**Or aka Tasking like a mad genius!** Type tasks naturally and add inline shortcuts to set the bucket, duration, priority, dates, and more — all without touching a single dropdown. ## Parent Tasks (Projects) ``` /Launch Product do this task ``` Type `/` followed by the parent task name to file a task under a parent. A popup will help autocomplete existing task names for you. Any top-level task with subtasks naturally becomes a "project" — no special setup needed. Just nest tasks under a parent to create structure. > [!tip]- Quick Add with Parent > In any quick-add field, use `/Parent Name` to assign a parent task. For example: `Buy milk /Grocery Run` creates a task under "Grocery Run". ## Estimated Time ``` This is a long possible task 2h This is a fast easy task 5m This is an all day task 1d ``` Add `Xm`, `Xh`, or `Xd` for minutes, hours, or days. > [!tip]- Better estimation with the x-factor > Understanding how uncertain your estimate is can be really valuable — both for you and the system — to calibrate how long things actually take. You can add `x2`, `x4`, or `x8` to express your uncertainty. See [this article on the x-factor](https://start.maketimeflow.com/blog/x-factor) for more. ## When — Buckets We find it much simpler and more realistic to use buckets for when you want to do a task: - **@today** — something I want to do today - **@next** — tasks I'll get to as soon as I can, but not necessarily today - **@later** — tasks I'll think about another time - **@inbox** — tasks I just captured but haven't decided when to do (default in quick add) - **@reference** — reference material, not actionable Just type `@today`, `@next`, `@later`, `@inbox`, or `@reference` anywhere in your task text. ## Dates Sometimes you want a task to appear on a specific date. There are two kinds: - **Start date** — when you want to begin working on it (usually well before a deadline) - **Due date** — when it's actually due You can write dates in many natural ways: ``` Review proposal start:2025-03-15 Meeting prep start:2025-03-15 3pm Plan the retreat start today Send invite start tomorrow 2pm Write report start Monday Team sync start on Tues 2pm Quarterly review start next Wednesday Big deadline due Friday Submit proposal due next Thursday Finish draft start next week Wrap up project due next month Think ahead start in 3 days Deliver start in 2 weeks ``` It understands `start`/`due` with: - Exact dates: `start:2025-03-15` or `start:2025-03-15 3pm` - Today/tomorrow: `start today`, `start tomorrow 2pm` - Day of week: `start Monday`, `start on Tues 2pm` - Next + day of week: `start next Wednesday`, `due next Friday` - Relative: `start next week`, `due next month`, `start in 3 days` You can also use `deadline:` as an alias for `due:` with exact dates. ## Priority - `p1` — high priority - `p2` — medium priority - `p3` — low priority You can also write `priority:high`, `priority:medium`, or `priority:low`. In practice, `p1` and `p3` are the most useful — medium is the default. ## Task Type ``` Team standup type:meeting Focus block type:x_block End of sprint type:marker ``` - `type:meeting` — calendar meetings (usually synced from your calendar) - `type:x_block` — extended time blocks for focused work - `type:marker` — milestone markers ## Quick Reference | Element | Syntax | Example | |---------|--------|---------| | Parent | `/Parent Name` | `/Launch Product fix the bug` | | Bucket | `@bucket` | `@today`, `@next`, `@later` | | Duration | `Xm`, `Xh`, `Xd` | `30m`, `2h`, `1d` | | X-Factor | `xN` | `x2`, `x4` | | Priority | `p1` / `p2` / `p3` | `p1` (high) | | Start date | `start:DATE` or `start PHRASE` | `start:2025-01-15`, `start Monday` | | Due date | `due:DATE` or `due PHRASE` | `due:2025-12-01`, `due next Friday` | | Task type | `type:TYPE` | `type:meeting` | ## See Also - [[Task Import and Export]] — bulk export/import format with status markers, hierarchy, notes, and task IDs - [[Repeating Tasks]] — setting up daily and weekly routines