How To Create To Do Lists In WordPress

Time always seems to be in short supply, especially if you are a business owner or busy manager.

There are so many things to do and remember. You have clients to meet, tasks to complete, priorities to attend to, fires to put out, deliveries to make, commitments to keep and so on. The “doing” never stops.

Now … add the extra workload of promoting and growing your business online and maintaining your website updated with regular content and things can quickly start to become unmanageable and chaotic.

Whether you run a business, website, blog, or manage a project, you need to be able to organize and manage your daily activities.

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

To Do Lists – Benefits

A “to-do” list can help to keep you on track and monitor your progress when trying to get tasks completed. Your to do list can be detailed or specific, or just serve as a reminder of what needs to be done over a given period of time.

Here are just a few of the many benefits of using to-do lists:

Keep Things Organized

Having a to-do list helps you create order, keep things organized and achieve your goals sooner.

Save Time

Prioritizing tasks on your list helps you save time. You can develop a clearer perspective on what is truly urgent vs what’s not, and what steps need to be completed first.

Keep Work Logs

To-do lists let you maintain documented logs of what has been done. This can be used to provide evidence of work done to employers or clients, or simply as a way of helping you monitor your own productivity and efficiency.

Eliminate Stress

Stress can come from feeling overwhelmed by so much to do and so little time to do it all in. Creating a to-do list lets you prioritize urgent items that have to get done within the time you have available, and reschedule non-urgent items that can be worked on at a later time. This can help you stress less.

Better Delegation

A to do list helps you assign work to others better. This is also important when collaborating within a team (see further below).

As you can see, there are many benefits to using a to-do list, both in business and in your personal life. Creating a to-do list, then prioritizing tasks and working in a systematic way increases your business productivity and efficiency.

What about adding to do lists to your website?

In this detailed tutorial we are going to show you how to add to do lists to WordPress to help get things done online faster and more efficiently using a great little WordPress plugin called Cleverness To-Do List.

Cleverness To Do List

Download The Plugin

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

Description

This plugin provides users with a to do list feature.

Plugin Features

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

You can set up Cleverness To-Do List to assign private to do lists for individual users, to have all users share your to-do list, or to have a master list with individual item completions.

The shared to do list option offers a number of settings. You can assign to do items to a specific user (this includes a setting to email a new to do item to users) and optionally to have those items only seen by that user. You can also assign different permission levels using capabilities. There are also settings to display deadline and progress fields. Category support is included as well as front-end administration.

A new menu item is added to the admin backend to help you manage your list and the to do lists can also appear on the dashboard widget.

A sidebar widget is available as well as shortcode to display the to do list items on your site. There are two short codes for front-end administration of your list. Management of categories is accessible via the back-end admin section.

If you plan to set up 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.

Installing The Cleverness To-Do List Plugin

Inside your WP admin, choose Plugins > Add New …

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

Locate the Cleverness To-Do List plugin in the Search Results tab and click Install Now …

Click Activate Plugin …

Note: You can also activate the plugin in the Plugins screen …

After the plugin has been activated, click on Settings …

Note: The plugin’s settings section can also be accessed by choosing To-Do List > Settings from the dashboard menu …

This takes you to the ‘Settings’ area …

Let’s go through the plugin setup process …

Plugin Setup

The Settings area is divided into four tabs:

To-Do List Settings – Here you can specify the plugin’s main settings.
Advanced Settings – The options in this area let you customize your To-Do lists, assign tasks to other users and perform database maintenance tasks.
User Permissions – This section is where you set up user permissions and capabilities for Master and Group List types.
Import/Export – This tab is where you can export and import to-do plugin and list data settings.

Let’s now go through each of these sections.

