How To Create To Do Lists In WordPress

If you are a busy person trying to run a business or manage a team, there never seems to be enough hours in the day to get things done.

There is just so much to do and remember. You have so many deadlines to meet, urgent tasks to complete, priorities to attend to, fires to put out, appointments to make, commitments to keep and so on. The amount of things that need ”doing” never seems to stop.

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 regular content and things can start becoming unmanageable and out of control.

Whether you are running a business, website, blog, or managing a team, you need to be able to organize and manage your daily tasks.

A proven tool 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 can help to keep you on track and measure your progress when trying to complete tasks. Your to-do list can be quite detailed and specific, or act as a concise reminder of what needs to be done over a given period of time.

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

To-Do Lists Create Order

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

Strategize

Creating and organizing to-do lists helps you view the larger picture and come up with a strategy to get things completed on budget and on time.

Quickly Reorganize

To-do lists help you better deal with sudden and unexpected situations. If a meeting gets cancelled or extra time becomes available when some part of the project gets completed sooner than expected, you can quickly reorganize and reschedule and keep working with little to minimal loss of focus.

Reduce Stress

Stress can come from feeling overwhelmed by the fact that there is so much to do and so little time to do it in. Using a to do list lets you work on important items that need to be completed within the time you have available, and reschedule tasks that can be worked on later. This can help you stress less.

Better Work Delegation

Having to-do lists help you better delegate work to others. This is also important if you plan to work on a team-based project (see further below).

As you can see, there are many benefits to using to do lists, both in business and in your personal life. Create a list, prioritize your list items and work in a focused way and productivity and efficiency in your business will improve.

What about adding a to-do list to your website or blog?

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

Cleverness To Do List

Cleverness To-Do List Plugin Download URL

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

Description

This plugin lets you easily add to do lists to WordPress.

Features

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

You can configure Cleverness To Do List to assign 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 has a variety of settings available. You can assign to-do items to a specific user (this includes a setting to email a new to-do item to the assigned user) and optionally to have assigned items be seen by that user. You can also assign different permission levels using capabilities. There are also settings to enable the display of deadline and progress fields. Category support is also included in the front-end administration.

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

A sidebar widget is also available as shortcode to display the to do list items on your site. There are two short codes for front-end list administration. Management of categories is accessed 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 install a copy of the developer’s premium plugin, Post Planner.

Installing The Cleverness To-Do List Plugin

Inside your WordPress admin area, select Plugins > Add New …

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

Locate the plugin in the Search Results area and click Install Now …

Click “Activate Plugin” …

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

Once the plugin has been activated, click on Settings …

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

This takes you to the plugin ‘Settings’ area …

Let’s go through the plugin setup process …

How To Set Up The Cleverness To-Do List Plugin

The “To-Do List” plugin ‘Settings’ area is divided into 4 tabs:

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

Let’s take you through each of these sections.

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 gets added to the To-Do List menu …

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

You can set up ‘public’ and ‘private’ categories for your to-do 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 your to-do lists are viewed. There are 3 kinds of list views you can select:

• Individual – Selecting this option allows users to create and manage their own private to-do list.
• Group – Choose this option if you want all users to be able to share one to-do list.
• Master – This option allows you to create a master list for all users, where users have their own individual items to complete. If you choose 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 list items.

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

Show Added By

Enabling this option lets you display which users have added an item to your to-do list.

Note: This setting only applies when ‘List View’ is set to ‘Group’.

Show Date Completed

If this option is enabled, completion dates will display for to-do items.

Show Deadline

Enabling this option (‘Yes’) lets you specify deadlines for to-do tasks …

Show Progress

If this option is enabled (‘Yes’), you can 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 WP Dashboard Admin bar …

Use WYSIWYG Editor

If this option is enabled (‘Yes’), you can add and edit items on your to-do list using the WordPress WYSIWYG Editor …

Use Auto Paragraphs

If this option is 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 collaborative website or blog, you can integrate the Cleverness To Do List plugin with a plugin called WordPress Post Planner, developed by the same author that helps to make managing a multi-author WordPress site easier …

Visit this site to learn more this plugin: WordPress Post Planner – WordPress Editorial Solution Plugin

After you have finished configuring your options, click the ‘Save Changes’ button …

Advanced Settings

After configuring the settings in the To-Do List Settings tab, click on the ‘Advanced Settings’ tab …

This brings you to the ‘Advanced Settings’ area …

This area lets you customize your To Do lists, assign to-do items to other 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 section you can specify how to display dates in your todo 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

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

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

Show To-Do Item ID

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

You can configure the following options in this area:

Assign To-Do Items to Users

Enable this option 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

Enable this option (‘Yes’) to display tasks only to users who have been specifically assigned those items. Leaving this option disabled will display items to all users.

