lite

Version 1.01

Introduction
The lite book of Nozbe

For more seasoned Nozbe users, the second excerpt from Chapter 4 Workflows that Work, will show you how I use Nozbe effectively
and efficiently.
Of course, there is a lot more to the full book!
Chapter 1 - The Nozbe Basics, continues with Inbox Processing and
Extra Bits...
Chapter 2 - External Apps. How to use Nozbe with apps like Email,
Evernote, Google Calendar and Cloud Storage Providers like Dropbox /
Google Drive / Box.
Chapter 3 - How to Work with Others. Sharing projects and task
with other users in Nozbe is a great way to get things done faster. No
one person is an island, make the most of your second free account
included with every Nozbe Pro subscription.

The obvious goal of an e-book excerpt is to give you, the reader, a

taste of what the full book holds. This usually equates to the first few
pages of content, as an author hopes its enough to impress you to
buy the full version.

Chapter 4 - Workflows That Work. Now you have the Nozbe basics under control and all of your external apps integrated, its time to
push on! This chapter will help you enhance your Nozbe setup with
clever workflows, tips and setups.

However, for me, that offers no real value for the reader. Id like to offer a little more. So, this is a larger than usual excerpt to give you a
real taste of the full version.

Chapter 5 - Final Words, recaps on the important points of the book

and offers you some more valuable Nozbe resources.

If you are a new Nozbe user, the first excerpt from Chapter 1 - The
Nozbe Basics, contains three key sections to help you on your Nozbe
journey.
Section 1 - Inbox.

Head over to ProductiveWizard.com to read more, purchase the full

version and ultimately, learn to use Nozbe like a Pro!

Marcus - @Marcus_Platt

Section 2 - Projects & Labels.

Section 3 - Categories.

Foreword

Next came the Web and mobile devices. The number of solutions
grew again, many apps appeared offering task management from any
internet connected device. Your tasks are now stored in the cloud, using 4G connected smartphones and tablets, syncing to the same data
held on our desktops and laptops.
So here we are today. Lots of productivity tools to choose from, each
with its own strengths and weaknesses. Some web based, some on
Windows, some on Mac. Some on iPhone, some on Android. Some offering features not available on others. Its a crowded market place.
Eventually, everyone needs to place their flag in the sand and commit
to one of the many productivity products available. I chose Nozbe as
my productivity tool as its available on numerous devices with features
rich enough to cope with whatever I throw at it.

GTD (Getting Things Done), TRO (Total Relaxed Organization), ZTD

(Zen To Done) and MYN (Master Your Now) are just a few of the productivity systems that have appeared over the last few years. Each
one teaches you workflows and strategies to help you keep on top of
your tasks. The one thing they all have in common is that they require
a trusted system to keep track of all of your tasks and Projects.
It all started with humble pen and paper, the original ubiquitous productivity tool. As technology moved forward software was developed
to replace analog tools. Lotus Notes and Microsoft Outlook were two of
the first mass market corporate applications that included task management.
Then came the rise of portable devices - the Pocket PC and Palm pilots
of this world that allowed you to plug your device into your PC and
sync your tasks when you reached home or office.

Nozbe, for me, is the most universal productivity tool of the last few
years.
There are no right or wrong ways to use Nozbe. The only measure of
your Nozbe system is how it helps you achieve the results you want.
With that in mind I present my own take on achieving Nozbe
to BE Naturally OrganiZed N-OZ-BE

If you don't pay appropriate attention to what has

your attention, it will take more of your attention than
it deserves. - David Allen, Getting Things Done

ii

Notes to the reader

If you do find any problems, please let me know at

marcus@productivewizard.com so I can make changes for future readers or anyone that downloads an updated copy.

Deeper Productivity reading.

When I first had the idea to create a guidebook to Nozbe I was using
the olive green classic version. The look and feel of Nozbe changed
considerably with the release of the Nozbe 2.5 version we use today.
However the workflows of the two versions remained constant.
The web and desktop applications provide the framework for all Nozbe
workflows. Thankfully the mobile versions are very aligned making it
easy to apply the same principles across all platforms. Where there are
differences I will try to point them out.

This Nozbe guide book will teach you some useful productivity techniques. In addition, I would
encourage anyone interested in productivity to
read David Allens book Getting Things Done to
get a fuller picture of how the GTD method
works. Recently updated in 2015, Davids book
provides the groundwork for many productivity
systems. The best way I can recommend 'Getting Things Done to you is to advise that many
productivity principles I describe in this book are
based on David Allens work.
How to be a Productivity Ninja (Graham Allcott) is also a great book that teaches a number of productivity methods for many areas of
your life. Its great for the beginner and full of
some useful insights into wider productivity areas.

Nozbe's development is on-going with frequent updates, which is why

you may see discrepancies between the contents of this guide versus
the current version of Nozbe you are using.
I will endeavor to update this guide with any major Nozbe changes as
they happen, but there may be a period where the Nozbe applications
outpace my ability to update the guide.

Both books are software application agnostic, and the principles they
teach can easily be applied within Nozbe.

iii

Copyright

Marcus Platt 2015 - Marcus@ProductiveWizard.com

ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. This book contains material protected under International and Federal Copyright Laws and Treaties. Any unauthorised reprint or use of this material is prohibited. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system without express written permission from the author / publisher.
iv

New to Nozbe?
Nozbe is a way for you to store and organize everything you have to
do, and want to do, in your life. By following the steps in this book,
you can have greater peace of mind.
The main principle is Nozbe will remember all of your tasks for you so
you don't have to. Think about everything you have to do in your life
right now. Work things, Family things, things to do at Home, booking
that vacation: Everything you need to do thats in your head right
now can be stored in Nozbe.
But if you are new to Nozbe or productivity systems in general it can
all seem very confusing! These three basic concepts will hopefully
help remove some confusion before we dig a little deeper.
Can you complete a task in one step?
If so, it would become a Nozbe Task.
Does a task require more than one step to complete?
If so it will become a Nozbe Project.
A Nozbe Project is a simply a collection of related tasks.
Together they may complete a much larger objective.
Nozbe Categories are a way to tag or group single Nozbe Tasks
together. They can be grouped by location, persons, tools. In fact,
anything you like.

