Single Source of Truth in Obsidian: Centralize Your Knowledge
I’ve been there. You’re learning about a topic, taking notes here and there, but suddenly you realize the same information is scattered across multiple files. You have three different notes about investing, five about productivity, and seven about your research projects. When you need to find something, you don’t know which note to open. It’s like having copies of the same book in every room of your house—you never know which one has the information you need.
You’ve probably experienced this too. You read something valuable in a book or article, write it down in a quick note, then weeks later find yourself writing the same idea again in a different context. Or worse, you’re trying to review a topic and have to hunt through ten different notes to piece together your understanding. The fragmentation makes learning inefficient and frustrating.
What You’ll Get From This Here’s what you’ll learn from this guide:
- How to implement single source of truth in your note-taking system
- Why centralizing information improves knowledge retention
- Practical techniques for adding new information to existing notes
- Methods for reusing content without creating duplicates
- Ways to share your knowledge while maintaining one source of truth
The Solution Let’s dive into the practical steps for implementing single source of truth in Obsidian. I’ll show you exactly how to centralize your knowledge and avoid the fragmentation trap.
What Is Single Source of Truth?
Single source of truth means maintaining only one location for each type of information. Instead of scattering notes about stocks across multiple files, you keep everything stock-related in one dedicated note. When you encounter new information about stocks, you add it to that existing note.
This concept isn’t new—it’s used in software development, project management, and knowledge management. The idea is simple: if you have one definitive source for information, you always know where to find it. You don’t waste time searching through multiple files or wondering which version is the most up-to-date.
In Obsidian, single source of truth works beautifully because of the linking system. You can reference the same note from anywhere without duplicating content.
The Stock Note Example
Let me give you a practical example. You have a note called “stock” where you collect all your investment-related information. When you read a book about investing and find this powerful line: “When you buy a stock you are not just investing, you are becoming a partner in a real business,” you don’t create a new note for this insight.
Instead, you open your existing stock note and add this information there. Now all stock-related knowledge lives in one place: stock selection strategies, how stock prices are decided, information about IPOs, and this new business partnership perspective.
This approach makes sense because all these concepts are related to the same topic—investing in stocks. When you want to review or reference this information, you know exactly where to look: your stock note.
Why Centralization Matters
When you maintain a single source of truth, you eliminate several problems:
- No confusion about where to store information: Every topic has a designated note
- No duplication: You don’t waste time writing the same thing multiple times
- Easy retrieval: You always know where to find information about a topic
- Comprehensive understanding: All related information is in one place, helping you see connections
The key is to think in terms of topics rather than documents. Instead of creating a new note for every piece of information, ask yourself: “What topic does this belong to?” Then add it to that topic’s note.
Ways to Reuse Content Without Copying
One common concern is: “If all information is in one place, how do I use that information elsewhere without copying?”
Obsidian provides several clever ways to reuse content while maintaining single source of truth:
Method 1: Exclamation Mark (!) Embedding
The most powerful method is using an exclamation mark to embed the entire content of another note. Here’s how it works:
- In your current note, type
![[note name]] - This displays the entire content of that note inside your current note
- The original note remains unchanged—you’re just displaying it
For example, if you want to include your entire stock note in a new document, simply type ![[stock]] and all the content appears. This is perfect for creating reports or sharing information.
Method 2: Caret (^) Embedding for Specific Sections
But what if you only want to include a specific part of a note? Obsidian lets you do that too!
- Go to the section you want to embed (like a heading or specific bullet point)
- Add a unique identifier using
^(e.g.,^understand-business) - Reference it in another note with
![[stock#^understand-business]]
This way, you can include just the relevant section without bringing in the entire note. It’s like having a quote from a book without copying the whole book.
Method 3: PDF Export
When you need to share your notes with others who don’t use Obsidian:
- Open your note
- Export it as a PDF
- Share the PDF file
This maintains single source of truth because the PDF is generated from your one true note. If you update the note, you can regenerate the PDF.
Practical Workflow
Here’s how to implement single source of truth in your daily note-taking:
-
Create topic notes: For each major topic, create a dedicated note (e.g., “stock,” “productivity,” “research methods”)
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Use naming conventions: Start topic notes with a clear identifier (like “MOC” for Map of Content or just a descriptive name)
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Add new information immediately: When you learn something new about a topic, don’t create a new note—add it to the existing topic note
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Link from elsewhere: When you need to reference this information, link to the topic note instead of copying
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Use embeds for reports: When writing a document that needs to include topic information, use
![[topic]]to embed the content
Benefits of This Approach
When you adopt single source of truth, you’ll notice several improvements:
Better Organization: Your knowledge base becomes structured around topics rather than random documents. This mirrors how our brains organize information.
Reduced Clutter: You won’t have dozens of tiny notes about the same topic. Instead, you have one comprehensive note per topic.
Easier Updates: When you want to update information, you only need to change one place. The updates propagate everywhere through links and embeds.
Clearer Thinking: Seeing all related information in one place helps you understand connections and develop deeper insights.
Time Savings: You spend less time searching for information and more time using it.
Addressing Common Concerns
“What if the note becomes too long?” This is actually a good sign! A long note about a topic means you’ve collected substantial knowledge. If it becomes unwieldy, you can create sub-topics or use headings to structure it better.
“What if I need a different version for different audiences?” You can still maintain one source of truth. Create a summary note that embeds relevant sections from your main note using the caret method.
“What about daily notes or journaling?” Some things naturally belong in daily notes—your daily activities, reflections, or time-sensitive information. Single source of truth applies to topical knowledge, not chronological records.
Watch the Full Video For the complete step-by-step walkthrough, watch the full video below:
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👋 About Me
Hi, I’m Shuvangkar Das — a power systems researcher with a Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering, currently working as a Research Scientist. I work at the intersection of power electronics, inverter-based DERs (IBRs), and AI to help build smarter, greener, and more stable electric grids.
My work spans large-scale EMT simulations, firmware development, reinforcement learning, and hardware prototyping. Beyond engineering, I’m also a YouTuber and content creator — sharing hands-on insights on productivity, research, and knowledge management. My goal is simple: to make complex ideas more accessible and actionable for everyone.
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