> [!tip] Stay on Top of What Matters > Communication Tools give you one-click access to your email, chat, and collaboration apps - organized the way you work and integrated into your daily rituals. ## What Are Communication Tools? Communication Tools is your personalized launchpad for all the apps where people reach you - email, Slack, Teams, Basecamp, and more. Instead of hunting through bookmarks or typing URLs, you get: - **One-click access** to any communication app - **Organized by groups** (Work, Personal, VIP, etc.) - **"Launch All" buttons** to open an entire group at once - **Command Palette access** for keyboard-driven workflow - **Ritual integration** for intentional communication habits ## Why This Matters for Your Productivity ### The Communication Trap Most knowledge workers check email and chat **74 times per day** on average. Each check costs you context-switching time and mental energy - even if there's nothing urgent. ### The MakeTimeFlow Approach Instead of reactive, constant checking, Communication Tools helps you: 1. **Batch your communications** - Check everything at once, then close it all 2. **Prioritize VIPs** - Quick access to important/VIP inboxes during shutdown 3. **Stay intentional** - Built into your rituals so you check at the right times 4. **Reduce friction** - One click (or keystroke) to open what you need ## Setting Up Your Communication Tools ### Accessing the Editor 1. Navigate to **Communications** from the left menu 2. Click **Customize Tools** at the bottom of the page Or access directly via the Command Palette: `⌘K` (Mac) / `Ctrl+K` (Windows/Linux), then type "communication" ### Quick Add Common Tools The editor shows popular tools you can add with one click: **Email:** - Gmail / Gmail Important - Outlook / Outlook Focused - Apple Mail / Apple Mail VIP **Chat & Collaboration:** - Slack - Microsoft Teams - Discord - Basecamp - Asana **Task & Notes:** - Notion - Linear - Jira - Trello - Todoist - Apple Reminders - Google Keep **Calendars:** - Google Calendar - Outlook Calendar Simply click any tool to add it. For tools like Basecamp or Jira that need your account ID, you'll be prompted to enter it. ### Adding Custom Tools Click **+ Add Custom Tool** to add any app or website: 1. **Name**: What you want to call it (e.g., "Work Email", "Client Portal") 2. **URL**: The web address or app URL 3. **Group**: Which group to organize it in **Pro tip:** You can use app-specific URLs like: - `obsidian://` - Open Obsidian - `notion://` - Open Notion desktop app - `slack://` - Open Slack desktop app - `message://` - Open Apple Mail - `message://vip` - Open Apple Mail VIP inbox ### Organizing with Groups Groups help you batch related tools together. Common setups: **By Context:** - **Work** - Work email, Slack, project tools - **Personal** - Personal email, social apps - **VIP** - Important/VIP filtered inboxes only **By Time of Day:** - **Morning Batch** - Full email, all chat apps - **Shutdown** - VIP inboxes only, urgent channels - **Deep Work** - Nothing! (or just one emergency channel) **By Priority:** - **Essential** - Must check daily - **Secondary** - Check 2-3x per week - **Optional** - Check weekly or as needed To assign a group, use the dropdown when adding tools or edit existing tools to change their group. ### Editing and Removing Tools In the editor: - **Edit**: Click the pencil icon on any tool to change its name, URL, or group - **Remove**: Click the X icon to remove a tool - **Reorder**: Drag and drop tools within a group ## Using Communication Tools ### From the Communications Page Your tools appear organized by group. You can: - **Click any tool** to open it in a new tab - **Click "Launch [Group]"** to open all tools in that group at once - **Click "Launch All Tools"** to open everything ### From the Command Palette Press `⌘K` (Mac) / `Ctrl+K` (Windows/Linux) to open the Command Palette, then: - Type the name of any tool to launch it - Type a group name to see tools in that group - Quick keyboard-driven access without leaving your current work ### During Rituals Communication Tools are built into your daily rituals: **Going Well (Mid-Day Reset)** - Review your communications as part of re-prioritizing your day - Decide: Is this a processing block, or just a quick scan? **Shutdown Ritual** - Focus on **VIP and essential communications only** - The rest can wait until tomorrow's communication block! - This is why organizing tools by priority matters > [!warning] Shutdown = VIP Only > During your shutdown ritual, resist the urge to process everything. Check only your VIP/important inboxes. Full communication processing happens during your dedicated morning time block - not at the end of the day when your energy is low. ## Best Practices ### Create a VIP Group Set up a "VIP" or "Essential" group with only: - Your VIP/Important email inbox (Gmail Important, Outlook Focused, Apple Mail VIP) - One urgent communication channel (if needed) Use this during shutdown. Save the full list for morning processing. ### Use "Launch All" Strategically The "Launch All" button is powerful but use it intentionally: - **Good**: Launch your "Work" group at the start of your communication block - **Better**: Launch your "VIP" group during shutdown - **Avoid**: Launching "All Tools" throughout the day ### Set Communication Time Blocks Pair Communication Tools with time blocking: 1. **Morning Block (30-60 min)**: Process all communications - Launch your full Work group - Triage, respond, delegate, defer - Close everything when done 2. **Mid-Day Check (5-10 min)**: Quick scan only - Launch VIP group only - Handle only urgent items - Going Well ritual prompt 3. **Shutdown (5 min)**: VIP only - Launch VIP/Essential group - Quick responses only - Everything else waits ### Keep Your List Lean More tools = more temptation to check. Be ruthless: - Do you actually need real-time access to this tool? - Could you check it less frequently? - Is it truly essential or just habitual? ## Keyboard Shortcuts | Action | Shortcut | |--------|----------| | Open Command Palette | `⌘K` / `Ctrl+K` | | Search for a tool | Type tool name in palette | | Open Communications page | Type "comm" in palette | ## Related Features - [[Rituals]] - Daily rituals that include communication check steps - [[Focus Mode]] - Your workspace for deep work (communications closed!) - [[Task Actions]] - Create tasks that open specific tools when you start them --- *Remember: The goal isn't to check communications faster - it's to check them less often, more intentionally, and at the right times. Communication Tools helps you stay in control.*