How do you know which task manager is right for you? Task managers are great because they allow you to filter your available tasks and only display the ones that are appropriate right now, but the problem is there are so many to choose from. And moving everything over from system to system to see if it’s a good fit is incredibly time-consuming. Wouldn’t it be great if you had someone who had tried them all and could guide you so that you could be sure the task management app you were about to spend your hard-earned money on has the right features for the way you work BEFORE you buy it and spend hours setting everything up?

Well, that’s just what Dojo member Mat Rhein is here to help with. Mat put together an incredible task manager comparison chart to help you sort the many options and find the one that has the exactly what you’re looking for. In this episode, we’ll be diving deep and doing an in-depth feature comparison of task management options, talking about where the OmniFocus 3 beta fits, and introducing you to the AE task management hierarchy to help you pick the right task management system based on the features you need.

Thanks to Weebly for supporting The Productivity Show. Go to weebly.com/tps to get 15% off your first purchase.

Editor's Note: There is a little bit of noise in Mat's audio, but the information in this episode is so good that we decided to release it anyway.

Cheat Sheet

All about the incredible task manager comparison chart that Mat created 2:38

Why Mat now uses Things 3 as his task manager 7:35

The 5 different levels of task management complexity 11:40

Why projects should not be classified as tasks 18:33

An overview of the task manager comparison chart 24:09

A comparison of the cloud sync options provided by different task managers 28:17

How planning complexity is organized 35:37

Why start dates are so important 39:48

Why you don't want to display all of your tasks on your calendar 45:59

Mat's experience with using the app Sorted 3 53:39

What apps Mat and Mike use on a daily basis for task management 58:53

Who should use Things 3 1:04:29

Mike reviews some of the new OmniFocus features 1:11:45

How to remain productive no matter what task manager you are using 1:17:50

How to find an app that fits your unique productivity style 1:25:47

Links

Mat's Task Manager Comparison Chart

Overcome the Limitations of GTD to Get Things Done By Using the 2Do App (TPS137)

Text Editor comparison

How to Achieve Your Goals with Any Task Management System (5 levels of task managers)

5 Tips to Work Smarter and More Effectively with Evernote (TPS141)

Omni Roadmap 2018

The Omni Group Reveals Details of Upcoming OmniFocus 3 for Mac & iOS

A Video Tour of the OmniFocus 3 for iOS Beta

Scannable by Evernote

Scanbot

TaskPaper

Clear

Task Managers Mentioned

Wunderlist

Swipes 2

Sorted 3

Todoist

Things

The Hit List

2Do

Nozbe

Firetask

OmniFocus

Connect with Mat Rhein

@mat_rhein7

If you enjoyed this episode, subscribe to the podcast on iTunes, Stitcher, Overcast, PocketCast or your favorite podcast player. It’s easy, you’ll get new episodes automatically, and it also helps the show gain exposure. You can also leave a review! Here's how.

If you enjoyed this episode, follow the podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Overcast, Pocket Casts or your favorite podcast player. It’s easy, you’ll get new episodes automatically, and it also helps the show. You can also leave a review!