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home / skills / kriscard / kriscard-claude-plugins / template-patterns

template-patterns skill

/plugins/obsidian-second-brain/skills/template-patterns

This skill helps you choose and apply Obsidian templates effectively, guiding template selection, content insertion, and metadata updates for consistent notes.

npx playbooks add skill kriscard/kriscard-claude-plugins --skill template-patterns

Review the files below or copy the command above to add this skill to your agents.

Files (1)
SKILL.md
2.7 KB
---
name: template-patterns
disable-model-invocation: true
user-invocable: false
description: >-
  Selects and applies the right Obsidian note template based on note type — project
  briefs, meeting notes, daily notes, learning notes, book reviews. Make sure to use
  this skill whenever the user wants to create a structured note, asks which template
  to use, or starts a new project note, meeting note, weekly review, or learning
  session.
version: 0.1.0
---

# Template Usage & Application Patterns

Quick reference for selecting and applying the right Obsidian template. Templates are in the `Templates/` folder at vault root.

## Template Selection

### Decision Tree

**Temporal tracking:**
- Daily journaling → `Daily Notes.md`
- Weekly review → `Weekly Planning.md`
- Monthly goals → `Monthly Goals.md`
- Quarterly planning → `Quarterly Goals.md`

**Meetings:**
- Regular meetings → `Meeting Notes.md`
- One-on-one → `1-on-1 Meeting Notes.md`

**Projects:**
- Starting new project → `Project Brief.md`
- Planning details → `Project Planning.md`
- Software feature → `Feature Implementation.md`
- Bug tracking → `Bug Fix.md`

**Learning:**
- General learning → `Learning.md`
- Technical tutorials → `Learning Tech Template.md`
- Book notes → `Book Reviews.md`

**Organization:**
- Creating index/hub → `MOC Template.md`
- Person notes → `People.md`
- Generic → `General Notes.md`

**Other:**
- Problem analysis → `Problem Solving.md`
- Work communication → `Communicate your work.md`
- Fitness → `Weekly Workout.md`

## Essential Sections

Every knowledge note should include these sections (enforced by templates):

### Related Section (required for concept notes)

```markdown
## Related
*Link 2-5 related notes with a reason why.*
- [[Note Name]] — brief reason for connection
- [[Another Note]] — why it relates
```

Purpose: Enforces the 2-Link Rule and builds the knowledge graph.

### Encounters Section (for evergreen/learning notes)

```markdown
# Encounters
*Real-world bugs, usage, and insights. Add entries when you encounter this concept in practice.*

## YYYY-MM-DD - [Brief title]
[What happened, what you learned]
Link: [[TIL or project note]]
```

Purpose: Makes notes living documents that grow with experience.

## How to Apply Templates

**Via command:** Run `/apply-template`, select from list, template applied to current note.

**Via daily-startup:** Daily notes auto-created using `Daily Notes.md` template.

**Manually:** Open template file, copy content, paste into new note.

## Integration with Plugin Commands

- `/daily-startup` → auto-applies `Daily Notes.md`
- `/apply-template` → interactive selection from all templates
- `/review-okrs` → uses `Quarterly Goals.md`, `Monthly Goals.md`, `Weekly Planning.md`

Overview

This skill helps you choose and apply Obsidian note templates effectively so notes start with the right structure and metadata. It focuses on which template to pick for common scenarios, how to apply templates (manual, plugin-assisted, or automatic), and practical patterns for template structure and maintenance. Use it to reduce blank-page friction and keep your vault consistent.

How this skill works

The skill inspects note purpose and context (daily, meeting, project, learning, etc.) and recommends the closest template from the Templates/ library. It explains application workflows: copying/pasting manually, using /apply-template for interactive insertion, or automating creation with /daily-startup and other commands. It also outlines frontmatter, common content sections, prompting questions, and customization/versioning practices.

When to use it

  • Creating temporal notes: daily, weekly, monthly, or quarterly tracking
  • Preparing for or documenting meetings, including one-on-ones
  • Starting or planning projects and tracking feature/bug work
  • Capturing learning materials, book notes, or evergreen insights
  • Building Maps of Content (MOC), people notes, or generic catch-all notes

Best practices

  • Keep templates lean—include only essential sections and 3–5 guiding prompts
  • Use consistent frontmatter (created, modified, tags) and template-specific fields (status, deadline, attendees)
  • Apply templates early in note creation to avoid rework and ensure metadata is set
  • Link to parent area, projects, and 2–5 related notes to enforce the 2-Link Rule and grow the knowledge graph
  • Audit templates quarterly: update used templates, archive or simplify unused ones, and keep version notes

Example use cases

  • Daily startup: run /daily-startup to create a templated daily note with focus, links, and reflection areas
  • Project initiation: apply Project Brief.md in 1 - Projects/[Project Name]/ to define outcome, timeline, tasks, and links
  • Meeting workflow: create note before meeting, apply Meeting Notes.md, capture agenda, decisions, and action items, then link to projects/people
  • Learning processing: capture source in Learning.md, progressively summarize, then extract evergreen notes and add encounters entries
  • Weekly review: apply Weekly Planning.md to review accomplishments, update project status, and plan priorities for next week

FAQ

Can I customize templates for a specific area?

Yes. Copy the template to your personal templates folder, adjust sections and prompts to fit the area, test with real notes, and iterate.

When should I automate template application?

Automate repetitive workflows like daily notes or standard project creation; keep manual or plugin-assisted application for ad hoc or one-off notes.