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Master your productivity: Getting started with OmniFocus 2 for iPhone

By Alvin Soon - 8 Sep 2015

OmniFocus for iPhone — Actions, Projects

What is OmniFocus 2 for the iPhone good for?

Ever wished you could be more productive, stop forgetting important tasks, and just get things done?

That’s the promise behind apps like OmniFocus 2 for the iPhone, made by The Omni Group. While an app won’t magically turn you into a productivity ninja, using it consistently can actually help you become more productive.

I’ve been an OmniFocus user for the past four years, and it is my secret superpower. I use it not because I’m a super productive guy, but because I’m not. I tend to forget stuff quite easily, so I need a trusted place to capture and organize the important tasks in my life.

If that sounds good to you, then this guide is for you.

Note: The latest version of OmniFocus is OmniFocus 2, but I’ll make it simple and just call it “OmniFocus” from here on.

 

What is Getting Things Done?

Before you get started on OmniFocus, you should know that OmniFocus is built right on top of Getting Things Done (GTD), the productivity system created by David Allen.

Other to-do apps can work as simple to-do lists, but to get the full benefits from OmniFocus, you really have to go all in with the GTD method.

Let’s get these two caveats out of the way first:

  • OmniFocus makes it easier to learn GTD, but there’s still a bit of a learning curve.
  • Plus, OmniFocus for iPhone is not cheap, compared to some of the other to-do apps on the market.

How do you know if you want to make the time and money investment into OmniFocus?

  • If all you need is a simple to-do list to keep track of the miscellaneous tasks in your life, then you’re probably fine using something other than OmniFocus, like Clear, or the built-in iOS Reminders app.
  • If you just want to dip your toes into the GTD world, Things is a more affordable entry, and a wonderfully designed one at that. While OmniFocus provides incredible control for the power user, Things is a simpler and more intuitive app, which makes it easier to get into.

Clear (left) and Things (right).

However, if you need to juggle multiple responsibilities and projects in both your personal and professional life, then you might find that the time and financial investments you make into OmniFocus and GTD will pay off for themselves in the long run.

You can learn more about GTD on David Allen’s site, or by reading the Getting Things Done book. The ‘Five Steps that Apply Order to Chaos’ page on the official GTD site is a great summary of the GTD process. You can also sign up for a free trial on Lynda.com, and take David Allen’s GTD video course.

It’s possible to dive right into OmniFocus without learning GTD, but to really get OmniFocus, you’ll need to learn the basics of GTD eventually.

 

Starting with Omni Sync Server

When you first launch OmniFocus for the iPhone, the app will ask you if you want to set up sync, which is free with the OmniGroup’s Omni Sync Server service.

Sync becomes essential when you run OmniFocus across multiple devices, like across an iPhone, iPad and Mac (OmniFocus for Mac is sold separately, but the current OmniFocus 2 for iPhone is a universal app, which means that you get a version which you can install on both iPhone and iPad, with a single purchase).

Even if you only run OmniFocus on one device, it’s still a good idea to set up syncing, so it backs your data up to the cloud.

Syncing with Omni Sync Server is free, and it helps to back up your data.

 

Starting with the Inbox

Everything in OmniFocus starts with a task, also known as a “next action.” When you first create an action like, “Buy milk,” it goes into the Inbox.

Think of the Inbox like your physical mailbox. The mailbox is a good place to collect various messages, but you don’t want to leave them there to pile up. Sooner or later, you have to process them; bills have to be paid, notices have to be filed, and spam has to be cleared.

It’s the same with the Inbox. While it’s a handy place to capture your actions, you don’t want to leave them there. You’ll want to process them so they show up where and when you want them to, and that’s how Projects plus Contexts come into play. We’ll dive into them later, first, here’s how to create a new action.

Create a new action

  1. To create a new action that goes straight into the Inbox, tap the Inbox icon on the bottom right, the one with a ‘+’ sign in the middle.
  2. Type your action into the “Untitled Item” field.
  3. Tap ‘Save’ on the top right to save your action into the Inbox.
  4. Tap ‘Save +’ in the top middle to save your action, and continue adding another action.

 

Tip: Write your actions like you’re sending them to someone else

One of the best GTD tips I ever got was to “write your actions as if you are delegating them to someone you actually know.”

