How To Create A To Do List In WordPress

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

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, calls and appointments to make, commitments to keep and so on. The “doing” never seems to stop.

Now … add the extra dimension of trying to promote and grow your business online and maintaining your website updated with new content and everything can quickly start to become unmanageable and chaotic.

Whether you run a business, website, blog, or manage a project, you need to be able to organize and manage your day.

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.

Benefits Of Using A To Do List

A “to-do” list can help you track your progress when trying to complete projects. Your to-do list can be quite detailed and specific, or serve as a reminder of the things that need to be done today, tomorrow, next week, next month, etc.

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

Think More Clearly

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

Be More Strategic

After creating and organizing a to-do list, you can view the larger picture and create a strategy to get things completed on budget and on time.

Quickly Reorganize

Having a to-do list lets you better cope with events. If a meeting suddenly gets cancelled or extra time becomes available when some task gets completed sooner than expected, you can continue moving forward with minimal disruption.

Less Stress

Stress can come from feeling overwhelmed by the thought that there is so much that needs doing and so very little time to do it all in. Using to-do lists allow you to prioritize important tasks that have to get done immediately, and push out non-urgent tasks that can be worked on later. This can help reduce the feeling of being overwhelmed and relieve some of the stress you (and your team) may be feeling.

Sense Of Accomplishment

Crossing items off your to do list gives you a feeling of accomplishment and allows you to stress less, as you can objectively see (or show) that the workload is getting done and that progress is being made.

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 systematically and productivity and efficiency in your business will surely improve.

What about adding to-do lists to your WordPress website or blog?

In this tutorial we are going to show you how to add to do lists to your WP website or blog to help your business grow online  faster and more efficiently using a great little WordPress 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.

Cleverness To-Do List Plugin Features

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

You can configure the plugin to assign private to-do lists for individual users, to have all users share a to do list, or to have a master list with individual item completions.

The shared to do list has a variety of settings available. You can assign to-do items to specific users (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 using capabilities. There are also settings to enable the display of 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 lists and your to-do list can also be displayed on the dashboard widget.

A sidebar widget is also available 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 accessible through the back-end admin section.

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

How To Install The Cleverness To-Do List Plugin

Log into your site’s administration area and click on Plugins > Add New …

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

Locate the Cleverness To-Do List item in the Search Results section 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 area can also be accessed by choosing To-Do List > Settings from the dashboard menu …

This brings you to the ‘Settings’ page …

Let’s go through the plugin configuration process …

How To Configure The Cleverness To-Do List Plugin

The Settings area is divided into four sections:

• To-Do List Settings – This tab is where you specify the main plugin settings.
• Advanced Settings – In this tab you can customize your to-do lists, assign tasks to other users and perform database maintenance tasks.
• User Permissions – The options in this area let 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 plugin and list data settings.

Let’s now review each of these sections.

To-Do List Settings

Categories

Choose ‘Enabled’ to organize your lists into categories, otherwise leave this option set to ‘Disabled’.

Note: When you enable this option, a ‘Categories’ item will be added to the To-Do List plugin menu …

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

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

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

List View

List View allows you to specify how to-do lists are viewed. There are three list views available:

• Individual – Choosing this option allows users to create and manage their own private to-do list.
• Group – Choosing this option lets all users share the same 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 using 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, ID or Category, ID, Category or Alphabetical options, items will be first sorted by priority.

Show Added By

Enabling this option (‘Yes’) lets you display which of your members has added an item to the to-do list.

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

Show Date Completed

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

Show Deadline

If this option is enabled (‘Yes’), you can 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

If this option is enabled, the ‘To-Do List’ menu will display in your WP Admin bar …

Use WYSIWYG Editor

If this option is enabled, 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 your to-do list items.

Integrate with Post Planner

If you plan to run a multi-author 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 provides you with a complete WordPress editorial solution …

Go here to learn more this plugin: WordPress Post Planner – WordPress Plugin

Once you have configured your plugin options in this section, remember to click the ‘Save Changes’ button …

Advanced Settings

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

This brings you to the ‘Advanced Settings’ screen …

This section lets you customize your To Do lists, assign to-do items to users and carry out database maintenance.

Let’s step 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

Here you can specify how to display dates on your todo lists (e.g. month/day/year, day/month/year, etc.)