User Roles to Show

Check the boxes in this area Contributor to display the type of users that can be assigned to-do items. If you don’t want to assign to-do items to a role, then don’t tick its check box.

Email Assigned To-Do Items to User

When this option is enabled (‘Yes’), WordPress will automatically send users an email with their assigned to-do items …

If you don’t want to send out emails to users, then leave this option disabled.

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

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

If you don’t want to display to-do categories in the email subject, then leave this option disabled.

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 option is useful if, for example, your site has multiple 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 notices. Add the name of your company, your domain, your name, or anything you like in this field …

From Email

Type in the email address that you want showing as the “sent from” address …

Subject Field for Emails Sent to User

Type into this field a subject field for the email that will be automatically sent to users when a new item has been assigned 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 section you can carry out database maintenance tasks associated with plugin data directly from your plugin settings area without the need to access your server …

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

You can perform the following tasks:

• Delete Tables – Remove any custom database tables that you are no longer using.
• Delete All To-Do Items – Remove all of your to-do items.

Any database operations you perform from this screen cannot be undone. If you are sure that you want to perform database maintenance in this section, then we recommend backing up your WordPress database first.

If you don’t want to back up your data yourself, then hire a professional service, or use a WordPress backup plugin. You can read about a WordPress backup plugin that we recommend using to completely automate your WordPress site backups here:

• Backup, Copy & Protect Your WordPress Sites With Backup Creator WordPress Plugin

User Permissions

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

If you have chosen the Individual List type, the only setting that is applicable in this section is the View To-Do List permission …

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 …

The default general capabilities for each user role are set 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-admin users should only be permitted to view and complete items, otherwise they will be able to edit the Master list itself.

Let’s review the settings for this 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 option allows the chosen capability to mark to-do items as completed or not completed.

Add To-Do Item Capability

This setting enables the selected capability to add new items.

Edit To-Do Item Capability

This permits the selected capability to modify existing items.

Assign To-Do Item Capability

Here you can enable the selected capability to delegate items to individual users.

View All Assigned Tasks Capability

This setting enables 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

Here you can permit the selected capability to delete individual to-do items.

Delete All To-Do Items Capability

This setting permits the chosen capability to purge all the completed items.

Add Categories Capability

This setting permits 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 copy over data from one site to another, or export your 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 export and import your list data and plugin settings …

Exporting To-Do List Data

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

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

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

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

Your file data will be imported.

After configuring all of the plugin settings, you can begin create and edit your lists.

How To Use The Plugin

To create a new to-do list, go to your WordPress dashboard menu and click on To-Do List > To-Do List …

This brings you to 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 new to-do items from your dashboard bar …

You can also add a new item to your to-do list inside 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 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 methods shown above will take you to the ‘Add New To-Do Item’ area.

Depending on the way you have set up your plugin, some options may not display when adding new items to your to-do list.

Select 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 to-do item …

Note: If you are using a list type that allows you to assign items to 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 delete a user) …

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

Repeat the above process to keep adding new items to your to-do list …

Editing And Deleting Items

To edit or delete an item, click on the ‘Edit’ or ‘Delete’ buttons next to items under the ‘Action’ column …

Depending on how you have configured the plugin (discussed in the previous section), users assigned to tasks may also receive an email notification in their inboxes …

After creating your to-do list, users can view the list from their WordPress user dashboard …

When the user assigned with completing an item clicks on the item checkbox …

… the item is then 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 plugin provides additional functions that let you display to-do lists on your WordPress site using widgets, and add lists to content inside a post or page using shortcodes.

Plugin Widget

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 want the list to display …

Configure the settings in the widget and click ’Save’ …

The list will display where the ‘to-do-list’ widget has been inserted (i.e. the sidebar menu, footer, etc.)

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

• Using WordPress Widget

Using The Cleverness To-Do List Plugin Short Codes

Cleverness To-Do List also lets you add lists and checklists to your site by inserting short codes into your content.

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

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

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

The documentation 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 add to your site, open up a new post or page and either type or paste the shortcode inside the content section …

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

Go here for more information about this plugin:

• Cleverness To-Do List WordPress Plugin

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

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