Use cases for marking a note as done

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#1

I’d like to know what use cases or how are you using the mark as done feature? Aside from using it as a single-task note which acts like ticking off a checklist, do you use it for other things?

Still figuring out how I can incorporate agenda to what I do. So far I’m using it for meetings, project notes, and some content writing. I use tags and created saved searches for open/due items then just delete the tag when I’m done.

Now I’m exploring the other features like Mark as done. But I don’t see it used in any other way so I’d love to hear how others are using it.

#2

+1 for this question. Is anybody using it?

#3

I use it to indicate that I’m done processing a note, whatever that may mean for that specific note. I don’t intend to add anything to it; it doesn’t have any open loops; I’ve identified any actions that may have resulted from that note and moved them elsewhere. I am keeping that note around purely for reference.

As of today, Agenda has no behavior around Done - it’s purely a visual indicator. I believe that a future version will allow us to search notes based on Done state, in which case I will find it much more useful. But even today it’s still quite useful. When viewing a collection of notes, one with a circle next to it means that there’s some action I want to take related to the note. One with a check means there’s not, and I can ignore it unless I need to refer to it for some reason. So I suppose I mentally do the filtering of Done vs not Done notes - I’m just looking forward to the day when Agenda will do that filtering for me.

To give you a concrete example: I had a meeting the other day with one of our partners. I recorded action items into the meeting note as they came up. After the meeting, I emailed a meeting summary to interested parties along with the different action items, who was responsible, and when we agreed to complete them. I then moved the action items out of that meeting note and in to my project plan note so I could keep track of them in context of the rest of the project. Then I marked the meeting note as done to indicate that there’s no more action for me to take related to it.

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#4

I use like Pat, but with a slight difference. You have to understand how I use OTA first!

My prefs are set so all new notes are OTA. This means that any notes i create on the fly - eg notes of a phone call - will always be OTA. Because I’ve created on the fly, i often don’t have time to process them right away. Eg, tidy up hasty typing, extract to dos from the conversation, file in correct project etc.

I also use OTA to mark notes I’m going to work on today (I can’t use TODAY, because I don’t want to mess with the date assigned to the note - eg a note in prep for a future meeting, that is associated with the calendar event).

So…

OTA = needs prompt action: either “tidy and file” or “work on today”

Unchecked/Open = needs action. This isn’t always to dos, it’s often a draft of a blog, paper or report.

Checked/Closed = no further action required. A project with all notes closed is archived.

There are a few exceptions that break this! Notes that are references, like bank account details, instructions for technical issues etc, that I need to refer to from time to time, I leave open. But they are in projects with names like “tech ref” so I don’t confuse them with notes needing action.

I also use OTA for a few special notes like “Goals”. Because of the order of categories, i force these special notes to the top of OTA, so OTA shows a me my Goals above my Plan for Today. This helps be prioritise my Plan for Today taking account of my Goals. Below this are the notes I’m going to work on.

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#5

Indeed, the done status is purely visual at the moment (whereas you can filter on On the Agenda). As @Pat_Maddox says, the plan is to make this a searchable property later this year, as well as something you can build overviews with. However, even though this is still pending, I personally use it for exactly that as a visual indicator what I have done and what still has to be done in a project. In that role it also works really nicely in tandem with the table of contents feature when clicking/tapping the project title:

Screenshot 2021-01-27 at 22.25.34

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#6

I could definitely benefit from using the table of contents more!

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#7

Thanks for this. I think I can use this simple method. I’m already applying this somewhat for my meetings. Might be good to add this behavior.

For example, I add tags for #open items and #waiting for other people with some due dates to remind me when it’s due. These have saved searches/overviews.

Then after they are done, I Remove the tag. Following this tip, I’ll mark it as done once every action item /waiting item is finished.

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#8

Thanks. Yes, I need to get used to that TOC dropdown. I tend to use it on mobile but not so much on desktop.

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