How To Create To-Do Lists In WordPress

There never seems to be enough hours in the day to get everything done, especially if you are running a hectic business.

There is just too much to do and remember. You have deadlines to meet, project tasks to complete, meetings to attend, fires to extinguish, deliveries to make, schedules to keep and so on. The stress of trying to get things done on time never seems to stop.

Now … on top of all this, add the extra workload of promoting and growing your business online and keeping your website updated with fresh content and things suddently begin to feel unmanageable and overwhelming.

Whether you run a business, website, blog, or manage a project, it’s important to be able to organize and manage your day.

One simple proven method that can help you save time, create a sense of order and manageability, and allow you to take control is to use “to-do” lists.

To-Do Lists – Benefits

A “to do” list helps you track your progress as you work to get projects completed. Your to do list can be detailed and very specific, or just serve as a reminder of the things that need doing today, tomorrow, this week, this month, etc.

Here are some of the many benefits of using to do lists:

To Do Lists Help You Keep Things Organized

A to-do list helps you create order, stay organized and reach your goals faster.

Better Manage Your Time

Prioritizing tasks on your list helps you manage your time more effectively. You can gain a better perspective on what is more urgent vs what isn’t, and what steps need to be completed first.

Quickly Reorganize

To-do lists help you better deal with changes in circumstances. If you find that an appointment has been cancelled at the last minute or extra time is made available when something gets completed sooner than expected, you can quickly reschedule and reorganize and continue working with no disruption.

Stress Relief

Stress can come from feeling overwhelmed by so much to do and so little time to do it all in. Creating to do lists allow you to prioritize important things that need to be completed within a reasonable timeframe, and reschedule non-urgent items that can be addressed later. This can help you stress less.

Improved Collaboration

Creating to-do lists and other project management tools is essential for getting other people involved on some of your larger or more complex projects.

As you can see, there are many benefits to using to do lists, both in business and in your personal life. Creating to do lists, then prioritizing tasks and working systematically improves your business efficiency and productivity.

What about using to-do lists on your website?

In this detailed step-by-step tutorial you are going to learn how to add to do lists to WordPress to help your team get things done  faster and more efficiently using a customizable, multi-featured to-do list WordPress plugin called Cleverness To-Do List.

Cleverness To-Do List

Plugin Download URL

http://wordpress.org/plugins/cleverness-to-do-list/

Plugin Description

This plugin provides users with a to do list feature.

Cleverness To-Do List Plugin Features

Note: the plugin features listed below will be discussed in more detail in the tutorial section.

You can configure Cleverness To Do List to have 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 item completions.

The shared to-do list option offers different settings. You can delegate to-do items to a specific user (this includes emailing new to do items to assigned users) and optionally to have assigned items only seen by that user. You can also assign different permission levels using capabilities. There are also settings available to show deadline and progress fields. Category support is included as well in the front-end administration.

A new menu item is added to the admin backend to manage your list and your to-do list 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 short codes for front-end list administration. Management of categories is restricted to the back-end admin section.

If you plan to set up a multi-author blog you can use this plugin to create custom to-do lists for your post planners if you also install the developer’s premium plugin, Post Planner.

How To Install The Plugin

Log into your WP administration area and in the main menu select Plugins > Add New …

In the Install Plugins section, type in “cleverness” into the search field and hit Enter …

Locate the item in the Search Results section and click Install Now …

Click Activate Plugin …

Note: You can also activate this plugin from the Plugins screen …

When the plugin has been activated, click on Settings …

Note: You can also get to the plugin’s settings section by choosing To-Do List > Settings from the admin menu …

This brings you to the plugin ‘Settings’ section …

Let’s go through the plugin setup process …

Setting Up The Plugin

The plugin’s ‘Settings’ screen is divided into four tabs:

• To-Do List Settings – Here you can specify the main plugin settings.
• Advanced Settings – This section lets you customize your to-do lists, assign tasks to other users and perform plugin database maintenance tasks.
• User Permissions – This area is where you configure user permissions and capabilities for Group and Master List types.
• Import/Export – This section lets you import and export to-do plugin and list data settings.

Let’s go through each of these tabs.

To-Do List Settings

To-Do List Categories

Select ‘Enabled’ to organize your list into categories, otherwise leave this option set to ‘Disabled’.

Note: If you enable this option, a ‘Categories’ item will be added to the To-Do List plugin menu …

This lets you add categories that can help organize your lists (see ‘Plugin Usage’ section further below for more details) …

You can create ‘public’ and ‘private’ categories for your lists.

