Finalist Manual

Introduction: From Paper to Pixels

Hello friend!

Remember the satisfying feeling of opening a fresh planner to today's page? That moment of clarity when you see your day laid out before you, ready to be filled with purpose? Finalist brings that same focus and intentionality to your digital life.

A personal journey from task anxiety to calm productivity

I designed and launched Finalist in 2023 after many years of reading and studying productivity, and it has completely changed how I approach my day-to-day planning. I struggled with task anxiety: that overwhelming feeling when your to-do list seems to stretch endlessly into the future, rooted in tasks overdue from months ago, every unchecked box feeling like a small failure.

Finalist was born from a simple realization: paper notes offer a stress-free way of planning. There's no rigid framework, just the day when the task needs to be done. This analog inspiration became the foundation for an app that gives you the mental space to plan and get ahead of the daily grind, without the anxiety. Finalist will not automatically pile on unfinished tasks onto your tomorrow as the clock strikes midnight. You decide what gets punted forward, and what stays behind.

The philosophy of daily planning: One day at a time

Productivity isn't about managing endless lists; it's about getting some stuff done. When you focus on just 24 hours, overwhelming projects become manageable steps, and distant goals transform into daily actions. Each day shows only tasks that you need to worry about that day, with a few thoughtful exceptions.

How Finalist brings the simplicity of paper planners to your devices

Like a well-designed paper planner, Finalist shows you one day at a time by default. No infinite scrolling, no overwhelming month views. Just today's page, ready for your attention. Swipe to tomorrow when you're ready, just like turning a page. This basic setup ensures that you'll keep task anxiety at bay.

Why focusing on today matters for productivity

When you limit your view to today, something magical happens: you stop feeling overwhelmed by yesterday's misses and next week's deadlines and start taking action on what matters now. This constraint breeds creativity and focus. It's why paper planners work and why Finalist works too.

Since making Finalist my daily driver, I've seen remarkable progress in all areas of my life: more quality time with my family, more travel, better hobbies, and more professional success with focused and effective work projects. Anniversaries and birthdays no longer sneak up on me. It has truly changed how I approach my days, and I hope it can do the same for you.

Part 1: Getting Started - Opening Your Digital Planner

Chapter 1: Your Daily Page

Understanding the Daily Tab (your digital "day page")

When you open Finalist, you're greeted with today. Just today. This is your canvas, your daily page where plans become reality. This clean view helps you focus on what's actually possible today.

Daily tab pulls together everything you need on that one page: day's calendar events (yours or shared), reminders and tasks due today, weather forecast, habits you want to keep up, and even a snippet of today's journal entry on the top to help set the mood/theme for the day.

Navigating between days (flipping pages)

Swipe left to see tomorrow, swipe right to revisit yesterday. It's as intuitive as flipping pages in a physical planner. Each day stands alone, complete and contained. As we'll note later on, Today page is a bit special with some super-powers: it can hide expired tasks and events and show any important pinned lists from the Lists tab that you need to keep top of mind. This is great to keep on top of longer running projects.

Today button: Returning to the present

Lost in future planning? Daily tab turns into Today button. Just tap it to snap back to now. It's your anchor, always one tap away from bringing you back to what matters most: today.

Timeline tab: your hourly grid

Switch to Timeline view to see your day as time blocks. Like a daily schedule in a paper planner, this hourly grid shows when things happen, not just what needs doing. You can reschedule calendar events and reminders by dragging them around.

Monthly sheet: tap on Date to see upcoming days and weeks

Need context? Tap the date at the top to peek at your month. Like lifting a corner of next month's pages, you can preview what's coming without losing focus on today. To skip to a distant date in the planner, just tap on it.

Types of tasks

Simple tasks (with Headings): Your basic to-dos, organized under headings like sections in a notebook. You can edit any simple task to turn it into a Heading to help organize your days and lists. These are stored in Finalist alone, but synced to your other devices via iCloud.
Reminders: Time-sensitive items that need alerts. These are also available in your Reminders app, and can be freely managed outside of Finalist. This includes shared reminder lists.
Events: Calendar appointments that structure your day. They also live in your Calendar app, and again can be managed from there. Again, this includes shared calendars as well.
Habits: Daily practices you're building, tracked separately. Like simple tasks, these are only available inside Finalist.

