second brain if we go back to my areas
note it seems to be in Reverse
alphabetical order so we can just switch
it to ascending
and there we go for something like
projects we can create the my projects
note we can sort it by deadline so then
we can do the same thing data view we
can actually create a table this time
since there's more information to show
so we could do table and then for the
fields we just have status deadline and
area and it would be from any notes with
the project tag and are not in the
templates folder
and we would sort this by
deadline descending no ascending so then
if I were to create another project note
test project change the state to
September 28th
and then go back to my projects you can
see it gets sorted in the correct order
because the year month date format
naturally also sorts it in alphabetical
order unfortunately the pair method is
just a fraction of what you need to know
to fully set up a system to capture
organize distill and express your
knowledge inside obsidian
go to the description and sign up for my
free email course to learn exactly how
to do so
you'll get the Vault I made in this
video for free and you'll learn how to
upgrade it to finally start building
your own second brain
alternatively if this is your first time
hearing about obsidian and you want to
know more about how to learn how to use
it you can watch this video right here
anyways if you enjoyed this video be
sure to like And subscribe for more
content like this this has been John
Maverick stay mindful
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