Categories set to ‘private’ will not be visible using sidebar widgets or shortcodes (only when ‘Sort Order’ is set to ‘Category’)

List View

List View lets you specify how your lists will be viewed. You can select three types of list views:

• Individual – Choosing this option lets each user create and manage their own private to-do list.
• Group – Select this option if you want all users to be able to share the same to-do list.
• Master – This option allows you to create a master list for all users, where users have their own individual completion of items. If you choose the ‘Master’ list view, make sure that you 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

Enabling this option (‘Yes’) lets you 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 your to-do tasks.

Show Deadline

If this option is enabled, you will be able to specify deadlines for your to-do items …

Show Progress

Enabling this option lets you specify task progress indicators for your to-do items …

Show Admin Bar Menu

If enabled (‘Yes’), the ‘To-Do List’ menu will display in your WP Admin bar …

Use WYSIWYG Editor

This menu option lets you add and edit items on your to-do list using the WordPress WYSIWYG Editor …

Use Auto Paragraphs

Enable this option (‘Yes’) to display content in your to-do list items using paragraphs.

Integrate with Post Planner

If you are running a multi-author website 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 …

Visit this site for more information about using this handy plugin: WordPress Post Planner – Plugin For WordPress

After configuring your plugin options, remember to click the ‘Save Changes’ button to update your settings …

Advanced Settings

Once you have configured the settings in the To-Do List Settings tab, click on the ‘Advanced Settings’ tab …

This brings you to the plugin’s ‘Advanced Settings’ area …

This tab lets you customize your To Do lists, assign to-do items to users and perform database maintenance tasks.

Let’s go 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’ screen lets you customize your To Do List …

The following options can be configured in this section:

Date Format

Here you can specify how to display dates on your to-do lists (e.g. month/day/year, day/month/year, etc.)

Note: To learn more about formatting dates in WordPress, see the relevant section of the WordPress Codex below:

WordPress Codex – Formatting Date And Time

Priority Labels

In this area you can customize your labels for highest, middle and lowest priority items …

Items given the highest priority are shown in red and low priority items display in a lighter shade of grey …

Show To-Do Item ID

If this option is enabled, the items’ IDs display on your list …

Show Date To-Do Was Added

If this option is enabled, the date the to-do list was added shows up on the table of items …

To-Do List Advanced Settings > Assign To-Do Items Settings

If you have selected either ‘Group’ or ‘Master’ View for your to-do list, you can configure the settings in this section and assign items to other users …

You can configure the following settings in this area:

Assign To-Do Items to Users

Enabling this option lets you assign to-do items 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. Leave this option disabled to display to-do items to all users.

User Roles to Show

Checking the boxes in this section (Administrator displays the type of users that can be assigned items. If you don’t want to assign to-do items to a role, then don’t tick its checkbox.

Email Assigned To-Do Items to User

If you enable this option, WordPress automatically sends users an email with their assigned to-do items …

If you don’t want emails sent out to users, then leave this option disabled (‘No’).

Note: If this option is disabled, skip the remaining settings in this section.

Add Category to Subject

If you have enabled categories in your plugin settings and select ‘Yes’ for this option, the to-do category will display in the subject of emails sent to users …

Leave this option disabled (‘No’) if you don’t want to show categories in the subject of your emails.

Leave this option disabled if you don’t want to show categories in the subject of your emails.

Show Who Assigned the To-Do Item in Email

Enabling this option lets you display the user who assigned the to-do item in the email. This is a useful option if your site has several 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 email notifications. Add your company name, your domain, your name, or anything you like in this field …

From Email

Add the email address that you would like showing as the “sent from” email address …

Subject Field for Emails Sent to User

Type into this field a subject field for the email that will be automatically sent out to users whenever a new item has been added in 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 area of the ‘Advanced Settings’ tab you can perform database maintenance tasks related to plugin data directly from the plugin settings area itself …

This function is useful if, for example, you notice that todo items you have previously deleted are still listed on your site.

The tasks below can be performed:

• Delete Tables – Remove custom database tables that are no longer being used.
• Delete All To-Do Items – Delete all to-do items.

Any database operations carried out from this screen cannot be reversed. If you are comfortable to perform database operations in this section, then remember to backup your database first.

If you don’t want to back up your site manually, then get help from a WordPress professional, or use a WordPress backup plugin. You can learn more about a great WordPress backup plugin that can fully automate your backup process here:

• Back Up, Duplicate And Protect Your WordPress Websites And Blogs With Backup Creator WordPress Plugin

User Permissions

This section lets you configure user permissions and capabilities for Group or Master List types …

If you choose Individual List, the only configurable option that applies in this section is the View To-Do List option …

If you plan to set up user permissions and capabilities for Group or 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 set up as follows:

• Subscribers: Read
• Contributors: Edit Posts
• Authors: Publish Posts
• Editors: Edit Others Posts
• Administrators: Manage Options

Note: When using the Master list type non-admin users should only be authorized to view and complete items, otherwise they will be able to edit the Master list.

