Managing next actions and projects in Apple reminders

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damianp

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Hi, I'm curious about how people are managing the interaction between projects and next actions in the Apple Reminders app.

I have a list of projects broken down by my areas of focus and separate next action lists by context (home, garden, internet etc.). Does anyone have tactics about how they manage the interaction between the two?

Many thanks in advance,

Damian
 
mcogilvie

mcogilvie

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I don’t have a good answer for you. As Apple Reminders has gathered new features, I have periodically looked hard at it as a potential alternative to apps like Omnifocus, Things and Todoist. I have found no coherent use for the newer features of Reminders. It’s certainly usable for a very generic GTD implementation, but it seems to me to be a victim of design by a committee of the uninformed and uninspired.
 
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ivanjay205

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I have to echo what mcogilvie wrote. I look at it periodically as I am an apple user and the simplicity and nature built in nature is great but I cant seem to make it work in my head. THe concept of not linking projects and next actions does not work for me
 
larsh

larsh

GTD Connect
Very cool to see your setup, Robert! Thanks for sharing.

Echoing what some have suggested, using tags is also what Morten does in his setup. I have personally taken the transition from Todoist to Reminders as an opportunity to simplify my system, so I am back to the plain separate lists. If you're curious to hear more about how we (Morten and I) approach our differing setups in Apple Reminders, here's our episode on that:
 
mcogilvie

mcogilvie

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Robert5911 said:
Don't use contexts as lists; use them as tags. Use projects as lists with corresponding next actions tagged wiht contexts. You then can group them if you want as personal and work. I also have areas of focus as a group wiht those areas as lists.View attachment 1587
Click to expand...

It looks like you have lists of projects with tags for contexts. I assume that next actions are associated with projects as subtasks. What I found is that it’s a nuisance getting actions from the inbox under the right project. (You can also use the new sections feature for projects, but you can’t check it off; you can only delete it and everything in it.) You can make something like customized views, like flagged actions sorted by context but it is clumsy. No start dates. If you want a simple system and your lists are not too long, I think Reminders is fine, but it’s not a good fit for me.
 
Robert5911

Robert5911

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mcogilvie said:
It looks like you have lists of projects with tags for contexts. I assume that next actions are associated with projects as subtasks. What I found is that it’s a nuisance getting actions from the inbox under the right project. (You can also use the new sections feature for projects, but you can’t check it off; you can only delete it and everything in it.) You can make something like customized views, like flagged actions sorted by context but it is clumsy. No start dates. If you want a simple system and your lists are not too long, I think Reminders is fine, but it’s not a good fit for me.
Click to expand...
I just drag and drop it from the inbox on the project or singles list.

I also use an applet called Insta Remind, which, from keystroke "command T," I can bypass the inbox, if I want, and type the list name with the action, and it goes into that list.

I left Omnifocus for reminders. OmniFocus just had more than I needed. Been fine with reminders ever since. There is no one-size-fits-all when it comes to tools for GTD. Finding what works best for you and helps you avoid any repulsion or reluctance is important. I thought about switching to Things 3 and realized that there was no reason to switch, so I remained in the Apple ecosystem.

 
mcogilvie

mcogilvie

Registered
Robert5911 said:
I just drag and drop it from the inbox on the project or singles list.

I also use an applet called Insta Remind, which, from keystroke "command T," I can bypass the inbox, if I want, and type the list name with the action, and it goes into that list.

I left Omnifocus for reminders. OmniFocus just had more than I needed. Been fine with reminders ever since. There is no one-size-fits-all when it comes to tools for GTD. Finding what works best for you and helps you avoid any repulsion or reluctance is important. I thought about switching to Things 3 and realized that there was no reason to switch, so I remained in the Apple ecosystem.
Click to expand...
I see now: “Personal Projects” is not a list, but a collection of lists, presumably one list for each project. I guess that works as long as you don’t have too many projects. What happens when you complete a project? I don‘t think you can archive lists.
 
Robert5911

Robert5911

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mcogilvie said:
I see now: “Personal Projects” is not a list, but a collection of lists, presumably one list for each project. I guess that works as long as you don’t have too many projects. What happens when you complete a project? I don‘t think you can archive lists.
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Yes, one list for each project and grouped as work or personal. I keep support materials in Apple Notes. You are correct; you can not archive lists. When I am finished, I'm finished no need to archive. However, the next actions are, but I have never had a reason to go back to them.
 
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gtdstudente

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mcogilvie said:
I see now: “Personal Projects” is not a list, but a collection of lists, presumably one list for each project. I guess that works as long as you don’t have too many projects. What happens when you complete a project? I don‘t think you can archive lists.
Click to expand...
mcogilvie,

Also why digital 'still' has its place along with paper?
 
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bishblaize

Registered
I don't use it for GTD purposes as its still not quite suited to GTD imo. But for people that use Reminders, Remind Me Faster is a great little app that makes it easier to get things into your system.

apps.apple.com

‎Remind Me Faster

‎Quick-entry for Apple's Reminders app. Remind Me Faster is designed to let you add a reminder with as few taps as possible. Open the app and you're typing. Add a reminder and you're ready to type the next. The interface is optimised for the moment something crosses your mind. It wo…
apps.apple.com
 
D

damianp

Registered
larsh said:
Very cool to see your setup, Robert! Thanks for sharing.

Echoing what some have suggested, using tags is also what Morten does in his setup. I have personally taken the transition from Todoist to Reminders as an opportunity to simplify my system, so I am back to the plain separate lists. If you're curious to hear more about how we (Morten and I) approach our differing setups in Apple Reminders, here's our episode on that:
Click to expand...
Thanks. I watched this the other week. I recommend it to others.
 
bigskymind

bigskymind

Registered
I'm using Lists as Areas of Focus, so a list for Personal, a list for Work etc.

Projects are then Reminders which allows them to be archived once they are completed rather than just deleting them. Top level projects are tagged as #Project

Next actions are then sub-tasks for that project — sub-tasks are indented reminders under a parent reminder.
 
jsloat

jsloat

Registered
I too use Reminders after trying a variety of tools and setups over the years. I have been trying to keep it extremely simple in terms of projects, i.e. there is no connection between project & task (other than in my mind), and this has worked fine for my (primarily) non-work usage. I think for a lot of people a more robust setup like OmniFocus is the right choice, but for now, I'm enjoying the lower levels of complexity & categorization.

For me, the main benefits of Reminders are:
  • Best integration with Siri on watch & phone
  • Easy to share lists with my wife, who is not interested in more complex tools
  • Native integrations w/ other Apple tools (e.g. you can drag an email or note from their respective apps into Reminders)
Basically it's only a competitive option if you have (literally) bought into the Apple ecosystem.

My set up is basically...
  • Inbox list
  • Context lists
  • Waiting, Someday lists
  • Projects list
  • Variety of shared lists
 
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