Creating To Do Lists In WordPress

There never seems to be enough hours in the day to get everything done, especially if you are a busy person trying to run a business or manage a team.

There is just too much to do and remember. You have deadlines to meet, tasks to complete, meetings to attend, fires to extinguish, calls and appointments to make, schedules to keep and so on. The “doing” never stops.

Now … on top of all this, add the extra workload of trying to promote and grow your business online and maintaining your website updated with regular content and things can quickly start to become unmanageable and overwhelming.

Whether you are running a business, website, blog, or managing a team, it’s important to be able to organize and prioritize your activities, track your progress and daily accomplishments, and, if necessary, assign tasks and responsibilities to members of your team efficiently.

One ”tried and true” method 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 tasks. Your to-do list can be very detailed or specific, or act as a reminder of the things that need to be done today, tomorrow, this week, this month, etc.

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

Clear Thinking

Writing to do lists means that you don’t have to try and remember things or store information inside your mind. Once things are recorded on a to-do list, your mind is free to process information and you can focus on other important areas.

Be More Strategic

Creating and organizing to do lists helps you break down larger projects into more doable tasks and create a strategy to get tasks completed efficiently.

Document Your Work

A to-do list lets you keep documented logs of what work has been done. You can use this as evidence of work to clients or employers, or simply as a method of helping you assess your own productivity and efficiency.

Less Stress

Stress can come from feeling overwhelmed by the thought that there is so much that needs to get done and very little time to do it all in. Creating a to-do list lets you work on urgent tasks that need to get done within a reasonable timeframe, and push out non-urgent tasks that can be addressed later. This can reduce the feeling of being overwhelmed and help to take away some of the stress you (and your team) may be feeling.

Feeling Of Accomplishment

Crossing items off to do lists gives you a feeling of accomplishment and allows you to stress less, as you can objectively see (or show) that work is indeed being completed and that things are moving forward.

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

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

In this tutorial you are going to learn how to easily create to-do lists in WordPress to improve business efficiency and productivity 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.

Plugin Features

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

You can configure the plugin to assign 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 provides a number of settings. You can delegate to do items to a specific user (this includes a setting to email new to do items to assigned users) and optionally to have assigned items be seen by that user. You can also assign different permission levels to different users based on user roles. There are also settings available to show 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 list and your to do list 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 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 site you can use the to-do lists plugin to create custom to-do lists for your post editors if you also use a copy of the Post Planner plugin for WordPress from the same developer.

How To Install The Plugin

Log into your site’s admin area scroll down the main menu select 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 tab and click Install Now …

Activate the plugin …

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

Once you have activated the plugin, click on Settings …

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

This brings you to the plugin ‘Settings’ page …

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

Setting Up The Cleverness To-Do List Plugin

The Settings screen is divided into four tabs:

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

Let’s now take you through each of these tabs.

To-Do List Settings

To-Do List Categories

Choose ‘Enabled’ to organize lists 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 are not visible using the sidebar widgets or shortcodes (only when ‘Sort Order’ is set to ‘Category’)

List View

List View lets you specify how to-do lists will be viewed. You can choose from three list views:

• Individual – Selecting this option lets each user create and manage their own private to-do list.
• Group – Select this option if you want all users to share one 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 choose 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-do list items will be sorted.

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

Show Added By

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

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

Show Date Completed

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

Show Deadline

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

If enabled (‘Yes’), the ‘To-Do List’ menu will display in your WordPress Dashboard 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 (‘Yes’), automatic paragraphs are used to display content in to-do lists.

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 to help make the process of managing a multi-author WordPress site easier …

To learn more about using this plugin, go here: WordPress Post Planner – WordPress Plugin

Once you are done configuring your plugin options, remember to click the ‘Save Changes’ button …

Advanced Settings

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

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

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

Let’s take you 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

This section lets you 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 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 and low priority items …

high priority items are colour-coded in red and low priority items display in a lighter shade of grey …

Show To-Do Item ID

Enabling this option shows the items’ IDs on your list …

Show Date To-Do Was Added

If enabled (‘Yes’), the date the to-do list was added displays on the table of items …

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

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

The following settings can be configured in this section:

Assign To-Do Items to Users

Enable this option (‘Yes’) 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 tasks only to users who have been assigned those items. Leave this option disabled to display to-do items to all users.

