---
title: "2. Inbox Zero"
description: "Triage everything in 00-Inbox/ — classify, expand, file."
source: "Obsidian Academy"
source_url: https://obsidian-academy.pages.dev/workflows/02-inbox-zero/
saved: 2026-05-16
tags: [obsidian-academy, saved-from-web, workflows]
---

**TL;DR** — Run "process my inbox" and Claude reads every file in `00-Inbox/`, classifies each item (task, idea, person, meeting note, web clip, voice memo), expands shorthand into real notes, and files them to the right folder. Inbox returns to empty.

This is the workflow that keeps friction-free capture *also* friction-free to use. You dump anything into `00-Inbox/` from any device. Claude sorts it later.

## When to use it

- End of day, after capturing throughout
- Whenever the inbox starts to feel cluttered (more than 5–10 items)
- After a phone-heavy day where you've been dropping things from Syncthing
- When you have 5 minutes and don't want to think about *where* a thought belongs

> **Try it now:** `"process my inbox"`
>
> Triggers on *"inbox zero"*, *"triage"*, *"clear my inbox"* too.

For each item Claude finds, it'll propose a destination — task, idea, person, meeting, etc. — and show you the plan before executing. If items are obvious, it just files them. For ambiguous ones, it asks one batched question with 2–3 options.

## Under the hood

- **Skill location:** `~/.claude/skills/process-inbox/SKILL.md`
- **Reads:** `00-Inbox/` (every file except `README.md`)
- **Writes:** various — depends on classification:
  - **Tasks** → appended to today's daily note (`10-Daily/YYYY-MM-DD.md`)
  - **Ideas** → expanded note in `40-Resources/ideas/`
  - **Web clips / references** → `40-Resources/[topic]/`
  - **Person mentions** → `60-People/[name].md` (uses `90-Templates/person.md` if creating)
  - **Project updates** → `20-Projects/[project]/log.md`
  - **Meeting raw notes** → routes to `process-meeting` skill
- **Deletes:** source file from `00-Inbox/` only after successful write elsewhere

## Watch out for

- **Stream files like `inbox.md`** — they're parsed entry-by-entry. After processing, the file is cleared back to its stub.
- **Voice memos** in `00-Inbox/voice/` — if it's just an audio file with no transcript, the skill flags it and recommends running transcription separately.
- **Empty files** get deleted silently.
- **Old unprocessed items** (>30 days, seen multiple times) get moved to `50-Archive/inbox-unprocessed/` with a warning. The system tells you you've been ignoring stuff.
- **Big batches** (20+ items) won't auto-process — the skill shows the plan first and waits for your nod.

## Make it yours

- **Add a category:** edit the skill to add e.g. "recipe" routing to `40-Resources/recipes/`.
- **Auto-process small batches:** add a setting in your prompt — "process my inbox, auto-file anything under 5 items".
- **Skip certain files:** add a frontmatter `pin: true` to any inbox file you want to keep for review later.

## Related workflows

- **[Daily Driver](https://obsidian-academy.pages.dev/workflows/01-daily-driver/)** — Run this right after the morning note builds
- **[Meeting Machine](https://obsidian-academy.pages.dev/workflows/04-meeting-machine/)** — Where raw meeting notes from the inbox go