# Obsidian Starter Kit - System - Personal Identity System 🏠 [[Obsidian Starter Kit - User Guide|User Guide]] / [[Obsidian Starter Kit - Systems|Systems]] / **Personal Identity System** The Personal Identity System (also known as the **Me System**, after the [[Obsidian Starter Kit - Reference - Bases#Me (Base)|Me Base]] that visualizes it) is the [[Obsidian Starter Kit]]'s framework for systematically documenting **who you are** and **how you operate** — and then turning that documentation into AI leverage across every domain that depends on knowing yourself: personal development, writing, career management, health, psychology, relationships, time management. Two purposes, one system: 1. **A living reference about yourself** that you improve over time. The notes are designed to be read AND rewritten — your values today are not your values in five years; the system expects evolution. 2. **A context layer for AI** across every domain. The AI assistant becomes dramatically sharper when these notes are filled in: voice consistency, audience targeting, values-aligned advice, context-rich recommendations. Filling in the Me System is the single highest-leverage move for AI users of OSK. #### TL;DR - A constellation of **identity-note scaffolds** in `10 Meta/11 Personal/` covering identity, values, narrative, self-knowledge, relationships, direction, achievements, and voice — ship empty; you fill them in - **Routine scaffolds** in `10 Meta/12 Routines/` (Morning, Shut Down, Reading, Exercise, Health) — also ship empty - **Hub note** ([[About Me]]) links everything; the `## Related` block on each note cross-links siblings - **Visualization layer**: the [[Obsidian Starter Kit - Reference - Bases#Me (Base)|Me Base]] auto-classifies every note into facets (🧭 Identity & Values, 🎯 Direction, 🪞 Self-Knowledge, 📖 Story & Journey, 🌱 Lifestyle, 🌅 Routines, 🎙️ Voice & Style, 👤 About) across multiple views - **AI-guided population**: a suite of dedicated `osk-identity-*` and `osk-personal-*` skills for interviews, harvesting from daily notes, reviews, audits, life-event capture - **The 20% rule**: you don't need to fill in everything. Even a partially populated Me System dramatically improves AI quality. Start with `About Me`, `My Core Values`, `My Voice Profile`, `My Reader Persona`, and one routine; the assistant feels different the same day - Integrates with [[Obsidian Starter Kit - System - Dot System|Dot System]] (achievement/failure hubs link to dots), [[Obsidian Starter Kit - System - Action System|Action System]] (goals trace to life vision), [[Obsidian Starter Kit - System - Journaling System|Journaling System]] (daily/weekly/monthly/quarterly/yearly reviews consume identity context), and [[Obsidian Starter Kit - System - AI Assistant System|AI Assistant System]] (every agent and skill that takes a stance about you reads from here) ## Philosophy Your identity is not static. It evolves through experience, reflection, and deliberate choice. The Personal Identity System captures that evolution. **Core principles**: - **Atomic personal notes**: Each note covers one aspect of identity (values, strengths, fears, etc.). This keeps notes focused and independently reviewable. - **Dual-purpose design**: Every note serves both personal documentation and AI context. You document your values for yourself; AI reads them to give aligned advice. - **You control visibility**: AI skills only load the notes you choose to share. Nothing is exposed automatically. - **Living documentation**: Personal notes are meant to be reviewed and updated regularly. Stale identity notes produce stale AI interactions. - **Hub-and-spoke structure**: [[About Me]] is the central hub. All personal notes link back to it. AI skills start there when loading identity context. ## Note Categories All personal notes live in `10 Meta/11 Personal/` and share the tags `zone/meta` + `type/personal`. | Category | Notes | Purpose | |---|---|---| | **Identity & Values** | [[My Core Needs]], [[My Core Values]], [[My Personal Principles]], [[My Personal Manifesto]], [[My Key Beliefs]], [[My Non-goals]] | What you stand for and what you refuse | | **Narrative & History** | [[My Life Story]], [[My Career]], [[My Education]] | Where you come from | | **Self-Knowledge** | [[My Strengths]], [[My Weaknesses]], [[My Fears]], [[My Darkness]], [[My Enduring Insights]], [[My Communication Style]], [[My Health Profile]] | What you know about yourself | | **Relationships** | [[My Relationships]] | Key people in your life and their roles | | **Interests & Leisure** | [[My Interests]], [[My Hobbies & Leisure]] | What energizes and engages you | | **Direction & Current State** | [[My Life Vision]], [[My Current Life Priorities]], [[Top of mind]], [[My Time Structure]], [[My Challenges]] | Where you are heading and what you face now | | **Achievements & Failures** | [[My Life Achievements]], [[My Career Achievements]], [[My Life Failures & Lessons]], [[My Career Failures & Lessons]] | What you have accomplished and learned from | The hub note [[About Me]] organizes all of these with an additional **Actions & Communication** section linking to [[My communications plan]] and goal-related notes. ## Note Structure Pattern Every personal note follows a consistent structure: **Tags**: `zone/meta`, `type/personal` **Properties**: `created`, `updated`, `last_reviewed`, `notes` **Body pattern**: - Opening summary paragraph stating the note's purpose - Structured sections with content specific to that note's topic - A **Related** section at the bottom linking to other personal notes, relevant permanent notes, and dots The `last_reviewed` property is critical. It enables the `osk-personal-review` skill to identify stale notes (not reviewed in 90+ days) and prioritize them during review sweeps. ## Achievement & Failure Hub Integration Four hub notes aggregate accomplishments and setbacks across life and career: | Hub Note | Scope | Dot Integration | |---|---|---| | [[My Life Achievements]] | Major personal milestones | Links to `type/dot/breadcrumb/win` dots | | [[My Career Achievements]] | Professional accomplishments | Links to `type/dot/breadcrumb/win` dots | | [[My Life Failures & Lessons]] | Personal setbacks and lessons | Links to `type/dot/breadcrumb/fail` dots | | [[My Career Failures & Lessons]] | Professional failures and lessons | Links to `type/dot/breadcrumb/fail` dots | These hubs serve as aggregation points. When the `osk-life-event` skill captures a significant achievement or failure, it updates the relevant hub note AND creates the corresponding dot. This means your dots provide the atomic record while the hub notes provide the narrative thread. The hubs also connect to the [[Obsidian Starter Kit - System - Action System|Action System]]: completed goals and projects are natural sources of achievement entries; abandoned or failed projects feed the failure/lesson hubs. ## AI Skills The Personal Identity System includes dedicated AI skills for maintaining and using identity information. | Skill | Command | Purpose | |---|---|---| | `osk-personal-review` | `/personal-review` | Walk through personal notes asking "is this still accurate?" with conversational edits. Modes: single note, full sweep, or stale-only | | `osk-personal-harvest` | `/personal-harvest` | Scan daily notes for signals that should update personal notes (repeated interests, relationship shifts, achievement patterns, frustration signals) | | `osk-life-event` | `/life-event` | Guided capture when something significant happens. Updates personal notes, creates dots, links to Action System | | `osk-life-timeline` | `/life-timeline` | Extract key events from daily notes across all years and generate a chronological timeline | | `osk-identity-reflect --lens audit` | `/osk-identity-reflect --lens audit` | Compare stated identity (values, principles, beliefs) against actual vault activity. Surfaces gaps between what you claim and what you do | | `osk-routine-create` | `/routine-create` | Guided creation of a new routine note in `12 Routines/` with steps, timing, and non-negotiable markers | | `osk-routine-review` | `/routine-review` | Review routine notes for accuracy; checks if routines are actually being followed by cross-referencing daily notes | | `osk-routine-audit` | `/routine-audit` | Sweep all routines for health; detect undocumented routines from daily note patterns | | `osk-process-create` | `/process-create` | Guided creation of a new process note in `13 Processes/` with proper structure | | `osk-process-audit` | `/process-audit` | Sweep all process notes for documentation health; flag stale or outdated processes | These skills form a maintenance loop: **harvest** detects changes from daily activity, **review** walks through updates conversationally, **audit** checks alignment between stated identity and behavior, and **life-event** captures significant moments as they