Still confused? Dont worry, the first chapter covers the Nozbe basics.

C HAPTER 1

The Nozbe
basics
This first chapter will show you the key areas within Nozbe that will
keep you on top of your tasks. The objective is to describe and setup a
simple Nozbe task management system that will help you get things
done.
We will cover the Inbox, Projects, Categories and how to process your
tasks. Lastly we will cover some slightly more advanced features under
the title of 'Extra bits' where we cover Comments, Attachments and a
few other parts of Nozbe.
This chapter is all you need to setup a very robust and simple productivity system. However, this is only scratching the surface of the power
of Nozbe.

The Nozbe Screen Layout

By design, all of the Nozbe apps including mobile, feel the same. Each format is responsive, showing you details only when you need them and
adapting to your window size. The screen can be divided into five main sections, which is how I will refer to them in this book.

Navigation

Lists
All of your Projects or Categories

Task List
Your main task list

The Info section

Task detail

Filter/Sort

Task Parameters

Project details

Task comments

Activity History
Project attachments

S ECTION 1

Inbox
All good task management systems use an Inbox: a place where you
log any tasks or project ideas that you have as soon as they come to
mind.
You are not committing to doing the
task at that moment. You are just
storing it somewhere until you can
reference them at a more appropriate
time. This is the primary use of the
Nozbe Inbox.
For example, you are at your desk
and a task rears its head from your
boss that needs to be done by the
end of the week. You can quickly
note the task in your Nozbe Inbox
and get back to what you were doing.
If you are out and about and see a flyer for a show youd like to see,
you can quickly enter the details into the Nozbe mobile app (or take a
photo to capture the info) and continue your shopping. The objective
is to not trust your memory to remember tasks as things are all too
easily forgotten.

Periodically you process (empty) your Nozbe Inbox of tasks, either

completing them, or if you cant complete them right away, moving
them into Project lists or converting them into Projects themselves.
Entering tasks into Nozbe can be accomplished in a number of ways.
The Nozbe applications (Web, Desktop, Mobile), Email, Evernote or
Google Calendar will work. For now we will cover the most basic
method, which is manually entering the tasks directly into the Nozbe
applications.
You will find that it is easy and fast to enter tasks into the Nozbe Inbox. But consider this advance tip. If you already have a Project list
(see the next chapter), you can actually bypass the Nozbe Inbox and
enter tasks directly into your Project.

Inbox Tips
1. Every task should be logged into Nozbe, either
your Nozbe Inbox or direct to a Nozbe Project
list. Don't rely on your memory to keep these
details.
2. Start your task with a verb if possible, this
helps define the tasks outcome.
3. Desired outcomes (Projects: page 12) can
start life in your Nozbe Inbox also. Its not
reserved for single tasks.
4. If the task takes 2 minutes or less and you
could do it right now DO IT NOW.
8

Creating a new task

Quick add (Web and Desktop)

Getting a task or future project idea

into your Nozbe Inbox is very straightforward.

Its also possible to enter a Nozbe task using the keyboard shortcut
SPACE. Wherever you are within the Nozbe Desktop (Windows or
Linux) or Web app you can press SPACE and the quick add window will
appear. Just type the task and press Enter.

Within the Nozbe application first select

your Nozbe Inbox. This view will show
you any existing tasks already in your
Inbox.
You can then press the + button in the bottom right of the
Nozbe application.

The task entry box will appear at top of the Nozbe window. You can
now enter your task name and press Enter.
Any tasks you enter here will be stored in your Inbox until you move
them to a Project list or complete them.

Quick add task (Mac)

If you use the Nozbe Mac application there is a special global hotkey
combo that will bring up a quick entry box to allow you to enter a task.
Even if you are not in the Nozbe application, you only need to have
the Nozbe application running in the dock for this to work.

First, make sure the desktop Nozbe application has been started. It
can be minimized to the dock, but needs to be running.
Whenever you need to add a task to Nozbe use Ctrl + (Cmd) + t.
A task entry box will appear on your screen where you can enter the
task.
You can change the hotkey settings in
the Nozbe app menu under Native app
settings.

10

The power of the #

With each letter you type the auto complete list of your choices appears and decreases in size, narrowing down its search of your existing Projects, Categories and other available parameters.

So far, all of your tasks entered using any of the above methods will
appear in your Inbox for you to process into Project lists and assign
Categories later. It is possible to process any task as you enter it using
the # to assign Projects, Categories or other Nozbe parameters.
Having an understanding of this from the start will help you master
Nozbe much quicker.
Once you have setup some Projects (next section) and Categories (Section 3) you can use the # when entering tasks using any of the methods covered earlier.
When entering your
task, type the # symbol at the end to tell
Nozbe you want to add
some extra task details. Then type any of
your existing Projects
and Category names.
Yo u c a n a l s o a d d
Nozbe parameters like
Due Date, Time
needed and even add
text comments by using ## then your comment.
Note: you cannot create Project or Category names in this way, you
can only select pre-existing ones.

In the example, as I start to type #birthday the choices reduce to any

Category or Projects with the word bi in it.
If the first choice is the Project / Category what you want, simply
press tab to select that item. You can also select the correct entry if
given multiple choices.
The relevant Project/Category/Parameter is then added to your task
entry. You can then use # again to assign more parameters to the task
to finally create a fully formed task with all parameters assigned.
If you are presented with a number of choices, you can use the keyboard arrow down key to scroll through multiple selections to the correct entry and then press tab to select the parameter. Or you could use
the mouse to select the desired entry. Sometimes the quickest method
is to keep typing until you are left with one choice!

11

Remember that its possible to chain more than one of these # actions
to fully populate your tasks details. Just type another # and add the
next detail if needed.

More Nozbe # Parameters

Once you have added as many # parameters as needed, press enter

to create the task. If you specified a Nozbe Project using a # your
Task will be created directly in the Project, bypassing the Inbox. One
less task to process later!

Your Projects and Categories are not the only thing you can add using
this # method when entering your tasks.

