Notion Project Database + Project Workspace Template Design for Powerful Project Management

[@augustbradley]

NEWS: Since recording this video Notion added the feature to enable a template with an embedded (linked) database to filter by itself as part of the template design, removing the need to manually change the filter after applying the template. Instructions on this new feature are here: twitter.com/NotionHQ/status/1257794305520885760

[@markscheiner3952]

Thanks for the follow up August. Looks like that takes it most of the way there although I've yet to succeed in implementing it correctly

[@atheneum3.0]

I can't grapsp how to apply this new feature huhu. Help

[@CountessVanora]

@@javish_ It isn't really clear for me yet. I can't pick the template. What am I doing wrong? edit: Apparently, some columns on my database wasn't properly setted up, now it's working just fine!

[@GlobalEltorro]

Can someone make a quick tutorial on this?

[@gamekida4007]

@August Bradley - Life Design super awesome video. Thanks a lot. Can you please tell me, is the template available to use directly? If yes, please let me know, how can I download it.

[@victorwongyk]

"IT'S STUCK, IT'S DEAD, IT'S ORPHANED." Say this in August's voice and this is what plays in my head when I see a project without an action item.

[@augustbradley]

Exactly! And that's no good 🙂

[@richapriyanka6596]

Haha, so true!

[@gymaholicTV]

I can literally feel your excitement in the beginning of the video! What you create really has an impact and gives people the answers they've been looking for ages. Thank you for this non-commercial output.

[@augustbradley]

Thank you! I really appreciate the support and feedback. More to come!

[@aliosmanozen196]

About Notion There is no higher level of video than your videos. However, I have never seen a completely perfect system as far as your "life OS" system. You can say as a young engineer in his 30s. I was trying to create a system like this. But you have already made a perfect system that I couldn't do in 10 years. Thank you so much. I am building my system with your videos. I'm looking forward to the upcoming videos. Meanwhile, I am also a photographer and graphic designer in an engineering publications. If I need logos and photos, I would like to contribute to this system.

[@augustbradley]

Wow, thank you Aliosman! It means a lot to me to hear the videos and the system have been so helpful to you, nothing excites more than hearing feedback like this. I don't think any system can be "perfect", but the better the system the more effective it is at helping one reach their goals and aspirations (constantly). I'd love to see your graphic design work, do you have a portfolio online?

[@walterterry9970]

Totally agree w/everything you said @Aliosman. Esp when you said "There is no higher level of video than your videos." 1000% agree, and I'm a little envious at how well you phrased that. I'm gonna adopt it to how I describe Notion and August's masterclasses to the uninitiated -- the Great Unwashed. 😆 I too have been building my Life Operating System with August's masterclass trainings to guide me (for me, just calling them simple "videos" cheapens their value, but hey, that's prob just my own weirdness 😉) I have yet to see such a thoughtful, clearly laid out structure with any training program, let alone Notion. The sheer power of the information, #1. Then there's the thoughtful, methodical, concise way it's all laid out. Plus, can't ignore the high production values. Takes a lot of work to consistently publish such high-level content like he does consistently.

[@augustbradley]

@@walterterry9970 Thank you so much Walter! 🙏 I really appreciate your support.

[@fotomania79]

Hi, I've been trying to build the system for the last few years as well. I've been implementing PPV for a month now - I'm stuck on a few modules but I'm still moving forward.

[@diegovillanueva7889]

Discovering this channel is the best thing that happened to me this year.

[@mufy2700]

This channel is one of the few channels that worth binge watch! Great content. Keep up!

[@augustbradley]

Thanks! I really appreciate the feedback. More to come.

[@lacsativ1]

Somebody send this video to David Allen, please, hahaha. Taking GTD to the next level.

[@MartinSchabbauer]

There are so many important details in this video. I just had to watch it all over again. I highly recommend a slow and thorough recap for all of us enthusiasts.

[@augustbradley]

Awesome Martin, really appreciate this feedback!

[@TomasBersier]

Hi August, firstly I'd like to say how much these Notion videos are appreciated. When I initially saw your videos I had a hard time wrapping my head around how a high-level system like yours worked. However, after a few days, things started clicking into place and I've started building my own system based on your demos. I've got one quick question regarding something you said in this video: "the client database feeds tasks into the task database". My question is: in your content machine template, the example videos are listed in a 'production pipeline' database. Is there a reason why you've created a new database for your content creation rather than feed video related tasks into the usual action database?

[@augustbradley]

Thanks Tomas, really appreciate the feedback. And great question -- there are a few reasons for the separate content pipeline. But the content pipeline is also feeding tasks into the task database (everything I need to do gets fed into the task DB, more on that below). But why a separate DB/pipeline for content creation? For one, I'm creating a lot of content (videos, podcasts, newsletters, and articles), and that will be increasing even more over time. I want/need a comprehensive archive of everything I create (with links and access) in a database formatted and optimized for this content, not merged with a lot of unrelated tags in the task DB. Also, I want a clear kanban pipeline that shows all the content moving through it, plus a calendar view for both next actions of each content in-progress and a publishing calendar with all past and future publishing dates. But perhaps the biggest reason is that I'm increasingly working with larger teams and more contractors on the content creation -- and the content database needs to be shared and accessible by all involved. One of my biggest issues with Notion right now is that you cannot grant selective access to a database, it's all or nothing. I can't share my entire task DB with contractors (or anyone outside my internal team). So I need a separate DB for content creation. But I actually like how clean this makes the content pipeline. I'm linking the next action for each active item in the content pipeline directly to an action item in my task DB (through a direct DB relation), so the two are directly linked at all times. It takes an extra step to maintain this link, but the enhanced clarity and the greater privacy is well worth it to me. But you're correct that the content pipeline could be done inside the task DB, it's just not as clean (though reduces one step of maintaining the relation link for all content in production). Trade-offs, pros and cons for each approach. Hope this helps!

[@TomasBersier]

Thanks for your reply August. I think you're right, it's better to future proof the system by having the two databases separate as it will make it easier to manage as more and more content gets fed into the production pipeline. Also, hopefully in the future Notion will give us the ability to grant selective access to our databases.

[@1Road2Success]

I am honestly so blown away by this series!! It's unbelievable how good this system is. For someone who's implemented and worked with just about EVERY task management system under the sun, nowhere have I found something that completely ties together a framework so concisely and efficiently as this! I've downloaded all of the templates and now learning as much as I can so that I can get my own system really going! I can't thank you enough for the amazing value you've added to my life August. Thank you so much!

[@augustbradley]

Amazing to hear this Hoss! Thank you so much for sharing this feedback, means a ton to me 🙏. Lots more to come, working on some cool new things for the channel and the community growing around it. Glad you've joined us!

[@user-yu4kv6sq7x]

I second this!

[@alyxparker2131]

Newbie Notion user over here, I just wanted to say a) this is exactly what I've been searching for and notion is looking like a fantastic place to get myself in order and b) thank you so much August for sharing your knowledge so willingly and with such enthusiasm. I feel like I've learnt a years worth of college through your videos and I'm so very grateful that you've shared it.

[@augustbradley]

Thanks Alyx! Awesome to hear this was helpful. Glad you've joined us! Lots more to come.

