Creating A To Do List In WordPress

Time is always in short supply, especially if you run a growing business or manage other people.

There is just so much to do and remember. You have deadlines to meet, projects to complete, priorities to attend to, fires to put out, calls and appointments to make, schedules to keep and so on. The “doing” never seems to stop.

Now … add the extra workload of trying to promote and grow your business online and maintaining your website or blog updated with new content and things can start becoming unmanageable and out of control.

Whether you are running a business, website, blog, or managing a project, you need to be able to organize and prioritize your daily activities, monitor your progress, and, if necessary, delegate tasks and responsibilities to members of your team effectively.

A simple “tried and true” method that can help you save time, create a sense of order and manageability, and allow you to gain some control is to use “to do” lists.

The Benefits Of Using To-Do Lists

A “to-do” list can help to keep you on track and measure your progress when trying to complete tasks. Your to do list can be quite detailed or specific, or serve as a concise reminder of what needs to be done today, tomorrow, this week, this month, etc.

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

To-Do Lists Help To Keep Things Organized

Having to do lists help you create order, keep things organized and achieve your goals sooner.

Manage Your Time Better

Prioritizing tasks on your list helps you save time and manage your workload more effectively. You can develop a clearer perspective on what’s more important vs what’s not, and what steps should be done first.

Quickly Reschedule

Using to-do lists help you better deal with changes in circumstances. If a meeting gets cancelled at short notice or extra time becomes available when some aspect of the process gets completed sooner than expected, you can continue moving forward without disruption.

Ensures Accountability

With no accountability there is no commitment to completion, and no motivation to take meaningful action. Lack of accountability can also allow excuses to creep in and influence your productivity.

Collaborating With Others

Using to do lists and other project management tools is essential for working 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. Creating a to-do list, then prioritizing tasks and working to complete the items on your list improves efficiency and productivity in your business.

What about using a to-do list on your WordPress website?

In this detailed step-by-step tutorial we are going to show you how to easily add a to-do list to your WordPress site to improve business efficiency and productivity using a customizable, multi-featured to do list plugin for WordPress called Cleverness To-Do List.

Cleverness To Do List

Cleverness To-Do List Plugin Download URL

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

Plugin Description

This plugin lets you easily add to-do lists to a WordPress site.

Features

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

You can set up the plugin with private to-do lists for individual users, 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 provides different settings. You can assign to do items to a specific user (this includes emailing a new to-do item to assigned users) and optionally to have assigned items be seen by that user. You can also assign different permission levels to different users based on user roles. 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 are also displayed on the dashboard widget.

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

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

Installing The Plugin

In your WordPress administration section, scroll down the main menu and select Plugins > Add New …

In the Install Plugins screen, type in “cleverness” into the search field and click the Enter button …

Locate the Cleverness To-Do List entry in the Search Results section and click Install Now …

Activate the plugin after installing it …

Note: You can also activate the plugin from the Plugins area …

After you have activated the plugin, click on Settings …

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

This takes you to the plugin ‘Settings’ page …

Let’s set up the plugin …

Plugin Configuration

The “To-Do List” plugin ‘Settings’ screen is divided into four tabs:

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

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

List View

List View allows you to choose how lists are viewed. There are 3 to do list views available:

• Individual – Selecting this option lets each user create and manage their own private to-do list.
• Group – Choose this option if you want all users to be able to share the same to-do list.
• Master – This option allows you to have a 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 (see further below).

Sort Order

‘Sort Order’ lets you specify how to sort to-do list items.

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

Show Added By

If this option is enabled, you can display which of your users has added an item to the to-do list.

Note: This setting only applies when ‘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

If this option is enabled (‘Yes’), you will be able to specify deadlines for your to-do tasks …

Show Progress

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

Show Admin Bar Menu

Enabling this option (‘Yes’) lets you display the ‘To-Do List’ menu 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 list items.

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 …

To learn more about using this handy plugin, visit this site: WordPress Post Planner – WordPress Multi-Author Publishing Plugin

Once you have finished configuring your plugin options in this section, click the ‘Save Changes’ button …

Advanced Settings

After configuring the general settings, click on the ‘Advanced Settings’ tab to proceed …

This brings up the plugin’s ‘Advanced Settings’ section …

In this area you can customize your To-Do lists, assign to-do tasks to users and carry out plugin database maintenance.

