For those working from home full-time, maintaining a distinct separation between personal and professional life is essential. At 5pm, I shut my home office door, determined not to think about work again until 9am the next day.
However, the human mind doesn’t operate with such precision. Work-related thoughts don’t simply disappear as if in an episode of Severance.
What I truly seek is a balanced work-life harmony. I intentionally keep work emails and Slack off my phone, but I frequently encounter a recurring issue. During my downtime, article ideas and urgent reminders surface, yet I lack a suitable place to jot them down.
Foundry
My initial “solution” was to add these ideas to a personal to-do list and later transfer them to my work list upon returning to my desk. However, this approach allowed work stress to intrude on my free time. Sending emails to my work account was equally cumbersome, as it required manual copying to my to-do list.
Fortunately, I finally discovered an ideal, cost-free solution that proved invaluable.
The unexpected Todoist hack
Several weeks ago, I made the switch to Todoist for straightforward reasons. My Microsoft To Do list had become overwhelming, and I sought a fresh start with a more user-friendly tool. Todoist appeared to be the perfect fit.
It was during one of my frequent free-time work-related brainstorms that I stumbled upon a game-changing feature: email forwarding.
It’s impossible for all work-related thoughts to immediately vaporise like I’m in an episode of Severance
This feature, available at no cost, allows users to send emails to a unique Todoist email address, transforming them into tasks. While designed for forwarding emails that require attention, it also supports composing new ones.
For the main ‘Inbox’ and each active ‘Project’ (up to five on the free tier), separate email addresses can be created. The subject line becomes the task name, and the email body serves as an attachment.
Skeptical at first, I decided to try it. In just three minutes, the task appeared in my Todoist account, as if by magic.
Foundry
While I only utilized the basic email forwarding feature, Todoist offers numerous free customization options. By adding <date…> to the subject line (substituting the ellipsis with a specific date and time), Todoist automatically schedules the task. The platform recognizes natural language cues like ‘tom’ for tomorrow.
My era of to-do list clutter is officially over
Labels can be added by using @ followed by the label name, and priorities are marked with p1, p2, or p3. You can even assign tasks to collaborators using the +firstname lastname format.
In the few weeks I’ve used it, Todoist has provided the peace of mind absent in my previous systems. My era of a cluttered to-do list is conclusively over.
The impact on my work-life balance has been significant. Now, when inspiration strikes, like in the shower, I know my work to-do list is just an email away, allowing me to let go and relax.
