How To Create To-Do Lists In WordPress

There never seems to be enough time to get things done, especially if you run a growing business or manage a team.

There is just so much work to do and things to remember. You have deadlines to meet, tasks to complete, meetings to attend, fires to extinguish, appointments to make, schedules to keep and so on. The amount of things that need to get done never stops.

Now … add the extra workload of trying to promote and grow your business online and keeping your website updated with new content and things can start to become unmanageable and overwhelming.

Whether you run a business, website, blog, or manage a project, it’s important to be able to organize and manage your daily activities.

A simple proven method that can help you save time, create a sense of order and manageability, and allow you to regain control is to use a “to-do” list.

Benefits Of Using To-Do Lists

A “to-do” list can help you track your progress as you work towards your goals. Your to-do list can be quite detailed or specific, or serve as a concise reminder of what needs to be done over a given period of time.

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

A To Do List Helps Keep Things Organized

A to-do list helps you create order, keep things organized and reach your goals faster.

Strategize

Creating and organizing to-do lists helps you break your workload into more doable tasks and create a strategy for getting things completed efficiently.

Quickly Reschedule Or Reorganize

Using to do lists help you better handle changes in circumstances. If an appointment suddenly gets cancelled at short notice or extra time is made available when some task gets completed sooner than expected, you can keep moving forward with little to minimal loss of focus.

Relieve Stress

Stress can result from feeling overwhelmed by so much to do and so little time to do it in. Using a to do list lets you prioritize important tasks that have to be completed within a reasonable timeframe, and reschedule items that can be worked on later. This can reduce the feeling of being overwhelmed and help to alleviate some of the stress you may be feeling.

Feeling 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 work is being completed 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. Creating a to-do list, prioritizing tasks and working systematically improves your business efficiency and productivity.

What about using a to-do list on your website or blog?

In this detailed step-by-step tutorial we are going to show you how to easily create to do lists in WordPress to help your team get things done  faster and more efficiently using a great little plugin for WordPress called Cleverness To-Do List.

Cleverness To Do List

Download The Plugin

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

Plugin Description

This plugin lets you easily add customizable to-do lists to WordPress.

Features

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

You can set up the plugin to have private to do lists for individual users, 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 includes different settings. You can delegate to-do items to a specific user (this includes a setting to email a new to-do item to the user) 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 to display deadline and progress fields. Category support is also included in the front-end administration.

A new menu item is added to the backend to manage your lists and the to do lists can also display 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. Category management is accessed via 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 planners if you also install a copy of the developer’s premium plugin, Post Planner.

How To Install The Cleverness To-Do List Plugin

From your WordPress dashboard section, choose Plugins > Add New …

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

Locate the Cleverness To-Do List item in the Search Results tab and click Install Now …

Activate the plugin …

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

When you have activated the plugin, click on Settings …

Note: The settings area can also be accessed by selecting To-Do List > Settings from your dashboard menu …

This brings you to the ‘Settings’ screen …

Let’s set up the plugin …

Configuring The Cleverness To-Do List Plugin

The “To-Do List” plugin ‘Settings’ area is divided into 4 tabs:

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

Let’s now take you 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 you can then use to organize your to-do lists (see ‘Plugin Usage’ section further below for more details) …

You can create ‘public’ and ‘private’ categories for your to-do lists.

Categories set to ‘private’ are not visible using 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 three list views:

• Individual – Select this option if you want each user to be able to create and manage their own private to-do list.
• Group – Select this option if you want all users 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 using the ‘Master’ list view, make sure that you adjust the User Permissions appropriately in the ‘User Permissions’ tab (see further below).

Sort Order

‘Sort Order’ lets you specify how to order your to-do list items.

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

Show Added By

If enabled (‘Yes’), you can display which of your users has added an item to your to-do list.

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

Show Date Completed

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

Show Deadline

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

Show Progress

Enabling this option (‘Yes’) 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 displays in your WP Dashboard Admin bar …

Use WYSIWYG Editor

If this option is enabled, you can add and edit items on your to-do list using the WordPress WYSIWYG Editor …

Use Auto Paragraphs

Enable this option to display content in to-do lists using paragraphs.

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 plugin developer that provides you with a complete WordPress editorial solution …

To learn more about using this plugin, visit this site: WordPress Post Planner – WordPress Plugin

When you have finished configuring your plugin options, remember to click the ‘Save Changes’ button to update your settings …

Advanced Settings

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

This brings up the ‘Advanced Settings’ area …

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

Let’s step 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’ tab lets you customize your To Do List …

You can configure the following settings in this section:

Date Format

This section lets you specify how to display dates on your to-do lists (e.g. month/day/year, day/month/year, etc.)

