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As a self-proclaimedproductivityenthusiast, if something doesn’t make it into my Google Calendar, it’s simply not going to happen. I’m not alone, as Google Calendar is the productivity tool of choice for millions of people around the world, bothat workand at home.
While Google Calendar is free (except for premium features) and easy to use, its limited functionality can be frustrating for some users. To get the most out of Google Calendar, here are five hacks that willsupercharge your productivity.
Google Calendar
1Share your calendar with yourself
View your work and personal calendars together
If you’re anything like me, you are on a never-ending quest to integrate your various productivity apps with the goal of seeing your work and personal calendars on a single interface.
If that’s you, and you’re using Google Calendar for work and personal purposes, then you’re in luck. Using the Share Calendar feature, you can effectively share your Google calendars between your various accounts, which allows you to view multiple Google Calendars in one place.
Below are the steps to sync calendars between two Google Calendars and Gmail accounts.
To make Google Calendar 1 visible and editable via Google Calendar 2, repeat these steps for Gmail Account 2.
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2Use Google Tasks as your to-do list
Build a Kanban Board with the Google Tasks interface
One to-do list just won’t cut it for me. I prefer to create multiple lists under the umbrella of a date or general topic. To accomplish this, I use my Google Tasks list as a Kanban board – creating specific lists for each day of the week, which I can then place on my calendar to block off time for tasks.
However, you may use any naming convention you choose for your to-do lists to create a productivity system that works for you.
To create additional Google Tasks lists and rename them, follow the steps below:
Pro-Tip:To get my Kanban view for your desktop or mobile device, create seven tasks lists, though you’ll need eight (you should have one primary list as a default). Label one list of Undated-To-Do’s, and label the other seven Monday through to Friday.
On a desktop view, this should allow you to easily move tasks over from the “Undated To-Do’s” column into any other list, creating a visual representation for the tasks you’d like to get done each day. Add dates and times to each task if you want them visualized in a specific slot on your calendar.
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3Create multiple calendars with one account
Categorize your events
If you’d like to separate your personal and work tasks without integrating your two calendars, or you use a single calendar for both, you’ll be happy to learn there is another way to visually indicate which tasks belong to which part of your life.
Within a single Gmail account, you can create multiple color-coded calendars and assign events and appointments to each one.
you’re able to do this by navigating to the Other Calendars dropdown in the left navigation bar and clicking the “+” button. A menu should appear with the option to create a new calendar. Select it. This calendar should now appear as an option when adding events to your calendar.
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4View your calendar as a schedule
Use schedule view to see your appointments chronologically
This is perhaps the simplest and most satisfying way to use Google Calendar, especially when you’ve assigned times and dates to your Google Tasks.
Simply head to the top navigation bar where you can select which date range you’d like to view on your calendar (i.e., one week, one month, etc.). Here, you should also see an option to view it as a schedule.
This option will allow you to view your calendar as a scrollable list of tasks, appointments and events, organized by date.
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5Receive a daily agenda email
Start your day with a look at your schedule
Lastly, setting up a Daily Agenda email can be a great way to prepare for the day. This email, which mimics your Schedule view, will contain a chronological list of all the items on your calendar for that. To set up a Daily Agenda email, follow the steps below:
