Case Study: The Daily Task Email That Helps Me Outsmart Overwhelm

Too many tasks, not enough strategy? There’s an automation for that!

Let’s be honest: some mornings, just looking at my Asana task list is enough to trigger decision paralysis. Between client accounts, shifting priorities, and the sheer volume of daily to-dos, it’s easy to lose momentum before the day even starts.

So, I built an automation to fix that.

⚙️ The Challenge: Too Many Tasks, Not Enough Clarity

Asana is great for organizing work — but not always for prioritizing it. What I needed wasn’t another list of tasks. I needed a morning briefing that would:

• Filter out the noise

• Sort my day by effort level, not just due date

• Give me a clear launch point every morning — without opening a single tab

And most importantly? I needed a system that would actually motivate me to start.

💡 The Solution: A Custom Asana-to-Outlook Task Email, Sorted by Difficulty

I designed an automation using Zapier that connects my Asana workspace to Outlook and sends me a smart daily task list at 7am each morning. But this isn’t just a to-do dump — it’s sorted using a custom difficulty rating system that I created to align with how my brain tackles work:

🔢 My Rating Scale:

1. Easy Win – Takes <10 minutes, requires no thinking. Just do it.

2. Warm Up – Light lift. Gets me moving, builds momentum.

3. Core Work – The heart of the day. Deep focus tasks.

4. Beast Mode – Heavy lifting. Strategy. Problem solving.

5. Ugh, Why? – Time-consuming, tedious, or emotionally taxing. (But necessary.)

Tasks are tagged with these difficulty levels directly in Asana. The automation pulls that data, sorts everything in order of difficulty, and sends a formatted email that looks more like a mission briefing than a chore list.

📬 What I Get Every Morning:

• A clear, motivating summary of just the tasks due that day

• Categorized and color-coded by difficulty

• Delivered straight to my inbox so I can start without context switching

• Built-in structure that helps me begin with a win, then ramp up

🧠 Why It Works:

This system is built around how I work, not just what I have to do. Starting with an “Easy Win” flips the dopamine switch. By the time I hit “Beast Mode,” I’ve already built momentum.

And best of all? I’m not stuck doom-scrolling Asana at 8am wondering where to begin.

🕒 Time to Build: Under 90 minutes

😌 Stress Avoided: Daily

🧩 Personalization: 100%

This is more than just automation. It’s tactical self-leadership — made actionable.

Want a system like this for your team or your brain? Let’s build it. Your to-do list doesn’t have to feel like a battlefield!