list-manager

name	list-manager
skill_id	list-manager
category	productivity
description	Create, read, update, and delete lists stored in the Obsidian vault at $OBSIDIAN_VAULT_PATH/Lists/, plus maintain the knowledge base at $OBSIDIAN_VAULT_PATH/Second Brain/.
triggers	["user says \"create a list\"","user says \"make a list\"","user says \"add to my list\"","user says \"show my lists\"","user says \"delete list\"","user says \"remove from list\""]

List Manager

This skill teaches your Hermes agent how to read and write to an Obsidian vault on disk. It is the core connector between the AI agent and your Second Brain.

File Structure Assumed

{Observian Vault}/
├── Second Brain/
│   ├── 01 - About Me.md
│   ├── 02 - Career & Resume.md
│   ├── 03 - Projects.md
│   ├── 04 - Goals & Tasks.md
│   ├── 05 - Ideas.md
│   ├── 06 - Preferences.md
│   ├── 07 - Setup & Tools.md
│   └── 08 - Contacts & Network.md
├── Lists/
│   ├── shopping.md
│   ├── books-to-read.md
│   └── ...
├── Journal/
│   └── 2026-06-14.md
└── Projects/
    └── ...

Environment Variable

Set this in your Hermes .env or shell profile:

export OBSIDIAN_VAULT_PATH="/path/to/your/obsidian/vault"

The skill always resolves $OBSIDIAN_VAULT_PATH before reading or writing files.

Workflow: Creating a List

When the user says "create a list [name]":

1. Determine the list title (ask if ambiguous)
2. Determine the items (ask if not provided)
3. Write to $OBSIDIAN_VAULT_PATH/Lists/{slug}.md:

# {Title}
Created: {YYYY-MM-DD HH:MM}

- [ ] item 1
- [ ] item 2

4. Save a reference in agent memory so it can find the list later

Workflow: Reading Lists

# List all lists
search_files(pattern="*.md", path="$OBSIDIAN_VAULT_PATH/Lists/", target="files")

# Read a specific list
read_file(path="$OBSIDIAN_VAULT_PATH/Lists/{slug}.md")

Workflow: Updating Lists

• Add items: Read the file, append - [ ] new item lines, write back
• Toggle checkboxes: Use patch to replace - [ ] with - [x] or vice versa
• Delete items: Use patch to remove specific checklist lines

Workflow: Second Brain Maintenance

When you learn durable information about the user, update the relevant Second Brain file:

File	When to update
01 - About Me.md	Bio, location, contact info changes
02 - Career & Resume.md	New roles, skills, certifications
03 - Projects.md	Project status changes, new projects
04 - Goals & Tasks.md	Priority shifts, new goals
05 - Ideas.md	New ideas to capture
06 - Preferences.md	Communication style, boundaries
07 - Setup & Tools.md	Environment changes
08 - Contacts & Network.md	New contacts, companies, events

Always read the file first before updating — the user may have edited it directly in Obsidian between sessions.

Pitfalls

• Slug collisions: If two lists have similar names, append the date: {slug}-{YYYYMMDD}.md
• User edits in Obsidian: Always read the latest version before modifying. The file on disk is the source of truth.
• Obsidian doesn't need to be running: These are just markdown files. Obsidian is a viewer/editor, not a server.
• Path resolution: Always resolve $OBSIDIAN_VAULT_PATH through the shell first, then use the absolute path for file tools.