To-Do List Settings

List View

List View allows you to specify how lists are viewed. You can choose 3 kinds of to do list views:

Individual – Selecting this option allows each user to create and manage their own private to-do list.
Group – Selecting this option allows users to share the same to-do list.
Master – This option allows you to create one master list for all users, where users have their own individual items to complete. If you select the ‘Master’ list view, make sure that you adjust the User Permissions appropriately in the ‘User Permissions’ tab (see further below).

Sort Order

‘Sort Order’ lets you specify how to-do list items will be sorted.

If you select Alphabetical, ID or Category, ID, Category or Alphabetical options, items will be first sorted by priority.

Show Added By

If 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, completion dates will display for your to-do tasks.

Show Deadline

Enabling this option lets you specify deadlines for your to-do tasks …

Show Progress

If enabled, you can specify task progress indicators for your to-do items …

Show Admin Bar Menu

If enabled, the ‘To-Do List’ menu displays in your WordPress Dashboard 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 to-do lists.

Integrate with Post Planner

If you plan to run 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 to learn more about using this plugin: WordPress Post Planner – Plugin For WordPress

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

Advanced Settings

After 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’ area …

In this tab you can customize your To-Do lists, assign to-do items to users and perform plugin 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’ screen lets you customize your To-Do List …

You can configure the following options in this section:

Date Format

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

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

WordPress Codex – Formatting Date And Time

Priority Labels

This section lets you customize your labels for important, middle and low priority items …

Highest priority items are color-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, the item’s ID appear on the list …

Show Date To-Do Was Added

Enabling this option displays the date your To-Do Items table was added …

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

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

The following options can be configured in this area:

Assign To-Do Items to Users

Enable this option (‘Yes’) to assign tasks to other users …

Note: This setting must be set to ‘Yes’ for the settings below it to work.

Show a User Only the To-Do Items Assigned to Them

Enabling this option displays tasks only to users who have been assigned those items. Leaving this option disabled (‘No’) will display items to all users.

User Roles to Show

Checking the boxes in this section Author displays the type of users that can be assigned todo items. Leave the check box unticked for any roles that you do not want to assign to-do items.

Email Assigned To-Do Items to User

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

Leave this option disabled if you don’t want to send out emails to users.

Note: If this option is disabled, you can skip other 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 on the subject of your emails …

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

If you don’t want to display to-do categories in the subject of your emails, then leave this option disabled (‘No’).

Show Who Assigned the To-Do Item in Email

Enable this option to display the user who assigned the to-do item in the email. This option is useful if, for example, your site has several project managers assigning to-do items to users …

From Field for Emails Sent to User

This field allows you to customize the “From” field when sending out email notifications. Add your company name, your domain, your name, or anything you like into this field …

From Email

Add into this field the email address that you want to display as the “sent from” email address …

Subject Field for Emails Sent to User

Add into this field a subject field for the email that will be automatically sent out to users whenever new items have been assigned in your to-do list …

Text in Emails Sent to User

In this field, enter 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

This area of the ‘Advanced Settings’ tab lets you carry out database maintenance operations related to plugin data directly from the plugin settings area …

This function is useful if, for example, you notice that old to-do items are still displaying on your site.

You can perform the tasks below in this section:

Delete Tables – Delete any custom database tables that you no longer use.
Delete All To-Do Items – Delete all to-do items.

Any database operations carried out from this screen cannot be undone. If you are sure that you want to perform database maintenance in this section, then make sure to backup your database first.

If you don’t want to perform manual backups, then get professional assistance services, or use WordPress backup plugins. You can read about a great WordPress backup plugin that we recommend using to completely automate your WordPress file and data backups here:

Backup, Clone & Protect Your WP Websites With Backup Creator WP Plugin

User Permissions

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

If you have selected Individual List, the only permission that applies in this section is the View To-Do List option …

If you are setting up user permissions and capabilities for Group or Master List types, select the highest level capabilities that you would like users to have access to for each option …

The 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 working with the Master list type non-administrator users should only be permitted to view and complete items, otherwise they will have the ability to edit the Master list.

