Creating A To Do List In WordPress
If you plan to run a hectic business or manage other people, time always seems to be in short supply.
There are so many things to do and remember. You have clients to meet, urgent tasks to complete, priorities to attend to, fires to extinguish, appointments to make, commitments to keep and so on. The stress of trying to get things done on time never stops.
Now … on top of all this, add the extra workload of promoting and growing your business online and maintaining your website or blog updated with new content and things can start to feel unmanageable and chaotic.
Whether you run a business, website, blog, or manage a project, you need to be able to organize and manage your day.
A simple “tried and true” tool that can help you save time, alleviate stress, and allow you to take control is to use “to do” lists.
Benefits Of Using To Do Lists
A “to do” list can help to keep you on track and monitor your progress as you work to get tasks completed. Your to-do list can be quite detailed and specific, or serve as a reminder of what needs to be done over a given period of time.
Here are just a few of the benefits of using to do lists:
Free The Brain
Writing to-do lists means you don’t have to memorize things or clutter your brain with details. Once tasks are written down on a to-do list, your head is free to process information and you can focus on other important things.
Better Strategic Planning
By creating and organizing your to-do list, you can break your workload into more doable tasks and formulate a strategic plan to get tasks done effectively.
Keep Work Logs
A to-do list lets you keep documented logs of what work has been done. You can use this as evidence of work to clients or employers, or just as a method of helping you assess your own productivity and efficiency.
Reduce Stress
Stress can come from feeling overwhelmed by the thought that there are so many things to do and so very little time to do it in. Creating a to-do list lets you work on important things that have to get done immediately, and reschedule items that can be worked on later. This can help you stress less.
Improved Collaboration
Creating to-do lists and other project management tools is essential for collaborating with other people on some of your larger or more complex projects.
As you can see, there are many benefits to using a to do list, both in business and in your personal life. Create a list, prioritize your list items and work systematically and efficiency and productivity in your business is sure to improve.
Let’s turn now to using a to do list on your website or blog. More specifically, adding to-do lists to WordPress.
In this step-by-step tutorial we are going to show you how to add to-do lists to a WordPress site to improve business efficiency and productivity using a customizable, multi-featured to-do list plugin called Cleverness To-Do List.
Cleverness To Do List
Download The Plugin
http://wordpress.org/plugins/cleverness-to-do-list/
Plugin Description
This plugin lets you easily add a to-do list to a WordPress website or blog.
Cleverness To-Do List Plugin Features
Note: the plugin features listed below will be discussed in more detail in the tutorial section.
You can set up the plugin with private to do lists for each user, to have all users share the same to do list, or to have a master list with individual completion of items.
The shared to do list option includes different settings. You can assign to do items to specific users (this includes emailing new to-do items to assigned users) and optionally to have assigned items be viewable by that user. You can also assign different permission levels to different users based on user roles. There are also settings to show deadline and progress fields. Category support is also included in the front-end administration.
A new menu item is added to the backend to help you manage your list and the to-do lists can also be displayed on a dashboard widget.
A sidebar widget is also available as short code to display the to do list items on your site. There are 2 shortcodes for front-end list administration. Category management is accessible through the back-end.
If you plan to run a multi-author blog you can use this to-do lists plugin to create custom to-do lists for your post editors if you also download a copy of the developer’s premium plugin, Post Planner.
How To Install The Plugin
Inside your site’s admin, select Plugins > Add New …
In the Install Plugins screen, type in “cleverness” into the search field and hit the Enter button on your keyboard …
Locate the Cleverness To-Do List item in the Search Results area and click Install Now …
Activate the plugin …
Note: You can also activate this plugin in the Plugins screen …
When the plugin has been activated, click on Settings …
Note: The plugin’s settings screen can also be accessed by choosing To-Do List > Settings from your admin menu …
This brings you to the ‘Settings’ page …
The section below shows you how to configure the plugin …
Cleverness To-Do List Plugin Configuration
The plugin’s ‘Settings’ screen is divided into 4 tabs:
- To-Do List Settings – This area lets you specify the plugin’s main settings.
