It is laborious to maintain observe of all of the nifty options unfold throughout Google’s many official apps. As a recovering Inbox fanatic, I usually overlook Gmail’s many buttons and options as a result of the interface is so convoluted and busy. However whereas planning for my upcoming Cell World Congress 2024 journey, I discovered a button that can change my life going ahead: Google Duties.
In an effort to determine a approach to be higher organized this yr, I paused for a second to have a look at the Gmail interface and seen an “add to Duties” button I would by no means seen earlier than. How lengthy has this button been right here, and higher but, what does it do? Seems it is one of many finest to-do apps and, higher but, it’s very free.
As somebody who loves being organized — however repeatedly fails spectacularly on the process — a single button so as to add an electronic mail to my process listing is a godsend. Earlier than this, my to-do listing was usually scattered between a number of totally different apps or bodily notebooks, leaving me attempting to recollect the place to seek out my subsequent goal. It wasn’t very environment friendly, to say the least.
Whereas studying an electronic mail, you solely should click on this little “Add to duties” button on the motion bar within Gmail on the desktop UI.
Observe: the cell Gmail app hides it a bit, so you will should click on the overflow menu on the highest proper — yeah, the very top-right overflow menu, not the identical-looking one on the e-mail itself — so as to add to duties. Did I point out Gmail’s UI is convoluted and complicated? Google, please carry again Inbox, thanks.
However I digress; again to the Duties at hand. Tapping the “Add to duties” button will open a sidebar displaying your new and current duties. Every process on the listing has a fast button to examine it off and a direct hyperlink to the e-mail beneath the topic line.
Clicking on the topic will open extra choices together with including your individual detailed notes, in addition to setting a date for the duty to be accomplished.
With the ability to simply set reminders and process completion occasions for emails is especially useful for my job, as I usually obtain data forward of time that must be written up or reviewed at a very particular time sooner or later.
Past this, you may click on the overflow button subsequent to every topic to tug up extra choices, like transferring it to the highest, indenting it within the listing, including a subtask, and even including it to a separate process listing.
The UI is much better on desktop than on cell, as every little thing could be simply accessed within the Gmail desktop UI. The cell stream requires a separate Gmail and Google Duties app to get issues performed, which is rather less environment friendly.
Nonetheless, having a devoted Duties app might be useful sufficient on cell because it makes it easy to separate process lists. Having totally different lists for e-mail to-dos and one thing else may definitely be helpful.
As I’ve began to grow to be extra depending on Google Duties in my each day life, I’ve realized simply what number of providers Google has begun to combine into Duties. Google Assistant duties migrated over to Google Duties final yr, and you can also make duties immediately from Google Calendar.
The truth is, the desktop Duties UI is baked into the Google Calendar internet app, displaying simply how deep the combination with Calendar goes. We actually have a bunch of Google Duties suggestions and tips that can assist you combine it into your life extra, which have turn out to be useful as I started this journey.
Briefly, Google Duties might be the perfect productiveness app I’ve ever used due to its simplicity and deep tie-ins to providers I already use on daily basis. Hopefully, it’s going to be simply as useful to you, as nicely!