How and when to use them

Use simple tasks for most things. They're flexible and fast. They can be timed, and will show notifications when due if you've given Finalist that permission.

Add reminders when you need a more robust notification, as system Reminders will also appear on your devices that do not have Finalist installed.

Events are your calendar commitments. You can view all your calendars, including subscribed and shared calendars. Toggle which calendars you see in Calendars configurator under the app menu.

Track habits separately to build consistency without cluttering your task list. They repeat and track your completions and streaks, to help you understand how well you're doing.

Journal

Capture thoughts in your journal throughout the day. Like the notes section of a paper planner, it's space for reflection, ideas and ruminations. In the morning, add a quick line of what you hope to accomplish today. You will see this thought during the day atop your Daily tab to help you stay focused.

Chapter 2: Writing Your Tasks

Adding tasks: Like jotting notes on your daily page

Creating a task should feel as natural as writing with a pen. No complex forms, no required fields. Just write what needs doing.

Quick entry

Tap below tasks to start writing: See that blank line below your tasks? Tap it and start typing. Your task appears instantly.
Use Plus button for more control: Need to add details, set a specific time, or assign to a list? The Plus button opens more options. If you're not using Liquid Glass theme you will not see this button but can get the same options by tapping on the empty space below the blank line.

Voice transcription: Speaking your thoughts

Sometimes the best ideas come when your hands are full. Tap the Wand menu then the Microphone button from the top menu to speak your tasks. It's like having someone take dictation while you think out loud. Finalist will tease out actual actionable tasks (or grocery items!) and add them to your day. Available on iOS 26 on devices that support Apple Intelligence.

Chapter 3: Time Blocking Your Day

Setting task times: Creating your daily schedule

Time blocking transforms wishes into plans. When you assign times to tasks, you're making a commitment to yourself about how you'll spend your hours.

Natural language for setting time

Type "Call Sarah at 2pm" or "Workout 7am" right in your task. Finalist understands and schedules automatically. No date pickers, no forms. Simply write like you think.

Day segments: Morning, afternoon, evening organization

Toggle on day segments to group tasks by time of day. It's like having pre-drawn sections in your planner: for example, evening tasks will then stay grouped together and you will get an idea what the weather will be like later in the day.

The art of punting: Flexibility without failure

Here's where Finalist shines in reducing task anxiety: if a task isn't likely to get done today, swipe right and punt it to tomorrow. This isn't procrastination, it's aggressive planning. You can drag and drop tasks between morning, afternoon, and evening sections, or drop them onto another day entirely. This flexibility means you're always working with reality, not fighting against it.

Part 2: Organizing Your Planner

Chapter 4: Lists and Categories

Creating lists: Your planner's divider tabs

Lists in Finalist work like labeled sections in a binder. Create lists for projects, areas of life, or any way you naturally organize. "Work," "Personal," "Someday", whatever makes sense for your life.

Moving tasks between lists

Drag tasks between lists as priorities shift. That "someday" idea that became urgent? Slide it to your active project list. It's as easy as moving a sticky note. On iPhone just tap on the item to change the list it belongs to.

Reminder Lists

You can also add any private or shared Reminder Lists to Lists tab. This allows you to treat your Reminder Lists like any other list in Finalist.

Pinning lists to Today

Pin your most important lists to appear in your Today view. Like keeping certain sections of your planner always visible, pinned lists ensure key projects stay top of mind. Any undone tasks will appear right inside your Daily tab, but only for today. It's great for time-sensitive yet longer-running lists: packing for a move, visiting coffee shops in a new city, or working through project tasks.

Lists with simple math

Lists can also do simple math: if you enter a few items with price or quantity at the beginning or the end of the text, you will see their tally below. Perfect for:

Shopping lists with prices ("Milk $4.99")
Project hours tracking ("Design mockups 12")
Expense tracking ("Lunch meeting $45")

Tags: Color-coding your Simple Tasks

Add color-coded tags for quick visual scanning. You can see all your tagged tasks across days and lists in Lists tab, under Tagged. Create your own color language with Tags sheet in the main app menu.