With a small amount of practice it becomes a very efficient way to assign your tasks Projects, Categories, Comments and Nozbe parameters
right from the task creation box, removing the need to process your
Inbox at all. (Section 4 covers processing of tasks)

It is also possible to add a number of Nozbe parameters to your tasks

including Due Dates, time to complete and even if the task should repeat.

P ARAMETER TYPE

E XAMPLE

Priority (Star)

#Priority or #!

Any of your Projects

#Birthday

Any of your Categories

#computer

Time to Complete

#1 h

Due day

#tomorrow

Due day

#Sunday

Due Month (defaults first day of Month)

#October

Recurrence

#every week

Comment (Text only)

##This is a comment

Later sections will cover all of these parameters in detail. For now the
objective is to bring the # to your awareness. Using it just to assign
Projects, Categories and comments alone can be a huge time saver.

12

B ONUS MATERIAL !
To accompany this book I have also created a little reference guide to
Nozbe which you can download free from the ProductiveWizard.com
website. Its a handy guide to remind you how to use some of Nozbes
features including all of the # parameters.

13

S ECTION 2

Projects and
Labels
A project in its most simplistic terms
within GTD principles is an outcome
that needs two or more actions to
complete
A Nozbe Project list can be viewed
as a way of breaking down large
tasks into smaller more manageable
tasks. For example Arrange a Birthday party will possibly be made of a number of smaller tasks, such as,
find a venue, buy a gift, order some food and send invitations. Once
all tasks are complete, the Project can be marked complete.
Nozbe Project lists can also be used as a way of grouping similar tasks
together. This can be useful for things that do not have an actual ending and will never be completed. Examples could include a list of
Books to purchase or a Bills to pay - both equally valid as Nozbe Projects.

Projects can be given the Nozbe Label Personal. They are just an extra layer of organization you can apply to your Nozbe Project structure.

Project Tips
1. A Project is an outcome that needs two or
more steps to complete.
2. A Project can also be used to list associated
things together.
3. Name your Project with its desired outcome if
applicable.
4. Assign Labels as you create your Project.
5. Keep Project names short and distinct.
6. Use caution when selecting Delete Project.

Nozbe Labels can be used to group Projects together. i.e. all of your
Work Projects can be given the Label Work and all of your Personal
14

Creating a new Project

For every task that you create, you need a
place to store it. Project Lists are a way to
store related tasks so they stay together.
There are two basic ways to use Nozbe
Projects and I find using a mix of both
brings the most benefits.
1)Traditional Projects like on-boarding a
new employee or planning a vacation will
have a number of real tasks that need to
be completed if the desired outcome of
the project is to be reached.

2)
Using Project lists as a way
of grouping related tasks together into a
more basic list. For example, Project
Lists called Music to listen to , Bills to
pay or Household tasks can also be
used.

Give your Project a

meaningful name, keeping the name short but
using something you will
be able to associate with
in the future.

Family vacation
Training course
Clean the Garage
Service review
Team Meeting
Launch Product xyz
You may ask why keep the Project names short? The main reason is
that makes things easier once we start emailing tasks directly into a
Nozbe Project in Chapter 2.
If you want to elaborate on the project and what you hope to accomplish by completing it, use project descriptions.

To create a new Nozbe Project, select

the Projects icon in the navigation tab
and press the + button at the bottom of
the Project list window.

15

Add a Project Description

Project Labels

Adding a description to a Project is a great way to add extra detail describing the purpose of the Project list. This should allow you to keep
the Project name shorter.

You can add one or more Labels to each of your Nozbe Projects. This
Label can be used in a number of ways. The most basic place to start
is to Label Projects based on your 'life areas', or your personal and
professional/work life. Just using these two Labels can help you shift
your mind between your life areas when reviewing your Projects.

Describe the intended outcome of the project or what purpose the list
serves. It could help in the future to remind you why you created the
project if you end up with many Projects.
Its not mandatory to use project descriptions, but they can be useful
when you want to come back to a given project after a while of inactivity.

Having selected the Project from the Project list click the Project settings icon to open the information tab.
Click the Edit button and add a fuller description of what you will accomplish by
completing this project or, if its more of
a basic list, detail what its purpose is.

Lets imagine you have 20 Project lists,

some work based and some personal. If
you Label each Project appropriately,
you can filter your Project lists by Label
very easily to only display your work
Projects when at work.
Other uses for Labels could be grouping
Projects by client or person. You may
have a number of Projects spread
across different clients. Creating a Label
for each client could be useful, allowing
you to quickly filter on one clients Projects using the filter Label option.
Nozbe Project lists can have any number of Labels, it is very easy to Label a
Project 'Work' and 'Reynolds Account' at
the same time.
Look for more ideas on using Labels
throughout the rest of this book.

16

To add a Label to a Project, click on the Project information icon and

select Labels.

Color Code your Projects

From here you can assign

your Project list to an existing
Label or click the NEW button and create a new one.

A useful feature within Nozbe is the ability to color code your Project
lists to help organize them.

Are you just starting out with

Nozbe? You might want to
start with only a few Labels.
You can always add more Lab e l s w h e n yo u r P r o j e c t
grows.
I strive for a simple life and
my Nozbe setup echoes this.
I currently only use a small
number of Labels, but I add
and remove more depending on whats happening in my life.

Work
Personal
Client names my work revolves around.
Vacations (3 next year, I hope!)
Web_Projects

You can set and change the color of your

Project folders by selecting the Project
folder from the project list and pressing
the Info icon to open the Project info
tab.
A selection of project colors is then accessible.
Its 100% up to
you how to
color code your
Projects. You
could color
code a group
of related Projects together
by using the
same color or
perhaps by importance (Red = Important, Green = No rush)

Nozbe_Book (of course!)

Remember - it is possible to assign your Project lists multiple Labels;
this can also be very useful.
17

Sort Projects - Desktop

Sort Projects - Mobile

You can sort your list of Projects by simply dragging and dropping
them in the Project list on the desktop or Web app. Arrange them in
an order that makes sense to you. For example: put the most important or most used projects at the top.