In the GTD system, actions have to be physically actionable, which is why they’re also known as “next actions.” Nebulous actions like “Hong Kong holiday” aren’t actionable. Actions like, “Search online for places to go in Hong Kong,” or, “Ask Brenda about her favorite places in Hong Kong,” are actionable. They can be physically accomplished.

The test is to read back the action you’ve just written and ask yourself: “If somebody else were to read this action, would they be able to do it?”

It sounds like we’re splitting hairs, but there’s a good reason you want to get as specific as possible when writing down your actions. It forces you to get clear on just how you’re going to achieve this action; “Hong Kong holiday” doesn’t tell you what you need to do next to get things done, but “Book a flight to Hong Kong” does.

 

Starting with Projects

In GTD, Projects are goals that require more than one action to complete.

For example, “Take a vacation in Hong Kong” requires several actions to complete, like, “Book a flight to Hong Kong,” “Book a hotel,” “Apply for leave,” and so on. So instead of storing these actions in OmniFocus among actions like “Buy milk,” they can be grouped together under a single project.

There are two ways to create Projects in OmniFocus.

Create a new project using the Projects page

  1. From the Home screen, tap ‘Projects’.
  2. On the Projects page, tap the ‘+’ sign on the top right, and select ‘New Project.’
  3. Name your new Project.
  4. Tap ‘Save.’

Create a new action in Projects

Now that you have a new Project, you also get a new way to add actions:

  1. Tap ‘Projects’ on the Home screen, and go to your new Project.
  2. Tap the circular icon with a ‘+’ sign on the top right.
  3. A new action window will appear, with the Project field already filled in with the name of your new project.
  4. To save this new action, tap ‘Save’ on the top right.
  5. To save this new action and continue to add a new action, tap ‘Save +’ on the top center. 

 

 

 

Create a new project when creating a new action

  1. When creating a new action, tap the Project tab.
  2. If your project already exists, you can tap the name of your project to select it.
  3. If not, in the ‘Search for Project’ pane, start typing the name of your new project.
  4. When OmniFocus can’t find the name of the new project, it’ll give you the option to create a new project with the text “Create (project name)” in the results field.
  5. Tap the “Create (project name)” text to create a new project.

 

 

OmniFocus’ three kinds of projects

OmniFocus lets you create three kinds of projects:

  • Sequential
  • Parallel (default)
  • Single Actions

Sequential projects are for actions that need to be accomplished in order. For example, you need to “Boil water,” before you can “Make coffee.” So, when you create a sequential project, OmniFocus will only show the first action in a list of actions. Only when that action is completed will the following action then appear.

Parallel projects are for actions that run in tandem; they don’t have to be performed in any particular order. For example, you can “Wash the dishes,” or you can “Wash dirty clothes,” it doesn’t matter which order you do them in. As a result, all actions in a parallel project will appear at the same time.

Single action projects are usually used to group loose actions together which don’t have to be completed in any order. For example, you can have a “Movies to watch at home” project, which really isn’t a goal with step-by-step actions. In this case, “Watch Toy Story 3” and “Watch Mission Impossible 4” are single actions that can be completed independently.

To change a project’s type:

  1. From the Home screen, tap ‘Projects’.
  2. Tap the name of your project.
  3. Tap the name of the project again.
  4. In the project’s Settings page, under ‘Type’, tap the project type you want

 

 

Finishing a project

When you’re done with an action, you simply tap on its circle to mark it complete. When you’ve completed a project, to mark it complete:

  1. From the Home screen, tap ‘Projects’.
  2. Tap the name of your finished project.
  3. Tap the name of the project again.
  4. In the project’s Settings page, under ‘Status’, tap ‘Completed’ (the check mark).

 

 

Tip: Make projects winnable

Just like getting specific with how you write your actions helps you to clarify what you need to get done, getting clear on your project’s name can also help you clarify what completing it looks like.

One of David Allen’s tips for naming projects is to make it a project you can win. For example, ‘Make client X sign on the dotted line’ is not something you have 100% control over. But ‘Submit a comprehensive sales proposal’ is.

It also helps to get clear on what the end goal looks like. “Write proposal” is subtly different from “Submit proposal”. Getting clear on the end goal helps you plan towards it more effectively.

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