I’ve been in the OF Universe since the beginning, and it was (and still is) a great tool. But I just switched to Things 3 this past Sunday. I wanted to give it a trial run. Which I will do for the 2 week trial.
The reason I am experimenting is because I’m trying to determine how I can do things better. It’s not the tool I’m evaluating, it’s my processes. Seeing what I learn.
My muscle memory from using OF is so engrained that I want to see if trying a new tool shows me ways I’m stagnet or lazy.
Maybe a different hammer will show me how I can be a better builder. ♂
This is a huge pain point to me as well. I consistently find a need to jump from a Perspective to a Project, and it’s nearly impossible to do so. I sent a relatively detailed support request during the beta outlining how the “flow” of jumping between areas could be much improved.
Extend the jump to project / context to perspectives, force touch, and when inspecting.
Allow a quick way to jump back to previous view state.
Quick open by swiping down (there’s already a search, but it could be quicker by auto-focusing the search field and showing all results by default).
More options when force touching (adjust defer / due).
Show notes as an option in the “Info” pane.
The list could go on. I love OmniFocus 3 for iOS, but many of these things are already possible (albeit with some hacking) on macOS and I hope that some better flow comes to iOS too.
Yep! I’m still surprised daily that I can longpress on the Home icon on the iPhone (which to me is crowded and ugly) but I cannot do so on the iPad (which is less crowded and ugly than the iPhone) and have to tap the icon 2 to 5 time to get back to the home screen.
Would love to see an Omnigroup hire a graphic designer and rethink the look of OmniFocus. But despite its warts, I can’t seem to let go of OmniFocus.
I did try to imagine a Things 3 workflow in OmniFocus and got fairly close. But here’s a tip I heard from the Productivityist podcast. Host, Mike Vardy, interviews another podcaster, Carl Pullein. Carl observed that the most effective person is the one who doesn’t switch task managers frequently. There’s just too much friction trying to import/export between the two. Yes, there are tools and Applescripts to help the transition but we just gotta stick with one and run with it.
I’ve tried OmniFocus on an iPhone and wasn’t too keen on it. I prefer using it on my iPad. But I can get by. I’m just too busy to try to switch between OmniFocus and Things.
I used Omnifocus for years, but even after becoming an expert, I would still get caught by having tasks hidden from me and missing important things. Things 3 is better because it is more restricted and pushes you towards a certain workflow. I never have this hidden task problem anymore. Simple is better in terms of task managers. I’ve even toyed with just using the built-in Reminders app, but that is too simple for what I need most of the time.
I realized that you just have to pick something and use it. If you spend too much time fiddling with the tool, you end up busy, feeling like you’re doing work, but not actually being productive. If I was cross platform, I would use todoist. It’s actially very flexible and allows for custom searches which allow for easy reviews. The only thing I didn’t like was the look.
I gave things 3 a try and loved it. I’ve never used OF because it seemed like too much and I never liked the look. Things looks great and I actually find that because it’s a little restrictive, it’s actually freeing. I don’t worry about fiddling because I can’t.
Ask yourself this question, have you ever become more productive by switching task managers? For me, I’m productive when I stick with my system. The tool just allows me to use my system. I’ve never become more productive using another tool.
Been using Things 3 for two weeks now. Really enjoying it so far. Seems like it’s easier for me to keep track of everything and know where it is in Things.
@eddiecoyote@kennonb It sounds like you’d both benefit from “Quick Open” (⌘O)on OF2 for Mac coming to iPad. My biggest pain point using OF3 on iPad is not being able to tab through the action fields when I’m making a new action on Mac. Being able to quickly add my context, project, defer, due date, and flag status all keep me from usually processing my inbox until I’m sitting down at my Mac.
I know that Things 3 for iPad has a feature that corresponds to OF’s quick open (I forget what they call it though)
In the end, this is all that matters - use the tools that help you get things done with the least amount of stress (and hopefully some amount of enjoyment and a lot of satisfaction). OF is that tool for me. And it took several iterations with other tools and schemes before I found my preferred combo. Sometimes, one must date around until they find the love of their life. I may change as my needs change, as my projects change, as I change, but I’ve loved OF since I first learned some insights from Sparks, Dini, and Stringer. (I think they will all be getting some more of my money in the next year.) Since then, Sparks has changed his scheme, but I remain effective in my current OF regiment (deferrals, few due dates, and one context). When OF3 for Mac arrives, I’ll invest more into multi-tags, but I’m good for now.
I have finally jumped off the OmniFocus bandwagon. It is a very well designed and details app but it never ever clicked for me. It didn’t make me more productive and I wasted time in it.
I purchased the entire course. Found it moderately useful. If you don’t have a system or process in place the part of the course about the “setup” it worth it. The overview about Things - I believe Things is very intuitive and the course isn’t needed.
♂
