--- title: "Recorded Calls to Obsidian — Quick Start" description: "The literal go-here-do-this path from a private recording to a verified Business Brain note." author: "Matthew D Nye" created: "2026-08-26" status: "ready" tracker: "https://github.com/infinitewealthbuilder/aidvisor-boost-system/issues/2530" tags: [aintrepreneurial, business-brain, obsidian, recorded-calls, quick-start] --- # Recorded Calls to Obsidian — Quick Start You do **not** need to learn Obsidian before you begin. You need one folder, one recent call, and one repeatable habit. **Never used Obsidian before?** Complete `OBSIDIAN-SETUP.md` first. It shows every download, install, unzip, and open-folder click with screenshots. An Obsidian account is not required for the free local setup. The goal is not to build a giant recording library. The goal is to turn conversations into memory you can actually use: decisions, commitments, client context, lessons, and next actions. ## The five terms you need | Obsidian term | Plain English | |---|---| | **Vault** | A normal folder on your computer that Obsidian opens. | | **Note** | A plain-text file ending in `.md`. It still works if you stop using Obsidian. | | **Markdown** | Simple formatting such as `# Heading` and `- bullet`. | | **Template** | A reusable blank note that tells you what to capture. | | **Link** | `[[Another note]]` connects one note to another inside the vault. | Obsidian organizes files. It does **not** transcribe your recordings for you. ## Before you move a recording - Use only recordings you are authorized to retain and process. - Keep the original audio or video in its current authorized private location: Zoom, Fathom, Drive, your CRM, or another approved system. - Put the **transcript and useful note** in Obsidian. Do not duplicate a whole media library into the vault. - If a call contains client, financial, health, legal, personnel, or other confidential information, do not paste it into a public or consumer AI tool unless your policies and permissions allow it. - Keep the source transcript separate from the summary. A summary is an interpretation; the transcript is the record you verify against. If you are unsure whether you may retain, transcribe, sync, or process a recording, stop and confirm the rule that applies to that call before importing it. ## Go here. Do this. ### 1. Open the Business Brain in Obsidian If you opened this file as `Business-Brain/START-HERE.md`, the pack is already downloaded and unzipped. If Obsidian is not installed and working yet, open `OBSIDIAN-SETUP.md` and complete that tutorial before continuing. 1. If needed, follow the visual [Obsidian setup tutorial](https://aintrepreneurial.com/business-brain/quick-start). 2. If you do not already have the `Business-Brain` folder, download the [Business Brain Template Pack](https://aintrepreneurial.com/downloads/business-brain-template-pack.zip). 3. If you just downloaded the pack, unzip it. You will see a folder named `Business-Brain`. 4. Open Obsidian. If another vault opens, select the vault name in the bottom-left and choose **Manage vaults**. Older versions may label this **Open another vault**. 5. In the vault manager, to the right of **Open folder as vault**, click **Open**. 6. Select the unzipped `Business-Brain` folder, then click **Open**. 7. In Obsidian's left sidebar, open `03-Meetings`. That folder is now your vault. There is no separate upload step. ### 2. Start with one call Do **not** import everything yet. Pick one recent recording with a result you remember well. A good first test is a sales call, coaching call, client call, work session, or presentation from the last few days. Get the transcript from the system that recorded the call. Prefer the platform's timestamped transcript when one is available. ### 3. Save the source transcript In `03-Meetings`, create a note with this title. Obsidian adds the `.md` extension for you: ```text YYYY-MM-DD-call-type-topic-transcript ``` Examples: ```text 2026-08-25-sales-call-acme-discovery-transcript 2026-08-24-coaching-quarterly-planning-transcript 2026-08-23-presentation-referral-training-transcript ``` Before you name the next recording, open the [Business Brain Naming Conventions](https://aintrepreneurial.com/downloads/business-brain-naming-conventions.md). It gives you one reusable naming contract for calls, decisions, SOPs, workflows, and operators. At the top, record where the original lives, then paste the transcript below it: ```markdown # Source transcript: [Call topic] Date: YYYY-MM-DD Type: sales-call | coaching | client-call | work-session | presentation Original recording: [private source location or link] Participants: Confidentiality: internal | client-confidential | public-safe ## Transcript [Paste the transcript here. Preserve timestamps when the source provides them.] ``` Keep the source verbatim. If you remove filler words for readability, do so only when the edit does not change the meaning. Preserve the names, timestamps, and wording you will need to verify the note. ### 4. Create the useful note Open `03-Meetings/meeting-note.md`. Copy only the reusable note inside its fenced `markdown` block, not the surrounding instructions or example. In the left sidebar, right-click `03-Meetings`, choose **New note**, and paste the template into that new note. Give it this title: ```text YYYY-MM-DD-call-type-topic-note ``` Add this line below `Related Client / Project:`: ```text Source Transcript: [[transcript title]] ``` Then fill the template's sections on the first pass: - **Purpose** — why the conversation happened. - **Notes** — a plain-English summary plus important context worth remembering. - **Decisions** — what was actually decided. - **Action Items** — owner, action, and due date. Leave the due date blank if none was stated. - **Follow-Up Draft** — optional; write the message only if the call needs one. - **Save-Back Notes** — reusable insights, objections, language, or facts that may matter again. The next concrete step belongs in **Action Items**, with an owner whenever the source names one. Never invent a decision, owner, promise, or deadline to make the note look complete. ### 5. Verify before you repeat Read the useful note while the recording is still fresh. Check every decision, commitment, owner, date, number, and quotation against the transcript. For an ambiguous or consequential detail, check the retained audio or video too—the transcript can be wrong. Mark uncertain items `NEEDS REVIEW` instead of guessing. When the note is accurate: 1. Add `Status: verified` near the top. 2. Use it in one real follow-up, decision, or work session. 3. Process the next-most-recent recording. Once the first five notes are useful and consistently named, then consider automation. Until then, manual repetition is helping you discover what the system actually needs to capture. ## Optional AI prompt Use this only in a general-purpose AI tool your organization has approved for the information in the transcript. If no such tool is approved, skip this step and fill the note manually. The free IAL Assistant creates SOPs, follow-ups, and operator specs; it is not the tool for this seven-part note. ```text Turn the source below into a meeting note. Use only facts stated in the source. Return these six sections from the meeting-note template: 1. Purpose 2. Notes — a plain-English summary plus important context 3. Decisions 4. Action Items as Owner | Action | Due 5. Follow-Up Draft — only if the source calls for one 6. Save-Back Notes — reusable insights worth remembering Then add one extra section: 7. NEEDS REVIEW — anything ambiguous or unsupported Do not invent missing owners, deadlines, decisions, quotations, or facts. Preserve source timestamps beside important claims when timestamps are available. SOURCE: [Paste only material this AI tool is authorized to process.] ``` ## The habit that makes this valuable After every important call: ```text recording stays private → transcript enters the Brain → useful note is verified → next action happens ``` One accurate note that changes what you do next is worth more than one hundred recordings sitting in a folder. Official Obsidian reference: [Create a vault](https://obsidian.md/help/vault).