How To Create To-Do Lists In WordPress

Time always seems to be in short supply, especially if you run a growing business.

There is just so much work to do and things to remember. You have clients to meet, projects to complete, meetings to attend, fires to extinguish, deliveries to make, commitments to keep and so on. The amount of things that need ”doing” never seems to stop.

Now … add the extra dimension of promoting and growing your business online and keeping your website updated with regular content and everything can quickly start to become unmanageable and out of control.

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

A 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 “to-do” lists.

To Do Lists – Benefits

A “to do” list can help you measure your progress as you work to achieve your goals. Your to-do list can be minutely detailed and specific, or just serve as a concise reminder of what needs to be done over a given period of time.

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

Stay Organized

A to do list helps you create order, keep things organized and reach goals faster.

Manage Your Time Better

Prioritizing tasks on your list helps you save time and better manage your workload. You can gain a better perspective on what is truly urgent vs what isn’t, and what tasks should be done first.

Quickly Reorganize

Using to-do lists let you better handle changes in circumstances. If an appointment gets cancelled at the last minute or extra time becomes available because a task was completed sooner than expected, you can continue working with no loss of focus.

Accountability

Without accountability there’s no commitment to completion, and no motivation to take meaningful action. Lack of accountability lets excuses creep in and influence your productivity.

Delegate Better

To-do lists help you better delegate tasks to others. This is also important when collaborating with others (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 systematic way and your business productivity and efficiency will increase.

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

In this detailed tutorial we are going to show you how to easily create to do lists in WordPress to improve business efficiency and productivity using a great little plugin called Cleverness To-Do List.

Cleverness To-Do List

Download The Cleverness To-Do List Plugin

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

Plugin Description

This WordPress plugin lets you easily add a customizable to-do list to a WP website or blog.

Features

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

You can configure Cleverness To-Do List 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 completion of items.

The shared to-do list has a variety of settings available. You can assign to do items to specific users (this includes a setting to email new to do items to assigned users) and optionally to have those items be viewable 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 backend to help you manage your list and your to-do lists can also appear on a dashboard widget.

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

If you plan to run a multi-author site you can use this to do lists plugin to create custom to-do lists for your post editors if you also install the Post Planner plugin for WordPress from the same developer.

Installing The Cleverness To-Do List Plugin

From your site’s dashboard, click on Plugins > Add New …

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

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

Activate the plugin …

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

Once you have activated the plugin, click on Settings …

Note: The settings screen can also be accessed by selecting To-Do List > Settings from your admin menu …

This takes you to the plugin ‘Settings’ page …

The section below shows you how to set up the plugin …

Plugin Setup

The Settings area is divided into 4 sections:

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

Categories

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

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

Private categories are not visible using sidebar widgets or short codes (only when ‘Sort Order’ is set to ‘Category’)

List View

List View lets you choose how your lists are viewed. You can choose from three to-do list views:

• Individual – Selecting this option lets each user create and manage their own private to-do list.
• Group – Use this option if you want all users to be able to share one to-do list.
• Master – Choose this option to have one master list for all users, where users have their own individual completion of items. If using the ‘Master’ list view, make sure that you configure the User Permissions appropriately in the ‘User Permissions’ tab (this is covered further below).

Sort Order

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

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

Show Added By

If enabled (‘Yes’), you can display which users on your site have added an item to the to-do list.

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

Show Date Completed

Enabling this option displays completion dates for your to-do items.

Show Deadline

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

Show Progress

Enabling this option (‘Yes’) lets you 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 WordPress 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, automatic paragraphs are used to display content in your to-do list items.