Chapter 5: Habits - Your Daily Tracker

Creating and managing habits

Design your habit tracker with activities that matter: "Meditate," "Exercise," "Read.". Check off habits as you complete them. You can postpone a habit to tomorrow by swiping right on it, like any other task, and Finalist will keep your streak alive. But if you're pretty sure you need to skip it today just swipe left.

Heatmap visualization: Progress visualized

Watch your consistency patterns emerge in the heatmap by tapping on your habit to open its sheet. It's your progress in one powerful visual. Tapping on the Grid button lets you toggle between a calendar view, and a GitHub-style heatmap.

Your current streak and best streak numbers are shown on the same sheet. These numbers tell the story of your commitment, encouraging you to keep going or get back on track.

Part 3: Advanced Features - Beyond Paper

Chapter 6: Widgets and Activities

Live Activities for Dynamic Island

In Settings you can enable Live Activities: it will allow your next timed task to appear in the Dynamic Island, counting down in real-time. Tap to mark complete without opening the app. This will also

Widgets: Dashboard views of your day

Add Finalist widgets to your home screen for at-a-glance planning. Like keeping your planner open on your desk, widgets show today's progress without opening the app. What's even better, the widget is fully interactive so you can see how tomorrow or the rest of the week stacks up.

Weather integration: Planning with conditions in mind

See hourly weather in Timeline view. Planning a run? Check the forecast. Scheduling outdoor work? Avoid the rain. Weather context helps you plan realistically.

Catch-up mode: Handling overdue tasks

The count of yesterday's unfinished tasks appears at the top of today, clearly marked. Like sticky notes moved forward, you decide: do them now, reschedule, or let them go.

Chapter 7: Cross-Device Synchronization

CloudKit sync: Your planner everywhere

Your tasks sync instantly across all your Apple devices. Add a task on your iPhone during commute, see it on your Mac at work. Reminders and calendars are synced on-device and to your Apple account.

Platform differences: iPhone, iPad, Mac, Vision Pro

Each device shows Finalist optimized for its screen. iPhone for quick capture, iPad for planning sessions, Mac for focused work, Vision Pro for immersive planning.

Chapter 8: Integration and Automation

Calendar sync: Unifying all your commitments

See all your calendars in Finalist. Work meetings, personal appointments, shared calendars—everything appears in your daily view. Toggle calendars on or off as needed.

Shortcuts: Automating routine entries

Create shortcuts for repetitive tasks. "Add daily standup," "Plan workout," "Weekly review"—automate the routine so you can focus on the unique.

Share extension: Adding tasks from anywhere

Reading an article? Share it to Finalist as a task. See an event? Send it to your planner. The share sheet makes Finalist your universal capture tool.

Part 4: Daily Planning Workflows

Chapter 9: Morning Planning Routine

Reviewing yesterday's uncompleted tasks

Start each day by facing yesterday with grace, not guilt. What didn't get done? Catch-up mode shows these tasks clearly, but here's the key: this isn't a failure report. More of a reality check. Each uncompleted task is simply information about your capacity and priorities. Reschedule what matters, delete what doesn't, and most importantly, forgive yourself. This mindful reflection keeps task anxiety at bay and encourages honest planning.

Sometimes it's better to leave unfinished tasks in the past, and make it a habit to review your past week and see what didn't get done. The Planner tab lets you quickly see the state of your unfinished plans.

Setting up today's priorities

Before the day takes over, decide what matters most. Drag your top three tasks to the morning. These are your non-negotiables, your definition of a successful day.

Time blocking your calendar

Look at your fixed commitments (meetings, appointments) then block time for important tasks. "Deep work 9am-11am," "Email at 2pm." Claim your time before others do.

Checking habit progress

Quick scan of your habit tracker. What streak are you protecting? What habit needs attention today? A moment of intention prevents a week of regret.

Read Summary: Screen-free way to start your day

Use Read Summary to read your day aloud while you get ready. Finalist speaks your tasks, letting you plan while moving. You'll find Read Summary under App menu.