Let’s review the settings for the User Permissions section:

View To-Do List

This option enables the chosen capability to view items in the dashboard widget and on the To-Do List page under the ‘Tools’ section.

Complete To-Do Item Capability

This enables the selected capability to mark to-do items as completed or uncompleted.

Add To-Do Item Capability

This setting enables the selected capability to add new to-do items.

Edit To-Do Item Capability

This option allows the chosen capability to edit existing items.

Assign To-Do Item Capability

This enables the selected capability to delegate to-do items to individual users.

View All Assigned Tasks Capability

Here you can allow 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

Here you can allow the selected capability to delete individual items.

Delete All To-Do Items Capability

This allows the chosen capability to purge all the completed to-do items.

Add Categories Capability

Here you can enable the chosen capability to add new categories.

Import/Export

The ability to import and export to-do list data can be useful. For example, you may want to copy over data from one website to another, or export your list data for backup or reporting purposes.

To access this function, click on the ‘Import/Export’ tab in your plugin settings area …

Now you can export or import your data and plugin settings …

Exporting To-Do List Data

You can export and download your to-do list data settings by clicking on the ‘Download Export File’ …

This will open up a new window allowing you to view or save your data in a plain text file (e.g. Notepad) to a storage device (e.g. your hard drive) …

In addition to exporting list data from the ‘Import/Export’ tab, you can also export data by going to your WordPress admin 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 – pages, posts, etc…), or selecting ‘To-Do’ from the ‘Choose what to export’ section and clicking the ‘Download Export File’ button to save your file to an internal or external hard drive…

Importing To-Do List Data

Importing a previously saved to-do list data file is easy. Just click on the ‘Browse’ button next to the ‘Choose File to Import’ field …

Locate the previously saved to-do list data file in your hard drive or external drive and click ‘Open’ …

After the data file has been uploaded to your settings area, click on the ‘Import Settings’ button …

Your file data will be imported.

After configuring all plugin settings, you are ready to start creating and editing your to-do lists.

How To Use The Cleverness To-Do List Plugin

To create a new to-do list, log into your WordPress dashboard, then scroll down the menu and select To-Do List > To-Do List …

This brings up the ‘To-Do List’ page …

Adding New To-Do Items

There are a number of ways to add new to-do items to your list.

For example, you can add a new item to your to-do list from your admin toolbar …

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 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, as the link will simply take you to the “Add New To-Do Item” section down the page) …

The above methods will take you to the ‘Add New To-Do Item’ area.

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, enter appropriate values and information into the relevant fields and click on the ‘Submit To-Do Item’ button to add the new to-do item …

Note: If you have selected a list type that allows you to assign responsibilities over items to specific users, select a user from the drop-down list and assign them the item …

You can also make multiple users responsible for the same item (click on ‘x’ to delete a user) …

After you have added a new item item, the item will be listed as an entry in the ‘To-Do Items’ table …

Repeat this process to continue adding new items to your to-do list …

Edit And Delete 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 earlier), users assigned to tasks may also receive an email notification in their inboxes …

Once you have created your to-do list, users can view the list inside their dashboard …

When users assigned with completing an item click on the item check box …

… the item is deleted from the “To-Do” list …

And gets added to the ‘Completed Items’ table located in the ’To-Do List’ screen …

Additional Plugin Information

The Cleverness To-Do List plugin provides additional functions that let you display to-do lists on your site using widgets, and display lists on any post or page using shortcodes.

Plugin Widget

To add a to-do list to your site using widgets, go to the ‘Widgets’ section (Appearance > Widgets) and drag the ‘To-Do List’ widget to the menu location where you want your list to appear …

Configure the settings on the widget and click the ‘Save’ button …

The list will display wherever the widget was inserted (i.e. the sidebar menu, footer, etc.)

To learn more about how to use widgets in WordPress, see the tutorial below:

• Using Widgets In WordPress

Using The Cleverness Plugin Short Codes

Cleverness To-Do List also lets you display lists on your site using shortcodes.

To access the plugin’s shortcode documentation, select To-Do List > To-Do List from the dashboard menu …

Click on the ‘Help’ tab on the corner of your screen …

Click on the ‘Shortcodes’ menu to access the Shortcode Documentation …

This section explains different ways to configure and use short codes for displaying lists on your posts and pages.

Once you know what type of information you would like to display on your site, create a new page or post and either type or paste the short code into the content area …

Publish your post or page and you should see the list displayed exactly where you have added the shortcode …

To download this plugin, visit this site:

• Cleverness To-Do List WordPress Plugin

Congratulations! Now you can create and add to-do lists to your WordPress site.

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