Task Planner

Excel

Thank you for purchasing the Task Planner Template.

This is a guide to set up the spreadsheet and outlines its

features.

If you need any help with any aspect of the template

please contact me via adam@cleverpeadesign.com
I am always happy to help!
Initial Setup

Before using the spreadsheet for the first time please install the included font. The file is
named FiraSans-Light.ttf

To install simply double click the file and select “Install”:

After completing this it is best to restart your machine to ensure the font is correctly installed.

What’s Included

There are 3 files included:

● CPD - Task_Planner - Example.xlsx

○ An example of the template in use with mock values entered. For use with
Excel 365 and Excel 2021.
● CPD - Task_Planner - Template.xlsx
○ A blank version of the template ready to be used. For use with Excel 365 and
Excel 2021.
● CPD - Task_Planner_Compatibility_Example.xlsx
○ An example of the template for use with Excel pre-365.
● CPD - Task_Planner_Compatibility_Template.xlsx
○ A blank version of the template ready to be used. For use with Excel pre-365.
● FiraSans-Light.ttf
○ The font used throughout the template. Installation instructions are above.
Usage

Compatibility
There are two versions of the template included in the zip file. One version is labelled
“Compatibility” and is for use with Excel versions that pre-date Excel 365.

The only difference between the versions is that in Excel pre-365 you need to click “Data” then
“Refresh All” to update the “Today” and “Completed” tables. There is no other difference.

Setup

When setting up for the first time or starting a new project you need to enter some details on
the Setup tab.

Planner Name
Enter a name for your Task List such as “General To Do” or “House Extension”. This will appear
on the main planner sheet.

Status Table
Here you will see two columns: Status and Phase.

You must leave the first row as it is to enable the Focus filters to work.

Phase: There are three phases: Not Started, Doing and Done. Every custom status you create
should be assigned to one of these Phases. On the main planner the progress panels at the
top are grouped by phase.

Status: These are your custom status’. For instance in the Not Started phase you could have
three status’: In analysis, On Hold, Blocked from Starting
To keep it simple you can leave the status’ as they are and have just the three main phases:
Not Started, Doing and Done

Categories
You must leave the first row as “None” to allow the Focus filters to work.

Below “None” you can enter any custom categories you wish to allow you to group your tasks
together.

Priority
Enter in any custom priorities you wish or simply leave as Low, Medium and High. These are
used for the Focus filter.

Task List
This is the main sheet where you can enter in all your tasks and track your progress in
completing them. The screen is as follows:

1: Main Task List

This is where you enter in and complete your tasks. There are 9 columns:

ID: This is auto-generated and should not be edited. It is used by some formulas for filtering
and counting tasks.

Done: This column allows you to mark off completed tasks. Simply enter an “X” or “x” in this
field and the row will format accordingly.

Task: The name of the task to complete.

Due Date: The date before which you want to complete the task. This is used for the Focus
filter. If there is no due date then simply leave blank.

Category: A drop-down with a list of categories entered on the Setup sheet. Use categories to
group tasks together on a similar theme.

Status: A drop-down with a list of status’ entered on the Setup sheet.

Priority: A drop-down with a list of priorities entered on the Setup sheet.

Today: Mark an “X” or “x” in this column to mark the task as one you want to complete today.
The task will automatically appear in the Today list to the left of the Main Task List. This is
explained more further on in this guide.

Days Left: Driven by the Due Date field this is non-editable and shows the number of days left
until the task is due.

2: Progress Panels
These panels give you information on the number of tasks in each phase (Not Started, Doing
and Done) and also your overall progress in completing the list.

3: Focus
Use these four filters to highlight tasks in the Main List. If you wish to exclude a filter select
“None” from the drop-down.

The Due Date filter must be entered as a date or type “None” to exclude.

4. Today
Here you can highlight everything in the Main Task List that you have marked to complete
today. Simply set “Highlight Today” to “Enabled” to achieve this.

Below this is a list of the tasks themselves which are non-editable. To mark a task as
complete you must do so in the Main List.

For the Compatibility version you must click “Data” then “Refresh All” for changes to appear
in this table.

5. Completed
A list of all the tasks that have been set to “Done” with an “X” in the Done field.
For the Compatibility version you must click “Data” then “Refresh All” for changes to appear
in this table.

Conditional Formatting
This template makes extensive use of conditional formatting to highlight and focus on tasks.
As such you should not “move” cells as this will interfere with the formatting.

Moving a cell is when you click and drag on a highlighted cell.

Copy/Pasting will not cause problems. I suggest that if you have moved cells and find the
formatting is not working correctly, open up an original copy of the template and copy/paste
any tasks you have filled out into there.

Uses
A last word on using this template. I use multiple copies of this template, at work, at home etc.
I have a General To-Do at home which I open each day to work through. At work I use it to
organise my time between different projects and recently I have created a version to plan
some house works. However it can be used for virtually anything that needs a set of tasks
worked through to complete (think Wedding, planning a holiday/vacation, moving house etc.)

Final Note
I created this template for myself and use it regularly, I really hope you find it useful too. If you
have any questions or need help with any aspect of this template please reach out. I respond
quickly and I'm happy to help.

Thank you!