Chapter 10: Throughout the Day

Marking tasks complete: Checking off your list

The satisfaction of completion—tap to check off tasks as you finish. Watch your progress build throughout the day. Each checkmark is a small victory.

Rescheduling: Moving tasks to tomorrow

Be realistic. Can't finish something today? This is where the punting philosophy shines. Simply swipe right and punt it to tomorrow, or even out of your timeline and into a list. This isn't giving up, it's staying flexible and honest about what's actually achievable. Better to plan honestly than pretend you'll do everything. Remember: every task you punt is a conscious choice about your priorities, not a personal failure. This approach keeps you working with your natural rhythms instead of against them.

Quick capture: Adding new tasks as they arise

New task? Don't let it float in your mind. Quick tap, add it to today or future date, then back to focus. Your planner is your external brain.

Using Live Activities for focus

Let Dynamic Island show your current time block. It's gentle pressure—seeing "Deep work ends in 23 min" keeps you focused without constant app checking.

Chapter 11: Evening Review

Completing final tasks

Last push: scan today's remaining tasks. Quick wins you can finish? Do them now. The satisfaction of a fully checked day is worth five more minutes.

Planning tomorrow

While today is fresh, set up tomorrow. Move unfinished tasks, add new ones while you remember. Your future self will thank you for this gift of clarity.

Updating habit tracking

Final habit check, did you miss any? Still time to meditate for 5 minutes or read a few pages. Protect your streaks with this evening sweep.

Weekly preview

Sunday evening, peek at the week ahead. Any big deadlines? Busy days that need prep? Light days perfect for deep work? A few minutes of preview prevents a week of surprises.

Part 5: Tips and Best Practices

Chapter 12: Effective Task Management

Writing actionable tasks

"Email" isn't a task, it's a category. "Reply to Sarah about project timeline" is a task. Be specific. Your future stressed self needs clear instructions, not vague reminders.

Breaking down large projects

"Launch new website" is a goal, not a task. Break it down: "Draft homepage copy," "Review design mockups," "Test contact form." Small tasks create momentum. If you end up with more than a few tasks maybe make a list of them. Then pin that list, so that each day you're reminded what's still left undone.

Master lists for repeating scenarios

Create template lists for situations that repeat. Keep the originals in Lists, then use "Copy to Today" when needed:

Travel packing: "Passport," "Chargers," "Medications," "Check flight status"
Exercise routines: "Warm up 5 min," "Squats 3x10," "Planks 2x60s," "Cool down"
Tax prep checklist: "Gather W-2s," "Download bank statements," "Schedule CPA meeting"
New city exploration: "Coffee shops to try," "Museums to visit," "Restaurants recommended"

These lists become your personal productivity templates, ready whenever life repeats itself.

Using tags strategically

Create a simple tag system. Maybe "quick" for under-5-minute tasks, "deep" for focused work, "waiting" for blocked items. Don't over-engineer, 5-7 tags is fine.

Conclusion: Your Journey with Daily Planning

Embracing the one-day-at-a-time philosophy

Learn to focus on today while keeping tomorrow in soft focus. This isn't about ignoring the future; it's about taking concrete action in the present. Each well-planned day builds into a well-lived life.

Growing with your digital planner

Your planning practice will evolve. Maybe you'll start with simple task lists, then discover time blocking transforms your productivity. Perhaps habit tracking becomes your favorite feature. Let your system grow with you. You do not need to use every feature, just the ones that work for you.

Community and support resources

Remember, you're not alone in this journey. Join other Finalist users who've discovered that the secret to managing everything is to manage today. Share what works, learn from others, and celebrate the small daily wins that add up to big life changes. Our Discord (linked from the website) has hundreds of people using Finalist in all sorts of ways.

A personal message from Developer

I created Finalist not just as an app, but as a companion to help me stay on task. I have been using it for years, and I'm not alone: some of the original pre-release testers are still in the app today.

I hope Finalist brings you the same sense of calm productivity it's brought me. Here's to winning today, one task at a time.

Wishing you well,

Slaven
Vancouver, Canada