Newsletter Archive

DeveloPassion's Newsletter 189 - Folklore

A newsletter discussing Knowledge Management, Knowledge Work, Zen Productivity, Personal Organization, and more!

Sebastien Dubois

10 Mar 2025 — 7 min read

Hello everyone! I’m Sébastien Dubois, your host. You’re receiving this email because you signed up for DeveloPassion’s Newsletter. Thank you for being here with me ✨

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Welcome

Welcome to all the new readers ❤️

Another week, another newsletter! I hope that you all had a great one 🥩

I've been away for a little while, immersed in one of Belgium's most incredible cultural experiences – the Carnival of Binche. This isn't just any carnival; it's a breathtaking tradition that dates way back, with the first written records appearing in 1394. Since 2003, it has been recognized by UNESCO as a "Masterpiece of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity" – and for good reason!

The carnival spans three days, starting on Sunday and ending on Tuesday (Mardi Gras). The highlight is the appearance of the "Gilles" – traditional characters who wear costumes with wax masks, elaborate headdresses with ostrich feathers (when the weather allows), and wooden clogs. This year, a Gille once again started his journey from my home, which meant we woke up at 3 AM on Tuesday. It was an intense day of celebration, dancing, music from drums and traditional instruments, and yes, perhaps a bit more drinking than was wise (champagne glasses at 5AM then beers starting at 9AM is TOUGH 😂) ! We only returned home around midnight, exhausted but exhilarated.

If you come to Belgium at the right period, then make sure to come by, you won't be disappointed.

I took two weeks off. The first one because my kids were on vacation and I wanted to be there with them, and after the carnival, because I needed time to recover from the frenzy of the celebrations. It's been a wonderful break, but now I'm back and ready to dive into my projects again.

Alright, let's gooooo 🚀

This Week's Highlights

Returning from the historic Carnival of Binche
Resuming work on the Knowledge Management course
Obsidian goes free for work
How AI and PKM can complement each other
A wealth of resources for PKM and Obsidian enthusiasts

Before You Go Any Further - Gift card

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You can also share (and use) the following discount code to get 10% off all my products: "oclm7z2"

The Lab 🧪

After my carnival-induced break, I'm getting back to work with renewed energy. Tomorrow I'll resume recording my Knowledge Management for Beginners course, focusing on module 6 out of 9. I'm now two-thirds of the way through the recording process, which is exciting progress!

It's taking longer than I initially hoped to complete the course, but I remain committed to delivering a high-quality learning experience that genuinely helps people build effective Knowledge Management systems. This isn't just another productivity course – it's a comprehensive guide to transforming how you capture, organize, and leverage information in both your personal and professional life, with or without AI.

If you're interested in mastering the art of Personal Knowledge Management and building a system that truly works for you, I encourage you to check out the course at knowledge-management-for-beginners.com. Pre-ordering now locks in the current price before it increases after launch.

Notes to AI: My Current Workflow

One of the most exciting developments in my PKM journey has been the integration of GenAI tools with my knowledge base. I've been refining my workflow for leveraging notes with AI, which currently looks like this:

I maintain a well-structured Obsidian vault with clear organization and consistent metadata
I use a custom script to convert selected folders of notes into large text files
These files contain metadata including file names and frontmatter, making it possible to reference specific notes during AI conversations
I upload these files to LLMs (particularly Gemini 2.0 Pro Experimental with its massive context window)
For LLMs with Google Drive integration (Claude, NotebookLM, Gemini), I store the prompt files in my synchronized Google Drive for direct access

I also use other tools such as the Model Context Protocol (MCP) to directly let Large Language Models (LLMs) read my notes and follow links.

This approach allows me to have AI-assisted conversations that draw directly from my personal knowledge base. The AI can reference specific notes, understand relationships between concepts, and help me develop ideas based on my existing knowledge.

AI Knowledge Management Blueprint

I've been thinking a lot about how AI is changing Knowledge Management. The possibilities are exciting, but I'm also cautious about the pitfalls. As I noted recently:

AI makes you efficient at being average. PKM makes you efficient at being exceptional. Don't let AI turn you into an NPC

This sentiment reflects my belief that AI should augment our thinking, not replace it. The most powerful approach is combining robust Knowledge Management practices with AI tools that can help us process, connect, and leverage our knowledge in new ways.

I've been developing what I call an "AI Knowledge Management Blueprint" - a framework for integrating AI into PKM workflows without sacrificing depth or personal insight. This blueprint incorporates:

Capture systems that use AI to help collect and process information
Connection mechanisms that identify relationships between ideas
Creation workflows that leverage both AI and personal knowledge
Retrieval systems that make finding information effortless

The key principle is maintaining human judgment at the center while using AI to handle routine tasks and surface unexpected connections. As I refine this blueprint, I'll share more details in future newsletters.