[@g-ann3527]

Timestamps Index 0:00 Intro 2:44 Alignment Zone Access 2:58 Primary Table Overview 9:04 Project Workspaces and Task Management 16:21 Database Templates 21:12 Closing Thoughts

[@Gminorscale]

I have watched your videos sporadically, but now I'm going through them methodically from the beginning, writing detailed notes to every. Some concepts are still a bit hard to grasp from someone who's not used to this comprehensive life management system, but slowly I can feel my mindset is adjusting and expanding to the workflow that PPV provides me. Thank you for that! I find it tedious, but important, to enter pillars, projects, goal outcomes, etc. when entering a quick task in the Action Zone. I don't know if you will mention in your laters videos, but I found it super easy to create a template for each project. That way I can just pick the template for "Implementing a life management system in Notion" project and all the pillars, goals and values are automatically assigned. Works like a charm!

[@michaelduncan4233]

Separating internal projects with client projects has been a topic I think too often about. Nice to see that you have come to a logical conclusion! Thank you for the great videos, they are helping tremendously

[@marcschinkel3935]

**Video Summary** 0:00 Intro This video will cover projects, specifically the projects database. Previously the tasks database was covered and tasks are very closely intertwined with projects. This video shows the early stages of projects and task databases and the power Notion relationships between databases Today we will be covering an advanced case showing you how to take a project's database to full potential with much more sophisticated implementation to enhance the performance, management, and capabilities of you + a team. This is part of the Alignment Zone Dashboard. This video gives an overview of how tasks, projects, goals, and pillars all fit into a hierarchy underneath the guiding principles of the alignment zone pillar to pipeline pyramid. This is something you can't get outside of Notion. There are currently no videos on project management databases in Notion anywhere else on the internet, so this is an important one to cover in detail. 02:40 Alignment Zone Access This is where you interact with everything above the task level (accesses through the Action Zone). Projects - pillars and guiding principles. 3:01 Primary Table Overview The project's database is interacted with under a toggle in the execution pipeline segment of the page. The view is filtered to show all projects that are not completed. The view is sorted first by status: In progress On hold Next up Future Someday/Maybe Then sorted by quarter. The purpose of these fields as a database is to enable quarterly reviews inside them. Of the active projects, there are priority ratings assigned. There is a progress bar that is assigned a formula for a subjective score out of 20 because in many cases it's hard to track the exact amount of progress made on a project. This is useful for the weekly reviews so you have at a glance a sense of what the progress is on each. Every project is assigned at least one goal outcome. This is important to ensure that each project is in service of one of the top-level goal outcomes designated. The next video will cover the goal outcomes database and the recent alignment zone video gave an overview of how it works. Every project is assigned a pillar as well The video covering the pillars database will be covered after the goals databases. Every active project must have at least one action item assigned otherwise it's stuck. These projects are Augusts' internal projects, either for his company, life, family, etc. to his company and team. These are not client projects; those are stored separately in the client database. The tasks in the tasks database are shared between the client projects and internal projects He considers each client a project unto itself and in the client database, each entry is a workspace for that client. There are sub workspaces within that that are shared and collaborated on with the client. Keeping the projects internal makes them much more manageable as opposed to having an unruly list. 9:00 Project Workspaces and Task Management Each of these entries is the primary workspace for that project. 9:17 Example to find and hire a video editor Status Quarter Priority Review date Must always have one for any active projects Important because when you do your weekly/monthly reviews you will review the projects You are expecting to have significant progress by this date and if you don't then it's a red flag. When you look at a date that has passed during a review you give it more attention and scrutiny. Action Items Every time a task is created in the tasks database you tag a project it's related to (create a relation to it) Goal Outcomes Pillars Etc. 11:35 Database Templates At the bottom is the template that August has created for all his project workspaces. This is the page area for each entry First, there is a question asking why this project is being done to force reflection. The Pillars, Goal Outcome, and Action items databases are embedded. There is a place for thoughts Tasks to be added can be jotted down here and dragged into the database window The action items are listed and filtered by project sorted by status 14:40 Example for creating a new website project 16:00 Demo Project Go through each tag on the top and enter the tags on the fields The template can then be selected to populate the page with the unfiltered databases To filter simply select the top option for each project. Every time you use the template the filters for each database will be the preset conditions. Utilize the workspace within the project database for each of the project pages as a collaborative/creative aggregation of thoughts and ideas 19:33 To create a database template Select the dropdown menu under New and create a new template. More information can be found on the Notion wiki A database template is different from a page template. There has never been a project management platform that can do all these things this easily with this much flexibility. The next video will cover the goals databases How they align with other aspects of the pillar-pipeline pyramid Just like the projects have workspaces within each project page, each goal outcome has a workspace for working on it across many projects. Finally the extremely important cycle reviews. The goal is to cover tasks, projects, goals, and pillars first so that when we get to the cycle reviews you have seen in detail how all of these workspaces and levels of execution work together and independently. The reviews are all about aligning them and making sure they're all on track.

[@Miliunlocks]

Always be selective with the contents you consume. And this type of content is what I believe will beneficial to my future self. Thank you for this

[@stephentassell3531]

August, your videos just get better and better. You truly understand how to harness the unique power of this incredible new software and take it to the next level. I really like the way that you suggest that all Actions and Projects should have a corresponding Pillar and Pipeline, to ensure that they really deserve a place in the system. Taking this further, all of my Tables now reside in a single System Objects Table, which has relations to Pillars and Pipelines. This way, I can ensure that all the tables in my Notion system are relevant, and I can easily identify and eliminate any redundant tables. I am also setting up a new module to act as a Document Library, for which Notion seems ideal. The Document Library will allow my Home Inventory to link to the Purchase Receipt and Owner's Manual for each entry. Also, I can link relevant documents back to my Notion CRM. This is just the tip of the iceberg for my Documents Library! Yes, Notion does have a comparitively steep learning curve, but it is so worth the modest investment in time to get to grips with the system, as the systems that we can now build totally eclipse virtually any other system currently available today. August, as always, you are totally ahead of the field in your immense understanding of Notion, and even more important, your unique ability to easily distill your considerable knowledge to the masses. Keep up your super-awesome work!

[@augustbradley]

Amazing Stephan, that's exactly right to take these foundations and build further on them for your own needs/preferences. Great work! Thanks a lot for sharing this, keep us informed on your progress. I love hearing about new approaches and innovations.

[@albertbarba]

Hi August! I'm just enjoying these videos as I've never done before. I'm putting tons of order in my life. My question is: "What happens when you are creating your own Project as an entrepeneur? Should I call this new project as a CLIENT, so I can arrange different projects into it?" Thanks, August. These series are blowing my mind.

[@arturkot1343]

This is the ultimate productivity, self improvement & organization tool! August, you're an absolute boss - thank you so much!!!

[@MartinSchabbauer]

This video, the enthusiasm with which it is made and the professionalism leaves me .... grateful

[@augustbradley]

I do get excited when talking about the Notion system here 😃. Thanks Martin. greatly appreciate al your support.

[@sidney6775]

I've started implementing this and ecited will update you thank you so much for this I LOVE the PROJECT TEMPLATE

[@philippmerk5980]

This is the most practical mentoring ive ever experienced.

[@paoloap.]