Integrate with Post Planner

If you are running a collaborative site or blog, you can integrate the Cleverness To Do List plugin with a plugin called WordPress Post Planner, developed by the same author that provides you with a complete WordPress editorial solution …

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

When you are done configuring your options, click the ‘Save Changes’ button …

Advanced Settings

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

This brings you to the ‘Advanced Settings’ area …

This section lets you customize your To Do lists, assign to-do tasks to other users and perform plugin 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

Here you can 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 to-do 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

In this section you can customize your labels for important, middle (normal) and lowest (low) priority items …

Items prioritized as “important” are shown in red and lowest (low) priority items display in a lighter shade of grey …

Show To-Do Item ID

Enabling this option will show item IDs on your list …

Show Date To-Do Was Added

Enabling this option will display the date your table of items was added …

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

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

You can configure the following settings in this section:

Assign To-Do Items to Users

If enabled (‘Yes’), you can 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

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

User Roles to Show

Check the boxes in this area Editor to display the type of users that can be assigned 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 will automatically send an email to users 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, you can skip the remaining 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 categories to show the subject of your emails.

If you don’t want to show 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, you have multiple 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 notices. Enter your company name, your domain, your name, or anything you like in this field …

From Email

Type into this field the email address that you would like to display as the “sent from” address …

Subject Field for Emails Sent to User

Add a subject field for the email that will be distributed automatically to users when a new item has been added 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 allows you to perform database maintenance tasks associated with plugin data directly from your plugin settings area itself without the need to log into your server …

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

You can perform the following tasks in this section:

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

Actions that you perform on the database from this screen cannot be reversed. If you are sure that you want to perform database maintenance in this section, then make sure to backup your WordPress database first.

If you don’t want to do your own backups, then consider getting support services from a WordPress professional, or use a backup plugin. You can read about a great WordPress backup plugin that we recommend using to automate backups here:

• Back Up, Copy And Protect Your WP Site With Backup Creator WP Plugin

User Permissions

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

If you have selected Individual List, the only configurable item 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 and Master List types, select the highest level capabilities that you want users to be able to perform 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 authorize non-administrators to view and complete items, otherwise they will be able to edit the Master list.

Let’s go through the settings for the User Permissions section:

View To-Do List

Here you can enable the selected capability to view to-do items in the dashboard widget and on the To-Do List page under the ‘Tools’ section.

Complete To-Do Item Capability

This setting permits the selected capability to mark items as completed or uncompleted.

Add To-Do Item Capability

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

Edit To-Do Item Capability

This setting permits the selected capability to modify existing items.

Assign To-Do Item Capability

Here you can permit the chosen capability to assign 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 chosen capability to delete individual items.

Delete All To-Do Items Capability

This option allows the chosen capability to purge all the completed 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 need to copy over data from one site 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 area …

Here you can export and import your list 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 opens up a window allowing you to view or download the data in a plain text file (e.g. Notepad) to a storage device (e.g. your hard drive) …

As well as exporting data from the ‘Import/Export’ tab, you can also export data by going to your WordPress admin menu and choosing Tools > Export …

You can include to-do list data in a WordPress export file (in XML format), either by selecting ‘All content’ (includes everything – posts, pages, 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 a storage device…

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 in your hard drive or external drive and click ‘Open’ …

After 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.

After configuring all of the plugin settings, you can begin creating and editing to-do lists.

Plugin Usage

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

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

Adding A New Item To Your List

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

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

You can also add new items to your to-do list from 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, as the link is only going to take you to the “Add New To-Do Item” section further down the page) …

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

Depending on how you have set up your plugin, some options may not display when when you add new to-do items.

Select 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 item to your list …

Note: If you are using 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 remove a user) …

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

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

Editing And Deleting Items

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

Depending on your configuration plugin settings (discussed earlier), users assigned to completing 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 WP user dashboard …

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

… the item disappears from the “To-Do” list …

And gets listed the ‘Completed Items’ section 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 to-do lists on your site using widgets, and display a list on content inside a post or page using shortcodes.

Using The Plugin Widget

To add to-do lists 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 list to show …

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

The to-do list will display wherever you have inserted the widget (e.g. the sidebar menu, footer, etc.)

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

• Using s

Using Plugin Short Codes

The Cleverness To-Do List plugin also lets you add to-do lists on your site with shortcodes.

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

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

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

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

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

Publish your page or post and you will see the list displayed in the location where you entered the shortcode …

To learn more about this plugin, go here:

• Cleverness To-Do List WordPress Plugin

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

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