Skill: Todo List Management

Guidelines for managing the Claude Code todo list during sessions.

Core Principles

1. Only Track Active Work

The todo list should only contain:

• Tasks currently in progress
• Tasks to be done in the current session
• Recently completed tasks (for context)

2. Future-Dated Tasks

Do NOT add future-dated tasks to the todo list.

Tasks with due dates in the future should:

• Be stored in the vault as Task notes (using /task skill)
• Be tracked in Jira/external systems
• Only appear in the todo list on or after their due date

Why: The todo list is for immediate work tracking, not a calendar or reminder system.

3. When to Add Tasks

Add to todo list when:

• User explicitly asks you to do something now
• Breaking down a complex current task into steps
• Tracking multi-step work in the current session

Do NOT add when:

• Task is scheduled for a future date
• Task is a reminder/calendar item
• Task belongs in an external system (Jira, calendar)

4. Cleaning Up

Regularly clean the todo list:

• Remove completed tasks after they're no longer relevant for context
• Remove tasks that have been deferred to future dates
• Keep the list focused on current work

Examples

Good Usage

User: "Help me refactor the authentication module"

Todo list:
- [in_progress] Analyse current auth module structure
- [pending] Identify refactoring opportunities
- [pending] Implement changes
- [pending] Update tests

Bad Usage

User: "Remind me to review the ADR process in April"

❌ Don't add: [pending] Review ADR process (due 2026-04-07)
✅ Do: Create a Task note with due date, or note it will surface when due

Integration with Task Notes

For future tasks, use the /task skill instead:

/task Review ADR process due 2026-04-07

This creates a proper Task note in the vault that can be:

• Queried by Dataview
• Shown in daily notes when due
• Tracked properly with full metadata

Summary