What have been shared so far is already much more than an operating system (although hands down the best I’ve seen) or an application of system thinking, you resonate with knowledge and transparency, please, keep it on

[@augustbradley]

Thank you so much Paolo! I massively appreciate this. Much more to come.

[@epictrundling4639]

Each of your videos, usually within a minute, refers to a previous video which always sounds more apropos than the current one! I'm new to notion and simply want to get started without wasting time...

[@augustbradley]

You can always just start at the beginning of the playlist and watch it Netflix-style. 🙂

[@Jammin1288]

I need to watch your videos two or three times to fully understand but I know replication of the model you have built is essential for my life!

[@augustbradley]

H Jasmin, there is a lot of info packed densely in the videos, nothing wrong with reviewing more than once. Thanks!

[@karleneellsworth4003]

Wow what a great system! The top down, bottom up interconnections are spot on. Your system ensures success better than any I've ever seen, no matter the cost. And it incorporates our Life too. I'm sure this could only be done because of Notion's capabilities. Thank you for all you're doing with these videos. I anticipate each episode. Regards, Karlene Ellsworth

[@augustbradley]

Thanks Karlene, you summarized the system better than I could! That sums up what I'm trying to show here 😄 Awesome to hear that you find it valuable.

[@u2t8i]

Words can't describe how grateful I am to have found this series! Literally game-changing! Thank you so much!

[@JeeteshNariya]

Your series save me lots of time, I saw a lot of videos related to the notion, but your series clear my mind and it's very valuable content. Thank you for creating this series.

[@augustbradley]

Thanks Jeetesh, awesome to hear they've been helpful to you! Greatly appreciate the feedback.

[@sarahbrown9185]

August, this is BRILLIANT! I especially love the clever way you've set it up here so that new actions can be added in batch right in the project 'workspace,' and immediately get assigned the relevant properties. This saves so much manual entry in the action zone and is just so streamlined and SMART! I know that this is going to help me get off the ground with a lot of projects I've been delaying on, simply because of not wanting to arrange all the moving parts. Frankly, I've been binging your videos for the past few days and feel like I stumbled on a goldmine. Thank you so much for sharing your system...it's quite obviously the evolution of a lot of careful, refined consideration and deep systems thinking perspectives, and it blows my mind with its elegance, power, efficiency, connectivity, and flexibility. I've been learning so much from you, you are the most thoughtful and generous teacher, and I just wanted to express my gratitude for hosting this life-changing content about your system here on KZbin for us all to study, apply, and customize. I'm a self-professed productivity junkie-but this is giving me all-new highs! Yours is the best system I've ever come across, and I mean that. 😍So much admiration. Super happy to be a part of your community here & eagerly following along with each new video!!

[@eladmallel]

August, you are wonderful, thank you! Question please: I am part of a 20+ people startup, and the entire team uses Notion. How do you recommend applying your system such that I can manage my entire personal pyramid, AND collaborate with others on the team? - Does this mean all my personal stuff needs to live inside the company Notion account? - How do I manage permissions properly to feel safe to enter personal stuff into the various databases? Thank you!!

[@augustbradley]

Thanks Elad! There are a few ways to do it, this is part of what my client consulting work figures out for each client --- the different approaches vary depending on the situation, not a one size fits all solution. We could do a single consultation and cover several of the options (or look at a full implementation): moretimeperday.com/contact

[@jeanneabatelli7788]

I've told you this before but these videos are GREAT!. Having a complete system that integrates all aspects of life is wonderful. I realized Notion's potential when I started working with it, but your teaching of relational databases brings it to the next level and really releases the power of the system. I do have a question. What are the fields in your quarterly database? My work repeats year after year with very few changes. I was adding to your system by putting in a quarterly field. I know the way you handle it is much better than what I was trying to do.

[@augustbradley]

Thanks Jeanne! I'll be covering the Quarterly database in the second of the two cycle review videos -- the one on Monthly/Quarterly Reviews. Coming very soon!

[@Geelulu_]

Amazing! So incredibly helpful and the first guide I have been able to find on creating a sophisticated business setup in Notion. Thanks again 🎉

[@coachdan007]

Another great video. Thank you for your contribution. Question: I don't see resources built into your templates. I would expect to see a URL field and/or a file attachment field. Where are you keeping project resources? Another question: What to a do with Evergreen projects (Areas in Tiago-speak). Stuff that I am constantly managing but does not have a beginning/middle/end? Thank you, in advance...

[@augustbradley]

Thanks Dan! Great questions. I find those cluttered the database fields and never needed them as actual database fields, I get all the benefit by adding files and URL's in the workspace below the fields on each Project page. The DB fields are valuable for sorting or comparing attributes across projects (in table view for example), but files and URLs never add value in that way. I can better organize them in the workspace lower in the page as I collect research and make notes down there. "Evergreen Projects" aren't "Projects" 🙂 -- not even in Tiago-speak. Actually in rare cases I'm with continual projects, but Tiago's system is not. In my system, it would either be a Value Goal or a Pillar -- Value Goal if it's an aspiration to be achieved, Pillar if it's ongoing and requires maintenance to keep at a high standard. Hope that helps.

[@oeztrkahmet]

August Bradley you are The Perfect Human

[@augustbradley]

Ha! I wish. But not even close🙂. Thank you though.

[@marcgreen007]

August, your content is great!!!!!! One clarifying question about this video: At 13:10 in the video we can see the tasks related to the project "Hire Video Editor". It seems like these tasks should happen more or less in sequence and fairly soon. Why would you not set these up as dependent tasks? I'm trying to understand how you decide when to set up tasks in sequence (as dependent tasks) and when you arrange their sequence using the Status field. Thanks in advance!

[@augustbradley]

Since there are all part of a project, I want to manage them there with the clear overview from the project workspace. The alternate status settings are another type of dependent tasks, and give more visibility for project management. But the other approach is ok too, go with what feels most intuitive for you, though try the Project management approach a few times (I find it's also faster to setup and manage).

[@glamourclub]

The review date is another great concept! Woww!!!! This is another layer to makes sure that nothing falls through the crack! ✨🤯🧐✨ I think I’m understanding what project database means now. When u create a task, you assign a project to it to automatically list all the action items in relation to the project. Hence you create a relationship! ✨🤯 This millennial here is so grateful to your videos! Thank you ✨

[@youssefmo]

i'm not really grasping the use of the review date in the projects DB, can you explain it more please?

[@glamourclub]

@@youssefmo sure… as far as i understand, u can think of it as closing a project to make sure that all tasks were completed. It helps you become purposeful. Tasks can easily become a rat race in itself. Without a project database to tie into, you are basically just doing things just because. Hope that helps.:)

[@drosskills]

Hi August, excellent talk on systems thinking yesterday. It's not easy squeezing covering all those topics in 20-30 minutes! Also, looking forward to your videos on the weekly and monthly reviews. Question: Do you harness your main task database for your client operations and production machine, in addition to your personal projects, so that they can all roll up in your daily view? Or do you keep them separate? I, too, have similar needs: clients, in-house/personal projects, and a side project that requires content creation.

