Workflowy – Organization Your Way

Workflowy is an organizational tool that mimics the way the human brain works. Large projects are broken down into smaller chunks, making it easier to tackle more tasks in less time. More than just your average project management system, Workflowy is an organizational lifeline that can be used for record keeping, brainstorming, note taking, and event planning.

If you like lists, then you’ll like Workflowy. Just start listing broad category names like Projects, Goals, Vacation Plans, or Home Maintenance, and then use the tab button to indent items under each of the categories on your list. Keep indenting and adding sub-lists to your heart’s content, until your Workflowy list feels sufficiently organized. One of the ways that Workflowy makes it possible to manage such large-scale lists is with the copious use of hashtags. Add the #today hashtag for everything on your lists that you need to accomplish today, or the #February hashtag for all the goals you plan on accomplishing by next month. Individual items can be dragged and reordered at any time, which is useful if you like ordering tasks by the date when they’re due. Completed items can get crossed out, and tasks that you’ve fallen behind on can be shared, exported, or re-assigned with a new hashtag.

The more you use Workflowy, the better you’ll get at using keyboard shortcuts to expedite the process of creating and editing your lists. Expanding and collapsing certain sections can help you get a better view of the specific tasks or projects you’re interested in right now, while avoiding all the unnecessary junk that doesn’t need to be dealt with today. Workflowy is as easy to use as a basic text editor or spreadsheet, but so much better.

Practical Uses:

• Create a digital grocery shopping list
• Make a list of all the chores you need to complete by the end of the day
• Keep track of all the goals you hope to accomplish by next year
• Save information about every important decision your business has ever made

Insider Tips:

• Use keyboard shortcuts to expedite the process of creating and editing lists
• People can keep adding indentations to create sub-list after sub-list
• Lists can be exported or shared with friends
• Hashtags help keep large lists organized

What we liked:

• Workflowy can be used for so many different things
• People can expand and collapse certain parts of their master lists
• Individual tasks can be crossed out when they’re complete
• Anyone who can use a basic text editor can understand how to use Workflowy

What we didn’t like:

• Workflowy would be more useful if people could use it across all their mobile devices

Alternatives:

• Action Method – http://www.actionmethod.com
• Evernote – http://evernote.com
• Remember The Milk – http://www.rememberthemilk.com

Company Info:

• Launched: November 2010
• Privately Held
• Headquarters: San Francisco, California
• Founded by: Mike Turitzin and Jesse Patel
• Web site: https://workflowy.com

Costs:

• Free