I am told that you can enter thousands of words in a note attached to a task in Things. This seems like an esoteric and unconventional bit of trivia, Things being a task management app, not one of the likely candidates for a “second brain.” My pal Brian Bailey knows the exact number:
My to-dos in Things are often prompts to think and write, such as a post, short story, or planning for a new year. That’s when I normally switch to iA Writer. But recently, I started to wonder why. The to-do in Things usually has notes, initial bullet points, or maybe a draft intro. I often find myself switching back and forth between them.
— Brain Bailey, Focused Writing in Things
You’ll have to read the exact number in his post. 😉
Things is one of the apps I had in mind when I wrote about humble shopkeepers of software. It is, nearly two decades on, nearly complete software. I love that.
Would I love to see them go all the way and add notes, applying their characteristically well considered, high standards of function, form, and feel? Absolutely. Would it make it even harder for me to stick with a notes app I’m already using? Absolutely.
Am I a little worried they might slip and mess up something nearly perfect as-is? Also, yes.
I’ve found that there is an ebb and flow to how I use different tools. Sometimes, I want to consolidate to as few as possible, other times I love having one that specializes in each piece of the puzzle, like an outliner. For now, I’m enjoying going to Things for what’s next, then staying there to actually work on it.
Current status: trying to consolidate tools, so I waffle between them less often. I so want to be the person who is happy with only a few applications to do all of their things. Yet, I am, repeatedly, not that person.
Maximalism, I love you, your grass is always plentiful, and the greenest! Maybe uncanny in how lushly, deeply green it is. 🤔