Give Reclaim focus blocks a relevant task list

An empty afternoon and a long backlog still leave a decision to make: which work belongs in that time? Start with a small group of tasks that share a purpose.

Reclaim 2.0 keeps a task list; individual tasks do not automatically become calendar events.[3]

This guide follows current documentation, checked on 29 October; we have not operated the product. The newsletter example is invented.

Prepare the account

Confirm version 2.0 in User Profile. Connect your primary Google or Outlook calendar at signup, then review Settings → Hours. Existing 1.0 users can upgrade through the Planner banner or contact support.[1]

The free Lite plan includes Focus Time and a one-week scheduling range. Keep this first exercise within that window.[4]

Protect time and choose work

From Agents, choose +Add → Focus Time. Set a weekly goal, daily limits, minimum block length and permitted scheduling hours.[2]

For an illustrative newsletter project, try two hours this week with blocks of at least 30 minutes. A half-hour block should hold a task you can meaningfully advance; if selecting photographs needs uninterrupted concentration, account for that when choosing your minimum.

Choose +Create → Task. Add a name, duration, priority and due date.[3]

Create “Newsletter: check event dates” and “Newsletter: select photographs”, with your own time estimates. Add “Repair bicycle tyre” as an unrelated item. The shared word gives the project a simple, visible boundary.

Assign Tasks through the Focus Time Agent or its event. Filter by Source, Keyword and Due date; Reclaim saves the search for subsequent Focus blocks.[3]

Select Reclaim as Source and Newsletter as Keyword. Both newsletter tasks should appear; the bicycle task should not.[3]

Review the proposed calendar impact in Preview Mode before applying changes. Flexible Focus blocks can move around other commitments; manually moving an occurrence locks it in place.[2]

Check the finished setup

After applying the plan, open a saved Focus block and inspect its task list. The calendar should give you usable time, while the list gives you a sensible starting point. In the example, checking event dates before selecting photographs may be useful if the picture choices depend on which events are confirmed.

Start Task runs a timer. On stopping, adjust the duration, mark completion if appropriate and review calendar changes.[3]

Finish by comparing the time you estimated with the time the job needed. If checking dates took longer because you were waiting for replies, distinguish that waiting from the minutes spent working. That gives the next planning session a more useful estimate.

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