What's the most devastating shiny object you've ever fallen for in the world of personal note-taking? Something you were sure was going to make all the difference when you were working towards your goals, but ended up being completely irrelevant. -- For me, it was back at the start, when I was convinced that building Notion databases was going to help me pass my A-levels and get into university. I really didn't need this, when what would have worked best would have been to simply hammer flashcards and practice questions over and over again. Since then, I've fallen for a few others, but they've all been part of the journey that means I can come in front of you today and tell you how not to fall for the same thing. -- Let's hear yours 👇

HONESTY FIRST: Claude code wrote MOST of this post. Okay, lets get into it..... 1. Claude.md - The Instruction Manual A markdown file at the root of my vault that Claude reads automatically every session. It teaches Claude: - My vault's folder structure and type system (movements, recipes, tools, people, etc.) - Frontmatter schema and naming conventions (kebab-case properties, daily note linking pattern, etc.) - How my Obsidian plugins work (Templater, Projects, Periodic Notes) - My rating system, tag format, file naming conventions - Business/client project structure and SOPs This is the foundation. Claude doesn't need to "figure out" my system each time — it already knows it. 2. Skills - Custom Behaviors - /end-session - Saves session state when I'm done. Creates a dated session archive and updates a persistent memory file. Two-tier system: working memory (kept under 100 lines) + append-only daily archives. - Training Coach - An always-loaded knowledge base of my training context: athlete profile, injury history, programming principles, supplement protocols, active progressions, and datestamped coaching insights. Grows over time as we (Claude and I) discuss training. - Obsidian Nexus (the name of my vault) - Knows how to create notes that follow my vault's exact conventions (correct folder, frontmatter, wikilinks, type classification). - Social to Typefully - Drafts and publishes social posts via MCP integration. (this deserves its own post — I practically made my own social media scheduler in Obsidian...) 3. Memory System - Continuity Across Sessions Claude Code doesn't remember past conversations by default. I solved this with a layered memory approach: - Persistent memory (claude-session-memory.md) - Active projects, recent decisions, action items, session context. Loaded every session. Capped at 100 lines to stay focused. - Session archives (claude-sessions/YYYY-MM-DD session.md) - Detailed logs of each session. Multiple sessions per day append to the same file. This is the long-term history. - Auto-memory (Claude Code's built-in) - A separate .claude/ directory that persists key patterns and lessons learned. - Active Context files - Top of Mind.md, Body.md, and the Training Coach file are always loaded, so Claude starts each session knowing my current priorities, physical profile, and training state.