Good systems prevent chaos. Great systems turn chaos into opportunities

The best approach isn't abandoning traditional PKM for AI, nor is it rejecting AI entirely - it's finding the thoughtful integration that amplifies your unique perspective and thinking.

Latest Articles

No new articles this week

Quotes of the Week

Treat ideas like cattle, not like pets - Approaching our knowledge as something that should be useful, adaptive, and sometimes disposable helps us build more resilient PKM systems.
Your PKM system is a garden. Daily notes are the seeds, atomic notes are the plants, and your knowledge base is the flourishing ecosystem. Nurture it daily - Just like the traditional cultivation in the Carnival of Binche has evolved over centuries, your knowledge system needs regular care to flourish.
Good systems prevent chaos. Great systems turn chaos into opportunities - In both traditional celebrations and modern knowledge work, effective systems transform randomness into meaningful experiences.

New & Interesting Links

Here are some useful resources I've discovered recently:

Obsidian & PKM

Obsidian is now free for work - This is wonderful news for teams and companies wanting to use Obsidian professionally without licensing concerns. It's a bold move that will likely accelerate adoption in corporate environments.
How to sync your Obsidian vault for free using GitHub - A clever alternative to Obsidian Sync that leverages GitHub for version control and synchronization. I've been using a hybrid approach with Git and Syncthing, which offers similar benefits. It's a variant of the approach I use for my own vault, where I combine Git + GitHub, and Syncthing
Boosting productivity in Obsidian with iOS Shortcuts - A fantastic guide for iOS users who want to streamline their capture process. These shortcuts can significantly reduce friction in getting ideas into your system.
Smart Connections plugin workflow - This article demonstrates how to leverage the power of the Smart Connections plugin for Obsidian to discover relationships between your notes that you might otherwise miss. It's one of my favorite tools for making serendipitous connections.
Why researchers should use Obsidian - A compelling case for academics and researchers to adopt Obsidian for their work. The non-linear, connection-based approach is particularly valuable for complex research projects.
Task management redefined with Obsidian - A fresh perspective on using Obsidian not just for notes but for comprehensive task management. The integration of tasks with your knowledge base is powerful.
Track anything in Obsidian with beautiful charts - This guide shows how to visualize your data directly within Obsidian, which can provide valuable insights into your habits, productivity, and knowledge growth.
Right now, more Internet is being deleted than is being created - A sobering reminder of digital impermanence and why personal knowledge management systems are more important than ever. We need to preserve what matters to us.
An Obsidian horror story. Or why you should always be cautious about the community plugins you choose to use
Text Extractor plugin for Obsidian - This plugin is greatly useful for extracting text from images and PDFs directly within your vault. It makes incorporating visual content into your knowledge system much more seamless.

AI & Technology

Claude Code - Anthropic's new CLI tool for developers is a fascinating step toward making AI more accessible in development workflows. I've been experimenting with it and find it particularly useful for quick coding tasks without switching context. Details and links here: Claude Code
OmniParser - Microsoft's open source tool helps LLMs understand UIs better, which has enormous potential for creating more effective automation tools and agents. This could be a key building block for future AI assistants. Details and links: OmniParser
Readwise Chat - This new feature allows you to have AI-powered conversations with your reading highlights, which is a brilliant way to engage more deeply with what you've read. It's like having a study partner who knows everything you've highlighted.
Deepseek - I've been increasingly impressed with this AI model's reasoning capabilities. It sometimes outperforms more well-known models for certain types of analytical thinking and problem-solving.
An interesting AI Safety report
Andrej Karpathy on the AI consolidation trend

That's it for today! ✨

About Sébastien

I am Sébastien Dubois. You can follow me on X 🐦 and on BlueSky 🦋.

I am an author, founder, and coach. I write books and articles about Knowledge Work, Personal Knowledge Management, Note-taking, Lifelong Learning, Personal Organization, and Zen Productivity. I also craft lovely digital products . You can learn more about my projects here.

If you want to follow my work, then become a member.

Ready to get to the next level?

To embark on your Knowledge Management journey, consider investing in resources that will equip you with the tools and strategies you need. Check out the Obsidian Starter Kit and the accompanying video course. It will give you a rock-solid starting point for your note-taking and Knowledge Management efforts.

If you want to take a more holistic approach, then the Knowledge Worker Kit is for you. It covers PKM, but expands into productivity, personal organization, project/task management, and more: