Task Management

This skill manages tasks across the vault, providing intelligent prioritization and task operations.

Files

• Script: 80_Code/scripts/task-manager.py
• Index: 99_Attachments/task-index.json

Task Format

Tasks in this vault use:

• - [ ] Task description — Open task
• - [x] Task description — Completed task
• 📅 YYYY-MM-DD — Due date (anywhere in task text)
• 🔁 every week — Recurring task (day/week/month)
• ✅ YYYY-MM-DD — Completion date (added when done)

See: [[journal-planner]] skill for task architecture (where tasks live, how they flow).

Commands

Generate/Refresh Index

python "80_Code/scripts/task-manager.py"

Auto-skips if fresh (<4h old). Use --force to regenerate.

Get Suggestions (Primary Use)

python "80_Code/scripts/task-manager.py" --suggest

Returns AI-prioritized tasks:

1. URGENT: Overdue tasks
2. TODAY: Due today
3. THIS WEEK: Project tasks due soon
4. QUICK WINS: Small tasks without dates

Query Commands

Command	Description
--overdue	List all overdue tasks
--today	Tasks due today
--week	Tasks due within 7 days
--project "name"	Tasks for specific project/area
--stats	Full statistics breakdown
--check	Check if index needs refresh

Example Queries

# What should I work on?
python3 .../task-manager.py --suggest

# Show 189 Visa tasks
python3 .../task-manager.py --project "189-Visa-Tracker"

# Show job search tasks
python3 .../task-manager.py --project "Job-Search-Tracker"

# What's overdue?
python3 .../task-manager.py --overdue

Key Project Trackers

Tracker	File	Focus
[[189-Visa-Tracker]]	10_Projects/	移民材料、CO 应对、获批 checklist
[[Job-Search-Tracker]]	10_Projects/	求职申请、面试准备、目标公司
[[YouTube Music Channel Plan]]	10_Projects/	视频制作、发布计划

Task Operations (Claude Code Actions)

Complete a Task

When user says "mark X as done" or "complete X":

1. Find the task in the index or search vault
2. Read the source file
3. Replace - [ ] with - [x] for that task
4. Confirm completion to user

# Example: Mark task done
old = "- [ ] Submit PTE score report 📅 2026-01-15"
new = "- [x] Submit PTE score report 📅 2026-01-15"
# Use Edit tool to replace in source file

Reschedule a Task

When user says "move X to next week" or "reschedule X":

1. Find the task
2. Calculate new date
3. Replace old date with new date
4. Confirm change

# Example: Reschedule
old = "- [ ] Review CPD log 📅 2026-01-05"
new = "- [ ] Review CPD log 📅 2026-01-12"

Create a Task

When user says "add task X to Y":

1. Determine target file (project/area note)
2. Find appropriate section (usually under a "Tasks" or "TODO" heading)
3. Append task with optional due date
4. Confirm creation

Bulk Operations

When user wants to review/clean tasks:

1. Run --stats to show overview
2. Offer to show overdue items
3. For each overdue: ask reschedule or complete
4. Update index after changes

Suggestion Logic

The --suggest command prioritizes tasks by:

Priority	Criteria
1. URGENT	Overdue (past due date)
2. TODAY	Due date = today
3. THIS WEEK (Projects)	Project tasks due within 7 days
4. QUICK WINS	Short tasks (<50 chars) without dates

Index Structure

{
  "generated": "ISO timestamp",
  "stats": {
    "total_open": 625,
    "total_completed": 234,
    "overdue": 12,
    "due_today": 3,
    "due_this_week": 28,
    "no_date": 450,
    "by_category": {"project": 45, "area": 120, ...},
    "by_context": {"Career-Development-Plan": 25, ...}
  },
  "tasks": [
    {
      "text": "Submit PTE score report",
      "file": "10_Projects/189 Visa.md",
      "context": "189 Visa",
      "category": "project",
      "completed": false,
      "due": "2026-01-15",
      "urgency": "this_week"
    }
  ]
}

When to Use

User Says	Action
"What should I do today?"	Run --suggest
"What's overdue?"	Run --overdue
"Show me visa tasks"	Run --project "visa"
"Mark X as done"	Find task, edit file, complete it
"Add task to project Y"	Create task in target file
"Reschedule X to Friday"	Update due date in file

Proactive Behaviors

Claude Code should:

• Offer --suggest when user asks "what should I work on?"
• Warn about overdue tasks when reviewing projects
• Suggest due dates for tasks without them
• Offer to complete tasks after user reports finishing something

Obsidian CLI (Fast Task Queries) — with Fallbacks

Try CLI first for instant results. Fall back to Python script or Grep if Obsidian is unavailable.

OBS="bash 80_Code/scripts/obs.sh"

# All open tasks across vault
$OBS tasks todo                                 # full list
$OBS tasks todo total                           # count only
# FALLBACK: Grep for '- \[ \]' across *.md files

# Tasks grouped by file with line numbers
$OBS tasks todo verbose
# FALLBACK: Grep with file grouping

# Tasks in a specific file
$OBS tasks todo "file=Job-Search-Tracker"
# FALLBACK: Grep for '- \[ \]' in that specific file

# Completed tasks
$OBS tasks done total
# FALLBACK: Grep for '- \[x\]' across *.md files

# Tasks from daily note
$OBS tasks todo daily
# FALLBACK: Read today's daily note file, extract tasks

When to use CLI vs Python script:

Need	Tool	Fallback
Quick count of open tasks	CLI tasks todo total	Grep - \[ \] + count
Tasks for one specific file	CLI tasks todo file=X	Grep in that file
All tasks with line numbers	CLI tasks todo verbose	Grep with -n flag
AI-prioritized suggestions	Python --suggest	(always use Python)
Overdue/today/this-week filtering	Python --overdue / --today	(always use Python)
Statistics breakdown	Python --stats	(always use Python)

Related Skills

• journal-planner: Task architecture (where tasks live, task flow from yearly → daily)
• project-builder: Creating new project trackers