With mobile devices, you are not

able to drag Projects into a new sort
order directly from the Project list.
First you need to be in Edit mode.

Sort Projects Alphabetically

Click the edit button at the

bottom of the Project list window. You can then drag the Projects
into the order you want with the
hamburger icon.

Its also possible to automatically sort your Project list alphabetically.

Click the Edit button at the
bottom of your Project list. At
the bottom you will see an
AZ button.
When enabled, this feature
automatically sorts your current Project list, and any new
Projects you add later, alphabetically.
If you find you would rather
sort your Projects manually,
just click the AZ button again
to turn off the feature.

To sort Alphabetically its exactly

the same as the web and desktop
versions.

Click the AZ toggle button while in

edit mode to turn the feature on or
off.
18

Add a task to a Project

Now that you have some Project lists, you can start storing any relevant tasks within them. In Section 4 - Processing we will process any
tasks in your Nozbe Inbox into Project lists. However you may find
yourself in a Project list and want to add a task directly to this list.

The task capture window will stay open, allowing you to quickly type
the next task if you want to add more than one task to this Project
This can be really useful if you have a number of tasks you want to enter that all belong in the same Project - rapid entry as you get everything relating to that Project list out of your head!

If you select an existing Project from your Project list and then use the
task add + button in the lower right part of the screen, a task capture
window inside that Project list will appear and you can type your task,
then press enter.

19

Top or Bottom of your List?

Complete a Project

Some project tasks may need to be completed in a specific order or

you may prefer newer Tasks to appear at the bottom of your Project
list. Nozbe allows you to choose where your task is created - at the top
or bottom of your list.

Some of your Nozbe Projects will have a defined end point. The Birthday party has been thrown, the end-of-year reviews have been completed or the garage has been cleaned! You will have completed each
individual task in your Project list and you now need to remove it from
your Nozbe Project list and bask in your glory!

You may have noticed a green arrow on the task entry bar when entering tasks, this shows you where the new task will be entered on the
list.

Click the Project info button and look towards the bottom of the Project info bar for the Complete Project button.

The top -

Or the bottom -

Type the task name, then click the Arrow in the task entry window to
toggle between the top or bottom of your list. Your choice is remembered for the next task entry.
You can still drag tasks into a different order on the desktop/web versions if you think a task should be between existing tasks.

20

Clicking this will launch a popup window asking if you want to move
this Project to completed Projects?

Clicking YES will mark your Project complete and move the whole Project, all of its completed and uncompleted tasks and Project attachments to a hidden part of Nozbe where your completed Projects are
stored. NOTE: They are not deleted!

Restore Projects
Once you have completed a project successfully, you might be
asked to complete a similar project again - a victim of your
own success! Rather than build
a new project with all the same
tasks you could use a Project
Template. (Section 5)
Thankfully, its very easy to restore any completed Projects
and tasks back into Nozbe.
In your Project list you will see
a Show Completed button. Clicking this will reveal all of your
completed Projects below any
currently active Projects.
They are easy to identify. They
are more transparent than your
active Projects and listed by
completion month. Select the
Project you want to restore and
the tasks will appear where you
can browse them if you want
to.

21

To restore that Project, just press the Restore Project button and the
Project. Its tasks and attachments will be moved from completed Projects to your active Projects list.

The individual state of each task at the time you completed the Project
will also be restored. Any completed tasks will still be completed and
not visible at first.

In a similar fashion to the Show Completed Projects, you can click the
Show Completed tasks box in the task list window to reveal all of the
tasks in that Project. You can then un-tick the tasks to make them incomplete again and they will show up on your restored Project list
ready to be worked on again.

22

Project Search

Delete a Project

After using Nozbe for some time you will probably end up with a lot of
completed and active Projects. Finding a specific Project can be a little
painful if you have to scroll through a long long list of Projects.

If you really have no more use for

one of your Projects, you can permanently delete it from the Project info
bar by clicking the the Trash Can
icon.

At the top of your Project list there is a search

box. This search will
only search your Project
list names not your
tasks. As you type, the
search will reduce the
list to only Projects with
the search value.
It is also possible to
search completed Projects.
Click the Show Completed Projects button
before you begin your
search to list all of your
Projects. Then type your search query into the search box to find your
results.

Select yes if you are sure you want

to PERMANENTLY delete that Project
and all the tasks contained within it.

C AUTION
Deleting a Nozbe Project is irreversible. Your Project cannot be recovered. All tasks, comments and attachments stored in Nozbe are gone.
Scary stuff!
The old version of Nozbe gave you a
fairly good warning of the severity of
your actions....
There is no such warning in the latest version of Nozbe, just Are you
sure?

23

S ECTION 3

Categories

Have you ever wondered why some old school GTDers

use the @ symbol in front of their contexts? In early
versions of some software it was the easiest way to float
folders that are alphabetically sorted to the top of a list,
the second reason? @ makes sense for many contexts!
@computer - When Im @ (at) my computer.

With the introduction of Nozbe 2.0,

Contexts became Categories overnight. There is no difference in how
everything works, Categories are
thought of as a more general term
to apply to your tasks. In this book
both are interchangeable.
Assigning Categories to your tasks
helps elevate your productivity system above being just a collection of
tasks in Projects lists. They allow
you to group tasks from differing
Projects together at another level.
This GTD idea of contexts is very powerful and helps you refine the
choice of task you could be working on at any given moment. You can
choose the next task to tackle based on the Category or context you
are currently in.

Category Tips
1. A Category can be a physical location.
2. A Category can be a specific tool.
3. A Category can be a mental state.
4. Keep the number of Categories to a minimum
at first, dont micromanage!
5. Review your Categories regularly. Add and
remove them as needed.
6. Each persons Categories will be different.
Dont stress over your own too much - they
will develop over time!
24

Each Nozbe task you create can be assigned a Category/Context. It

could describe what tool, place or person you need access to in order
to complete that task, or help group tasks together that share something in common.

Its perfectly feasible to use Nozbe without using Categories, but you
miss a lot of extra functionality.

