Setting up Apple Reminders - guide

[hodlok]

Nice! Although I cannot get it to go to a specific list. It seems to open Reminders at wherever I left off.

Use the app "Remind Me Faster", it's really fast, you can capture with just the lockscreen icon, you can even include it in the control panel. Really useful if you are using Apple Reminders. You can capture directly to a specific list if you want to, but all the captures should go to the Inbox

 

[account314]

My system, simple as that:

 

[snfuod]

Thanks for sharing! It’s an interesting setup that seems well thought out. Kudos!

I have a question on your Inbox/Next Action idea. You filter the Inbox to include entries in the Next Action-list:

Now to Inbox​

1. Create new smart list, call it "Inbox"
2. In the rules choose "Include reminders matching all" of the following filters
3. Add filter "Tags", type "Untagged Reminders Only"
4. Add filter "Lists", type "Include Selected List", value - "Next Actions"
5. Click "Ok" to create the list.
6. Now, do a right click, or "option click" in Mac terminology on the "Inbox" list
7. Click "Pin List"
8. List will be pinned in the area above all the lists. Drag and drop it in the top left corner so you know where it is.

That means, whenever you capture in the smart list “Inbox”, the item will also display on the Next Action-list. Or the other way around, if you capture in the Next Action-list, which I guess you do using Siri or such, since you make that list the default, the item will appear in the Inbox. That’s all fine.

However, if you enter a next action directly within a context or a project, it won’t appear on the Next Action-list. I do that frequently when reviewing projects or such. I guess most of us do.

So my question is, what’s the point of the Next Action-list, if not every next action will show there? Is the point solely to have a way of captured stuff without a tag showing up in the Inbox, or am I missing something?

 

[snfuod]

So my question is, what’s the point of the Next Action-list, if not every next action will show there? Is the point solely to have a way of captured stuff without a tag showing up in the Inbox, or am I missing something?

I guess one perk could be that Next Actions not linked to a specific project shows up there. Being a list for single actions I think I would call it something else than "Next Actions" though, I think that's what misled me in the first place.

Realizing that benefit, the setup makes more sense to me.

 

[Tooth-saw]

I have purchased "Setting up iPhone" and "Setting up iPad" guides and I found them lacking. I then purchased "Setting up OmniFocus" and after reading it I had an epiphany so I set up my Apple Reminders and I'm sharing it here in case someone finds it helpful.

Some assumptions that I'm making:

• I read somewhere that managing everything using list apps is wrong. Areas of Focus should be in a separate tool, like a mind map or some kind of text document.
• I assume that we all agree with it, even though "everything in lists" might work for someone.

Ok, here we go.

Thx tmlr! I love this setup. If you ever get another epiphany.., please let us know

 

[tmlr]

@snfuod
A bit of correction.

> However, if you enter a next action directly within a context
In this case, the action _will_ be in Next Actions list. Context lists are "smart lists" - they filter by tag.

> or a project

In this case the action will _not_ appear in Next Actions list, _unless it is also tagged_.


> Being a list for single actions I think I would call it something else than "Next Actions" though, I think that's what misled me in the first place.

I actually think that's what GTD is calling for - just a flat list of single actions which are called "Next Actions". My understanding is that this list is populated during review using list of projects and contexts and inbox as triggers. I was trying to emulate exactly that with additional feature of being able to slightly pre-plan projects.

You real "Next Actions" in this setup will be shown when you click on "@ctx" group in Reminders - it'll show all the tagged actions grouped by context.

It is kinda like you have multiple inboxes - a global one and per-project inbox. Act of tagging with a context during review makes is "next action"-able =).

 

[snfuod]

I’ve tried your setup since I first replied in this thread and I think it’s a very good setup. It’s fast, easy and simple and it takes advantage of the functionality in Apple reminders. Kudos @tmlr!

 

[TooDue4U]

Very handy, thanks for sharing.

When I used Apple Reminders, I archived my completed reminders/actions with an Apple Shortcut that would create all-day events on my calendar from the completed items. Each item was logged on the date it was completed. The format I used was:

[x] Name of action (project name)

In this setup, each project was a list, and contexts were specified using tags. I found it great because once a project was completed, I could simply run the shortcut and then delete the list from reminders. My log of actions (and their associated projects) was easily accessible in my calendar, which was great for tracking progress during weekly reviews and billing clients.

@RS356 I would like to see your Shortcut too. Cleans up the Reminders database and documents project completion and details in the right place: the calendar.