Creating To-Do Lists In WordPress

If you are a business owner, there never seems to be enough hours in the day to get everything done.

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

Now … add the extra workload of promoting and growing your business online and maintaining your website or blog updated with new content and everything can start feeling unmanageable and overwhelming.

Whether you are running a business, website, blog, or managing a team, you need to be able to organize and prioritize your daily tasks, keep track of your progress and daily accomplishments, and, if necessary, assign tasks to others effectively.

One ”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 a “to-do” list.

Benefits Of Using A To-Do List

A “to-do” list helps you measure your progress when working towards your goals. Your to do list can be detailed and specific, or just serve as a reminder of the things that need to be done today, tomorrow, this week, this month, etc.

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

Keep Things Organized

A to do list helps you create order, stay organized and reach goals sooner.

Prioritize Your Time

Prioritizing tasks on your list helps you save time and better manage your workload. You can gain a better perspective on what is more urgent vs what’s not, and what tasks have to be completed first.

Quickly Reorganize

A to-do list helps you better deal with events. If an appointment suddenly gets cancelled at the last minute or extra time becomes available when some part of the project gets completed sooner than expected, you can quickly reschedule and reorganize and keep moving forward with minimal disruption.

Ensures Accountability

Without accountability there is no commitment to completion, and no motivation to take meaningful action. Lack of accountability can also let excuses creep in and influence your productivity.

Better Delegation

To-do lists help you assign work to other people better. 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. Creating to-do lists, prioritizing tasks and working to complete the items listed increases your business efficiency and productivity.

Let’s turn now to using a to-do list on your website. More specifically, how to add to-do lists to WordPress.

In this step-by-step tutorial we are going to show you how to create a to do list in 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 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 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 completion of items.

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

A new menu item is added to the backend to help you manage your list and the to do list is 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 2 short codes for front-end administration of the list. Category management is accessed through the back-end admin section.

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 editors if you also install a copy of the Post Planner plugin.

How To Install The Cleverness To-Do List Plugin

Log into your WordPress admin and select Plugins > Add New …

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

Locate the entry in the Search Results tab and click Install Now …

Click Activate Plugin …

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

Once you have activated the plugin, click on Settings …

Note: The ‘Settings’ section can also be accessed by selecting To-Do List > Settings from your dashboard menu …

This brings you to the plugin ‘Settings’ section …

The section below shows you how to go through the plugin setup process …

Configuring The Plugin

The Settings screen is divided into 4 sections:

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

Let’s take you through each of these tabs.

To-Do List Settings

To-Do List Categories

Select ‘Enabled’ to organize lists 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 menu …

This allows you to 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 to-do lists.

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

List View

List View allows you to specify how your lists are viewed. You can select 3 types of to do list views:

• Individual – Select this option if you want each user to create and manage their own private to-do list.
• Group – Choose this option if you want all users to share one to-do list.
• Master – Select 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 set the User Permissions appropriately in the ‘User Permissions’ tab (see further below).

Sort Order

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

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

Show Added By

If this option is enabled (‘Yes’), you can display which of your users has added an item to your to-do list.

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

Show Date Completed

Enabling this option (‘Yes’) displays completion dates for to-do tasks.

Show Deadline

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

Show Progress

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

Show Admin Bar Menu

Enabling this option (‘Yes’) displays the ‘To-Do List’ menu in your WP Dashboard 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

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

Visit this site to learn more about using this handy plugin: WordPress Post Planner – WordPress Plugin

Once you have configured your options, remember to click the ‘Save Changes’ button to update your settings …

Advanced Settings

After you have configured the general settings, click on the ‘Advanced Settings’ tab …

This brings you to the ‘Advanced Settings’ area …

In this area 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 allows you to customize your To-Do List …

The following options can be configured in this section:

Date Format

In this section you can specify how to display dates in your todo list (e.g. month/day/year, day/month/year, etc.)