[@augustbradley]

Thanks! That was fun doing the live crowdcast. Everything floes into the task database, through only into the task DB (projects, clients, and content are separate from each other). Projects are connected as shown int he videos (relational link and aligned in Pillar-to-Pipeline Pyramid)... Clients could have their own task DB on a per-client bases (for security reasons and to plan/share with clients), but I will add any to-do's I'm responsible for into my own Action Items DB (tasks). I don't usually have a task DB with clients, I have an agenda for each meeting with a bullet point list of "Next Steps" for myself and for the client -- I enter my Next Step bullets into my Action Items DB (can drag/drop them into the DB if there are several). The content pipeline is also feeding tasks into the task database (everything I need to do gets fed into the task DB). But why a separate DB/pipeline for content creation? For one, I'm creating a lot of content (videos, podcasts, newsletters, and articles), and that will be increasing even more over time. I want/need a comprehensive archive of everything I create (with links and access) in a database formatted and optimized for this content, not merged with a lot of unrelated tags in the task DB. Also, I want a clear kanban pipeline that shows all the content moving through it, plus a calendar view for both next actions of each content in-progress and a publishing calendar with all past and future publishing dates. But perhaps the biggest reason is that I'm increasingly working with larger teams and more contractors on the content creation -- and the content database needs to be shared and accessible by all involved. One of my biggest issues with Notion right now is that you cannot grant selective access to a database, it's all or nothing. I can't share my entire task DB with contractors (or anyone outside my internal team). So I need a separate DB for content creation. But I actually like how clean this makes the content pipeline. I'm linking the next action for each active item in the content pipeline directly to an action item in my task DB (through a direct DB relation), so the two are directly linked at all times. It takes an extra step to maintain this link, but the enhanced clarity and the greater privacy is well worth it to me. The content pipeline could be done inside the task DB, it's just not as clean (though reduces one step of maintaining the relation link for all content in production). Trade-offs, pros and cons for each approach. Hope this helps!

[@FutileGrief]

I have a billion things in my plate and your videos bring such clarity into my life. You have improved my life. Do you have a product or something we can support you with? I'm really grateful for you. Thank you.

[@augustbradley]

Thank you! It's almost here: is.gd/notionppv - plus will have a membership group launching in a couple weeks.

[@Mothinx]

Hi August. You said that projects need to have at least one Goal Outcome to move it forward and i'm totally agree with you. Unfortunately for me, i didn't see an example on your projects database with personal/family pillars to understand how your system work for your personal life. As en example, i have a new project called "Grandma anniversary" with a lot of tasks i have to do like "Take vacations" + "Buy ticket plane" + "Found a gift for grandma" + "Call parents for activities ideas". How do you enter this kinds of projects ? Is Goal Outcome could be optional ? Maybe it's not a project for you, but i come from GTD and from now projects = everything with more than one action item. Thank you for all your work, you are so inspirational.

[@klassykreationscompany5848]

Hi Mr. August, thank you for sharing this tutorial. Is there a video on how to build the alignment database similar step by step for the command center ?

[@helderferreira7287]

Hi August. Firstly I just wanna congratulate you for the great content you're producing. Secondly I just wanna ask because I'm a bit confused, why didn't you create a project to your goal outcome of loosing weight ? Since you said, that every goal outcome must have at least one project associated to? One last question, since the goal outcomes are related with projects, why create a database relationship with action items, shouldn't these action items be related only with projects? Thank you.

[@jonathann4813]

this is truly amazing! im at half of these videos right now, sadly i just realized theres only 3 templates of all on your website so im giving up on this ill look for an easier one i guess, loved the videos it helped me get some ideas on how to use notion! cheers from Mexico!

[@aadilkader]

Thanks for the good video, August. Do you ever make sub projects? What if a project is so big or has so many parts that each part could itself be made into a separate project? For example, right now I'm converting all my family's home videos to digital format, and each phase eg. ripping all the dvds to my pc, or clipping or tagging each video could be its own separate, large project. And each video needs the same steps done to them, so there are many ways I could divide this project. I'm curious to know how you handle huge projects like this. Would you list each action for each video as a separate task in one giant mega project? Or would you handle it another way? Thanks again for the excellent series!

[@jordangreen6653]

I'm also interested to hear what August has to say about this. I've found myself making a sub-project field to deal with this same issue. I had the thought that I could tie the project "progress" field to the completion of sub-projects (which tend to be predictable milestones), instead of the arbitrary x/20.

[@aadilkader]

@@jordangreen6653 Yeah, I currently have a "Sub-project", "Super-project" two-column relation, similar to his relations in the action items database with "following" and "next in line". I'm curious to see if he has a more elegant solution. From the video, it seems he tracks each sub-project as a project and doesn't track the overall "super-project". Or perhaps he tracks each super-project as a goal outcome instead

[@augustbradley]

Good thought Yusef, as you and others here have noted there are a few ways to deal with this. One is to create a new layer of sub-project between Project and Task -- but to me, this adds a lot of complexity. I would personally not do that (though nothing wrong with it if it works better for you). In your example, the sub-projects did not sound like projects but rather tasks (or a few tasks). I would just break the big project into a larger number of tasks, but keep them tied to the one Project. I would jump into the Project view/workspace (from this video) and on a regular basis be sorting and prioritizing them -- sequencing them at various levels of "Status" from Active to "Next In Line" to Future. You can run a large project with a larger number of tasks very well from a single Project. To me, this is cleaner and simpler/easier than introducing a new level into the hierarchy. The weekly/monthly reviews will play a big role here too. Hope that helps.

[@mufy2700]

I do have a doubt. How can we manage projects that may last longer than a quarter? How do we assign quarter to such projects?

[@augustbradley]

You do so by assigning active tasks to it, getting those done, reviewing the project in the weekly review and assigning new active tasks to it -- over an over again until it's done, whether it take a week or 9 months or whatever it takes! You're on the right path, just be persistent.

[@onlybryanliu]

Hey man, thank you for posting this video. I was working on a template workflow like this but this fills all the my knowledge gap on so many levels. Thanks for doing this

[@augustbradley]

Great Bryan! Glad it was helpful. So many tricks and techniques in Notion, and then integrating with the whole system. This is a community that works together. Thanks for the feedback!

[@Daniel-D-Teach]

Hey there August! I'm new to Notion but your series is really helping me understand the available options. Thank you so much. Is there some sort of tutorial on the progress formula? Couldn't figure it out

[@isabelmattos8793]

Another great video! Thank you August. I'm curious about what you do with "done" tasks? Do you clean up the actions database from time to time removing the ones that are done? Where do you put them? The "problem" is that when they are moved they loose their relational properties.

[@augustbradley]

I don’t delete “done” tasks. All views of the database that I interact with screen/filter to remove completed tasks from views. The advantage of keeping them is that in the Weekly/Monthly/Quarterly Review database pages, each of those is filtered for the tasks in that cycle -- so nice to have the historical record. But not that important. No need to delete them unless the database gets so big it gets slower, which I have not seen yet (but in general can happen with databases). If that did happen, I would either delete the old completed tasks or move them to a separate "Archive Task Database" to keep the main Task Database more lean. But only if necessary. I Have seen no sign of databases getting large enough to impact Notion system performance.

