How To Create A To-Do List In WordPress
If you plan to run a hectic business or manage a team, there never seems to be enough time to get things done.
There are just so many things to do and remember. You have so many deadlines to meet, urgent tasks to complete, priorities to attend to, fires to extinguish, appointments to make, commitments to keep and so on. The stress of trying to get things done on time never seems to stop.
Now … add the extra workload of promoting and growing your business online and keeping your website or blog updated with fresh content and things can 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 daily activities.
A ”tried and true” method that can help you save time, alleviate stress, and allow you to take control is to use “to-do” lists.
The Benefits Of Using A To-Do List
A “to do” list can help you monitor your progress when trying to complete tasks. Your to do list can be detailed and very specific, or serve as a concise reminder of what needs to be done over a given period of time.
Here are just a few of the benefits of using to-do lists:
Organization
A to do list helps you create order, stay organized and achieve goals sooner.
Better Manage Your Time
Prioritizing tasks on your list helps you manage your time better. You can develop a better perspective on what is more important vs what’s not, and what steps have to be done first.
Log Your Work
To-do lists let you maintain documented logs of what has been done. You can use this as evidence of work done to employers or clients, or simply as a way of helping you track your own productivity and efficiency.
Accountability
Without accountability there is no commitment to getting things completed, and no motivation to take meaningful action. Lack of accountability allows excuses to creep in and influence your productivity.
Better Delegation
A to do list helps you better delegate work to other people. 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, prioritizing tasks and working in a focused way improves your business productivity and efficiency.
What about using a to do list on your WordPress website?
In this tutorial we are going to show you how to create a to do list 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 plugin provides users with a to-do list feature.
Features
Note: the 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 each user, to have all users share your to do list, or to have a master list with individual item completions.
The shared to do list option provides 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 assigned users) and optionally to have assigned items only seen by that user. You can also assign different permission levels to different users. There are also settings available to show deadline and progress fields. Category support is included as well in the front-end administration.
A new menu item is added to the admin backend to help you manage your list and the to do lists can also be displayed on a dashboard widget.
A sidebar widget is also available as short code to display the to do list items on your blog. There are two short codes for front-end administration of your list. Management of categories is restricted to the back-end admin section.
If you plan to set up a multi-author blog you can use the plugin to create custom to do lists for your post planners if you also install the Post Planner plugin from the same developer.
Plugin Installation
Inside your WordPress administration area, scroll down the main menu and 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 entry in the Search Results area 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: You can also get to the plugin’s ‘Settings’ screen by selecting To-Do List > Settings from the admin menu …
This takes you to the plugin ‘Settings’ area …
Let’s configure the plugin …
Configuring The Cleverness To-Do List Plugin
The plugin’s ‘Settings’ area is divided into four tabs:
- To-Do List Settings – This tab is where you can specify the main plugin settings.
- Advanced Settings – The options in this tab let you customize your To Do lists, assign tasks to other users and perform plugin database maintenance tasks.
- User Permissions – This tab is where you set up user permissions and capabilities for Master and Group List types.
- Import/Export – The options in this section let you import and export your to-do plugin and list data settings.
Let’s now go through each of these sections.
To-Do List Settings
To-Do List Categories
Select ‘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 plugin menu …
This lets you add categories that you can then use to organize your lists (see ‘Plugin Usage’ section further below for more details) …
You can set up ‘public’ and ‘private’ categories for your lists.
Private categories will not be visible when using sidebar widgets or shortcodes (only when ‘Sort Order’ is set to ‘Category’)
List View
List View allows you to specify how your lists are viewed. There are three to-do list views available:
- Individual – Choosing this option allows users to create and manage their own private to-do list.
- Group – Select this option if you want all users to be able to share the same to-do list.
- Master – Select this option to create one master list for all users, where users have their own individual items to complete. If you select the ‘Master’ list view, make sure that you adjust the User Permissions appropriately in the ‘User Permissions’ tab (this is covered 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 sorted first 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 works if ‘List View’ is set to ‘Group’.
Show Date Completed
If this option is enabled (‘Yes’), completion dates will display for to-do tasks.
Show Deadline
Enabling this option (‘Yes’) lets you specify deadlines for 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
If this option is enabled, the ‘To-Do List’ menu displays in your WP Admin bar …
Use WYSIWYG Editor
Enabling this option (‘Yes’) 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 plan to run 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 plugin author that provides you with a complete WordPress editorial solution …
Visit this site to learn more about using this plugin: WordPress Post Planner
Once you are done configuring your plugin options, remember to 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 ‘Advanced Settings’ screen …
In this tab you can customize your To Do lists, assign to-do items to 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
Here you can customize your To Do List …
You can configure the following options in this section:
Date Format
This section lets you 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, see the date 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 low items …
Items given the highest priority are shown in red and low priority items display in a lighter shade of grey …
Show To-Do Item ID
Enabling this option (‘Yes’) will show item IDs on your to-do list …
Show Date To-Do Was Added
Enabling this option (‘Yes’) displays the date the 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 to-do items to other users …
You can configure the following settings in this area:
Assign To-Do Items to Users
If enabled, you can assign tasks 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 (‘Yes’) to display to-do items only to users who have been specifically assigned those items. Leaving this option disabled (‘No’) will display to-do items to all users.