Let’s now review the settings for this section:

View To-Do List

This setting permits the selected 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 setting allows the selected capability to mark items as completed or not completed.

Add To-Do Item Capability

This permits the selected capability to add new items.

Edit To-Do Item Capability

Here you can allow the chosen capability to edit existing items.

Assign To-Do Item Capability

Here you can enable the chosen capability to assign items to individual users.

View All Assigned Tasks Capability

Here you can enable the chosen capability to view all tasks even if “Show Each User Only Their Assigned Tasks” is set to ‘Yes’.

Delete To-Do Item Capability

This option enables the selected capability to delete individual items.

Delete All To-Do Items Capability

Here you can enable the chosen capability to purge all the completed to-do items.

Add Categories Capability

This option allows the chosen capability to add new categories.

Import/Export

Being able to import and export to-do list data can be very useful. For example, you may decide 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 section …

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

Exporting To-Do List Data

To export and download your list data settings click on the ‘Download Export File’ …

This opens up a new window allowing you to view or download your data in a plain text file (e.g. Notepad) to a storage medium (e.g. your hard drive) …

In addition to exporting list data from the ‘Import/Export’ section, you can also export data by going to your WordPress main menu and selecting Tools > Export …

You can include to-do list data in an export file (in XML format), either by selecting ‘All content’ (includes everything – pages, posts, etc…), or just select ‘To-Do’ from the ‘Choose what to export’ section and click on the ‘Download Export File’ button to download your file to a storage medium…

Importing To-Do List Data

To import a previously saved to-do list data file, click on the ‘Browse’ button next to the ‘Choose File to Import’ field …

Select the previously saved to-do list data file and click ‘Open’ …

After uploading the data file, click on the ‘Import Settings’ button …

Your file will be imported.

Now that you have configured all plugin settings, you can start create and edit to do lists.

How To Use Cleverness To-Do List

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

This brings you to the ‘To-Do List’ page …

Adding A New Item To Your List

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

For example, you can add new to-do items to your list from your admin bar …

You can also add new to-do items inside the Dashboard 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 contains many items, since the link is only going to take you to the “Add New To-Do Item” section further down the screen) …

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

Depending on how you have set up your plugin, you may or may not see certain options displayed when adding new items to your to-do list.

Set up 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 item to your list …

Note: If you are using a list type that lets you assign items to users, select a user from the drop-down list and assign them the item …

You can also assign items to multiple users (click on ‘x’ to remove users) …

Once you have added an item, it will be listed as an entry in the ‘To-Do List’ table …

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

Edit And Delete 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 (see previous section), users assigned to completing tasks may also receive email notifications …

After creating your to do list, users can view it when logged into their own user dashboard …

When a user assigned with completing an item ticks the item check box …

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

And gets listed the ‘Completed Items’ table located in the main screen of the ‘To-Do List’ plugin …

Additional Plugin Information

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

Using The Cleverness To-Do List 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 location in your sidebar menu where you would like the to-do list to display …

Configure the settings in the widget and click ’Save’ to update your settings …

The to-do list will appear where you have added the widget (i.e. the sidebar menu, footer, etc.)

To learn more about using widgets in WordPress, see the tutorial below:

How To Use Widgets In WordPress

Using The Cleverness To-Do List Plugin Shortcodes

You can also display to-do lists and checklists to your site with short codes.

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

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

Click on the ‘Shortcodes’ tab to access the Shortcode Documentation screen …

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

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

Publish your post or page and you will see the list displayed exactly where you entered the short code …

For more details about this plugin, visit the plugin website here:

Cleverness To-Do List WordPress Plugin

Congratulations! Now you know how to add to-do lists to your WordPress site.

***

"I have used the tutorials to teach all of my clients and it has probably never been so easy for everyone to learn WordPress ... Now I don't need to buy all these very expensive video courses that often don't deliver what they promise." - Stefan Wendt, Internet Marketing Success Group

***