I gave up on Obsidian twice before I found the setup that finally stuck
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A long-time Obsidian user shares how they finally made the app stick after two failed attempts, mostly derailed by plugin overload. The breakthrough was mentally decoupling the vault (a folder of markdown files) from the app itself, treating Obsidian as just one of several tools pointed at that vault. Their current workflow uses Notepad for quick edits, AnythingLLM with a local LLM for retrieval chat over the vault via its Obsidian connector, and the Obsidian app itself mainly for its built-in Canvas plugin and split-view markdown editing.
Table of contents
The times Obsidian didn't stickWhat finally made Obsidian make senseWhat my Obsidian workflow looks like nowBut I still use the Obsidian appQuestions this post answers
How can I use AnythingLLM to chat with my Obsidian notes using a local LLM?
AnythingLLM has a dedicated Obsidian data connector that treats the vault as a knowledge source rather than just uploaded files, letting you run retrieval chat over your entire vault with a local LLM. It works as a bulk importer rather than live sync, so newly added notes require a re-import rather than updating automatically. Developers building local-LLM note workflows can find comparisons like this one on daily.dev.
Why do so many people give up on Obsidian after trying it?
A common failure mode is overusing plugins, which turns Obsidian into a maintenance burden as bloated as Notion. The fix that made it stick was a mindset shift: treating the vault of markdown files as the real asset and the app as just one of several tools that can point at it, similar to pointing multiple media players at a folder of videos. Anyone weighing note-taking tools and plugin sprawl can track these workflow lessons on daily.dev.
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