You might be looking for the right Obsidian course to help you get started with the Obsidian note taking app, or maybe you’ve already dipped your toes into using Obsidian MD for note taking but are feeling a bit overwhelmed by possibilities. I’m a fan of making Obsidian Notes accessible to anyone who’d like to use this powerful and customizable app for their personal knowledge management system. It can be hard to know where to start— there are so many dizzying options. Here’s my roundup of the best Obsidian training courses (including free resources and paid) and Obsidian tutorials to help guide you along your journey. Enjoy!

Getting started with Obsidian Notes – my articles and guides

I’ve written a few relevant tutorials on Obsidian MD, including a popular step-by-step guide to getting started with Obsidian Notes:

Free YouTube Obsidian Tutorial Videos

If you want to explore video tutorials for Obsidian Notes, check out these YouTube creators:

Nicole van der Hoeven

Bryan Jenks

Nick Milo

Various guests on Anthony’s Desk

Obsidian Notes forums and documentation

If you’re looking for an answer to a particular question about how to set up a particular function in Obsidian, search and browse these sites:

Find the right Obsidian course: paid and premium training options

Some people find that the structured approach of a course helps them get started with Obsidian, or to simplify their approach if they’re feeling a bit overwhelmed by all the options. If you’ve explored the above resources and are feeling unsure of where to get started, one of the paid courses below might be the right fit for you.

Elizabeth Butler, Obsidian for Minimalists

Course website: https://elizabethbutlermd.com/courses/obsidian-for-minimalists/
Course creator website: https://elizabethbutlermd.com/
Course description: “A practical introduction to Obsidian Notes for busy people. This step-by-step guide shows you how to take minimalist, simple, streamlined notes in Obsidian. Stop worrying about the perfect knowledge graph– and focus on what’s in your notes, instead. This is Obsidian MD for the rest of us.”

🎉 I’m delighted to announce that as of December 2023, Obsidian for Minimalists is now launched and available for purchase! 🎉

Nicole van der Hoeven, Obsidian for Everyone

Course website: https://courses.nicolevanderhoeven.com/o4e
Course creator website: https://nicolevanderhoeven.com/
Course description: “Learn about how to use Obsidian from scratch in this no-nonsense, self-paced video course. You’ll use Markdown to write notes and make meaningful connections between ideas… without enabling third-party plugins. I’m Nicole van der Hoeven, a developer advocate who relies on Obsidian for work and play. If you like the way I explain things on YouTube, you’ll like this course.”

Curtis McHale, Getting Started with Obsidian

Course website: https://curtismchale.ca/education/
Course creator website: https://curtismchale.ca/
Course description: “In this course we’ll go over the basics of how to get started with Obsidian. I’ll show you how I set my vault up and give you tips on sync, note formatting, markdown, using daily notes…and much more. By the end of the course you’ll have a solid handle on Obsidian so you can build your note-taking process for the future.”

Nick Milo, Obsidian Flight School

Course website: https://www.linkingyourthinking.com/obsidian-flight-school
Course creator website: https://www.linkingyourthinking.com/
Course description: “Make Notes at the speed of thought. Learn how to harness the full potential of the Obsidian app. Fly around your notes. Earn your wings today.”

The Sweet Setup, To Obsidian and Beyond

Course website: https://thesweetsetup.com/obsidian/
Course creator website: https://thesweetsetup.com/
Course description: “A master-course for Obsidian users (new and old alike). Finally organize your notes and ideas to make creative output easy. Get Obsidian set up right. Save yourself time, frustration, and missed opportunities.”

Tool Academy (formerly Keep Productive) and Justin DiRose, Obsidian Made Simple

Course website: https://toolacademy.xyz/learn-obsidian/
Course creator website: https://justindirose.com/
Course description: “Obsidian is a PKM tool with huge potential for your notes. We focus on how to take you from the beginner’s of PKM all the way to advanced use of Obsidian – both on desktop and mobile. We’ve broken the course into beginner, intermediate and advanced.”

Looking for a practical, no-fuss approach to getting started with Obsidian?

I hope that you’re able to find what you’re looking for amongst the above resources! If you’re looking for a streamlined, simplified approach to building a note taking system in Obsidian, you might be interested in my newly-launched course, Obsidian for Minimalists.

Obsidian for Minimalists is a step-by-step guide, showing you exactly how to set up your Obsidian Vault to take minimalist, simple, streamlined, text-based notes. Stop worrying about the perfect knowledge graph— and focus on seamlessly, effortlessly capturing your great ideas and inspiration instead. You’ll learn exactly how to:

  • Install Obsidian and create your first vault
  • Customize the interface to create a beautifully minimalist workspace
  • Build a folder-based notes organization system (you don’t have to worry about tagging, bidirectional links, or a knowledge graph)
  • Ditch unnecessary clutter with a carefully-curated, small selection of plugins that actually streamline your work

Obsidian is a highly customizable, flexible note taking app that puts you in the driver’s seat. But it’s easy to feel pressure to maximize, to use every last feature and customization and plugin available. But just because you can do something, doesn’t mean you should. It’s okay to leave things on the table. To choose a simpler path. To minimize choices and overwhelm. To opt out of too many features and customizations. To come across other people’s complex Obsidian setups and say, without any lingering fears of missing out, “good for them– not for me.”

The Obsidian for Minimalists course helps you take a more streamlined approach to building your personal knowledge system in Obsidian– without the overthinking, rabbit holes of internet research, or hours spent on over-optimization that doesn’t actually help you move the needle on projects that matter to you. It’s designed to be a simple, straightforward, practical approach to building a note taking system in Obsidian. Get up and running in an afternoon.

Obsidian doesn’t need to feel complicated. Obsidian for Minimalists will get you set up with an easy, reliable note taking system so you can spend your time thinking and writing (instead of tinkering with endless plugin settings).

This is Obsidian MD for the rest of us.

Learn more about the course >