happen. ## Integration with Other Systems ### Dot System The [[Obsidian Starter Kit - System - Dot System]] connects to personal identity through the achievement/failure hubs: - **Win dots** (`type/dot/breadcrumb/win`) are linked from [[My Life Achievements]] and [[My Career Achievements]] - **Fail dots** (`type/dot/breadcrumb/fail`) are linked from [[My Life Failures & Lessons]] and [[My Career Failures & Lessons]] - **Insight dots** captured during personal reviews can become entries in [[My Enduring Insights]] - **Lesson dots** extracted from failures feed back into principles and beliefs ### Action System The [[Obsidian Starter Kit - System - Action System]] traces back to personal identity: - **Goals** connect to [[My Life Vision]] and [[My Current Life Priorities]]; the traceability chain extends from daily tasks up through projects, plans, and goals to life vision - **Completed goals** generate achievement entries in the hub notes - **Abandoned goals** generate failure/lesson entries with extracted wisdom - [[My Non-goals]] explicitly marks what you have chosen not to pursue; useful for filtering goal ideas during planning ### Journaling System The [[Obsidian Starter Kit - System - Journaling System]] is the primary touchpoint for personal identity in daily practice: - **Daily check-in** (`osk-daily-checkin` skill) loads personal context (priorities, challenges, time structure) to generate relevant daily plans - **Close-of-day review** (`osk-close-day` skill) prompts achievement capture and checks if the day aligned with stated priorities - **Weekly planning** (`osk-weekly-planning` skill) surfaces stale personal notes needing review, checks routine adherence, and aligns weekly focus with life priorities - **Personal harvest** scans daily notes over a date range for signals that personal notes need updating ### People System The [[Obsidian Starter Kit - System - People System]] connects to [[My Relationships]]: - Relationship notes reference people notes for full context - Life events involving others link both personal notes and people notes ## Routines & Processes The Me System extends beyond "who you are" into "how you operate" through documented routines and processes. ### Routines (`10 Meta/12 Routines/`) OSK ships **5 routine scaffolds** as empty skeletons (section headings only — fill in your own steps, schedule, and habits): | Routine | Description | |---|---| | [[Morning Routine]] | How you start each day | | [[Shut Down Routine]] | How you close each workday | | [[Exercise Routine]] | Physical activity cadence and structure | | [[Health Routine]] | Health maintenance: sleep, nutrition, mental health | | [[Reading Routine]] | Reading practice and cadence | Each routine carries `zone/meta` + `type/routine` tags so the Me Base picks it up under the 🌅 Routines facet automatically. The recommended pattern is time-boxed steps, non-negotiable markers (steps that happen no matter what), and cadence information. The `osk-routine-review` skill cross-references daily notes to check whether routines are actually being followed. ### Processes (`10 Meta/13 Processes/`) OSK ships only the `13 Processes.md` hub for processes — process notes themselves are intentionally not pre-populated because they're highly personal (how *you* publish, how *you* prepare taxes, how *you* run your vault maintenance). Document your own as you stabilize repeatable workflows. Each process note follows the `Process - [Name].md` naming convention and includes step-by-step instructions, tool references, and cadence. Skills for routines and processes: - **Create**: `osk-routine-create` and `osk-process-create` for guided creation with proper structure - **Review**: `osk-routine-review` and `osk-process-review` for conversational updates - **Audit**: `osk-routine-audit` and `osk-process-audit` for health sweeps across all notes ## The Me Base — visualizing the system Every note in the Me System is auto-classified by the [[Obsidian Starter Kit - Reference - Bases#Me (Base)|Me Base]] (`30 Areas/34 Maps/34.02 Bases/Me (Base).base`) so you never have to chase folders to see the shape of your identity layer. The Base scopes to `10 Meta/11 Personal/` + `10 Meta/12 Routines/` + anything tagged `type/personal` or `type/routine`, and exposes 12 views: - **Identity Map** (master, grouped by facet) — the single screen that summarizes the whole Me System - **Personal Cards** — visual card layout - **Six per-facet