User Roles to Show

Checking the boxes in this area Subscriber) displays the type of users that can be assigned items. Leave the check box 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 will automatically send users an email 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, you can skip the remaining 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 show the email subject.

Leave this option disabled if you don’t want to show to-do categories in the email subject.

Show Who Assigned the To-Do Item in Email

Enabling this option (‘Yes’) displays the user who assigned the to-do item in the email. This option is useful if, for example, your website has 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 notices. Add your company name, your domain, your name, or anything you like in this field …

From Email

In this field, type the email address that you would like to display as the “sent from” address …

Subject Field for Emails Sent to User

Type in a subject field for the email that will be distributed automatically to users when new items have been assigned in your to-do list …

Text in Emails Sent to User

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

In this area of the ‘Advanced Settings’ tab you can perform database maintenance operations related to plugin data directly from the plugin settings area …

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

You can perform the following tasks:

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

Actions that you perform on the database from this screen cannot be undone. If you are sure that you want to proceed with any of the database operations available in this section, then make sure to backup your database first.

If you don’t want to back up your site manually, then get assistance from a WordPress professional, or use a backup plugin. Learn about a great WordPress backup plugin that we recommend using to automate site backups here:

• Backup, Clone & Protect Your WordPress 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 have selected Individual List, the only permission 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 be able to perform for each option …

By 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 make sure that you only permit non-administrators to view and complete items, otherwise they will be able to edit the Master list.

Let’s review the settings in the User Permissions tab:

View To-Do List

This option allows 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 permits the selected capability to mark to-do items as completed or not completed.

Add To-Do Item Capability

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

Edit To-Do Item Capability

This enables the chosen capability to edit existing to-do items.

Assign To-Do Item Capability

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

View All Assigned Tasks Capability

Here you can permit 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

Here you can enable the selected capability to purge all the completed to-do items.

Add Categories Capability

This setting allows the selected 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 want to copy over data from one site to another, or export your 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 and export 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 new window allowing you to view or download your data as plain text to an internal or external drive …

In addition to exporting data from the ‘Import/Export’ section, you can also export data by going to your WordPress admin menu and choosing Tools > Export …

You can include to-do list data in an export file (in XML format), either by selecting ‘All content’ (includes everything – pages, posts, etc…), or selecting ‘To-Do’ from the ‘Choose what to export’ section and clicking the ‘Download Export File’ button to download 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 file and click ‘Open’ …

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

Your file data will be imported.

After configuring all plugin settings, you can start creating and editing your to-do lists.

Plugin Usage

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

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

How To Add A New Item To Your To-Do List

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

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

You can also add new to-do items in the 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 already contains many items, since the link is only going to send you to the “Add New To-Do Item” section down the page) …

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

Depending on how you have configured the plugin’s settings, you may or may not see certain options displayed when adding new items to your to-do list.

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 to-do item …

Note: If you are using a list type that allows you to assign tasks to specific 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 users) …

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

Repeat this process to add new items to your to-do list …

Editing And Deleting To Do Items

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

Depending on your plugin configuration 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 it when logged into their own dashboard …

When users assigned with completing an item click on the item checkbox …

… the item is deleted from the “To-Do” list …

And gets added to the ‘Completed Items’ table located in the ’To-Do List’ screen …

Additional Plugin Information

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

Using The 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 would like your to-do list to display …

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

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

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

• Using WordPress Widget

Shortcodes

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

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

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

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

The documentation section explains various ways to configure and use short codes to display lists on your posts and pages.

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

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

To download this plugin, visit this site:

• Cleverness To-Do List WordPress Plugin

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

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