playbooks

home / skills / anthropics / knowledge-work-plugins / task-management

task-management skill

/productivity/skills/task-management

This skill manages tasks in TASKS.md, reading, adding, completing, and summarizing your active and waiting items with a simple, auto-synced dashboard.

npx playbooks add skill anthropics/knowledge-work-plugins --skill task-management

Review the files below or copy the command above to add this skill to your agents.

Files (1)
SKILL.md
2.5 KB
---
name: task-management
description: Simple task management using a shared TASKS.md file. Reference this when the user asks about their tasks, wants to add/complete tasks, or needs help tracking commitments.
---

# Task Management

Tasks are tracked in a simple `TASKS.md` file that both you and the user can edit.

## File Location

**Always use `TASKS.md` in the current working directory.**

- If it exists, read/write to it
- If it doesn't exist, create it with the template below

## Dashboard Setup (First Run)

A visual dashboard is available for managing tasks and memory. **On first interaction with tasks:**

1. Check if `dashboard.html` exists in the current working directory
2. If not, copy it from `${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/skills/dashboard.html` to the current working directory
3. Inform the user: "I've added the dashboard. Run `/productivity:start` to set up the full system."

The task board:
- Reads and writes to the same `TASKS.md` file
- Auto-saves changes
- Watches for external changes (syncs when you edit via CLI)
- Supports drag-and-drop reordering of tasks and sections

## Format & Template

When creating a new TASKS.md, use this exact template (without example tasks):

```markdown
# Tasks

## Active

## Waiting On

## Someday

## Done
```

Task format:
- `- [ ] **Task title** - context, for whom, due date`
- Sub-bullets for additional details
- Completed: `- [x] ~~Task~~ (date)`

## How to Interact

**When user asks "what's on my plate" / "my tasks":**
- Read TASKS.md
- Summarize Active and Waiting On sections
- Highlight anything overdue or urgent

**When user says "add a task" / "remind me to":**
- Add to Active section with `- [ ] **Task**` format
- Include context if provided (who it's for, due date)

**When user says "done with X" / "finished X":**
- Find the task
- Change `[ ]` to `[x]`
- Add strikethrough: `~~task~~`
- Add completion date
- Move to Done section

**When user asks "what am I waiting on":**
- Read the Waiting On section
- Note how long each item has been waiting

## Conventions

- **Bold** the task title for scannability
- Include "for [person]" when it's a commitment to someone
- Include "due [date]" for deadlines
- Include "since [date]" for waiting items
- Sub-bullets for additional context
- Keep Done section for ~1 week, then clear old items

## Extracting Tasks

When summarizing meetings or conversations, offer to add extracted tasks:
- Commitments the user made ("I'll send that over")
- Action items assigned to them
- Follow-ups mentioned

Ask before adding - don't auto-add without confirmation.

Overview

This skill manages a simple, shared TASKS.md file to track tasks, progress, and commitments. It provides a lightweight dashboard on first use and supports adding, completing, and summarizing tasks with clear conventions for titles, contexts, and due dates. The goal is fast, readable task tracking you and I can both edit.

How this skill works

The skill reads and writes a TASKS.md in the current working directory, creating it from a template if missing. On first task interaction it installs a local dashboard.html for visual management and tells you how to start the full system. It updates tasks using a consistent markdown format, moves completed items to Done with a completion date, and highlights overdue or waiting items when summarizing.

When to use it

  • Ask "what's on my plate" or "my tasks" to get a summarized dashboard of Active and Waiting On items.
  • Say "add a task" or "remind me to" to create a new Active task with optional context and due dates.
  • Say "done with X" or "finished X" to mark a task complete and move it to Done.
  • Ask "what am I waiting on" to see Waiting On items and how long each has been pending.
  • When you want a visual board to drag, drop, and reorder tasks locally.

Best practices

  • Keep task titles bold and concise for quick scanning.
  • Include context like for [person] and due [date] when creating tasks.
  • Use sub-bullets for extra details instead of long single-line tasks.
  • Confirm before adding tasks extracted from meetings or notes; don’t auto-add without permission.
  • Keep the Done section short (about a week) and clear old items regularly.

Example use cases

  • Quickly add a deadline: “Remind me to submit the report due May 5” — I’ll add it to Active with due date.
  • Complete a task from chat: “Done with draft email” — I’ll mark it [x], strike through, add the date, and move it to Done.
  • Review your plate: “What’s on my plate?” — I’ll summarize Active and Waiting On, highlighting overdue items.
  • Set up the visual board: on first task use I’ll copy dashboard.html and tell you how to launch the productivity system.
  • Convert meeting notes into tasks: I can extract action items and ask before adding them to the list.

FAQ

Will the dashboard overwrite my files?

No. The dashboard file is copied only if it doesn’t exist; tasks are always read/written to the existing TASKS.md in the current directory.

How are completed tasks recorded?

I mark them as [x], add strikethrough to the title, append a completion date, and move them to the Done section.