[@walterterry9970]

@@augustbradleyrelated to Isabel's question and your answer… In each project db page, I have an inline of my Master Tasks Db, filtered by that project so I can see all the tasks related to that project in one place. That's when I hit the snag with the filtering dialog. The first filtering criteria is filter according to Project X. Then I want the next filter criteria to be "AND the Done checkbox is not checked." But when I do that, all subsequent filters force me to use the "AND" when I want the "OR" syntax. It's the damnedest thing and I've yet to find a workaround for it. Is that a Notion bug? Have a good suggestion or two, my friend?

[@isabelmattos8793]

August Bradley : Notion Productivity Thank you for your answer. The reason I want to delete or move “done” tasks is to not come across them when you are looking for a task to relate to another. Then you can’t use any filters and the list is too long. For now I have an archive per project, so I can see what I’ve done for each project.

[@augustbradley]

@@isabelmattos8793 : But you can search by typing out the task you're looking for when setting relationships, and the task list is already so long with active tasks that it's too long to search the recommendations listed anyway. I just pretty much always type the task to find it -- search works well if you can remember the task name. You should have consistent phrasing for your tasks so they are easy to type in the search field.

[@paoloap.]

@@walterterry9970 run into the same, it's frustrating. Hopefully the dev team at Notion will overcome this shortly

[@sailsl8189]

Hey August! Could you guide me how to show the tasks which pertain to a particular project ? For instance, if I have a project named Revamp Excel Processes and it has 16 tasks. How do I show it against the corresponding cell in the table view ?

[@augustbradley]

Sure! Crete an embedded database (what Notion calls a "linked database"), choose your view -- I always start with table view. Then set the filter to only include tasks in that Project (so if you're inside a Project workspace as I show n the video, you set the task database filter to the same project you are already in -- also known as "self referencing"). Hope that helps. If that's not detailed enough, it is all covered here: www.notion.so/Intro-to-databases-fd8cd2d212f74c50954c11086d85997e

[@matthewfinn6965]

@@augustbradley I've been looking for this question/answer for 30 minutes! I'm still newer to notion, so while I love this system setup... i was unsure how to execute on this idea.

[@jackschwimmer7455]

Amazing content August! I just joined a new company and I’m building my system from scratch and you’ve been a great inspiration. Quick question though (related to the OP), how do you add the count of tasks linked to a project within that same table. You show that on this video but can’t seem to figure out how to get the count. I can link the items but not sure how to get the total count of items. Thanks!

[@JohnPawseySPF]

Really loving your videos, thank you! Would it be possible for have the formula for your project progress bar? I would be so grateful. Thank you. John

[@Yeove]

format(slice("▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓", 0, floor(prop("Completed Actions") / prop("Total Actions") * 10)) + format(slice("░░░░░░░░░░", 0, ceil(10 - prop("Completed Actions") / prop("Total Actions") * 10)) + " " + format(round(prop("Completed Actions") / prop("Total Actions") * 100)) + (empty(prop("Completed Actions")) ? "0%" : "%")))

[@jameswebb3470]

@@Yeove You’re the man! Peace and prosperity

[@sasadhrirao8795]

Can i know the formula for the progress in project section?

[@Matt0p0goodman]

If you sign up to his newsletter you'll get access to his templates and you can pick up the code from there.

[@olegshevchenko1821]

@@Matt0p0goodman It seems the link moretimeperday.com/ doesn't work anymore. do you know an updated link to those templates? Or maybe you'd be so kind just to share that formula here? Thank you

[@lucasdellabella1270]

Your system is slowly changing my life August... thank you! What do you do to track endeavors that are done piecemeal, and as needed? For example, right now I have SOME of PPV set up i notion, and I'm slowly adding to it over the course of the year when necessary. I want to track all of the small improvements and expansions, but there's no measurable finish line like "Produce 15 Episodes of Podcast" or "Create Membership" for this kind of project. As I continue to spend time with my system, I continue to see new small tweaks and improvements to me. Would love to hear how you've tackled this!

[@copysquad]

What an incredible series. So much info. I admire your generosity!

[@user-rp9pq2uq9g]

OMG! your videos are changing my whole management system. So much impressive, insightful and practical at the sametime. i think you are the most influential person both in Notion and LOS! Could you give me advice how i can make field of progress like you?

[@SylvainHache]

This just released the hand brake on me taking on more clients. Thanks a million !

[@jakehardy1381]

Hello been watching and going through your videos and I have to say they are great and offer so much information, only thing I’m struggling with is making the progress bar

[@derquickie7608]

Just copy/paste the style of progress bar formula you like from this page: www.notion.so/Progress-Bar-b908b8a1e4804ca5a6ababb313b216bc

[@josiahmsantiago]

Really Curious about the Client Database System you have built. Would love a video breakdown on that.

[@mariakortland-raft1467]

Thank you so much for this series August - I’ve been building my system over the last couple of weeks and I’m already seeing improvements in the way I manage my life. I was wondering if courses should be categorized as a project or a goal outcome if they move you toward one or more of your value goals? Thanks again /Maria

[@karliegaskins1629]

I am beginning to wonder what will I watch for organization after I finish this video series! I’m still very overwhelmed but each video helps clarify ones before it too. There is no alignment zone template correct? Looks like I will be rewatching a few of these videos to get on created. Words are too small on my tablet watching these!

[@augustbradley]

Thanks Karlie - I have a lot of great ideas for videos after the core series has been presented, don't worry about that! An Alignment Zone template would not make sense since it has so many linked databases and relations, none of which would duplicate with the template so you would still have to build it all out. There are limitations to the template duplication function in notion, and many embedded databases and relations are the biggest limitation. Much better to embed your existing databases and format around it. Hope this helps!

[@karliegaskins1629]

@@augustbradley Thanks, just watched it again while figuring more out and helped fine tune! If it was possible, I'd like it again!

[@danienell5248]

Really great how you setup your notion, do you have a video on your client database and how that can be structured? Very curious..

[@augustbradley]

Thanks Danie! I have not done that one yet, but the Client Portal video is planned, it's coming.

[@MarkDMoore-rr1rv]

August- You refer to "Project Workspaces" often enough that I'd like to know, as with "databases," "pages," and "views," what do you consider a "workspace?" Thank you.

[@devonfazekas5691]

I second this.

[@luojunyang2123]

Hi August, thank you so much for these great videos. Your system has helped me a lot in finding clarity and focus in life. I can't wait to see more of your videos! I have two questions: 1) would you put a course as a project or in a separate courses database in the vaults? I can't decide because a course usually has set schedules and clear tasks to follow so fits well with the scope of the project database. But I would also want to archive the notes and contents from a course for later reviews or use as a resource for other projects, not like most completed projects that may never be reviewed. 2) I also have hard time deciding how to organize notes I take during research for a project, or I take while reading a book. Right now I have them embedded in the individual project workspace or book page, since it's the easiest way manage. But some of these notes can also be grouped under a unifying theme/topic/subject, and I sometimes find it useful to review notes from various places for inspiration. I'm curious to know how do you organize notes generated for different projects that may be interrelated? I tried building a master notes database but quickly it becomes overwhelming to keep things organized. Thanks in advance!

[@luojunyang2123]

Sorry I forgot a third question: how do you set up recurring tasks in notion, like weekly and monthly reviews? Right now I have to manually re-create every instance of the recurring tasks, which is prone to error / forgetfulness. Thank you again!