- Advanced Settings – This section is where you customize To-Do lists, assign to-do items to other users and perform plugin database maintenance tasks.
- User Permissions – The options in this area let you configure user permissions and capabilities for Master and Group List types.
- Import/Export – This tab is where you can export and import your to-do plugin and list data settings.
Let’s now go through each of these tabs.
To-Do List Settings
Categories
Choose ‘Enabled’ to organize lists into categories, otherwise leave this option set to ‘Disabled’.
Note: When you enable this option, a ‘Categories’ item will be added to the To-Do List menu …
This allows you to add categories that you can then use to organize your lists (see ‘Plugin Usage’ section further below for more details) …
You can create ‘public’ and ‘private’ categories for your lists.
Private categories will not be visible when using the sidebar widgets or shortcodes (only when ‘Sort Order’ is set to ‘Category’)
List View
List View allows you to specify how to-do lists will be viewed. You can choose three types of to-do list views:
- Individual – Selecting this option lets users create and manage their own private to-do list.
- Group – Select this option if you want all users to share the same to-do list.
- Master – Choose this option to create one master list for all users, where users have their own individual items to complete. If using the ‘Master’ list view, make sure to adjust the User Permissions appropriately in the ‘User Permissions’ tab (this is covered further below).
Sort Order
‘Sort Order’ lets you specify how to sort to-do list items.
If you choose Alphabetical, Category or ID options, items will be first sorted by priority.
Show Added By
If this option is enabled, you can display which of your members has added an item to your to-do list.
Note: This setting only applies if ‘List View’ is set to ‘Group’.
Show Date Completed
If this option is enabled (‘Yes’), completion dates will display for to-do tasks.
Show Deadline
Enabling this option lets you specify deadlines for to-do items …
Show Progress
Enabling this option lets you specify task progress indicators for your to-do items …
Show Admin Bar Menu
Enabling this option lets you display the ‘To-Do List’ menu in your WordPress Admin bar …
Use WYSIWYG Editor
Enabling this option lets you add and edit items on your to-do list using the WordPress WYSIWYG Editor …
Use Auto Paragraphs
If enabled (‘Yes’), automatic paragraphs are used to display content in your to-do list items.
Integrate with Post Planner
If you plan to run a multi-author site or blog, you can integrate the Cleverness To Do List plugin with a plugin called WordPress Post Planner, from the same developer that provides you with a complete WordPress editorial solution …
To learn more this WordPress plugin, visit this site: WordPress Post Planner – Multi-Author Publishing Plugin For WordPress
After you have finished configuring your plugin options in this section, remember to click the ‘Save Changes’ button …
Advanced Settings
Once you have configured the settings in the To-Do List Settings tab, click on the ‘Advanced Settings’ tab to continue …
This brings you to the plugin’s ‘Advanced Settings’ section …
This tab lets you customize your To Do lists, assign to-do items to users and perform database maintenance.
Let’s take you through how to configure the plugin’s ‘Advanced Settings’ section …
To-Do List Advanced Settings > Customize The To-Do List
This section of the ‘Advanced Settings’ tab allows you to customize your To Do List …
You can configure the following options in this section:
Date Format
In this area you can specify how to display dates on your todo list (e.g. month/day/year, day/month/year, etc.)
Note: To learn more about how to format dates in WordPress, visit the relevant section of the WordPress Codex below:
WordPress Codex – Formatting Date And Time
Priority Labels
This section lets you customize your labels for prioritizing highest (important), normal and low items …
Highest priority items are colour-coded in red and lowest (low) priority items display in a lighter shade of grey …
Show To-Do Item ID
If this option is enabled, item IDs show up on the to-do list …
Show Date To-Do Was Added
If this option is enabled (‘Yes’), the date the to-do list was added displays on the items table …
To-Do List Advanced Settings > Assign To-Do Items Settings
If you have chosen either ‘Group’ or ‘Master’ View for your to-do list, you can configure the settings in this area and assign items to other users …
The following settings can be configured in this area:
Assign To-Do Items to Users
Enable this option to assign tasks to other users …
Note: This set this option to ‘Yes’ for the settings below it to work.