tables**: Identity & Values, Self-Knowledge, Story & Journey, Direction & Goals, Voice & Communication, Lifestyle - **Routines** — every routine note in `12 Routines/` in one place - **Recently Updated** (60-day window) — what's been touched recently - **Overdue for Review** — notes never reviewed or last reviewed 365+ days ago (use this to drive your quarterly/yearly identity sweeps) - **Most Linked** — anchor concepts referenced most often across the rest of your vault The 8 facets the Base sorts by: | # | Facet | Notes that land here | |---|---|---| | 10 | 👤 About | About Me hub | | 20 | 🧭 Identity & Values | Core Values, Beliefs, Manifesto, Principles, Needs | | 30 | 🎯 Direction | Vision, Priorities, Non-goals | | 40 | 🪞 Self-Knowledge | Strengths, Weaknesses, Challenges, Fears, Darkness, Insights | | 50 | 📖 Story & Journey | Life Story, Career, Education, Achievements, Failures | | 60 | 🌱 Lifestyle | Health Profile, Hobbies, Interests, Time Structure, Relationships | | 65 | 🌅 Routines | Every note in `10 Meta/12 Routines/` | | 70 | 🎙️ Voice & Style | Voice Profile, Communication Style, Reader Persona | | 99 | 💭 Other | Anything that doesn't match the above | The Base also surfaces freshness, usage, and review-status formulas — same pattern as the other v4 bases. Keep an eye on the `Overdue for Review` view; it's the single best signal that some part of your identity layer needs attention. ## AI use cases by domain This is where the Me System earns its keep. The AI assistant adapts its behavior across every domain when it can read your identity notes. Examples: ### ✍️ Writing Reads from: [[My Voice Profile]], [[My Communication Style]], [[My Reader Persona]], [[My Key Beliefs]], [[My Personal Manifesto]]. - The Editor / Power User panels match your tone, sentence patterns, and signature moves automatically — no need to re-explain "I prefer terse over flowery" every session - The Reader Persona shapes audience targeting on articles, newsletters, social posts - The Manifesto / Beliefs anchor *what* you actually want to argue, so the AI doesn't propose generic content ### 💼 Career management Reads from: [[My Career]], [[My Career Achievements]], [[My Career Failures & Lessons]], [[My Strengths]], [[My Weaknesses]], [[My Life Vision]], [[My Current Life Priorities]], [[My Non-goals]]. - Career-decision support: should I take this offer, pivot, leave? — answered against your actual stated direction, not generic career advice - Resume / LinkedIn / bio rewrites grounded in real achievements - Strengths / Weaknesses inform skill-development plans - Non-goals filter out suggestions you'd reject anyway ### 🏃 Health Reads from: [[My Health Profile]], [[Health Routine]], [[Exercise Routine]], plus the [[Obsidian Starter Kit - System - Health System|Health System]] data. - The Health Coach / Health Advisor / Sports Coach agents calibrate to your actual baseline (sleep patterns, training context, conditions) - Routine adherence checked against daily notes - Returns advice that fits *your* schedule and constraints, not a textbook ideal ### 🌱 Personal development Reads from: [[My Challenges]], [[My Fears]], [[My Weaknesses]], [[My Darkness]], [[My Enduring Insights]], [[My Life Vision]]. - Self-improvement planning: pick growth areas grounded in honest self-knowledge - Goal setting for personal development that connects to actual challenges, not aspirational fluff - The `osk-identity-reflect --lens blind-spot` skill surfaces what you might not be seeing about yourself - The `osk-identity-stranger` skill takes an outside view of your identity notes for fresh perspective ### 🪞 Psychology & self-knowledge Reads from: [[My Darkness]], [[My Fears]], [[My Enduring Insights]], [[My Life Failures & Lessons]], [[My Career Failures & Lessons]]. - The Mentor / Coach / Skeptic agents help you sit with uncomfortable patterns - Lessons-from-failure synthesis: what does the body of your failures actually teach? - The `osk-identity-reflect --lens audit` skill compares stated values against actual behavior — surfaces gaps between who you say you are and who you act like ### 🤝 Relationships Reads from: [[My Relationships]], [[My Communication Style]], plus the [[Obsidian Starter Kit - System - People System|People System]]. - Relationship-decision support: how to handle a conflict, what to bring up at a meeting with a specific person - Communication-style aware: the AI adapts to *how you communicate*, not a