Examples;
1)
Imagine you are sitting in your office thinking about what
task to complete next. You can simply filter your Nozbe actions according to an Office context. This newly filtered list will show you only
things that need to be completed at this location, hiding any tasks you
have assigned Home or Supermarket etc., that you could not complete
at that time.
2) It can be useful to batch process a number of tasks. For example,
you have just completed a task on your Work Laptop, you then
check your Nozbe Work_Laptop Category and find there are other
tasks that need to be completed on your Work Laptop.

Example Categories
Home
Work
Computer
Supermarket
Phone
Errands
Email

School
Church
Agenda (A specific person)
Waiting For
Read/Review
Team
Garage

25

Creating a New Category

Category, Icons and Color

Adding a new Category is very similar to adding a new Project. Select

the Category view in the left panel
and then select the + icon.

Once your Category has a name,

you can assign it an individual icon
and a color, which is a useful visual
prompt.

A new text entry box appears at the

top of the existing list of Categories.
Type the name of your new Category.

In the Category list, select the Category you want to change, click the
information icon and a new panel
will open.

It will appear towards the bottom of

your list and may be slightly greyed
out to indicate there are no tasks
assigned within this Category.

Click the gear icon and

you can edit the name
of your Category by
pressing the Edit button.
Set the icon and its color by selecting the relevant buttons.

You can drag your Categories into

any order on web or desktop applications.
Edit mode works similarly to
the Edit mode on Projects,
allowing you to move Categories on mobile device, sort by A-Z
or delete multiple Categories.

26

Delete a Category

Rename a Category

There are two ways to delete a Category. Using the edit command in
the Category list view, select one or more Categories and press delete.
Alternatively, the Remove Category button in the information view will
remove the Category you are currently viewing.

You may wish to rename an existing Category, to correct an error. Select the Category you want to change in the left panel, click the info
icon then press the Edit button to rename.

The important thing to remember is when you remove/delete a Category, any tasks assigned to that Category are not deleted. All of the
tasks will remain, but the Category will be removed.

27

S ECTION 4

Inbox Processing

We are now at stage where all of the ground work is done. We have
an Inbox with some tasks, some Projects lists and some Categories.
The next step is to process each task into a relevant Project and assign
a Category if needed.
The important takeaway from this section is very simple. You should
not leave all of your tasks in one long list in your Inbox. The idea is to
move (process) all of your tasks from the Inbox to somewhere more
logical (a Project list). You will enter some extra details for each task,
and it is these details that elevate your basic task list into a full productivity system.
Each task will have some or all of the following information assigned to
it: Project, Category, Time needed, Due Date, if the task repeats and
who should complete it for shared Projects. Not every task will have a
Due Date and you may find it impractical to assign Time needed to
every task. You may not even use a Category on every task but at a
minimum to be effective you must move a task to a Project list.

Inbox Processing Tips

1. Process your Inbox to zero everyday. Your
tasks should not live in your Inbox.
2. If the task takes 2 minutes or less, DO IT
NOW rather than log it into Nozbe if possible.
3. Assign Contexts to each task from your Inbox.
4. Estimate the amount of time a task will take if
applicable.
5. Assign a Due Date if needed.
6. Mark any Priority tasks with a star.
7. Assign the task to a Project last.

28

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29

S ECTION 5

The Extra bits.....

In the previous sections we explored the basics of Nozbe tasks, how to

get a task into Nozbe: assigning a Category, storing the task in a Project list and making the task a Priority if needed.
These are the basic cornerstones of many productivity based systems
but there are a number of other options and features within Nozbe we
can utilize to make Nozbe even more powerful.

Guidelines
1. Converting a recurring Project into a
Template is a great timesaver for any Projects that
reoccur.
2. The Time Needed field is optional, but do
not discount it completely! It's a handy way to
estimate your Project completion time.
3. Comments are not just a way for you to
chat to other task collaborators. Comments let you
add useful information to your task, helping you
get the task done.

30

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31

C HAPTER 2

External Apps

One of Nozbes stand out features has always been its ability to interact with a number of external applications: Evernote, Google Calendar,
Email, Dropbox and others.
While Nozbe works perfectly fine without these applications, adding
one or more of them to your Nozbe workflow will improve your productivity, guaranteed!

S ECTION 1

Email

Guidelines
Email. Love it or hate it theres no escaping from it. For many people
email seems to be the number one way they receive requests (tasks
and Projects) from colleagues and customers. Thankfully Nozbe makes
it really easy to ensure none of these tasks slip through any gaps.
A simple setup needs to be completed to create a unique Nozbe email
address that you can email your tasks to.
Once completed, you can work through your email Inbox and forward
any emails that could be task based directly into Nozbe. Things like a
single task, a project idea or a document you must read are good candidates for this.
With Nozbe email setup, you can quickly and easily work through all of
your emails and achieve the mastery of Inbox zero with all actionable
emails in Nozbe.

1. If an email is actionable and will take more

than 2 minutes to complete, forward it to your
Nozbe Inbox to complete at a later date.
2. Do not use your email system to track what
needs to be done. Forward things to Nozbe to
track them better.
3. Some emails just need to be read later. Setup
a Read/Review Category to email these types
of email into and batch them together to read
when its an appropriate time for you.

33

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34

S ECTION 2

Cloud storage Dropbox, Box

& Google Drive

Cloud based file storage is a way to host any of your documents in the
cloud that are accessible using many devices where you have a connection to the internet. They also allow you to sync copies of your files
between your devices.
When used with Nozbe, these services (Dropbox, Box and Google
Drive) can act as your reference file repository for your tasks and Projects.
You will of course need an account with one or more of these providers. They all offer free tiered accounts with generous storage amounts.
If you havent already decided on a cloud storage provider I would suggest Dropbox. It has the easiest learning curve and comes with a generous 2GB of free space to get you started.

Note
All three of these services work very similarly. To
avoid repetition, I will us Dropbox in my examples.
However the process applies to all three services.
Theres nothing to stop you from setting up all
three services within Nozbe as they will all work
together, but for simplicity I would advise you use
one cloud storage provider.