Note: To learn more about formatting dates in WordPress, visit the relevant section of the WordPress Codex below:

WordPress Codex – Formatting Date And Time

Priority Labels

Here you can customize labels for highest, normal and 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

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

Show Date To-Do Was Added

Enabling this option displays the date the 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 area and assign to-do items to other users …

You can configure the following options in this section:

Assign To-Do Items to Users

Enable this option 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

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

User Roles to Show

Check the boxes in this section Author to display 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 this option is enabled (‘Yes’), WordPress automatically sends an email to users with their assigned to-do items …

Leave this option disabled (‘No’) if you don’t want to send out emails 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 categories to appear the subject of your emails.

If you don’t want to display categories in the email subject, then leave this option disabled (‘No’).

Show Who Assigned the To-Do Item in Email

Enable this option (‘Yes’) to display the user who assigned the to-do item in the email. This is a useful option if you have various 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 notifications to users. You can enter 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 would like showing as the “sent from” address …

Subject Field for Emails Sent to User

Add into this field a subject field for the email that will be automatically sent out to users when a new item has been added in your to-do list …

Text in Emails Sent to User

In this field, add 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 of the ‘Advanced Settings’ tab you can carry out database maintenance tasks associated with plugin data directly from the plugin settings area itself …

This is useful if, for example, you see that items you have already deleted are still displaying 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 – Erase all of your to-do items.

Any database operations carried out from this screen cannot be reversed. If you are sure that you want to carry out database maintenance in this section, then remember to backup your database first.

If you don’t want to perform manual backups, then consider using professional WordPress help services, or use a backup plugin. You can learn more about a great WordPress backup plugin that we recommend using to completely automate your WordPress site backups here:

• Back Up, Clone & Protect Your WordPress Web Site With Backup Creator WordPress Plugin

User Permissions

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

If you are using the Individual List type, the only item applicable in this section is the View To-Do List permission …

If you plan to configure user permissions and capabilities for Group or Master List types, select the highest level capabilities that you want users to be able to perform for each option …

The default general capabilities of 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 non-administrator users should only be authorized to view and complete items, otherwise they will have the ability to edit the Master list.

Here is a description of the settings in the User Permissions section:

View To-Do List

Here you can allow 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

This option allows the selected capability to mark items as completed or uncompleted.

Add To-Do Item Capability

This option permits the chosen capability to add new to-do items.

Edit To-Do Item Capability

Here you can allow the chosen capability to edit existing to-do items.

Assign To-Do Item Capability

Here you can allow 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

This allows the selected capability to delete individual to-do items.

Delete All To-Do Items Capability

This option enables the selected capability to purge all the completed items.

Add Categories Capability

Here you can enable 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 decide to copy over data from an existing list to another website, or store your data for backup or reporting purposes.

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

Here you can easily import or export your list 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 download and save your data in a plain text file (e.g. Notepad) to an internal or external storage medium …

As well as exporting list data from the ‘Import/Export’ section, you can also export data by going to your main 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 on the ‘Download Export File’ button to download your file to a 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 …

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

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

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

Once you have configured all of the plugin settings, you are ready to start creating and editing to-do lists.

Plugin Usage

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

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

Adding New Items To Your List

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

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

You can also add new to-do items to your list inside 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, as the link will simply take you to the “Add New To-Do Item” section further down the screen) …

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

Depending on the way you have configured the plugin’s settings, some options may not display when when you add new to-do items.

Configure the options you have enabled for your to-do items, enter 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 have selected a list type that allows you to assign responsibilities over 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 an item has been added, the item will be listed as an entry in the ‘To-Do List’ table …

Repeat the above process to keep adding items to your list …

Edit And Delete Items

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 the plugin (discussed earlier), users assigned to completing tasks may also receive email notifications …

Once you have created your to-do list, users can view the list inside their own user dashboard …

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

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

And gets listed the ‘Completed Items’ section located in the ’To-Do List’ page …

Additional Plugin Information

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

Using The Plugin Widget

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

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

The list will display on your site where the ‘to-do-list’ widget has been placed (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 Plugin Shortcodes

The Cleverness To-Do List plugin also lets you create lists and checklists on your site with short codes.

To access the plugin’s short code documentation, select To-Do List > To-Do List from your WP admin menu …

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

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

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

Once you know what information you would like to display on your site, open up a new post or page and either type or paste the short code into the content editor …

Publish your page or post and you should see the list displayed where you have inserted the shortcode …

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

• Cleverness To-Do List WordPress Plugin

Congratulations! Now you know how to add to-do lists to your WordPress site or blog.

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