User Roles to Show
Checking the boxes in this section Subscriber) displays the type of users that can be assigned to-do 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 you enable this option, WordPress will automatically send an email to users with their assigned to-do items …
If you don’t want to send out emails to users, then leave this option disabled.
Note: If you disable this option, you can skip other 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 on the subject of your emails …
Leave this option disabled (‘No’) if you don’t want to-do categories added to the subject of your emails.
If you don’t want to show categories in the subject of your emails, then leave this option disabled.
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 site has several 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. Enter the name of your company, your domain, your name, or anything you like in this field …
From Email
In this field, add the email address that you want showing as the “sent from” email address …
Subject Field for Emails Sent to User
Type in a subject field for the email that will be automatically sent out to users when a new item has been assigned in your to-do list …
Text in Emails Sent to User
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
This section of the ‘Advanced Settings’ tab allows you to carry out database maintenance tasks related to plugin data directly from the plugin settings area …
This function is useful if, for example, you see that previously deleted items are still showing up on your site.
The tasks below can be performed:
- Delete Tables – Delete custom database tables that you no longer use.
- Delete All To-Do Items – Remove all to-do items.
Any database operations carried out from this screen cannot be undone. If you are comfortable to proceed with any of the database operations available in this section, then we recommend backing up your WP database first.
If you don’t want to do site backups, then consider getting professional help, or use a WordPress backup plugin. You can learn more about a great WordPress backup plugin that we recommend using to automate file and database backups here:
User Permissions
Here you can configure user permissions and capabilities for Group or Master List types …
If you are using the Individual List type, the only setting that applies in this section is the View To-Do List permission …
If you plan to configure 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 …
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 using the Master list type make sure that you only permit non-administrators to view and complete items, otherwise they will have the ability to edit the Master list itself.
Here is a description of the settings in the User Permissions tab:
View To-Do List
Here you can enable 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 allows the chosen capability to mark items as completed or not completed.
Add To-Do Item Capability
Here you can allow the selected capability to add new to-do items.
Edit To-Do Item Capability
This allows the selected capability to edit existing to-do items.
Assign To-Do Item Capability
This setting permits the selected capability to delegate items to individual users.
View All Assigned Tasks Capability
Here you can enable 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
This setting allows the selected capability to purge all the completed to-do items.
Add Categories Capability
This permits 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 want to transfer data from one site to another, or store the data for backup or archiving purposes.
To access this function, click on the ‘Import/Export’ tab in your plugin settings area …
Use this section to import and export your list data and plugin settings …
Exporting To-Do List Data
To export and download your to-do list data settings click on the ‘Download Export File’ …
This will open up a new window allowing you to view or save your data in plain text format to an internal or external drive …
In addition to exporting to-do list 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 checking ‘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 your hard drive…
Importing To-Do List Data
To import a previously saved to-do list data file, click on the ‘Browse’ button next to the ‘Choose File to Import’ field …
Locate the file and click ‘Open’ …
After uploading your data file, 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 can begin creating and editing your to-do lists.
How To Use The Plugin
To create a new to do list, go to your WordPress dashboard menu and click on To-Do List > To-Do List …
This brings you to the ‘To-Do List’ page …
Adding New To-Do Items To Your List
There are a number of ways to add a new item to your to-do list.
For example, you can add new to-do items to your list from your WP dashboard bar …
You can also add new items to your to-do list inside 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 contains many items, since the link is only going to send you to the “Add New To-Do Item” section further down the screen) …
The above methods will take you to the ‘Add New To-Do Item’ section.
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, 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 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 make multiple users responsible for the same item (click on ‘x’ to remove a user) …
Once an item has been added, it will be listed as an entry in the ‘To-Do Items’ table …
Repeat this process to continue adding items to your to-do list …
Edit And Remove Items From Your List
To edit or delete an item, click on the ‘Edit’ or ‘Delete’ buttons associated with items under the ‘Action’ column …
Depending on your configuration settings (discussed in the previous section), users assigned to tasks may also receive an email notification in their inboxes …
After creating your to do list, users can view the list inside their own dashboard …
When the user assigned with completing an item ticks the item checkbox …
… the item no longer appears in the “To-Do” list …
And gets listed the ‘Completed Items’ table located in the ’To-Do List’ plugin area …
Additional Plugin Information
The Cleverness plugin provides additional functions that let you display to-do lists on your WordPress website 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 appear …
Configure the widget settings and click ’Save’ to update your settings …
Your list will appear wherever 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:
Plugin Shortcodes
You can also display lists to your site by inserting short codes into your content.
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 …
This section explains different ways to configure and use shortcodes to display lists and checklists on your posts and pages.
Once you know what type of information you would like to display on your site, create a new page or post and either type or paste the short code inside the content area …
After publishing your page or post, you will see the list displayed in the location where you added the short code …
Visit this site to download this plugin:
Congratulations! Now you can create and add a to-do list in WordPress.
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