35

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36

S ECTION 3

Evernote

Evernote is a product designed to collect and store everything digital

and paper. From Web pages you bookmark, to scanned receipts you
want to keep. Once within Evernote it can be found with an easy
search. Its an excellent product with a very capable free version available
Sign up for a free account at http://evernote.com/
My personal Evernote contains everything I want to keep; I try to be
as paperless as possible. Car documents, technical manuals, recipes,
travel documents, take-out menus and a lot lot more!
The new version of Nozbe has changed how it interacts with Evernote
in a number of ways. Its now very much in line with other cloud storage providers that Nozbe supports.

37

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38

S ECTION 4

Google Calendar

Google calendar has become the default calendaring app for many people. Wether you use it natively or through a third party app like Sunrise or Apple Calendar, it is a great productivity tool for managing your
appointments.
Best of all, Nozbe and Google Calendar work really well together!
When you link Nozbe to GCal (Google Calendar) a new separate calendar is created in your GCal account that only displays Nozbe tasks that
have a Due Date. When you review your Google Calendar, you will also
see any must do tasks for that day without having to jump into the
Nozbe application.
Signup for an account https://www.google.com/calendar

39

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40

C HAPTER 3

Working With
Others

Nozbe is not just a single user experience. It can also be used as a

tool to collaborate through tasks with other users.
You have the ability to share Projects with other people, delegate tasks
to individuals, comments to tasks or files to Projects, reducing the
need for email.
Its even possible to invite someone to work on a Nozbe Project with
them using a free account. There are generous people at Nozbe!

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42

C HAPTER 4

Workflows that
Work

This chapter will detail some extra tips and workflows as to how I and
others use Nozbe. All the ideas have been part of Nozbe users workflows and one or two may fit your own needs.
Remember there is no right or wrong way to use Nozbe. Just find ways
that work for you.
I am sure you will develop or already have your own Nozbe workflows.
Please drop me an email with any interesting ways you use Nozbe as I
would love to incorporate them into future versions of the book for
other users to adopt for their own use.
marcus@ProductiveWizard.com

S ECTION 1

I Did It My Way.....

Whenever I am quizzed about Nozbe the top questions always include:

What Categories do you use?

Productivity is never an accident. It is always the result

of a commitment to excellence, intelligent planning, and
focused effort. - Paul J. Meyer

What do your Daily and Weekly reviews look like?

How do you prioritize?
Just how do you use Nozbe?
I always try to make excuses and advise that there is no right way to
use Nozbe. Yet there is always an unhealthy interest in other peoples
productivity setups. Yes, Im just as guilty!
This section describes how I effectively use Nozbe for my own unique
set of circumstances. Its here as an example, not as a rule for using
Nozbe. Adopt any ideas that resonate with you into your own Nozbe
workflow and explore section 2 for more ideas.

44

My Categories
Building your Nozbe setup for the first time can seem a little daunting
with Categories seemingly giving new users the largest headache.
Dont worry, setting up your first list of useful Categories can be
straight forward. The main idea to remember is adding and removing
Categories as needed is the way Nozbe is designed to work.
So, as an example, I will walk you through my own real life day-to-day
Categories.
I like to keep things simple in my life and that includes Nozbe. Some
may like to micro-manage their Categories/contexts, having many, but
I prefer a simpler approach.

Computers
I did say I like to keep things simple, yet my
first three Categories are separate PC devices! In my defense, all three Categories are
very different - each with limiting factors due
to my job roles. I would imagine the majority
of users would need only one or maybe two
computer Categories.
Office PC The only way I communicate with many of my office colleagues is via this PC. The same goes for accessing files and doing
work!

Tech All of my personal PC devices. Including Macs and mobile devices. I dont differentiate between mobile and PC devices anymore as
they are all fully computing devices. Any can accomplish most of my
computing needs.

Locations.
Just the three locations. I guess there is one
other location I could use: Commute
I could use it as a Category for my daily commute, however, any Tasks I could complete on
my commute are usually covered under the
Tech Category.

Office My daily office location, used for office tasks that dont involve an Office_PC.
Home Guess where this is? Here you may find chores around the
house like the weekly garbage routine and odd jobs.
Errands Reserved for things I need to do when out and about.
Things like posting letters or things I need to buy. When planning a
trip to a store or when I arrive, I will spend a few seconds to glance at
this Category to see what else I might need to do while out for Errands.

Work laptop Similar to above with access to my employers internal

network. Some tools are available only on this device, such as
timesheets and leave booking requests.
45

The Remainder

Temporary Categories

Agenda For things I need to discuss

face-to-face with people. This is a general
thing which I do change from time to
time to have multiple Agendas to read:
Agenda-Tom for things I need to discuss
with Tom.

As I neared the end of this book I created a Nozbe Project that was shared
with a number of (amazing!) Nozbe
users. They kindly helped review the
contents before release. For this purpose I introduced two temporary Categories specifically for use with this
project.

Phone Any phone calls I need to make.

Rather than being location based, my
phone calls are usually time based. Im
not going to call my work colleague at
9pm, but I might call my parents. This is usually reflected with a Due
Date and Time.

Idea - New ideas for the book that were gathered during feedback.
Fix this - Any errors found were highlighted as a task and assigned
this Category.

This Week - As covered early in this chapter, my special Category

that I use in my Weekly and Daily Reviews.

I was then able to filter the shared Nozbe Project by Idea or Fix this
to see what needed to be done.

Read/Review Anything I plan to read or review gets assigned

here. Usually its an Evernote note document with a Reminder added.
When in Nozbe, I can actually complete my Read-Review task within
the Nozbe application. Once Ive reviewed the document, I remove the
Reminder in Evernote if I want to file it, or I just delete it.

Once the book is completed I can consider removing them. This is the
flexibility of Nozbe Categories.
Evernote Reminders - This Category is reserved for Evernote notes
with a reminder. Its a good reminder to clear out outdated reminder
alarms in Evernote.

W/F (Waiting For) I use this Category if I'm waiting on an action

from other people who I can't share/assign the Nozbe Task. Nozbe adverse users! For reference I add their name to the tasks title and assign the task a W/F Category. During my Daily or Weekly Review I will
have a quick look at this Category and give a gentle reminder to the
person as needed!