[@augustbradley]

Thanks Luojun, really happy to hear it's all been helpful for you. More coming for sure. To you questions: 1. I would set the course up as a project and run each implementation of it (if you have cohorts) and do a separate project for the sake of tasks to launch and operate each round. But I suggest having the course design and course intellectual development/research in its own workspace separate from the project that will be accessed over longer periods of time. 2. I have a book vault where all my notes from books go, a stand alone database. There will be a video on this in the future. For broad themes or topics that span across different projects, I have an "In-Action Studio" vault (database) for researching and aggregating knowledge on these topics. Easier to enter and retrieve over long periods of time. Video coming on that too. Bottom line is store knowledge in dedicated vaults, not in projects. Use project workspaces just to execute on those individual projects, closing the workspace when the project is completed. Hope that helps!

[@luojunyang2123]

@@augustbradley Thank you! Look forward to your videos!

[@glennpittman1338]

Love this series. Can't wait for the next video. I want to get this system built out as soon as possible. One small-ish question about the Project page template. How did you get the linked Pillars and Goal Outcomes databases to sit in columns to the right of Why This Project and Thoughts? I've tried and tried to drag them over to the far right in the usual Notion way of making columns, and it just will not put them into a column. Thanks for the great videos!

[@augustbradley]

Thanks Glenn! To your question, I dragged the six dots next to each database to the right side of the Why question in the usual Notion way -- I assume we are talking about the same usual way, but this link describes it under "Columns": www.notion.so/Columns-headings-dividers-cfb4afc3f77a4c03b26267ae4754a9f0 Not sure why that wouldn't work. Just tried it again and it worked as expected. Hmmm.

[@youhavetogotheretocomeback]

@@augustbradley @glenn Pittman very strange, I am having the exact same issue. My experience with Notion suggests that the solution outlined will work...but it does not, curious.

[@glennpittman1338]

@CS Right? It's weird. I did find a workaround, though. I made two placeholder text blocks and dragged those over to make the columns. I was then able to drag the Pillars and Goal Outcomes DBs to their appropriate columns under the placeholder blocks. Then deleted the placeholders and the DBs stayed put.

[@youhavetogotheretocomeback]

@@glennpittman1338 Check out the brain on Glenn! Nice one brother, enjoy your weekend

[@glennpittman1338]

@@youhavetogotheretocomeback Haha, thanks, you too!

[@florianbonnet]

So helpful but in my work and in my personal I only do just a few projects. In my case I'm managing teams, playing guitar, and doing stuff in my personal life. In each case, I do tasks that are linked either to my teams, or on some aspects of the guitar etc, but I wouldn't be able to associate each and every task to a project. So, although I'll follow your steps I feel that I won't be able to match your way of structuring your work

[@rocthabloc]

This is great material. However I'm a little confused between this and the Goal Outcomes. You have a project here called "Produce 15 episodes of...". To me that sounds like a Goal Outcome. I need some clarity on what constitutes a project or goal outcome. Traditionally, I always thought of projects as big lofty things, such as "house renovation", "Holiday planning", etc. But it sounds like everything you do is a project. I'm trying to learn this system so any clarity would help. Thank you :)

[@johannesbentzon5186]

August the GOAT. Does anyone have a great setup for the client database and client projects -> client action items?

[@stephens2217]

Hi August, currently implementing the system. I am not fully grasping the review date concept here. Is it referring to the weekly/monthly review or a separate project review? If so, is this a review that happens once or on a recurring basis? Any further info you can provide is appreciated.

[@robbiegal]

Great Content! I stopped all non-vital activities for a week to go over your extended playlist. Totally worth it. Question: I'm in the process of embedding Notion with my team at work. For security reasons, all related work content must be in a unique workspace that cannot be linked to my private Notion. This includes a projects DB & Tasks DB. I can share the pages with my personal account, but I still can't make a link between the work tasks DB and personal tasks DB. How would you handle this situation in order to achieve the goal of having only a single, unified Action Zone?

[@augustbradley]

Thanks Robbie, great to hear you're diving in so fully! That issue of not being able to limit access to databases is one of my top 2 issues with Notion right now. Good news it it will definitely be addressed by Notion, bad new is we don't know when. So until then, there is a solution: leverage dashboards. The Action Zone is a dashboard, so you embed the views of the split databases together. They can be embedded side by side (top/bottom) to be seen in the same screen together. Use toggles to give control over what is opened in combination with other embeds at any given moment. The system shown in this series is designed for individuals, but I do a custom design and install of a team version of this system for business clients if that's of interest to explore, more on that at moretimeperday.com/notion-solutions

[@irasanchez1265]

this is exactly what I've been trying to build, thanks

[@augustbradley]

Awesome Ira! Very happy to hear it was helpful. Onward 🚀

[@matthewfinn6965]

Love this series, but for me this was the most useful video by a long shot!

[@abdullahyahya2471]

I am a bit confused in relation between action tasks and Projects. i.e. when to create a project? What will be the definition of a project. I mean whenever I think of adding a big task in Notion I get confused whether to 1. Add it as a project and then add sub-tasks which sometimes over-complicates stuff. As now you have to handle priorities, and other details in two databases (Projects and Action Database). 2. Break that big task and just add dependent tasks. This can also take a lot of time as you have to add details in each task. 3. Or just quickly add an action item without wasting time. and adding further details in notes/page section. It can be a todo list or whatever. I think this option helps me view all details in one place with one click and I don't have to add details in multiple tasks.

[@augustbradley]

Projects are larger objectives with a clear end tot he effort. Projects are comprised of multiple tasks, so if you can break it up into many tasks than it's a project, If you can do it in one sitting or even one day, make it a task.

[@jarle53]

I have a question on the use of the review date... Do you set up a task in your action database which says: review project X? Or do you always set the review date on the day you do your weekly review?

[@myxomatosisfool]

Hi August - I started using Notion in February and have slowly evolved my system. It still had some drag, and seeing your setup has helped me tweak it to address some of the deficiencies. One thing important to me is to try and keep my 'work' and 'personal' Projects/Action Items separate. I have a 9-to-5 type job and when I'm 'at work' do not want to see my personal tasks. I've built filters for this on some of the main databases. This requires giving all Pillars/Projects a 'type' (similar to what you have), and some rollups to make it easy to address any Action Items that are assigned directly to a Pillar but no Project (errands, one-offs). It's easy enough to set up. Do you handle this some other way or just do not mind mixing 'work' and 'personal' items in the same views?

[@augustbradley]

Good points Chris, my personal and work life are heavily mixed, but it's easy to separate them as you have described. Just add a tag for Action Items and filter various views by Work or Life designations. Works great this way.

[@danielmcdermott5161]

I apologize if you already answered this or it’s not part of your teaching. I am building all of your templates myself. I am new to Notion. Under the Progress column, how do you get the graphic progress bar. I have the percentage formula. Can’t figure out the progress bar. Maybe you could point me in the right direction.

[@augustbradley]

Just copy/paste the style of progress bar formula you like from this page: www.notion.so/Progress-Bar-b908b8a1e4804ca5a6ababb313b216bc

[@danielmcdermott5161]

August Bradley : Notion Productivity Thank you very much. 👍

[@marcosmonteiro6703]

Another fantastic video! Thank you so much August!! Just a quick question, how do you draw from your client project databases the tasks that you need to execute and include them into your private action items keeping your privacy?

