Nearing the End

Gmail as ToDo List

A lot of my work is done via email. I use gmail's Star option for items that require further attention. My Starred folder is my ToDo list.

Here's a shortcut to add new items to the Starred list. Add the following filter under Settings/Filters and then any email send to yourself is automatically added to the Starred/ToDo list.

Matches: from:(myself@gmail.com) to: myself@gmail.com)
Do this: Skip Inbox, Star it, Apply label "ToDo"

I skip the Inbox for two reasons. First, to avoid cluttered. I don't want to see ToDo items mixed in with new mail. I also forward new mail to my cell phone. Skipping the Inbox avoids having my cell phone beep every time I add a new ToDo item.

Usually these emails are just a few words on the Subject line. Because that's unusual, gmail will ask, every time, "Send this message without text in the body?". I've asked Google for help with this and other issues but, so far, no response. For now I just click "OK". Let me know if there's a better way.

When I select the Starred folder I see my ToDo items, sorted by date. I can reply to items to add extra info or just to move the item to the top of the list.

As I complete items it's easy to turn off the Star. That feels great. It even feels better to select the ToDo folder to see the full history of all of completed ToDo items, with and without stars. Until I used this method I didn't realize how much I accomplish.

Because my ToDo list is integrated with my email I can easily turn emails into ToDo items. I can also create new ToDo items as easily as sending email. Because it's a web app I can take it with me wherever I go.

Gmail as Notepad

My drafts folder is full of emails I never intend to mail. These are just a collection of notes that I often refer to and/or need to update. I know there are specific sites on the web that offer this sort of functionality but I try to keep my life simple and do as much as possible in gmail alone.

There's the risk of me accidentally pressing "Send" instead of "Save Now" on these items. But I'm safe because I never put an address in the "To:" field. If I press Send then Gmail just responds with "Please specify at least one recipient" which gives me a chance to cancel.

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last updated 2 years ago #