How to integrate task management and email apps
Read time: 4 minutes
Hello everyone!
I am writing this section from an airplane, going to a cybersecurity workshop that will take the whole week. After 20 minutes on air, the pilot just communicated that due to a “minor issue,” they were required to return to the origin airport. After the initial frustration that I would be late at the hotel, I tried to be positive and thought, “Great, I have more time to write.” This incident reminded me of something.
It is second nature to me to think about extreme but plausible events. It is part of my job. So before taking off, I was looking to identify the closest emergency exits and how many seats I am from each of them. I do this by instinct and trained mindset, but there is something even simpler that I always notice that people hardly do: read the safety cards.
Several studies highlight the importance of these instructions to increase the chances of survival in a potential plane crash. They are easy to read and, in fact, mostly made of images. They are easily accessible, and crew members always ask passengers to read them during the instructions. Even frequent flyers would benefit from this.
Although I can’t tell why people don’t read the safety cards, I couldn’t stop thinking about how simple things we decide not to do can considerably impact our chances and undermine our future options.
That’s one of the pillars of this newsletter: to take the necessary steps now so our future selves can have the life they deserve.
I hope you enjoy this edition.
See you next week!
P.S.: I am back from the workshop. Both flights were safe, and I didn’t have to use the safety card instructions (hopefully, I will never have to). 🙏🏼
P.P.S.: The workshop was much more demanding than I expected; that’s the reason for the delay in sending the newsletter. I appreciate your patience in waiting for this edition! ❤️
Eder
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The step of the week 👣
| Each week, this section will cover an actionable micro habit that you can implement right away. By piling up small changes in your daily routine, you will compound and obtain significant results over time. |
How to integrate your email client with a to-do list app
Without question, the two single apps that allow me to be on top of my game for daily tasks are my email client and a Task management (To-Do) list app.
Today, we will learn how to integrate both with a use-case for Mac and Windows.
Mac OS 🧑💻
For this environment, my favourite apps are Apple Mail and Things.
Mail is a native app already available on the default MacOS installation and integrates well with the O.S.
Things is a fantastic tool I have used for over a decade to manage my personal tasks in the Apple ecosystem.
Recent versions have a magic feature called “Quick Entry with Autofill”: you hit Ctrl + ⌥ Opt + Space, which will open an entry pre-populated with a link for the email you were reading. You can save it on the area or project it is related to and then archive the email. When you need that email again, you can click on the link on the to-do, and it will find and open it for you. Magic! 🪄
You need to enable the autofill in settings before using it. Also, this shortcut works not only with the Mail app but also with Safari, Finder or any app that supports object linking (Chrome, for example).
Windows
For the Microsoft ecosystem, my go-to apps are Outlook and Microsoft To-Do. If your company requires you to use the Office 365 suite and has strict controls on which apps to handle company data, these two are solid options.
The integration is simple. To view your To Do tasks on Outlook and Microsoft To-Do, sign in with the same credential on both apps. All tasks will be automatically synced.
You can create folders to organize the tasks into projects and can even delegate the tasks to team members.
With a To-Do app linked to your email client, you can keep your Inbox Zero and unload all the tasks from your head, knowing that you will not forget anything and can quickly visualize all the items you need to act on.
My favourites for the week
📚 Book – Hacking APIs, by Corey Ball
Last week, I had to do a refresh on API Security. My go-to material? Corey’s book Hacking APIs. It is THE reference. The way Corey breaks technical information into digestible pieces make it a solid reference for those who want to learn more about API threats and vulnerabilities and how to hack them.
You can get a copy of Hacking APIs: Breaking Web Application Programming Interfaces here (affiliate link).
🎥 Video – The power of yet
This TED talk by Carol Dweck is a must-see that you can leverage on any aspect of your life.
Based on scientific data, she shows how we can do a simple mindset change that leads to remarkable performance results.
As leaders, team members or parents, by focusing on the progress and praising perseverance and improvement over just results, we create much better conditions for people to thrive.
Quote of the week
When you say three things, you say nothing. When your remote control has fifty buttons, you can’t change the channel anymore.
Made to Stick, By Chip Heath and Dan Heath
Rediscovered using Readwise, my favourite Read-it-Later app.
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