46

My Final Category list

My final list is placed into a useful order to my own liking. This just
makes things easier when I assign a Task a Categories from the Inbox
using drag and drop on Web/Desktop.

Computers
Locations
Misc

Each Category is also colored coded in

a very basic way to allow easy identification.

Red - Professional
Blue - Personal
Other colors - General

47

Nozbe Labels as Life Areas

Color code Projects/Labels

This is one idea I have used from day one and recommend new
Nozbe users also adopt this.

When I create a Project with

a Life Area Label, I also set
the color of the Project to reflect this Label.

At the most basic level, I use three simple Labels/Areas: Work, Personal and Website.
Any Nozbe Project I create will be assigned one of these Labels / Areas. Perhaps for you there could be more. A social club you help manage. A Church group or club. Perhaps you manage a number of blogs.

Work - Red
Personal - Blue
Websites - Amber

The idea is to assign each of

your Projects a life area Label.
Its then really easy to view all
related life area Projects within
Nozbe.

The only reason I do this is

to help identify at a glance
my current Life Balance. If
my Project list is all Red
(Work Label) I know I could
do with some nice personal
Projects (Blue) in there also.

When I am at my office and

need to concentrate only on
Work Projects, in the Nozbe Project view I select the tag icon
and then select Work. My
list of Projects is then filtered to just Work Projects,
allowing me to quickly review all work Projects, and
keep my personal Project of
Find a new Job hidden on
my Personal Project area
when my boss walks by....

This also saves me from applying a Label filter to see

the area a Project belongs if
Im looking at all of my Projects as a whole.

48

This Week Category

Setting task Priorities

I have a special Category called This Week and its use is primarily
during my Weekly Review. This helps keep my Priority List to a sharp
focus.

I love to keep things simple. Adding priorities to Projects or tasks feels

like over-complicating a system. I prefer just to re-organize Projects
with drag-and-drop in Nozbe.

I always have tasks that are on the horizon that dont have a fixed Due
Date. They dont need my immediate attention like a Priority Starred
task does.

Nozbe allows you to sort

your Projects by hand. Simply drag and drop each task
into an order that reflects
either the priority of a task
(more urgent at the top) or
put the next action at the
top. When I perform my
Weekly Review I can quickly
scan the top few tasks of a
Project, decide if they need
to be completed soon, add
the Next Week Category, or
add a star if it needs my immediate focus.

As I review my Projects and tasks, one by one, as part of the Weekly

Review, I add an extra Category This Week to any tasks that I need
or want to be complete in the next seven days. This Category does not
replace any Categories that you have already assigned to your task, it
sits alongside them.

The idea is to create a Category list called This Week that is made of
a list of tasks that I would ideally like to get done in the next 7 days.
This Category is where I go as part of my Daily Review to select the
tasks I want to tackle next. Its also my bonus list of tasks I will look
to next if I complete all of my Priority tasks on a particular day.

Any Due Dated tasks get

dragged to the bottom of a
Project, as I know once the
Due Date arrives, the task
will appear in the Nozbe
Focus/Next actions list.
My simple rule is: Tasks on the top of a list have a higher priority. Keeping things organized this way helps me keep on top of my Projects.
49

Priority List = Focus List

I aim to keep my Priority List as small as possible. This is not always
possible when tasks with Due Dates arrive or team members assign
you tasks that appear in your Priority list, but I try to keep it manageable.
My Priority list is reserved for the tasks I am working on that day or
tasks that need to be completed that day only.

The reasons I do this:

I find looking at a long, long list of all the things I have to do can be
overwhelming.
Completing all tasks in your Priority list on daily basis, is a great way
to build momentum.
Due Dated tasks are by their nature important; so important that
they appear on your Priority list to get your attention each morning.
If your Priority list is already 30+ tasks long its far too easy to miss
them!
Adding a Priority Star to a task from a shared Project generates a
nice update for other team members, telling them you are working
on the task, if they are subscribed to email updates for shared Projects.

Mentally, I call the Priority list my Focus list.

My Priority list contains only tasks that I want to or have to work on
that day. I aim for around 3 - 5 tasks at the start of the day.
If I complete these tasks during the day, I can add new tasks to the
Priority list, usually from my This Week Category. If something urgent
comes up I can also add it directly to the priority list if it needs to be
completed today. Otherwise, it goes into the Nozbe Inbox for processing later.

50

My Daily Review
My Daily Review is the way I start each day. Its a way to check whats
ahead and to ensure I am prepared.

1. Check my calendar
I check my standard appointment calendar (Google Calendar) to review any appointments or meetings that day, as these can seriously
affect the type of tasks I can tackle. I can also review any Nozbe tasks
with Due Dates of today as they will appear here.

2. Review Nozbe on any device

Review Nozbe Priority list.

Review the context - This Week.

If my Priority list is looking in good shape, with a minimal number of
tasks, I then head to the Category This Week. This list contains any
soon to be hot / Priority items I selected in my Weekly Review. I then
add a Priority star to any task that I want / need to work on today.
I try to be realistic and dont select them all, as I can always come
back to this list if I do complete my priority Actions list during the day.
Thats it.

Combined with the Weekly Review, a Daily Review should only take me
a few minutes each morning. A quick browse through my Priority List
and one other context This Week should be all I need to stay on top
of my tasks.

What do I need to complete today? Things left over from yesterday

will still be here along with any tasks with a Due Date of today or earlier. Do they demand my focus again today? If not, I remove the Priority star.

Complete old tasks.

Any tasks I did complete but neglected to update Nozbe.

Consciously acknowledge any new Due Dated / Priority tasks

that have appeared overnight.
Consider what implications these tasks already pose on my time as I
move on to the next step.

Note
Sometimes during busy weeks, I find it useful to
perform a mini Weekly Review at a random time.
In this way, I make sure no tasks have slipped
through my system.
51

My Weekly Review
The Weekly Review is my opportunity to keep my productivity system
in tip-top shape and make sure nothing has slipped through the
cracks. I try to keep it as simple as possible to keep the time it takes
minimal. A small amount of time on Sunday evening or Monday morning is all thats needed.

