Best way to dictate a quick note into Obsidian via Siri

[digitaldoctors]

What are people doing in July 2025 ?

I tried some older shortcuts
but they weren’t reliable.

I also tried the “Hey Siri, can you make a note in Obsidian”

[DiCaver]

Here’s a step-by-step guide based on my setup for quickly recording a task or note and saving it to Obsidian using Quick Capture:

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Shortcut Name: Obsidian task

Step-by-step Setup in the Shortcuts App:

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1. Open the Obsidian App

• Action: Open App
• App: Obsidian

This ensures that Obsidian is launched when the shortcut is run.

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2. Choose Input Method

• Action: Choose from Menu

• Menu Items:

  • Dictate
  • Write

This lets you choose whether to dictate or type the task manually.

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3. If “Dictate” is chosen

• Action: Dictate Text

• Action: Set Variable

  • Variable Name: inputText
  • Value: Dictated Text

The dictated input is stored as a variable inputText.

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4. If “Write” is chosen

• Action: Ask for Input

  • Prompt: Tell me

• Action: Set Variable

  • Variable Name: inputText
  • Value: Ask for Input

This allows manual typing and saves it to inputText.

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5. Create a Task Text Block

• Action: Text

• Content:

  - [ ] (@Current Date) inputText
  

The [ ] makes it a task in Obsidian, and it includes the current date and your input.

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6. Quick Capture to Obsidian

• Action: Quick Capture
• Content: Text (from above)
• Send to: ToDoS (your chosen Obsidian vault or note location)

This sends your task to the specified location in Obsidian.

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7. Finish with a Clean Exit

• Action: Wait

  • Duration: 5 seconds (optional but gives time for Quick Capture)

• Action: Go to Home Screen

This ends the shortcut cleanly and returns you to the home screen.

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Result:

You tap your shortcut → choose Dictate or Write → speak or type your task → it is timestamped and sent to Obsidian as a checkbox task.

I hope you get a sense of how to implement it on your end.

Cheers, Marko

[CawlinTeffid]

I dictate into Drafts or Notes, then later copy it over to Obsidian. (I could setup a nice automation in Drafts to template and transfer it, but I haven’t had the patience to learn how.)