As a working student, planning my daily tasks with a to-do list is crucial. Without a clear plan, I’ll find myself procrastinating on tasks for hours on end. For years, I’ve relied on Google Tasks to keep myself organized.
Separate lists for different aspects of my life.
Like most people, my life is divided into several parts, and I tend to take on more responsibilities than I can handle. This can make it easy to forget simple tasks, like buying a new binder for my math course or getting the ingredients for a dish I want to make.
Currently, my life is divided into three different parts: college, work, and my personal life. So, to ensure that I can control these parts and keep my work separate from my professional life, I organize my tasks into three separate lists.
I have a “Work” list for all work-related deadlines and meetings, with a separate “Education” list for university-related tasks like deadlines and exams. Personal activities — like dinner with friends or trying a new coffee recipe from TikTok — go to the “Personal Life” list.
Create tasks directly from Gmail
I use Notion to organize my entire life, but even though I can use it to manage my daily tasks, there's a reason I continue to use Google Tasks to do so.
Google Tasks integrates seamlessly with other Google collaboration tools like Docs, Sheets, and of course Gmail. Ultimately, this means that unlike other task management apps you’ll find, Google Tasks lets you create tasks directly from Gmail. And while I could manually add reminders from emails, the one-click option simplifies the process and saves me time.
To add an email to your Google Tasks list:
- Select email.
- tap on three vertical dots List next to Transfer to icon.
- He chooses Add to tasks From the drop-down menu.
A side panel will appear with your current Google Tasks list. You can use it to add more details to your task, set a deadline, move the task to one of your lists, break your tasks into subtasks, or move it to the top of your list.
Using Tasks with Google Calendar
Similar to how Google Tasks integrates with Gmail, every task I add to my to-do list is automatically added to my Google Calendar — another tool I can't imagine living without.
For tasks to appear on Google Calendar, you need to set a deadline. For example, tasks like “buying groceries,” which I don’t usually set a deadline for, won’t appear. However, tasks that require time, like task reminders or meetings, will appear on my calendar.
This helps me prioritize and ensures that my energy is directed towards the tasks that require it. Once I complete the tasks visible on my Google Calendar, I check Google Tasks for anything left over.
This also works the other way – you can add a task to your to-do list directly from Google Calendar. When you add a task, simply switch to Tasks Select the tab, set a deadline, add a description if necessary, and then select the list you want to put it in.
Set reminders and recurring tasks
Want to make sure you don’t forget to wish a friend a happy birthday or remember your monthly doctor’s appointment? If you’re like me, keeping track of such tasks amidst the daily chaos can be a struggle. Fortunately, you can ask Google Assistant to set a reminder, and it will save it as a task in Google Tasks. Or you can add a task manually and set a date and time to get notified when it’s due.
Likewise, if there are tasks that need to be completed on specific days of the week or even once a month, you can create a recurring task instead of adding it to your to-do list each time. Simply create the task and click repeat The icon next to it. Select how often you want the task to repeat, set start and end dates, and you're good to go.
Although many task management apps offer similar (or even more advanced) features, Google Tasks' simplicity and seamless integration with other Google services has kept me loyal for years.