Show a User Only the To-Do Items Assigned to Them
Enabling this option (‘Yes’) displays items only to users who have been specifically assigned those items. Leaving this option disabled (‘No’) will display items to all users.
User Roles to Show
Check the boxes in this section Editor to display the type of users that can be assigned to-do items. Leave the checkbox unticked for any roles that you don’t want to assign to-do items.
Email Assigned To-Do Items to User
If you enable this option, WordPress automatically sends users an email with their assigned to-do items …
Leave this option disabled (‘No’) if you don’t want to send out emails to users.
Note: If this option is disabled, you can skip the other items in this section.
Add Category to Subject
If categories are enabled in your plugin settings and you have selected ‘Yes’ for this option, the to-do category will display on the subject of your emails …
Leave this option disabled (‘No’) if you don’t want to display categories in the email subject.
If you don’t want to-do categories to appear the subject of your emails, then leave this option disabled.
Show Who Assigned the To-Do Item in Email
If enabled (‘Yes’), you can display the user who assigned the to-do item in the email. This option is useful if, for example, your website has a number of project managers assigning to-do items to users …
From Field for Emails Sent to User
This field lets you customize the “From” field when sending out emails to users. Add the name of your company, your domain, your name, or anything you like into this field …
From Email
Enter the email address that you want showing as the “sent from” email address …
Subject Field for Emails Sent to User
Type in a subject field for the email that will be sent out automatically to users when a new item has been added to your to-do list …
Text in Emails Sent to User
Type into this field the body of the email message that will be sent out automatically to users when a new item has been assigned to your to-do list.
To-Do List Advanced Settings > Database Cleanup
In this section of the ‘Advanced Settings’ tab you can carry out database maintenance operations associated with plugin data inside the plugin settings area itself without the need to log into your web server …
This is useful if, for example, you notice that items you have deleted are still showing on your site.
You can perform the following tasks:
- Delete Tables – Delete any custom database tables that you no longer use.
- Delete All To-Do Items – Remove all of your to-do items.
Any actions that you perform on your database from this screen cannot be undone. If you are comfortable to proceed with any of the database operations available in this section, then remember to backup your WP database first.
If you don’t want to back up your site yourself, then consider using the services of a professional WordPress provider, or use backup plugins. Learn about a great WordPress backup plugin that we recommend using to perform complete WordPress site backups here:
User Permissions
This section lets you configure user permissions and capabilities for Group or Master List types …
If you have selected the Individual List type, the only setting that applies in this section is the View To-Do List option …
If you plan to set up user permissions and capabilities for Group and Master List types, select the highest level capabilities that you want users to have access to for each option …
By default, general capabilities of each user role are as follows:
- Subscribers: Read
- Contributors: Edit Posts
- Authors: Publish Posts
- Editors: Edit Others Posts
- Administrators: Manage Options
Note: When working with the Master list type make sure that you only permit non-administrators to view and complete items, otherwise they will have the ability to edit the Master list itself.
Let’s go through the settings in the User Permissions section:
View To-Do List
This option permits the chosen capability to view to-do items in the dashboard widget and on the To-Do List page under the ‘Tools’ section.
Complete To-Do Item Capability
This allows the selected capability to mark items as completed or uncompleted.
Add To-Do Item Capability
This option permits the chosen capability to add new items.
Edit To-Do Item Capability
Here you can enable the chosen capability to edit existing to-do items.
Assign To-Do Item Capability
This enables the selected capability to delegate items to individual users.
View All Assigned Tasks Capability
This option permits the selected capability to view all tasks even if “Show Each User Only Their Assigned Tasks” is set to ‘Yes’.
Delete To-Do Item Capability
This setting enables the selected capability to delete individual items.
Delete All To-Do Items Capability
This enables the chosen capability to purge all the completed to-do items.
Add Categories Capability
This setting allows the chosen capability to add new categories.
Import/Export
Being able to import and export to-do list data can be useful. For example, you may want to transfer data from one site to another, or store the list data for backup or archiving purposes.
