OmniFocus Inbox Triage
Process inbox items interactively, assigning projects, tags, and actionable names.
Workflow
1. Gather Context
# Get inbox items
of inbox list
# Get available projects and tags
of project list | jq '.[].name'
of tag list | jq '.[].name'
2. Process Each Item
For each inbox item, use AskUserQuestion to ask the user what to do. Suggest a project and tag based on the item's content.
Question format:
- Header: Short identifier (2-3 words max)
- Question: Describe the item and suggest categorization
- Options: Project → Tag combinations, Delete, Skip
Example:
Item: "Doorbell chime mount"
Header: "Doorbell"
Question: "Item: 'Doorbell chime mount' - Sounds like a home project. Does this fit?"
Options:
- "Home Projects → Home" - Move to Home Projects with Home context
- "Home Projects → Errands" - Need to buy something first
- "Delete" - Not needed
- "Skip" - Leave in inbox for now
3. Apply Changes
Based on user response:
Move to project with tag and rename:
of task update "<task-id>" --project "<Project>" --tag "<Tag>" --name "<Actionable name>"
Delete:
of task delete "<task-id>"
Skip: Move to next item without changes.
Task Naming
Rename vague items to actionable descriptions using imperative verbs:
| Original | Actionable | |----------|------------| | "Curtains" | "Hang curtains" | | "Doorbell chime mount" | "Install doorbell chime mount" | | "Chicken squad yoto" | "Make Chicken Squad Yoto cards" | | "Dr. Smith 555-1234" | "Call Dr. Smith" |
Common Projects
Suggest based on item content:
- Home Projects - House tasks, repairs, installations
- Miscellaneous - General personal tasks
- Work - Job-related items
- Gifts - Presents for others
- Kids - Child-related tasks
- Church/CDM - Ministry-related items
Common Tags (Contexts)
Suggest based on how/where the task is done:
- Computer - Online tasks, digital work
- Phone - Calls to make
- Errands - Out-of-house tasks, shopping
- Home - Tasks done at home
- Waiting - Waiting on someone else
Summary
After processing all items, report:
- Items processed
- Items moved to projects (list them)
- Items deleted
- Items remaining in inbox