Recently I discovered ToDoIst.
ToDoIst is a powerful task manager that doesn’t over complicate the user experience.
It’s the equivalent of that well known creosote- it does exactly what it says on the tin!
This is something that is suitable for individuals and teams alike.
Whether you want to collaborate with team members to get things done, you work for yourself and need to keep track of clients and tasks, or you just need a good, solid, task manager for your daily life.
ToDoIst is free to download and is available on iOS and Android, as well as Mac and Windows. It's also free to use, to a point.
When you launch the app, you'll be presented with the Inbox. This is the default place for all your tasks. Whenever you create a task it will automatically appear here.
You can also create projects; for example you might be working through home improvements, or a family event. You might have a project at work. Once you have created the project, you can segment your tasks accordingly.
You might need a simple shopping list; that's fine too, and with integration with Amazon Alexa, you can add items with your voice.
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| Everything is laid out neatly to view |
ToDoIst will automatically create a recurring task, that appears each Wednesday. On the paid-for service, you can also set a reminder for 10 mins before (or whatever time you decide), to pop-up on your mobile phone, or desktop, so you'll never forget again.
Of course, this doesn't just have to be a recurring task - you can just type 'Call builder tomorrow' and a task will be created for tomorrow.
I have created a project called 'Routines' and within that I have sub-projects for 'Daily', 'Weekly' and 'Monthly'.
Each of these contains the tasks pertinent to the period, making it much easier to manage.
Projects can be set as favourites, so that they appear at the top of the screen, below the set folders:
Inbox - the default folder for all tasks, if you didn't specify a project
Today - All tasks that have a due date of today. It also includes all the tasks that are
overdue, and this can start to look scary if you miss any
Next 7 Days - As the name suggests, this displays all tasks due in the next 7 days, including the overdue tasks and those due today. This could be a much longer list, but allows you to see at a glance what is coming up.
If you have lots of tasks, there is also very good search functionality, which lets you enter key words to find a task. The search also includes any notes and comments, making it quite powerful when there are large numbers of tasks.
If you are working with others, then collaboration is key, and with ToDoIst you can assign specific tasks to people within the team. On the basic plan you can have up to 80 projects, with 5 team members per project.
This increases to 200 projects with the paid plan, and up to 25 team members.
You are probably wondering what the differences are between the Basic plan and the paid for service.
Everything I have mentioned is included with the Basic, free, plan.
For £28 per year (which works out at £2.33 per month) you also get:
Let's not forget Karma.
ToDoIst provides some quite nifty reporting, allowing you to see how well you're performing against your goals.
You can view all your previous tasks, and a great algorithm will tell you what level you're at, for your Karma. This rises and falls based on closing your tasks,
You can even set 'holidays' so you don't break a streak and lose points.
In reality, this is pointless; but it adds a little, if unnecessary fun to the process.
Absolutely.
Would I pay for it?
Well, I have paid for it. At £28 for the year to get the added functionality, it's not really a question.
Of course, I did use the basic version first, but within days I could see the benefits it was bringing me.
Do you use a task manager? How do you make it work for you?
I hope you found this interesting and maybe helped you in some way. If you have any questions about ToDoIst and how you can get the most from it, then please let me know in the comments below.
Equipment I use to make my podcasts:
Blue Yeti Microphone - https://amzn.to/2R2am1N
Pop Filter - https://amzn.to/2OVMbQP
Professional Microphone Boom Arm - https://amzn.to/2P4EIio
If you purchase from these links then I may receive a commission. This does not affect the price you will pay. Thank you.
If you have lots of tasks, there is also very good search functionality, which lets you enter key words to find a task. The search also includes any notes and comments, making it quite powerful when there are large numbers of tasks.
If you are working with others, then collaboration is key, and with ToDoIst you can assign specific tasks to people within the team. On the basic plan you can have up to 80 projects, with 5 team members per project.
This increases to 200 projects with the paid plan, and up to 25 team members.
You are probably wondering what the differences are between the Basic plan and the paid for service.
Everything I have mentioned is included with the Basic, free, plan.
For £28 per year (which works out at £2.33 per month) you also get:
- Task Labels & Reminders - adding more control to the way you can filter and be reminded of tasks
- Location-based notifications - only want to see the reminders at home, then set that as the location and ToDoIst won't bug you until you get home.
- Add tasks via email - This is a good one. Simply forward emails direct to ToDoIst; either to the default Inbox, or straight into a project. A real time-saver
- Task comments & file uploads - Add extra comments to your tasks, and upload files to support the tasks
- Automatic backups
- Productivity tracking and charts
- iCal synchronization - Add your tasks into your calendar, so you can see them in one place.
- Project templates - These are an added extra, but I don't find them too useful, as I end up deleting the content to add my own. That's a bit silly - so now I don't bother with them!
Let's not forget Karma.
ToDoIst provides some quite nifty reporting, allowing you to see how well you're performing against your goals.
You can view all your previous tasks, and a great algorithm will tell you what level you're at, for your Karma. This rises and falls based on closing your tasks,
You can even set 'holidays' so you don't break a streak and lose points.
In reality, this is pointless; but it adds a little, if unnecessary fun to the process.
Would I recommend ToDoIst?
Absolutely.
Would I pay for it?
Well, I have paid for it. At £28 for the year to get the added functionality, it's not really a question.
Of course, I did use the basic version first, but within days I could see the benefits it was bringing me.
Do you use a task manager? How do you make it work for you?
I hope you found this interesting and maybe helped you in some way. If you have any questions about ToDoIst and how you can get the most from it, then please let me know in the comments below.
Equipment I use to make my podcasts:
Blue Yeti Microphone - https://amzn.to/2R2am1N
Pop Filter - https://amzn.to/2OVMbQP
Professional Microphone Boom Arm - https://amzn.to/2P4EIio
If you purchase from these links then I may receive a commission. This does not affect the price you will pay. Thank you.
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