[@augustbradley]

Thanks Marcos. The two DBs are not connected, I will enter any To-Do's I have from client meetings directly into my Action Items (task DB). The client DB functions as a client project DB, but the task DB is not connected to it. In meeting agendas/notes with clients I will bullet point next steps, then enter those that apply to me in my personal Task DB. Best we can do until more compartmentalized DB management is possible. But works pretty well, its easy and quick.

[@marcosmonteiro6703]

August Bradley : Notion Productivity Got it! Thanks a lot August 🙏🏻

[@MarvTube]

Hi August, I'm glad to see that your videos are highly detailed in explaining the usefulness of the PPV and how it works to organize your life. However, I rarely get to see the exact processes on how some of these pages and databases are built from the ground up. Sure some of them are explained because they're quite easy to follow and there isn't much complexity, but others that have formulas and hierarchy logic, all are important but not easy to figure out when you're trying to build this system yourself. Will you be releasing videos like that? 🤔

[@rawoof]

15:!1 How did you create the Goal Outcomes Database and Pillars Database embedded that way

[@boujeedagoat8397]

Thank so grateful

[@agathauy2709]

What do you do with year long projects (and with regard to the Quarter column?)? Or big projects that would warrant sub-projects?

[@augustbradley]

Hi Agatha! Long term projects reach across multiple quarters if necessary. Try your best to break big projects down into smaller ones, ideally that can be accomplished in a quarter if possible -- then have the next project in line qued up to follow (but not active or "in progress" until the first is done). And/or add more sequencing levels to the status property for tasks within a project. Hope that helps.

[@DavidSNB]

Hi August, your episodes are so useful for creating a notion workflow. I was wondering how you would handle larger projects in your system, by larger projects I mean projects that could be broken down into sub-projects? (For example a project such as designing a brand might have sub-projects such as the logo, website etc.)

[@augustbradley]

I try to avoid having an additional layer of sub-projects between projects and tasks. Instead, I either make the big top-level thing a Goal Outcome, and/or just have a series of projects with the first in the series "Active" with the rest queued up as "Next Up" and "Future". Make as many status designations as needed to line up the sequence of a larger quantity of Projects, but make them smaller project segments (not sub-projects with the clutter of an additional database). And only have one or a small number active at a time in the sequence for this ultimate outcome. Hope that helps!

[@ipadrian]

Hi August, thank you so much for having set up such a comprehensive system, and investing so much time into helping everybody understand it. I've used notion for about 6 months now, and I've been struggling to come back to it - it is so simple to get overwhelmed by the amount of things that can Notion can do. However, with your system in place, I can see how you'd be able to keep up with the many facets of your life. :) Quick question: I've been trying to replicate the linked Action Zone DB into my current Project Page, and I've realized that the properties (headings) and column width have been re-arranged/ re-sized. While I can deal with it on a single project, I can't imagine doing it for every single new project that I'm to set up. Is there any way for me to maintain the same property order and column width? Thanks a ton!

[@augustbradley]

Thanks Adrian! Awesome to hear this was helpful. Set up a database template in your Projects database, It will replicate the exact view in the template for each new Project. More info on that here: www.notion.so/Database-templates-454ed5ab5bd24226b58d176697bd7e10

[@robflynn1980]

Thanks for the super-useful content - learning a lot. Quick question re templates: is it possible to cascade a change in a template through existing pages built on the previous template version, ie if I add an enhancement to a DB template how do I apply it to existing projects already in the DB?

[@augustbradley]

Nice thought but not possible. However, you can copy the new elements and paste them in any of the older ones you want to add it to. It's just not automatic, but copy/paste is pretty easy. Copy/Paste fo group elements or nodes is very useful across Notion.

[@robflynn1980]

@@augustbradley Thanks for the response - much appreciated!

[@dkilton]

August, another great video! Thank you for such quality content.

[@augustbradley]

Thanks Dean, really glad you like them!

[@benthere8406]

Hey August! First of all thanks a lot for this video series, I have been slowly going through them building a system that fits my life, your video's have been a great help. Just one question, why do you asign pillars at the projects level instead of at the goal outcome level and then have a rollup of them in projects db.

[@hatoruu_]

hey august new question! When you complete a task from the database and the next ones are with an "next" status, do you leave them there until the next week review? Do you have a system to remember to put next tasks as active before needing to check that on the review? Cuz im scared of just losing time with no new task from a project in sight and needing to wait a whole week to adjust this

[@augustbradley]

Typically, when I complete a task associated with a project, I'll jump into the project to see what's up next and make sure one of them is active. I usually do this at the point I check off the task, not just waiting until the weekly review. Though the weekly review is a backup in case I miss it. Hope that helps!

[@wawrzyniece5825]

Hi August, I've already wrote that your series and your system is amazing so today I will only ask one important question (sorry if you've answered or informed about that already - I don't know): are you going to do the video/videos about client's database/workspace? About managing sales operation and gathering all that stuff into one, smart and clear system? Best regards and stay healthy!

[@kevinelms6864]

Great as always, August. I have a few questions. You said that you keep your client projects separate. Is that a separate database just like these projects for all clients? Is there a project database per client? What made you choose that approach vs. just filtering in this view? Thanks. I love your videos. So much so that when my wife sees the notification that your new video dropped, she knows to expect me on my computer that evening. lol

[@augustbradley]

Thanks Kevin! Funny story about the new videos 😀. The client database is not just a duplicate (in format) of the Projects database, it is doing all that and more. If a client is "Active" then essentially whatever we're engaged on together at that time is an "active" project (the entire Client entry in the database is, to me, a big high-priority project if it's active). Then depending on how big the scope of the project is, we could have sub-projects broken out in our shared workspace or even in a sub-table embedded within. But each client activity has a workspace just like in the Projects DB pages, but they are shared with the client so we are both working in it. It has different DB field properties than the Projects DB, and is often more of a dashboard with more sub-pages and shared resource organization. I'll do a future video on it.

[@kevinelms6864]

@@augustbradley I guess that makes sense if your clients are Notion users but if they are guests to Notion, I don't see that as viable for me. Maybe I am missing something. I have clients that I want to give a portal to, but I must assume they would have no interest in becoming a paid Notion user when I get a new client. I am not teaching Notion like you are. Although I wouldn't mind doing that.

[@augustbradley]

@@kevinelms6864 : There is no fee/cost for guests invited to share a page. Notion is super generous in this regard, neither you nor the guest pays -- invite them to as many individual pages (workspaces) as you wish. It's free.

[@jackjackjack1234]

Hey Mr. Bradley! Quick Question! I’m a college student implementing the PPV system and I’m struggling with deciding on where in the hierarchy my classes, their assignments, and their tasks should go. Any insight?

[@augustbradley]

Hi Jackson. Any bit class projects like a major report or thesis would go in Projects. Perhaps it would work well to have each class be a project itself, then you can collect overall info for the class in its project workspace, and can sort/organize tasks and line up individual assignments as tasks (action items) under the class/project structure. That seems to me it would work well, maybe tweak some labeling if need be. Good question!

