Getting Started with RightNow: Your First Day

Welcome! This guide will walk you through your first day with RightNow, helping you set up a sustainable productivity system that actually works. Let’s dive in!

First Launch: Setting Your Daily Capacity

When you first open RightNow, you’ll see a capacity bar at the top of the Today screen. This is the heart of the app - your daily time budget.

graph LR
    A[Open App] --> B[See Capacity Bar]
    B --> C[Tap to Edit]
    C --> D[Set Your Hours]
    D --> E[Start Planning!]

How to Set Your Capacity

Tap the capacity bar at the top of the screen
Enter your available hours (we recommend starting with 6 hours)
Hit save - you’re ready to go!

💡 Pro Tip: Be realistic! If you have 8 hours at work, you probably have 5-6 hours of actual productive time after meetings, breaks, and interruptions.

Creating Your First Tasks

Now let’s add some tasks. RightNow makes this super simple:

Tap the task creation bar at the bottom
Type your task (e.g., “Review project proposal”)
Set a duration using the quick buttons (15m, 30m, 45m, 1h)
Hit enter - your task is created!

graph TD
    A[Task Creation Bar] --> B[Type Task Name]
    B --> C{Choose Duration}
    C -->|Quick| D[15/30/45/60 min buttons]
    C -->|Custom| E[Type any duration]
    D --> F[Task Added to Backlog]
    E --> F

Understanding the Three Screens

RightNow has three main areas:

📅 Today Screen

Your command center for the current day:

Shows only tasks scheduled for today
Displays your capacity usage
Allows drag-and-drop reordering
Features the time tracking controls

📋 All Tasks Screen

Your complete task backlog:

Shows all unscheduled tasks
Allows bulk scheduling to today
Supports advanced filtering and search
Perfect for weekly planning sessions

⚙️ Settings Screen

Customize your experience:

Adjust daily capacity
Manage tags and filters
View analytics
Configure app preferences

Your First Workflow

Here’s a simple workflow to get you started:

Morning Planning (5 minutes)

Open RightNow
Review what’s already scheduled for today
Check your capacity bar
Add 2-3 important tasks from All Tasks
Start your first task!

graph TD
    A[Morning] --> B[Check Today Screen]
    B --> C{Capacity Available?}
    C -->|Yes| D[Add Tasks from Backlog]
    C -->|No| E[Review & Prioritize]
    D --> F[Start Working]
    E --> F

During the Day

Start tracking when you begin a task (tap the play button)
Stop tracking when you finish or take a break
Complete tasks with a satisfying swipe
Reschedule if plans change

End of Day Review (3 minutes)

Complete or reschedule remaining tasks
Celebrate what you accomplished!
Quick look at tomorrow’s capacity

Power User Tips

🏷️ Use Tags Effectively

Create tags for contexts (@office, @home)
Tag by project or client
Use tags for energy levels (#deep-work, #quick-wins)

⏰ Time Tracking Best Practices

Always track actual time, not just estimates
Use the timer to build awareness
Let the app learn from your patterns

🎯 The 80% Rule

Only schedule to 80% capacity
Leave buffer for unexpected tasks
Reduces stress and increases completion rate

Common Beginner Mistakes to Avoid

❌ Over-scheduling

Mistake: Filling your entire 8-hour capacity
Fix: Start with 6 hours and adjust based on experience

❌ Vague Task Names

Mistake: “Work on project”
Fix: “Draft introduction section of project proposal”

❌ Ignoring Time Tracking

Mistake: Never using the timer
Fix: Track at least 3 tasks per day to improve estimates

❌ The Everything Bucket

Mistake: Adding every tiny task
Fix: Batch small tasks or use subtasks for micro-items

Your First Week Challenge

Try this progression over your first week:

Day 1: Add 5 tasks, complete 3
Day 2: Use time tracking on 2 tasks
Day 3: Try the task grooming games
Day 4: Create and use 3 tags
Day 5: Review your analytics
Weekend: Plan next week using insights

Troubleshooting

“I keep exceeding my capacity!”

Reduce your daily capacity by 1 hour
Break large tasks into smaller chunks
Be more realistic with estimates

“I never know how long tasks will take”

Start with the app’s suggestions
Always use the timer
Review analytics weekly

“Too many tasks in my backlog!”

Use the grooming games weekly
Archive tasks you won’t do
Focus on this week only

Next Steps

Now that you’re up and running:

Explore task grooming - Make it a Friday ritual
Check analytics - Learn from your patterns
Customize settings - Make it yours
Share feedback - We’re building this together!

Welcome to a more realistic, sustainable way of working. Welcome to RightNow!

📱 Get Started:

*Previous: Development Journey & Changelog ←

Next: Core Features Deep Dive →*