How to use Task time-blocking in Google Calendar

If you start your day with a huge to-do list and a calendar full of meetings, you know how hard it is to find time for focus. A list tells you what you want to do, but your calendar dictates when you can actually do it. 

Google now allows you to add blocks of time on your calendar to work on your tasks. Instead of managing a separate, text list, Google Tasks function like actual events on your calendar grid. You can have a to-do list that actively protects your schedule.

How it works

Whether you already use Google Tasks or not, it's easy to time-block your tasks using one of these options:

• Open the Google Tasks sidebar on the right, drag any task from your list and drop it into an empty time slot on your calendar grid. Adjust the time needed for that task.
• Click and drag a time block on your Google calendar, switch the entry type from Event to Task, and enter your details.

Tip: Don't forget to toggle the task's status from "Free" to "Busy" so people can't book over your scheduled time. 

Tasks vs. Focus Time: Which should you use?

Google Calendar includes both Tasks and Focus Time blocks. They seem similar but they serve two different purposes:

Tasks

Think about tasks as specific items you cross off a list (e.g. review proposal, finish edits on course module). Use a time-blocked Task when you have a specific item to finish during that hour.

Focus Time

Focus Time is designed to block out time for heads-down work while silencing notification and declining meetings.

Didn't complete the task?

Blocking time to work on a task doesn't mean the task goes away if you don't finish it. The block stays on your calendar like any other event, but the Task itself remains active on your Task List until you manually check it off.

Article by Karen Matthes, Extension Learning Technologies, klm@umn.edu