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Plan with intention. Learn from your week.

Work Cycles help you plan your Todoist tasks, track your progress and learn from each week.

Start your Work Cycle
  1. Plan Choose your tasks
  2. Work Work on your tasks
  3. Reflect Take insights forward

The idea behind it

What is a Work Cycle?

A Work Cycle is a structure for intentional planning and reflection. At the start, you choose your tasks and plan how to approach them. Then you work on them. Once your chosen period is over, you look back and gather insights to consider in your next plan.

  1. At the start

    Choose and plan your tasks

  2. During your chosen period

    Work on your tasks

  3. Once your period is over

    Reflect

Your cycle, step by step

How does a Work Cycle work?

From choosing your tasks intentionally to reflecting on the outcome: here is how you move through a Work Cycle with Todoist and Todolytics.

  1. At the start of your cycle

    Choose the tasks you want to work on.

    You decide which tasks belong in your next cycle. Go through your Todoist projects and choose the tasks you want to complete during your chosen period.

    Apply the label you configured in Todolytics or add tasks using the Todolytics extension in the task context menu. Your selection then appears in Todolytics.

    Start your Work Cycle
    Todoist

    • Prepare client proposal

      Client work work-cycle
      Selected for this cycle

    • Update portfolio

      Portfolio work-cycle
      Selected for this cycle

    • Finish bookkeeping

      Organisation work-cycle
      Selected for this cycle
    • Collect new ideasNot selected for this cycle

  2. Before you start working

    Answer your pre-review questions.

    For each selected task, record what you expect before working on it: How clear is the task? How much effort might it take? What could delay or block it?

    You can customise the questions yourself. They help you think through your expectations and later compare them with what actually happened. A rough, honest first estimate is enough.

    Customise questions
    Todolytics
    Risk of a blockerLow · 1/5
    Task clarityHigh · 4/5
    Estimated effort2 hours
    A rough first estimate

  3. During your cycle

    Work on your tasks as usual.

    Work on your tasks in Todoist and check them off there. Your daily task work stays in your familiar workflow.

    In Todolytics, you can check your Work Cycle progress at any time: Which selected tasks are already completed, and which are still open?

    View progress
    Todolytics

    2 of 3 tasks completed

    One task is still open.

    • Prepare client proposalDone
    • Update portfolioOpen
    • Finish bookkeepingDone

  4. At the end of your period

    Reflect on what happened.

    Start closing your cycle even if some tasks are unfinished. Now compare your expectations with what actually happened.

    Explain unfinished tasks

    Go through open tasks one by one and record why they were not completed. Missing information, new priorities or limited time provide your first starting points for reflection.

    Reflect in a chat

    Optionally choose completed tasks you want to explore further. The AI uses your task data, pre-review answers and reasons for unfinished work to ask focused questions. You set the goal and focus. Once there is enough context or you request a conclusion, you receive tips and feedback.

    Start reflecting
    Todolytics

    Update portfolio Open

    Why was it left open?

    The scope was still unclear.

    AI

    The portfolio update had an unclear scope. What would have helped you get started?

    You

    A smaller first step, such as choosing three reference projects.

Your next cycle

Start again. With what you learned.

Insights from your reflection

What helped? What would you like to change next time?

Plan your next cycle

Choose your tasks again and use your experience to shape your plan.

Back to task selection

Frequently asked questions about Work Cycles

How long is a Work Cycle?

Usually one week. You can choose another rhythm that suits your work. Decide when you will plan and when you will start closing the cycle. A cycle follows a time frame, rather than waiting for every task to be complete.

What if some tasks are unfinished at the end?

You can still close the cycle. During the closing process, you go through your open tasks and explain why each one was not finished. Those reasons inform your reflection. For the next cycle, you deliberately choose again what you want to work on.

Do I need to recreate my tasks in Todolytics?

No. You select existing Todoist tasks using your configured label or the Todolytics extension in the task context menu. Your day-to-day task work stays in Todoist.

Can I configure the pre-review questions myself?

Yes. You can configure the fixed questions that come before the work phase. Use them to capture what matters for your planning, such as clarity, effort or possible blockers.

Do I have to reflect on every completed task in detail?

No. When closing a cycle, you can choose specific completed tasks for deeper reflection. This selection is optional. If you choose none, the AI looks over the cycle itself and guides the reflection.

Can I set the focus of the AI chat?

Yes. You can specify your goal for the reflection and what you want the AI to focus on. You can add context during the conversation and explicitly ask for a conclusion.

How is this different from a simple weekly review?

A simple review starts with tasks you have already completed. A Work Cycle begins before the work: you choose tasks and record expectations. At the end, you reflect on both finished and unfinished tasks and compare your plan with what actually happened.

Your next week starts with an intentional choice.

Choose a manageable set of tasks, capture your expectations and make time at the end to reflect on what you learned.

Start your Work Cycle