[@jackjackjack1234]

August Bradley : Notion Productivity Many thanks, that’s the direction I was favoring! Keep this great content coming!

[@devonfazekas5691]

@@augustbradley A little more focus on course management would be amazing. I know you don't personally enroll in courses anymore but a lot of us do. As an example 'course' you could demonstrate how to study all your videos in this series; how to create a dashboard for this course, leverage the Academy Vault and so on. :)

[@Max.Greger]

Dear August. Thank you so much for sharing that with us. For me it is the first time I see something like that and it makes so much sense. So I am recently building up that system with your help! One question however drives me: The main tasks & projects are things that I (!) want to achieve and match with my (!) goals. Regarding my daily job: Would you suggest a separate (much simpler) overview with Projects+Tasks? My client's assignments arise their goals, not mine so IMO I don't need the Pillar system for my client's assignments. right? Thank you!!

[@fotomania79]

Hi August, can you tell me what the "Research Workspaces" field is? What is this field for? Best wishes

[@augustbradley]

Hi Rafal, the "Research Workspace" was later renamed to the "Knowledge Lab" and then renamed again to the "Knowledge Vault". So the later videos on the Knowledge Lab/Vault" cover that in depth!

[@henrytorrescastro6043]

Thank you so much! You’re the best so far!

[@augustbradley]

Thanks Henry, greatly appreciate this feedback!

[@hereisanickname]

August, what do you do with completed projects, already past weeks and other non-more-actual entities? Especially those appearing in linked fields. I found that when I fill a linked field (say project for task), I should select an appropriate entity in a drop-down. That drop-down has at least two drawbacks: 1. it's not sortable and 2. it's not filterable, which means it has non-actual items along with actual ones. Say, I have 25 projects 20 of which are completed. And when I choose one, I see all of them, while I don't need to see completed. I should see only 5 active projects. First suggestion is to implement filtering and sorting for these drop-downs (which is not my question to you :)) and second (which is): do you delete completed projects, archive them to a separate database or just use type-ahead filtering and don't think it's a problem? However, in a year, I guess, it will definitely become a problem for everyone :) (example with project is just an example, same thing applies to all entities which are meaningful only till some date. Say, in a year you will have 53 (unsorted) weeks in 'week' dropdown, 52 of which are just unneeded, and even '

[@augustbradley]

I don't; bother with deleting completed Projects, though that is a reasonable approach if you want to make the effort to clean things up, Though you would lose the historical record in the review cycles. I just search fro the one I want by typing the name in, rather than relying on the suggested options.

[@lukaskaspras7737]

How do you manage the case of subprojects in projects? To give a recent example: I have a project for "finding a new job" in which I aggregate everything related to that process. Now there is one specific application for which I have to complete a short demonstration (say: project) and I would love to have a specific subproject "creating this demonstration" for that which is also related to the base project "finding a new project". How would you handle this kind of situation in which a project would be better off if structured into smaller, detached components? Thanks in advance for your time and best regards!

[@Mothinx]

Hi lukas. Is finding a new job more like a goal outcomes ? Sounds like something mesurable that serve a value goals like "i want to have a job that make sense for me and happy on it". And you have multiple projects to move forward your goal outcome: "Make a demo / Make a website / Make a portofolio / Make my CV etc etc"

[@chrispaika8469]

this is awesome man!

[@augustbradley]

Thanks Christopher! I appreciate the feedback.

[@CasieMillhouse]

You might have seen by your analytics I've watched 75% of your entire content library but this is my first comment. :) I'm finding notion to be an amazing tool for my life and I have never come across an instructor in real life, in a digital course or teacher via tutorials more thorough and action oriented than you. I have been putting my client work inside of my own workspace since they were smaller projects but now I have the need to create workspaces for them so they can work as well. Is there a way to migrate or will you be sharing a way to create client workspaces in the future?

[@johannesbentzon5186]

Does anyone have tips on how to make project management for business and personal use. He mentions the client database and how it’s connected to action items. However, clients are treated as projects themselves. Do they become part of weekly reviews?

[@marawanawad5396]

This is life changer software and concepts, love it August, please keep it up. Q: The double arrow beside the current quarter name (or week or month on other DBs) how are they create? do you change them manually ?

[@augustbradley]

Awesome Marawan, super happy it has been valuable to you. It's just two "less than" signs, from any keyboard

[@stevewebster6271]

Good morning August (or perhaps it afternoon/night where you are) Great videos on setting up Notion which I have followed along with as far as practical in relation to your specific procedure/management system and that required to satisfy my own needs. I'm sure you will agree not one size fits all but your videos are pack with useful info that combined/tweaked can be applied to others requirements. Q - Will you be dealing with file management? I'm sure I'm not alone when I say I get numerous emails containing an even greater number of files I need to reference/use to fulfil my project tasks etc. I'm really struggling how to store these in Notion without what appears to be a very long-winded method of drag and drop then review then rename etc etc etc.. Alternative can you point me in the direction of a useful resource to answer/look at this?

[@augustbradley]

Thanks Steve! Absolutely, customize to your own needs and preferences, that's the power of Notion. For our issue, this could use the Vaults rather than the projectors DB itself (with a relation perhaps). I don't personally store emails, unless it is a very rare informative email or attachment, in which case I'd do it manually (save file, upload attachment into Notion). The problem as I'm sure you know at the moment is the lack of external application integration (API). Until then it would have to be manual. If this is important maybe for now you create a database in Airtable you can have automated file forwarding (from email), using some integrator like the link below. Do it in Airtable for now to have those files organized and stored. Then when Notion gets its API import them over to Notion and continue the method straight into Notion. Just a limitation of the system right now, but we know it will be fixed in time.

[@markscheiner3952]

Thanks again August. Apologies if you covered this and I missed it. When you set up a project template is it possible to include a number of tasks associated with that project that automatically populate into the tasks database with an association to that specific project? For example when you start a new video project there must be 5-10 items that you have to do for everyone of them and it would be very efficient to have those auto generated for each video project.

[@augustbradley]

Great question Mark. The answer is no, but as a work-around you can have a bullet-point list of the tasks you want to add already entered in the template, then after applying the template just drag the bullet point list into the task database table view and they will instantly become tasks in the DB. If the table view has filter settings, all those settings will automatically be applied to the newly drag/dropped tasks.

[@markscheiner3952]

That work around is more than good enough. Thanks August

[@MarcWelterSansGluten]

@@augustbradley Hi August, also if you have items in the DB which have properties defined, when you drag them out of the DB, copy/move that text in a template (either page or button), when dragging it back into the same DB, it will populate the property fields as it was defined initially for these items (i.e. hidden db properties are not removed when dragging items out, but are not accessible until you drag items back into the same database). Not tried yet what happens for the relation properties though... Also, this is an odd hidden feature which might be changed anytime (since it is not described in any official Notion help and support pages)... Thanks for sharing that much insight in your videos!

[@augustbradley]

@@MarcWelterSansGluten The item should keep its properties when dragged out of a db then dragged back in. Not sure about relational links, my bet is no but give it a try to find out.

[@nissenson11]

Thoughts on connecting items in the knowledge vaults to projects they pertain to?

[@thalissacarvalho4109]

Phenomenal!!!