Hello Trello!

I was a skeptic.

When I started working at Stack Exchange, I had to adapt to a new workflow. They had certain things they did in a certain way; that's something that is to be expected. There are ways certain things are expected to work, and you are going to conform to them so things run smoothly among your team.

They used a lot of tools, largely unfamiliar to me. And as with any new job, it took time to "ramp up" and become familiar with the tools.

One of the tools, Trello, was created by our sister company, Fog Creek Software. I didn't quite get it at first. I'm not even sure I quite get it now...but over time I became a believer.

How can I describe Trello? Trello is like...lists of lists. A veritable listception. If you have a project that can be tracked or organized using cards which can in turn be organized into topics, Trello is the ultimate organizational tool for you. It's a new way of organizing just about anything using the Trello web page.

Maybe you're an author working on a book. You can create a Trello board, and on that board create a list called "Agents to query." Then create a card in that list for each agent you send your manuscript to. Suppose one of these agents is named Likable Literary Agency, Inc; you click the card and for the description you add the address of the agent.

 Create another list called "Manuscripts sent." Click the Likable Literary Agency, Inc. card again and enter as a comment the date which you sent your manuscript and the contact you sent it to. Then drag the card from Agents to Query to the Manuscripts Sent list.

After a few months, you can create a list called "Rejections", and drag the card to that list! And move on to the next card on your "Agents to query" list!

Being relatively new in the city, I am always getting a little lost. I created a board I titled "Locations." In it, I created lists by subject; banks, clothes, books, etc. Then under each list, as I found a location of interest, I would note it in my Trello. My bank has a card; in the comments, I added the address of each ATM. In another card I added an address of a Barnes and Noble to the comments along with a note telling me the nearest subway stations and what trains stop there. For a clothing store, along with notes on the address and station, I uploaded a screenshot of a Google map so I could get some reference of the nearby streets.

The Trello team released a very usable iPhone app; the only complaint I've had is that it relies on a connection to the Internet to update at the time you use it, so when I'm in the subway I can't read my notes. Once I pop above ground, though, I can open Trello, pop into my Locations board, and refer to my directions.

I also use Trello as a to-do list; I track my tasks at work, organized by what I'm currently doing, what I need to do, what I periodically needs to check, and what I've finished for the week. When it comes time to work on the weekly report, I can pull up my finished tasks and jot them down on the report. Better yet, there are times when I've needed to refer to past items I've finished and my Trello lists tell me what I completed and when, along with my notes.

What started as a single list blossomed into several. "This website looks interesting, but I don't have time to look at it right now..." Blam! New list.

"This might be an interesting blog topic..." Blam! New list.

Organization was almost addictive with Trello.

I know someone who uses Trello as a shopping list; he created a board and invited his wife as a user, so they can both add to the board and edit things as needed.

I even liked it when Taco the Dog made an appearance on the board to make announcements; I remember "feeding Taco" treats in the form of inviting new users to Trello. IT WAS JUST FUN.

I really haven't pushed Trello to the limits. You can invite multiple users and collaborate on projects; assign them cards or tasks, assign due dates, create lists on the card (wherein it will give you a kind of percentage complete as you check items off), and upload files to cards. You can track research papers or writing projects or constructions projects.

Anything that needs organization, especially if you need to collaborate, can benefit from using Trello.

Here's the kicker. It's free.

There's really no risk to trying it out. You can create a board and set the permission to be as strict as you want; invite others to collaborate, or keep it private while you experiment with it yourself. Or do what I do and create boards for yourself and others that collaborate with someone.

Seriously. If you need to organize a projects...or your life...or collaborate on a project with other people...try Trello. Click the link. It won't hurt. I promise.

...now if you'll excuse me, I have to remove the Trello card from my list of possible blog topics...