How To Create To-Do Lists In WordPress

If you plan to run a growing business or manage any kind of project that requires people to work together as a team, 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, urgent tasks to complete, meetings to attend, fires to extinguish, appointments to make, schedules to keep and so on. The “doing” never seems to end.

Now … on top of all this, add the extra workload of promoting and growing your business online and maintaining your website updated with new content and everything can suddenly begin feeling 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 tasks.

A proven tool that can help you save time, reduce stress, and allow you to gain some control is to use “to do” lists.

The Benefits Of Using A To Do List

A “to-do” list helps you keep track of your progress as you work to achieve a certain objective. Your to do list can be detailed or specific, or serve as a reminder of tasks that need to be done today, tomorrow, next week, next month, etc.

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

Clear Thinking

Creating to-do lists means that you don’t have to keep remembering things or clutter your head with details. Once tasks are written down on a to do list, your mind is free to process information and you can focus on things that are more important to you.

Strategize

Creating and organizing to-do lists helps you break down larger projects into more doable tasks and come up with a strategy for getting things done effectively.

Quickly Reschedule Or Reorganize

To-do lists help you better deal with new and unexpected situations. If you suddenly find that an appointment gets cancelled or extra time becomes available because a task was completed sooner than expected, you can quickly reschedule and reorganize and continue moving forward with no loss of focus.

Ensures Accountability

Without accountability there is no commitment to completion, and no motivation to act with a sense of purpose. Lack of accountability lets excuses creep in and take over your productivity.

Better Delegation Of Tasks

To-do lists help you assign work to others better. This is also important if you plan to collaborate within a team (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 a to do list, then prioritizing tasks and working systematically improves efficiency and productivity in your business.

What about adding a to-do list to your WordPress website?

In this step-by-step tutorial we are going to show you how to easily add to-do lists to a WordPress 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

Download The Plugin

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

Plugin Description

This plugin provides users with a to do list feature.

Features

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

You can set up Cleverness To-Do List with private to do lists for each user, 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 option includes a number of different settings. You can delegate to do items to specific users (this includes a setting to email new to-do items to the assigned user) and optionally to have assigned items only seen by that user. You can also assign different permission levels to different users based on user roles. 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 lists and your to-do list 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 2 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 blog you can use this to do lists plugin to create custom to do lists for your post planners if you also install a copy of the Post Planner plugin for WordPress.

Installing The Cleverness To-Do List Plugin

Log into your WP admin scroll down the menu choose Plugins > Add New …

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

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

Click “Activate Plugin” …

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

Once you have activated the plugin, click on Settings …

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

This takes you to the ‘Settings’ section …

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

Setting Up The Cleverness To-Do List Plugin

The plugin’s ‘Settings’ area is divided into four sections:

• To-Do List Settings – This tab is where you specify the plugin’s main settings.
• Advanced Settings – This section is where you customize your to-do lists, assign to-do items to other users and perform database maintenance tasks.
• User Permissions – The options in this area let you configure user permissions and capabilities for Group and Master List types.
• Import/Export – This area is where you can export and import your 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 to-do 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 lets you 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 are not visible when using the sidebar widgets or shortcodes (only when ‘Sort Order’ is set to ‘Category’)

List View

List View lets you specify how lists are viewed. There are 3 list views you can select:

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

Sort Order

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

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

Show Added By

If this option is enabled (‘Yes’), 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, completion dates will display for to-do items.

Show Deadline

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

Show Progress

If this option is enabled (‘Yes’), you will be able to 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 WordPress Dashboard Admin bar …

Use WYSIWYG Editor

If enabled (‘Yes’), you will be able to 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 to-do lists.