3. Empty my paper Inbox tray into Evernote.

Throughout the week, I place anything that I want to scan or keep
into a old fashioned Inbox tray at home. Bills, applications, takeaway
menus, receipts, etc. These are then scanned into Evernote for safe
keeping.
If anything is going to need an action and scanned into Evernote, I get
it into Nozbe using the reminder function of Evernote.

Assign each task a Category.

The context should reflect what or where you need to be to complete
the task.

Do I need / want to do this task in the next 7 days?

This is the important step for my setup. If you answer YES to this, add
the extra context to the task called This Week as we covered earlier.

Does it need a Due Date?

Add a Due Date to the task if it needs to be completed on a specific
date or I think a reminder would be good.

Do I need to do this Task today?

STAR / Priority any tasks I need to do today. Occasionally we all find a
task in our Weekly Review that has slipped through the net and should
have been completed already. Marking it with a star will allow me to
focus on the task.

Assign the Task a Project.

4. Empty the Nozbe Inbox

If I havent been processing my Nozbe Inbox on a regular basis I could
have a number of tasks and project ideas in my Inbox. Today is the
day I process them and, as discussed in Chapter one, the following
rules apply:

Can I do the task in 2 minutes or less right now?

If I can, I do it right now! No excuses!

Assign the task a Project or turn the task into a Project if its more complex than a single task.
Within a few minutes, my Nozbe Inbox is empty.

5. Review each Nozbe Project.

Now my Nozbe Inbox is empty, I need to review each of my Nozbe Projects one by one.
I look at each Nozbe Project and scan through each Task and ask myself a few mental questions about each Task and the Project as a

52

whole. I use this opportunity to manually sort more important Tasks to

to the top of each Project list as I go.

Is this Project needed anymore?

If the Project list is empty, can it be closed? Is the Project still relevant?

Should this complex Task be a Project on its own?

If yes, I convert the Task into a Project.

Have I completed this Task already?

I close the task and congratulate myself on my awesomeness.

Do I still need to complete this Task?

Things change over time, perhaps this task is no longer needed.

Do I need / want to do this Task in the next 7 days?

This is the important step for my setup. If I answer YES to this, I add
the extra context to the task called This Week as we covered earlie

Note
Avoid the urge to tackle any task that will take
more than two minutes to complete. Sometimes
this can be difficult as you come across a task that
would give you pleasure doing it right now.
Perhaps the Find vacation destination task calls
you... be strong! :)
53

S ECTION 2

More Workflow Ideas and Tips

The previous section showed you how I use Nozbe myself. This section
gives more examples of how you can use Nozbe to solve specific scenarios to stay organized.

If the only tool you have is a hammer, you tend to see

every problem as a nail. - Paul J. Meyer

Studying how other Nozbe users create their own workflows can be
really useful, even if the subject matter is not 100% aligned to your
own needs.
For example: When you see how someone handles lots of clients using
Nozbe Labels, it could trigger an idea as you look at ways to manage
multiple blogs.
This section is designed to grow with each release of the book. Nozbe
users around the globe have there own workflows and tips.
I call upon you all to share them for inclusion in future updates.
Drop me an email marcus@productivewizard.com

54

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55

S ECTION 3

Apps and Nozbe

As technology presses ever onwards, Nozbe has always striven to keep

pace. From its first tentative steps with a mobile web version, to the
multiple apps across many platforms we have today.

The number one benefit of information technology is

that it empowers people to do what they want to do. It

But its not just Nozbe that continues to develop. Third party service
providers change over time, Nozbe has had to adapt to keep things
running smoothly and incorporate new services.

lets people be creative. It lets people be productive. It

As Nozbe continues to grow, new features large and small make their
way into each new release. Yet as fast as Nozbe grows there is not always a direct technological answer to be found for some issues.

Steve Ballmer

lets people learn things they didn't think they could

learn before, and so in a sense it is all about potential. -

This section will detail new Nozbe application features as they are released, some clever workarounds to features not yet developed, and
extra tips to help you get the most out of third party service integrations.

56

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57

C HAPTER 5

Final Words
and Recap

Over the previous pages we have covered a lot of ground. From the
very basics, to more advanced integrations with 3rd party products.
Trying to create a book that is relevant to all experience levels is difficult. However, whatever your proficiency with Nozbe is, I hope you
found something of use from these pages. If the book helps improve
your productivity even a little I will be very proud.
I am sure Nozbe will continue to change and grow in the future and I
look forward to updating this book as it does.
But before we sign off, lets recap on some important things and point
you in the direction of other resources of interest.

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59

My Final Thanks

The Nozbe Team and the Nozbe community is amazing.

A simple request for some assistance with this book resulted in more offers of help than I could imagine.
My humble thanks to following Nozbe users: Lori Anderson, Vivian Myers, Bryan Shannon, Andrew Yee, Michael
Koehler, Chris Hunt, Peter M. Beaumont, Michael Grainger, Abby Leonard, Don Allen, Fernando, Kelly, Konrad.

Not forgetting my wonderful wife Louise, who gets everything done without Nozbe. The productivity force is
strong with this one.....

lx

End of the Lite version

If this is the end of our brief relationship, dont worry. Im sure it was
my fault not yours!
No need to struggle on your own though, theres a wealth of information on the Nozbe website to help you use Nozbe better.
Best wishes and good fortune!
Marcus - @Marcus_Platt

The aim of the Lite book of Nozbe was to give you a feel for the full
version. I also hope Nozbe users new and old may have found some
value in these pages.
If youd like to continue your Nozbe journey and ultimately, learn to
use Nozbe like a Pro. My (unbiased?) suggestion would be to invest in
the full version of The little book of Nozbe of course!
Dont forget, if you do buy the full version, all updated versions of the
e-book will be free. You will automatically be informed when new versions are available to download.

BUY NOW WITH A 30% DISCOUNT

This is the beauty of an e-book. Just as well really, as the Nozbe development team never sleeps it seems!

lxi