To access this function, click on the ‘Import/Export’ tab in your plugin settings area …
Use this section to easily import and export your list data and plugin settings …
Exporting To-Do List Data
You can export and download your data settings by clicking on the ‘Download Export File’ …
This will open up a window allowing you to download and save the data as plain text to a storage device …
In addition to exporting data from the ‘Import/Export’ section, you can also export data by going to your dashboard menu and selecting Tools > Export …
You can include to-do list data in a WordPress export file (in XML format), either by selecting ‘All content’ (includes everything – posts, pages, etc…), or selecting ‘To-Do’ from the ‘Choose what to export’ section and clicking on the ‘Download Export File’ button to save your file to an internal or external hard drive…
Importing To-Do List Data
Importing a list data file is easy. Just click on the ‘Browse’ button next to the ‘Choose File to Import’ field …
Locate the file and click ‘Open’ …
After uploading the data file, click on ‘Import Settings’ …
Your file data will be imported.
Now that you have configured all plugin settings, you can begin creating and editing your to-do lists.
How To Use Cleverness To-Do List
To create a new to do list, go to your WordPress admin menu and select To-Do List > To-Do List …
This brings up the ‘To-Do List’ screen …
Adding A New Item To Your To Do List
There are several ways to add new items to your to-do list.
For example, you can add new to-do items from your WP admin bar …
You can also add new to-do items to your list using the ‘To-Do List’ dashboard section by clicking on the ‘Add To-Do item’ link …
You can also click on the ‘Add New Item’ link in the ‘To-Do Items’ section (note: only use this option if your To Do list already contains many items, since the link will simply send you to the “Add New To-Do Item” section further down the page) …
The methods shown above will bring you to the ‘Add New To-Do Item’ section.
Depending on the way you have configured the plugin settings, some options may not display when when you add new to-do items.
Select the options you have enabled for your to-do items, add appropriate information into the relevant fields and click on the ‘Submit To-Do Item’ button to add the new to-do item …
Note: If you are using a list type that allows you to assign tasks to specific users, select a user from the drop-down list and assign them the item …
You can also assign multiple users to the same item (click on ‘x’ to remove a user) …
After you have added the new item, the item will be listed as an entry in the ‘To-Do Items’ table …
Repeat the above process to add new items to your list …
Editing And Deleting To Do Items
To edit or delete an item, click on the ‘Edit’ or ‘Delete’ buttons next to each item under the ‘Action’ column …
Depending on how you have set up the plugin (discussed in the previous section), users assigned to tasks may also receive email notifications …
Once you have created your to do list, users can view the list inside their user dashboard …
When the user assigned with completing an item ticks the item check box …
… the item disappears from the “To-Do” list …
And appears in the ‘Completed Items’ table located in the ’To-Do List’ plugin page …
Additional Plugin Information
The Cleverness To-Do List plugin offers added functionality that lets you display a to-do list on your WordPress website using widgets, and insert lists into any post or page using shortcodes.
Widgets
To add a to-do list to your site using widgets, go to the ‘Widgets’ page (Appearance > Widgets) and drag the ‘To-Do List’ widget to the location in your sidebar menu where you would like your to-do list to show …
Configure the widget settings and click ’Save’ to update your settings …
The list will appear wherever the ‘to-do-list’ widget was placed (i.e. the sidebar menu, footer, etc.)
To learn more about how to use widgets in WordPress, see the tutorial below:
Using The Cleverness To-Do List Plugin Shortcodes
The plugin also lets you add to-do lists to your site using shortcodes.
To access the documentation on using shortcodes, click on To-Do List > To-Do List from your admin menu …
Click on the ‘Help’ tab on the corner of your screen …
Click on the ‘Shortcodes’ tab to access the Shortcode Documentation …
The documentation section explains various ways to configure and use short codes for displaying lists on your posts and pages.
Once you know what type of information you want to add to your site, create or edit a new or existing post or page and either type or paste the short code into the content area …
After publishing your post or page, you will see the list showing in the location where you have inserted the short code …
For more details about this plugin, visit this site:
Congratulations! Now you know how to add a to-do list to your WordPress site.
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