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Things 3

Things 3 is a task manager for Apple devices. TellDone sends the tasks it creates from your notes to Things, and you can bring completions back with a sync.

Pro and up

Things is available on Pro and Ultra. On Free and Basic, its row in Settings > Integrations shows Requires Pro+. It works on your iPhone through Apple Shortcuts and doesn't count toward your server integration limit.

How it works​

When the Things integration is on, TellDone sends your tasks to Things after each note is processed. TellDone remembers which tasks it sent, so a task is never added to Things twice and completions can be matched when you sync.

Setup​

  1. Make sure Things is installed on your iPhone
  2. Go to Settings > Integrations
  3. Turn on Things
  4. The first time, a Shortcut Required dialog appears. Tap Install to add the TellDone Things Sync shortcut. You need it to bring task completions back from Things
  5. In Things, go to Settings > General > Enable Things URLs and copy your auth token. Things asks for this token before it lets other apps change your existing tasks
  6. Back in TellDone, tap Auth Token under the switch, paste the token into Paste auth token, and tap Save

Automatic task export​

After TellDone creates tasks from your note, it sends them to Things. Each task is created with:

  • Title - the task title extracted from your voice note
  • Notes - the task description (if any)
  • Deadline - if a date was detected in your voice note
  • Tags - matched from your TellDone tags
  • Priority - added as a High, Medium, or Low tag
  • Reminder - set as the When date and time

When TellDone is open, tasks go to Things right after your note is processed. If TellDone is closed, the notification says Tap to send to Things 3. Tap it to send them.

Syncing task status back to TellDone​

The Things integration runs only on your iPhone, with no server connection, so TellDone can't tell on its own when you complete a task in Things. To bring completions back, you sync them yourself.

How to sync​

Open TellDone, go to Settings > Integrations, and tap Sync status under the Things switch. The TellDone Things Sync shortcut runs and reads your tasks in Things, then TellDone shows the result when it comes back.

Sync every evening, before your daily report is created at midnight, so tasks you completed in Things show up in it.

Installing the sync shortcut​

TellDone offers the TellDone Things Sync shortcut in the Shortcut Required dialog the first time you turn on Things. The dialog appears only once, even if you turn Things off and on again, so tap Install when you see it.

If the shortcut is missing later, for example because you deleted it, the next sync shows Shortcut Not Found: "The required shortcut was deleted or not installed. Reinstall it to continue syncing." Tap Install to add it again.

Automating the sync​

You can run the sync with a personal automation in the Shortcuts app. iOS may skip automations or ask you to confirm them, especially when your iPhone is locked or in Low Power Mode, so choose a trigger that fires while your iPhone is unlocked, for example when you close Things. If you use a time-based trigger, make sure your iPhone is unlocked at that time. You can also run the TellDone Things Sync shortcut from the Shortcuts app or with Siri. For the most reliable result, tap Sync status yourself.

Why manual sync matters

If you complete tasks in Things but don't sync, TellDone won't know about those completions. Your daily and weekly reports will show those tasks as still open. Apple Reminders and Google Tasks don't have this problem when Auto-sync tasks is on.

Server integrations like Todoist and Notion sync automatically, so they don't have this limitation either.

Using alongside other integrations​

Things works alongside Apple Reminders and server integrations like Todoist. Every task integration you turn on gets the same tasks from your voice notes, so it usually makes sense to pick one main task app.

Good to know​

Things opens on screen when tasks are sent

Things only accepts tasks when it's open, so it appears on screen for a moment, then returns you to TellDone. The same happens when Smart Context completes tasks in Things.

TellDone sends all tasks from one note together, so Things opens once per note, not once per task. If the app switching bothers you, try Todoist instead. It syncs in the background, with no app switching.

Limitations​

  • iPhone only - the web app doesn't send tasks to Things
  • Requires the Things app to be installed
  • Sync direction - tasks go to Things automatically. Completions come back only when you tap Sync status or run the shortcut

See also​

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