Integrate with Post Planner

If you are running 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 plugin author that provides you with a complete WordPress editorial solution …

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

After you are done configuring your plugin options in this section, click the ‘Save Changes’ button to update your settings …

Advanced Settings

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

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

This screen lets you customize your To-Do lists, assign to-do items to users and perform 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

Here you can customize your To Do List …

You can configure the following settings in this section:

Date Format

In this area 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 how to format dates in WordPress, visit the relevant section of the WordPress Codex below:

WordPress Codex – Formatting Date And Time

Priority Labels

This section lets you customize your labels for prioritizing highest, normal and lowest items …

high priority items are shown in red in your lists and lowest priority items display in a lighter shade of grey …

Show To-Do Item ID

Enabling this option (‘Yes’) displays the item’s ID on your to-do list …

Show Date To-Do Was Added

Enabling this option (‘Yes’) displays 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 section and assign items to other users …

You can configure the following options in this area:

Assign To-Do Items to Users

If this option is enabled, 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

Enabling this option (‘Yes’) displays items 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 (Administrator, Editor, Author, Contributor, Subscriber) to display the type of users that can be assigned todo items. Leave the checkbox unticked for any roles that you do not want to assign to-do items.

Email Assigned To-Do Items to User

If this option is enabled, WordPress will automatically send an email to users with their assigned to-do items …

Leave this option disabled (‘No’) 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 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 to display categories in the email subject.

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

Show Who Assigned the To-Do Item in Email

If enabled (‘Yes’), you can 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 email notices. You can enter your company name, 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 added 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 allows you to carry out database maintenance tasks associated with plugin data directly from the plugin settings area itself …

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

The following tasks can be performed in this section:

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

Actions that you perform on your database from this screen cannot be reversed. If you are sure that you want to perform database maintenance in this section, then we recommend backing up your WP database first.

If you don’t want to do your own site backups, then consider using the services of a professional WordPress provider, or use backup plugins. You can learn more about a great WordPress backup plugin that can automate your site backups here:

• Back Up, Copy And Protect Your WP Sites With Backup Creator Plugin For WordPress

User Permissions

Here you can configure user permissions and capabilities for Group or Master List types …

If you select Individual List, the only item that applies in this section is the View To-Do List permission …

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

The default general capabilities for 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 using the Master list type make sure that you only authorize non-admin users to view and complete items, otherwise they will have the ability to edit the Master list.

Let’s review the settings for the User Permissions section:

View To-Do List

This setting allows the chosen 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

Here you can allow the chosen capability to mark to-do items as completed or not completed.

Add To-Do Item Capability

This setting permits the selected capability to add new to-do items.

Edit To-Do Item Capability

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

Assign To-Do Item Capability

Here you can allow the selected capability to delegate to-do items to individual users.

View All Assigned Tasks Capability

This option permits 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 setting 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

Here you can enable 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 need 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 …

Use this section to export or import your data 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 will open up a window allowing you to download and save your data in plain text format to a storage device …

In addition to exporting to-do list data from the ‘Import/Export’ section, you can also export data by going to your WordPress dashboard 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 – pages, posts, etc…), or just select ‘To-Do’ from the ‘Choose what to export’ section and click on the ‘Download Export File’ button to save your file to an internal or external hard drive…

Importing To-Do List Data

Importing a previously saved to-do 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 and click ‘Open’ …

After the data file has been uploaded in your settings area, click the ‘Import Settings’ button …

Your file data will be imported.

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

Plugin Usage

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

This brings up the ‘To-Do List’ screen …

Adding A New Item To Your List

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

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

You can also add new to-do items inside your Dashboard 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 will simply send you to the “Add New To-Do Item” section down the page) …

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

Depending on how 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, add appropriate values and 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 lets you assign tasks 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 remove a user) …

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

Repeat this process to continue adding new items to your list …

Edit And Delete Items From Your List

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 configured your settings (discussed in the previous section), users assigned to tasks may also receive email notifications …

Once you have created your to do list, users can view it from their user dashboard …

When the user assigned with completing an item ticks 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 Information

The Cleverness To-Do List plugin provides added functionality that lets you display a to-do list on your site using widgets, and display lists on content inside a page or post using short codes.

Widgets

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 the to-do list to appear …

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

The list will now display on your site where the ‘to-do-list’ widget was inserted (i.e. the sidebar menu, footer, etc.)

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

• How To Use WordPress Widget

Using The Cleverness Plugin Shortcodes

The plugin also lets you create lists on your site by placing shortcodes into your content.

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

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

Once you know what information you want to add to your site, create or edit a new or existing post or page and either type or paste the short code into the content area …

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

Visit the plugin website here for more details about this plugin:

• Cleverness To-Do List WordPress Plugin

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

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