PKM System

Linking what I think and know

I have a Personal Knowledge Management (PKM) system as an important foundation that supports the ideas, knowledge, information, and efforts in my life as I focus on thinking, linking, and sharing.

LYT frameworks

These are the primary frameworks used in Linking Your Thinking (LYT), which I had adopted for my PKM system. See What is PKM for more about personal knowledge management.

ACE organization (folders): Atlas (knowledge), Calendar (time), Efforts (action)
ARC workflow (ideation): Add, Relate, Communicate

Thinking: PKM system

I established my main Obsidian vault (Ideaverse) using Ideaverse for Obsidian with many enhancements during multiple LYT Workshops with Nick Milo who founded Linking Your Thinking.

My PKM system has developed and matured with each iteration as I resolved sticking points in idea emergence with my focus shifting like phases of the ARC ideation workflow: Add (LYT 11), Relate (LYT 12), Communicate (LYT 13), and Creators Codex writing process (WOW).

I'm learning a lot, making creative discoveries, linking more applications, developing new shortcuts and workflows, reviewing my PKM system, and making improvements again in LYT 14.

Linking: App integration

Throughout that time, I have been very focused on Obsidian Integration with the primary apps in my PKM environment: Arc Browser, Reader, Drafts, OmniFocus, Fantastical, and DEVONthink using support apps, linking, shortcuts, templates, views, scripts, and APIs.

Recently, I migrated my website and blog from Wordpress to the Ghost publishing platform, and also established another Obsidian vault as a digital garden via Obsidian Publish.

My website is organized based on my efforts: PKM, technology, music, and other interests. It's finally coming together so I can now share my ideas, discoveries, and insights with others.

Vaults

As my main Obsidian vault has now grown to almost 8,000 notes, I am currently deep into a remodeling effort.

I am reviewing and refining everything in my vaults, folders, notes, maps, metadata (properties, fields, tags), templates, views, scripts, efforts, outputs, workflows, and practices.

Now this is more important as I extend my private Ideaverse into a digital garden (WarrenWeb Notes) to complement my Ghost website, blog, and newsletter.

Folders

Initially, I'm working on my PKM folders. Earlier, I had created too much artificial hierarchical structure based on traditional organization patterns before linked note systems like Obsidian with maps, tags, and views. Nick Milo always emphasizes that structure must be earned in LYT workshops, so I'm shining my LYT on the ACE organization of my PKM system first.

I started developing my digital garden vault in Obsidian to publish and share early access to what I'm thinking, linking, and sharing. So I needed to determine how it should be organized to benefit others rather than just myself.

Also, my Ghost website migration forced me to revisit the organization, structure, and navigation for its pages and posts, especially as they are created from my Obsidian notes.

Workflows

I transferred a collection of notes from my private Ideaverse vault that I wanted to share into the Add (+) folder (inbox). As I worked on those notes further, I refactored most notes into more atomic notes with a single idea or topic to enhance their reuse and more flexible linking.

Having this new vault helped me focus on a subset of my notes that I wanted to actively develop further for sharing without the distraction of all my other notes. To enhance my focus on my current activities, I created temporary Focus Folders within my inbox, which provided useful structure with a purpose. As these develop further, I integrate them into my main ACE folders where I can mark them for publishing.

Summary

I wish I had discovered all that I have learned through PKM, LYT, and Obsidian many years earlier. However, it's never too late, and I love thinking, linking, and sharing.