generic register - Pairs with the People notes for full social context ### ⏰ Time management Reads from: [[My Time Structure]], [[My Current Life Priorities]], all 5 routines, [[My Non-goals]]. - Daily / weekly / monthly planning anchored in your actual time structure (not a fictional 9-to-5) - Priority enforcement: the AI flags tasks that don't connect to current priorities - Routine adherence in periodic reviews - Non-goals as a filter against scope creep ### 🧭 Decision support (cross-domain) Reads from the entire Me System. - Big decisions surface trade-offs against your values, vision, and non-goals at once - Multi-perspective deliberation skills (panels, councils) populate each persona's stance from your identity notes - Steel-manning agents use your own beliefs as material when arguing both sides The pattern: **the more of your Me System is filled in, the more domains the AI can serve well**. This is why even partial population is high-leverage; you get incremental returns per note, not all-or-nothing. ## Periodic Review Cadence Personal identity notes integrate into the existing periodic review cycle at multiple frequencies: | Frequency | Integration Point | What Happens | |---|---|---| | **Daily** | Daily check-in and close-of-day | Personal context (priorities, challenges, time structure) loaded for planning; achievements captured at end of day | | **Weekly** | Weekly planning skill | Stale personal notes surfaced; routine adherence checked; weekly focus aligned with life priorities | | **Monthly** | Monthly review process | Broader identity review; check if priorities shifted; update [[My Current Life Priorities]] if needed | | **Quarterly** | Quarterly review process | Deep identity review; reassess [[My Life Vision]], [[My Core Values]], and [[My Key Beliefs]]; run identity audit | | **Yearly** | Yearly review process | Full identity sweep; full personal-review sweep; update [[My Life Story]] and [[My Career]] with year's narrative | The `osk-personal-review` skill supports a `stale` mode that automatically targets notes not reviewed in 90+ days. Running this monthly keeps the entire personal note set fresh. ## Next Steps **Explore the hub** 1. Open [[About Me]] and read through the linked notes 2. Identify which notes feel accurate and which feel outdated 3. Run `/personal-review stale` to see which notes need attention first **Start reviewing** 1. Review 2-3 personal notes per day using `/personal-review` 2. Update any obviously outdated information 3. Notice which notes feel empty or thin; those are candidates for expansion **Build the maintenance habit** 1. Run `/personal-harvest` to scan the last 30 days of daily notes for signals 2. Run `/identity-audit` to check alignment between stated values and actual behavior 3. Review and update routines using `/routine-review` 4. Set a recurring reminder to run a stale-note sweep monthly **Going deeper**: - **Capture life events**: Use `/life-event` whenever something significant happens; it updates the right notes automatically - **Build your timeline**: Use `/life-timeline` to see your key events laid out chronologically - **Audit regularly**: Run `/identity-audit` quarterly to keep yourself honest about values alignment - **Document operations**: Use `/routine-create` and `/process-create` to capture how you actually work ## Related Documentation **OSK Reference**: - [[Obsidian Starter Kit - Reference - Note Types]] - Complete note type specifications including personal notes - [[Obsidian Starter Kit - Reference - Folder structure]] - Folder organization including `10 Meta/` zones - [[Obsidian Starter Kit - Reference - Note Properties]] - Property definitions for all note types **Related Systems**: - [[Obsidian Starter Kit - System - Action System]] - Goal and task management; traces back to life vision - [[Obsidian Starter Kit - System - Dot System]] - Achievement/failure dots linked from hub notes - [[Obsidian Starter Kit - System - Journaling System]] - Daily practice that feeds and consumes personal identity context - [[Obsidian Starter Kit - System - People System]] - People notes connected through relationships --- *The Personal Identity System turns scattered self-knowledge into structured, reviewable, AI-accessible documentation. It ensures that who you say you are stays aligned with who you actually are, and that every AI interaction draws on accurate, current context about your identity, values, and direction.*