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 to do and remember. You have clients to meet, project tasks to complete, priorities to attend to, fires to put out, deliveries to make, schedules to keep and so on. The amount of things that need ”doing” never seems to stop.

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 quickly start to become unmanageable and chaotic.

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, if necessary, delegate responsibilities to members of your team efficiently.

A simple proven 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.

To-Do Lists – Benefits

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

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

Free The Brain

Writing to-do lists means that you won’t have to memorize stuff or clutter your brain with details. Once tasks are written down on a to-do list, your brain is free to process information and you can focus on other important areas.

Prioritize Your Time

Prioritizing tasks on your list helps you save time. You can develop a better perspective on what is truly urgent vs what’s not, and what tasks should be completed first.

Keep Work Logs

To-do lists allow you to keep documented logs of what has been done. This can be used to provide evidence of work to clients or employers, or simply as a method of helping you track your own productivity and efficiency.

Accountability

Without accountability there’s no commitment to completion, and no motivation to act with a sense of purpose. Lack of accountability can also allow excuses to creep in and influence your productivity.

Improved Collaboration

Creating to do lists and other project management tools is essential for working with others on some of your larger or more complex projects.

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 efficiency and productivity will increase.

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

In this step-by-step tutorial you are going to learn how to add to do lists to a WordPress site 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/

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 the plugin to assign private to do lists for each user, to have all users share the same to-do list, or to have a master list with individual item completions.

The shared to-do list provides a number of settings. You can assign to-do items to specific users (this includes a setting to email a new to do item to the user) and optionally to have those items only 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 also included as front-end administration.

A new menu item is added to the backend to manage your list and your to-do lists can also display 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 short codes for front-end list administration. Management of categories is restricted to the back-end.

If you plan to set up a multi-author site you can use the 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 Plugin

In your WordPress admin, go to the menu and select Plugins > Add New …

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

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 from the Plugins area …

After you have activated the plugin, click on Settings …

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

This brings you to the plugin ‘Settings’ area …

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

How To Set Up The Cleverness To-Do List Plugin

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

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

Let’s now go through each of these tabs.

To-Do List Settings

To-Do List Categories

Select ‘Enabled’ to organize your to-do 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 plugin 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 create ‘public’ and ‘private’ categories for your lists.

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

List View

List View lets you specify how lists are viewed. You can choose 3 types of list views:

• Individual – Select this option if you want each user to create and manage their own private to-do list.
• Group – Select this option if you want all users to be able to share one to-do list.
• Master – Choose this option 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 to order to-do list items.

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 when ‘List View’ is set to ‘Group’.

Show Date Completed

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

Show Deadline

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

Show Progress

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

Show Admin Bar Menu

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

Integrate with Post Planner

If you plan to run a collaborative site or blog, you can integrate the Cleverness To-Do List plugin with a plugin called WordPress Post Planner, from the same developer that provides you with a complete WordPress editorial solution …

To learn more this handy plugin, visit this site: WordPress Post Planner

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

Advanced Settings

After you have configured the settings in the To-Do List Settings tab, click on the ‘Advanced Settings’ tab …

This brings you to the plugin’s ‘Advanced Settings’ section …

This screen lets you customize your To Do lists, assign to-do tasks to other users and carry out 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 lets you customize your To Do List …

You can configure the following settings in this section:

Date Format

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

Note: To learn more about how to format dates in WordPress, see 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 (important), middle (normal) and lowest items …

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

Show To-Do Item ID

If this option is enabled, item IDs will display on the to-do list …

Show Date To-Do Was Added

If this option is enabled, the date the to-do list was added will show on your items table …

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 settings 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, you can assign to-do items to other users …

Note: This setting must be set to ‘Yes’ for the settings below it to work.

Show a User Only the To-Do Items Assigned to Them

Enable this option to display items 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 section (Administrator, Editor, Author, Contributor, Subscriber) displays the type of users that can be assigned todo 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, WordPress automatically sends an email to users with their assigned to-do items …

Leave this option disabled if you don’t want to send out emails to users.

Note: If you disable this option, skip the remaining items 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 displayed in the email subject.

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

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 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

This field allows you to customize the “From” field when sending out email notices. You can enter the name of your company, your domain, your name, or anything you like in this field …

From Email

In this field, type the email address that you would like displayed 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 distributed to users whenever a new item has 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

This area lets you perform database maintenance operations related to plugin data directly from your plugin settings area itself …

This is useful if, for example, you notice that old items are still showing up on your site.

The tasks below can be performed in this section:

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

Actions that you perform on your 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 remember to backup your WP database first.

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

• Backup, Copy & Keep Your WP Sites Protected With Backup Creator Plugin For WP

User Permissions

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

If you have chosen Individual List, the only permission applicable for this section is the View To-Do List option …

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

By default, general capabilities for each user role are set as follows:

• Subscribers: Read
• Contributors: Edit Posts
• Authors: Publish Posts
• Editors: Edit Others Posts
• Administrators: Manage Options

Note: When using the Master list type non-admin users should only be permitted to view and complete items, otherwise they will have the ability to edit the Master list itself.

Below is a description of the settings in this tab:

View To-Do List

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

Add To-Do Item Capability

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

Edit To-Do Item Capability

This allows the chosen capability to modify existing items.

Assign To-Do Item Capability

This setting allows the chosen capability to assign 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

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

Delete All To-Do Items Capability

Here you can enable the chosen capability to purge all the completed items.

Add Categories Capability

This option permits the chosen capability to add new categories.

Import/Export

The ability to import and export to-do list data can be very useful. For example, you may decide to transfer data from one site to another, or export your data for backup or archiving purposes.

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

Now you can easily export or import your data 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 window allowing you to view or save the data in a plain text file (e.g. Notepad) to a storage device (e.g. your hard drive) …

As well as exporting list data from the ‘Import/Export’ tab, you can also export data by going to your WordPress 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 just select ‘To-Do’ from the ‘Choose what to export’ section and click the ‘Download Export File’ button to download your file to your storage medium…

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 previously saved to-do list data file and click ‘Open’ …

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

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

Now that you have configured all of the plugin settings, you are ready to start create and edit your 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’ screen …

Adding New Items To Your List

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

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

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

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

Depending on the way you have configured your plugin settings, you may or may not see certain options displayed when when you add new to-do items.

Configure 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 new to-do item …

Note: If you have selected a list type that lets you assign tasks 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 delete a user) …

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

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

Edit And Delete To-Do Items

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

Depending on how you have configured the plugin (discussed in the previous section), users assigned to completing tasks may also receive email notifications …

After creating your to do list, users can view the list from their own dashboard …

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

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

And displays in the ‘Completed Items’ table located in the main screen of the ‘To-Do List’ plugin …

Additional Plugin Information

The Cleverness To-Do List plugin offers added functionality that lets you display to-do lists on your WordPress site using widgets, and insert lists into content inside a post or page using shortcodes.

Widgets

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 want the list to show …

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

The to-do list will now display where the widget was added (e.g. the sidebar menu, footer, etc.)

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

• Using s

Using Plugin Short Codes

Cleverness To-Do List also lets you display lists and checklists on your site with shortcodes.

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

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

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

This section explains various ways to configure and use shortcodes to display lists and checklists on your content.

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

After publishing your page or post, you will see the list displayed in the location where you added the short code …

Visit the plugin website for more information about this plugin:

• Cleverness To-Do List WordPress Plugin

Congratulations! Now you know how to create and add to-do lists in WordPress.

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