Nicole van der Hoeven: A Polymath with Obsidian as a Modern Zibaldone

This was my second conversation with a speaker at the PKM Summit 2025 in Utrecht. Needless to say, I was still as bad of an interviewer as I was the first time. So, let’s not call it an interview but a coffee chat.

Luckily for me, just like Bob Doto, Nicole van der Hoeven was very relaxed about it, so we managed to wing it beautifully.

The conversation will appeal to those invested in the Obsidian ecosystem, especially if you’re not intimidated by the technical aspect of setting up your digital note-taking system.

You’ll also appreciate lesser-known facts about how Nicole manages language learning, therapy, dream-logging, and complex relationship management in Obsidian.

This was intentionally an unapologetically technical discussion between two engineers. I haven’t seen any of those, so I thought it’d be novel. But if you’re serious about squeezing more out of your Tool for Thought, this will be an hour well spent. Visit Nicole’s official website to take a deeper dive into her exciting universe.

Happy listening.

The next in the series of recordings from the latest European PKM Summit will be with its organiser and one of the most productive fellows in the Netherlands, Mr Martijn Aslander.

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