Project management tools are only effective when they’re actually used. You need to use these tools efficiently to see the results. So, how do you use MagicTask so that it brings maximum productivity and efficiency?
Unlike more complex project management tools, MagicTask gives you the flexibility to use it the way you want.
You have all the features right there, and it is minimalistic without being overly simplistic. Now that’s brilliant!
In this blog, we are going to discuss the best ways to organize your work with MagicTask and improve productivity.
Let’s start.
Working Smarter with MagicTask: Best Practices
MagicTask is an excellent tool for managing multiple projects and teams. The way it is designed is what really makes it stand apart from others.
MagicTask is thoroughly user-driven, which means users can develop their own best practices and let the tool do the work for them.
The Imaginovation team uses MagicTask for their day-to-day business operations and here’s how they make the best use of this tool.
1. Keep the conversation on the task
Good communication keeps projects moving, but it falls apart when decisions live in one place and the work lives in another. MagicTask lets you keep the conversation right on the task, so the context travels with the work.
- Use comments for questions and updates. Instead of a side chat, add a comment on the task itself, so anyone who opens it later sees the full history. @mention a teammate to notify them, and for longer discussions, open the full-screen comment view.
- Attach what’s needed. Add files, links and notes to the task, so nobody has to ask where the brief is.
How to hand a task over cleanly
When a task moves from one person to the next, for example from design to development, a clear handoff saves a round of back-and-forth:
- Leave a handoff comment and @mention the next person. Say what’s done, what’s left, and anything they need to watch out for.
- Reassign the task to them, so it shows up in their My Tasks.
- Update the dates and size if the remaining work is bigger or smaller than first planned.
- Check it’s landed. If it’s urgent, give the person a heads-up so it doesn’t sit unnoticed.
2. Make regular reviews part of the plan
Regular check-ins keep projects on track. We recommend a short review for yourself and your team to go through action items and reorganize, reprioritize and reassign tasks.
- Make the review a recurring task, so it shows up every week without anyone having to remember it.
- Use Time Blocking to give it a slot. It syncs with Google Calendar, so it sits alongside your meetings.
- Keep it quick. It only takes a few minutes to add new items, clear finished ones and see where everything stands.
3. Use project templates for repeat work
If you run the same kind of project again and again, such as a client onboarding, a monthly campaign or a product launch, don’t rebuild it every time. Create a project template with the sections, tasks and default members you always need, then spin up a new project from it in seconds. Templates don’t need dates, so they’re ready for whenever the next one starts.
4. Use MagicTask as soon as you have something to share
Unlike many other project management solutions, MagicTask isn’t designed in a complex manner. It is so simple that you can write down whatever comes to your mind before you forget about it or feel overwhelmed with too many thoughts.
When handling multiple projects and dealing with many thoughts, anyone can feel overwhelmed. And then, in no time, you start feeling stuck and unproductive. You feel consistently distracted.
MagicTask is designed for brain dumps – getting all of your ideas and thoughts out of your head so that you can focus on one idea at a time and don’t have to worry about forgetting the other stuff.
- When something comes to mind, create a task right away, or paste in a whole list at once. It’s a “write it down and let it go” kind of tool, so you don’t have a bunch of thoughts floating around in your head, slowing down your process.
- The tool is only as good as the information that is stored in it.
- MagicTask’s simple design is purposeful so that you will use it every day.
5. Hyper Focus versus Daily Focus
While tackling tasks, people recommend and follow one of the two common approaches – Hyper-focus and Daily Focus.
Hyper-focus is when you only tackle one task at a time and then move your way down your to-do list.
Daily Focus is when you start each day with a "sprint," meaning that you plan out exactly what you need to get done on that day. You prioritize your tasks from the most important to the least important and check off the tasks as you go. The next day, you begin the process all over and include any tasks you did not finish the day before.
The Imaginovation team tried both approaches with MagicTask, spending a month on each.
They found that the right approach is a personal choice.
Some methods suit some people better than others. Whichever you choose, MagicTask is designed to support it.
You can also tune how MagicTask feels while you work. In User Preferences, set animations and sound to Full, Balanced, Subtle or Off, so celebrations never get in the way of deep focus.
6. Be Pragmatic and Proactive with MagicTask
Embrace both pragmatism and proactivity while managing things with MagicTask.
As soon as something comes to mind, add it right away and get it out of your head.
It helps to declutter your mind, but it also requires discipline to be consistent in dumping out all of your tasks and organizing them. Do this as soon as a new task pops into your head.
My neighbor Andy Hunt co-wrote The Pragmatic Programmer with Dave Thomas. In it, they describe an analogy of driving past a building with a broken window every day. At some point, you stop noticing the broken window because it is part of the scenery.
To stop one broken window turning into a hundred, fix it right away or make a note to fix it later.
7. Work faster with keyboard shortcuts
Once MagicTask is part of your day, keyboard shortcuts save a surprising amount of time. Press Ctrl + / anywhere to see the full list.
Sudo Innominate’s Best Practice with MagicTask
With endless meetings, constant reminders, alerts and notifications of emails and messages, and coworkers popping in for a quick chat, your productivity barely makes it through the day.
Sudo Innominate, Co-Founder of Imaginovation, uses MagicTask to organize his daily schedule. He shares the following tips to make the most out of MagicTask.
- Schedule a daily 5–10 minute time block focused solely on priority tasks.
Not every task is equal in value to you and your business. Some are urgent and important, while others are not. Start your day by planning for priority tasks. It doesn't take longer than 10 minutes. Doing this at the beginning of the day makes you feel better organized.
- Clean up anything from the previous day and add in new items.
Unless your task list is fairly static, you must reprioritize your task list every day. Clean up anything from the previous day here. You can add new tasks and remove any unimportant tasks.
- Check your Inbox and any projects that are falling behind.
There are many reasons why a project moves past its deadline: underestimated work, or tasks that took longer than expected. Whatever the reason, you need to get those projects back on track. Keep an eye on your Inbox and on projects that are falling behind. Project analytics show how work is moving, so you can spot trouble early and head off problems before they grow.
Sign-Up To MagicTask
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