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

WordPress Codex – Formatting Date And Time

Priority Labels

This section lets you customize the labels for important, middle and lowest priority items …

Items prioritized as “important” are shown in red and low priority items display in a lighter shade of grey …

Show To-Do Item ID

Enabling this option will display the items’ IDs on your to-do list …

Show Date To-Do Was Added

If enabled, the date the to-do list was added will display on the To-Do Items table …

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 options 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

Enabling this option (‘Yes’) lets you 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

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

User Roles to Show

Checking the boxes in this area (Administrator displays 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 (‘Yes’), WordPress will automatically send users an email with their assigned to-do items …

If you don’t want to send out emails to users, then leave this option disabled (‘No’).

Note: If this option is disabled, skip the 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 on the subject of your emails …

Leave this option disabled (‘No’) if you don’t want to show categories in the email subject.

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

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 your website has various project managers assigning to-do items to users …

From Field for Emails Sent to User

This field lets you customize the “From” field when sending out email notices. Type your company name, your domain, your name, or anything you like in this field …

From Email

Type into this field the email address that you would like displayed as the “sent from” address …

Subject Field for Emails Sent to User

In this field, add a subject field for the email that will be automatically distributed to users when new items have been assigned 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 area of the ‘Advanced Settings’ tab you can perform database maintenance operations associated with plugin data directly from your plugin settings area without having to log into your web server …

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

You can perform the tasks below:

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

Any database operations carried out from this screen cannot be undone. If you are sure that you want to perform database operations in this section, then we recommend backing up your database first.

If you don’t want to do manual backups, then consider getting professional help, or use a backup plugin. Learn about a WordPress backup plugin that we recommend using to completely automate your file and data backups here:

• Backup, Clone & Keep Your WP Websites Protected With Backup Creator WP Plugin

User Permissions

In this section you can configure user permissions and capabilities for Group and Master List types …

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

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

The default general capabilities of 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 working with the Master list type non-admin users should only be authorized to view and complete items, otherwise they will be able to edit the Master list.

Let’s go through the settings for this tab:

View To-Do List

Here you can allow 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

This option allows the chosen capability to mark items as completed or not completed.

Add To-Do Item Capability

Here you can permit the selected capability to add new to-do items.

Edit To-Do Item Capability

Here you can allow the selected capability to modify existing to-do items.

Assign To-Do Item Capability

Here you can allow the chosen capability to delegate 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

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

Delete All To-Do Items Capability

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

Add Categories Capability

Here you can permit 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 need to copy over data from an existing list to another website, or store 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 easily import or export your list 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 opens up a window allowing you to view or save your data in a plain text file (e.g. Notepad) to a storage medium (e.g. your hard drive) …

In addition to exporting list data from the ‘Import/Export’ tab, you can also export data by going to your WordPress main menu and selecting Tools > Export …

You can include to-do list data in a WordPress 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 on 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 …

Select the previously saved to-do list data file in your hard drive or external drive and click ‘Open’ …

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

Your file will be imported.

Now that you have configured all plugin settings, you can begin creating and editing your to-do lists.

How To Use Cleverness To-Do List

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

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

How To Add A New Item To Your List

There are a number of ways to add new items 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 using 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 already contains many items, since the link will simply take you to the “Add New To-Do Item” section down the page) …

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

Depending on how you have set up your plugin, you may or may not see certain options displayed 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 new to-do item …

Note: If you have chosen a list type that lets you assign responsibilities over items 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 remove a user) …

Once an item has been added, the item will display as an entry in the ‘To-Do List’ table …

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

Edit And Remove Items From Your List

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

Depending on your configuration settings (discussed earlier), users assigned to tasks may also receive an email notification in their inboxes …

After creating your to-do list, users can view it inside their WordPress dashboard …

When a user assigned with completing an item ticks the item check box …

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

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

Additional Plugin Information

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

Plugin Widget

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

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

Your to-do list will display wherever you have placed the widget (e.g. the sidebar menu, footer, etc.)

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

• How To Use Widgets In WordPress

Shortcodes

You can also display to-do lists and checklists on your site by placing short codes into your content.

To access the plugin’s shortcode documentation, 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’ tab 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 type of information you want to display on your site, create or edit a new or existing page or post and either type or paste the short code into the content editor …

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

Go here for more information about this plugin:

• Cleverness To-Do List WordPress Plugin

Congratulations! Now you can create and add a to-do list to your WordPress site or blog.

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