Note: To learn more about formatting dates in WordPress, visit 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 (normal) and lowest priority items …

Items prioritized as “important” display in red and low priority items display in a lighter shade of grey …

Show To-Do Item ID

If enabled (‘Yes’), the items’ IDs display on your list …

Show Date To-Do Was Added

If enabled, the date the to-do list was added will show on the To-Do 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 options in this section and assign items to other users …

The following options can be configured in this section:

Assign To-Do Items to Users

Enabling this option lets you 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 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

Checking the boxes in this area (Administrator, Editor, Author, Contributor, Subscriber) displays the type of users that can be assigned items. If you don’t want to assign to-do items to a particular role, then leave its checkbox unticked.

Email Assigned To-Do Items to User

If this option is enabled, 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.

Note: If you disable this option, skip the 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 display categories in the subject of your emails.

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

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 website has 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. Type the name of your company, your domain, your name, or anything you like into this field …

From Email

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

Subject Field for Emails Sent to User

In this field, add a subject field for the email that will be sent out automatically to users when 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 section lets you perform database maintenance tasks associated with plugin data inside your plugin settings area without having to log into your web server …

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

You can perform the following tasks:

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

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

If you don’t want to perform your own site backups, then use a professional service, or use backup plugins. Learn about a WordPress backup plugin that can automate your site backups here:

• Back Up, Copy And Keep Your WordPress Site Protected With Backup Creator Plugin For WordPress

User Permissions

In this area you can configure user permissions and capabilities for Group or Master List types …

If you are using the Individual List type, the only item 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 …

The default general capabilities for 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 allow non-administrator users to view and complete items, otherwise they will have the ability to edit the Master list itself.

Let’s go through the settings for this tab:

View To-Do List

This setting enables 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

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

Add To-Do Item Capability

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

Edit To-Do Item Capability

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

Assign To-Do Item Capability

Here you can allow the chosen capability to delegate items to individual users.

View All Assigned Tasks Capability

This setting allows 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 enable 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 selected capability to add new categories.

Import/Export

Being able to import and export to-do list data can be useful. For example, you may need to transfer data from an existing list to another website, or export the data for backup or reporting purposes.

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

Now you can easily import or export your list and plugin settings …

Exporting To-Do List Data

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

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

As well as exporting to-do list data from the ‘Import/Export’ section, you can also export data by going to your admin menu and selecting Tools > Export …

You can include to-do list data in an export file (in XML format), either by checking ‘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 download 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’ …

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

Your file data 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 up the ‘To-Do List’ page …

How To Add New To-Do Items To Your List

There are several ways to add a new item to your to-do list.

For example, you can add new to-do items from your dashboard toolbar …

You can also add new to-do items 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 already contains many items, as the link will simply send 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’ section.

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 item to your list …

Note: If you have chosen 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 make multiple users responsible for the same item (click on ‘x’ to delete a user) …

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

Repeat this process to keep 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 how you have configured the plugin (discussed earlier), users assigned to completing tasks may also receive email notifications …

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

When a 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’ table located in the ’To-Do List’ plugin page …

Additional Plugin Information

The Cleverness plugin offers added functionality that lets you display a to-do list on your site using widgets, and add a list to any post or page using short codes.

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 want the list to appear …

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

The list will display on your site where you have placed the widget (e.g. the sidebar menu, footer, etc.)

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

• How To Use WordPress Widget

Shortcodes

Cleverness To-Do List also lets you create to-do lists and checklists to your site using short codes.

To access the documentation on using shortcodes, select To-Do List > To-Do List from the dashboard menu …

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

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

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

Once you know what type of information you want to display on your site, create or edit a new or existing post or page and either type or paste the shortcode inside the content editor …

Publish your page or post and you should see the list showing where you have added the short code …

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

• Cleverness To-Do List WordPress Plugin

Congratulations! Now you can add a to-do list to your WordPress site or blog.

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