Let’s go through how to configure the plugin’s ‘Advanced Settings’ section …

To-Do List Advanced Settings > Customize The To-Do List

In this area you can customize your To-Do List …

You can configure the following options in this section:

Date Format

This section lets you 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

Here you can customize your labels for prioritizing highest (important), normal and lowest items …

Highest (important) priority items are color-coded in red in your lists and low priority items display in a lighter shade of grey …

Show To-Do Item ID

Enabling this option will display item IDs on your to-do list …

Show Date To-Do Was Added

Enabling this option (‘Yes’) shows the date your items table was added …

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 section and assign items to other users …

You can configure the following settings in this section:

Assign To-Do Items to Users

Enable this option (‘Yes’) 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’) lets you display tasks only to users who have been assigned those items. Leave this option disabled (‘No’) to display items to all users.

User Roles to Show

Checking the boxes in this section (Administrator, Editor, Author, Contributor, Subscriber) displays 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 will automatically send users an email with their assigned to-do items …

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

Note: If you disable this option, skip other settings 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 in the subject of emails sent to users …

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

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

Show Who Assigned the To-Do Item in Email

Enabling this option (‘Yes’) lets you display the user who assigned the to-do item in the email. This option is useful if, for example, you have a number of project managers assigning to-do items to users …

From Field for Emails Sent to User

Use this field to customize the “From” field when sending out emails to users. You can enter 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 would like to display as the “sent from” address …

Subject Field for Emails Sent to User

Enter a subject field for the email that will be automatically distributed to users whenever a new item has been assigned to your to-do list …

Text in Emails Sent to User

Add 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

This section of the ‘Advanced Settings’ tab lets you carry out database maintenance operations associated with plugin data inside the plugin settings area itself without having to log into your web server …

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

You can perform the following tasks:

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

Actions that you perform on the database from this screen cannot be undone. If you are comfortable to carry out database operations in this section, then make sure to backup your WP database first.

If you don’t want to do your own site backups, then consider getting help from a WordPress professional, or use a WordPress backup plugin. You can learn more about a great WordPress backup plugin that we recommend using to automate WordPress file and database backups here:

• Back Up, Clone And Protect Your WordPress Web Site With Backup Creator Plugin For WP

User Permissions

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

If you have chosen Individual List, the only configurable item that is applicable 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 be able to perform for each option …

By default, general capabilities for each user role are configured 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 authorize non-admin users to view and complete items, otherwise they will be able to edit the Master list.

Below is a description of the settings for the User Permissions section:

View To-Do List

Here you can permit 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 setting allows the selected capability to mark to-do items as completed or not completed.

Add To-Do Item Capability

This setting allows the selected capability to add new items.

Edit To-Do Item Capability

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

Assign To-Do Item Capability

This option permits the selected capability to assign items to individual users.

View All Assigned Tasks Capability

This setting enables 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 permits the selected capability to delete individual items.

Delete All To-Do Items Capability

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

Add Categories Capability

This allows the selected 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 transfer data from one website to another, or export the list data for backup or archiving purposes.

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

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

Exporting To-Do List Data

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

This will open up a new window allowing you to view or save your data in plain text format to a storage device …

As well as 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 an 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 download your file to your storage medium…

Importing To-Do List Data

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

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

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

The data from the existing to-do file will be imported.

Now that you have configured all plugin settings, you can begin creating and editing 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 you to the ‘To-Do List’ page …

Adding A New Item To Your List

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

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

You can also add a new item to your to-do list in 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 at the bottom of the page) …

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

Depending on the way you have configured your plugin settings, 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, enter 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 have selected 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 items to multiple users (click on ‘x’ to remove a user) …

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

Repeat this process to continue adding 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 items under the ‘Action’ column …

Depending on your configuration settings (see previous section), 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 when logged into their own WP user dashboard …

When the user assigned with completing an item ticks the item checkbox …

… the item no longer appears in the “To-Do” list …

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

Additional Plugin Information

The Cleverness To-Do List plugin offers additional functions that let you display a to-do list on your WordPress website using widgets, and display a list on any post or page using shortcodes.

Plugin Widget

To add to-do lists to your site using widgets, go to the ‘Widgets’ page (Appearance > Widgets) and drag the ‘To-Do List’ widget to the menu location where you would like your to-do list to display …

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

Your list will display where you have inserted the widget (e.g. the sidebar menu, footer, etc.)

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

• Using s

Using Plugin Short Codes

Cleverness To-Do List also lets you add to-do lists and checklists to your site with shortcodes.

To access the documentation on using short codes, click on To-Do List > To-Do List from the dashboard menu …

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

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

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

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

After publishing your post or page, you will see the list displayed where you added the shortcode …

To download this plugin, visit the plugin website:

• Cleverness To-Do List WordPress Plugin

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

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