Life OS Starter

A plug & play Obsidian vault with AI agent support. Clone, install, start.

Quick Start

Windows

git clone https://github.com/viggomeesters/life-os-starter.git
cd life-os-starter
powershell -ExecutionPolicy Bypass -File setup.ps1

macOS

git clone https://github.com/viggomeesters/life-os-starter.git
cd life-os-starter
bash setup.sh

After setup

Set your API key (get one at platform.openai.com/api-keys):
- Windows: setx OPENAI_API_KEY sk-your-key-here (then restart terminal)
- macOS: export OPENAI_API_KEY=sk-your-key-here (add to ~/.zshrc)
Fill in your profile: Edit 20_structure/02_context/self/owner.md with your name, role, and interests
Open in Obsidian: Open Obsidian → "Open folder as vault" → select this folder
Start your agent: Open a terminal in this folder and run:
```
codex --full-auto
```
This runs Codex in full-auto mode — it reads files, creates notes, and commits changes without asking for approval on every step. If you prefer to approve each action manually, just run codex without the flag.

What's Inside

life-os-starter/
├── 10_notes/                        All timestamped notes (tasks, interactions, entries, references)
├── 20_structure/
│   ├── 01_system/
│   │   ├── docs/                    Schema specification (life-os-schema.md)
│   │   └── templates/               15 note templates
│   └── 02_context/
│       ├── entity/                  People, companies, places
│       ├── projects/                Project definitions
│       ├── anniversaries/           Birthdays, weddings, recurring dates
│       ├── chores/                  Recurring household tasks
│       └── self/                    Your profile, writing style (agent reads this)
├── 90_attachments/                  Images, files
└── AGENTS.md                        Agent instructions (Codex CLI reads this)

11 Note Types

Type	What	Example
task	Something to do	"Set up Next.js project"
interaction	A call, meeting, or chat	"Kickoff meeting with Jane"
entry	A journal entry or note	"Journal March 17"
reference	A bookmark or article	"Portfolio Design Inspiration"
project	Groups related tasks	"Personal Website"
entity	A person or company	"Jane Smith"
health	A health log	Migraine, weight, blood pressure
purchase	Something you bought	Electronics, furniture
anniversary	A recurring date	Birthdays, weddings
chore	A recurring task	Weekly cleaning, daily routines
context	Personal background	Your profile, for the agent

Every note has YAML frontmatter and uses [[wikilinks]] to connect things together.

Try These Prompts

Once codex --full-auto is running, try:

Create a task: set up deployment pipeline, p1, for the personal-website project

What tasks are open?

Log a meeting with Jane — we discussed the vault structure

Create an entity for my colleague John Baker, developer at Example Company

What do you know about the personal-website project? What tasks are linked to it?

Find all notes with topic "webdev"

Mark the task "get groceries" as done

Draft an email to John about next week's planning

Personalize Your Vault

The agent reads 20_structure/02_context/self/ to understand who you are:

owner.md — Your name, role, tech stack, interests. Fill this in first.
schrijfstijl.md — Your writing style for emails and messages. Add examples of how you write so the agent can match your tone.

How It Works

The AGENTS.md file teaches the AI agent your vault structure and schema. When you run codex --full-auto in this folder, it reads those instructions and can create, read, and update your notes — all as plain markdown files that sync with Obsidian.

Tip: Add an alias to your shell config (.bashrc, .zshrc, or PowerShell profile) so you don't have to type the flag every time:
alias codex="codex --full-auto"

The full schema is documented in 20_structure/01_system/docs/life-os-schema.md, synced from life-os-schema.

Learn More

CLI Agents Guide — Full guide on CLI agents + Obsidian
Obsidian — The knowledge base app
Codex CLI — OpenAI's terminal agent
Life OS Schema — Full schema specification

License

MIT