Loving org-mode: Date Entry

Previously, I wrote about org-mode here)

I am a practioner of David Allen’s Getting Things Done and one of the advice I got from that system is: put a date on everything.

Typing numbers is tricky, especially common ones - like 202x, or even figuring out what today is.

Well, org-mode makes attaching the current date dead simple

C-c ! <return>

This would put an entry for today as:

[2023-09-12 Tue]

Basically, before pressing <return> on a new Inbox entry, would press C-c ! <return> to add a date to that entry.

No more thinking about how to enter numbers, today’s date - even what day of the week today is. Just remember that keystroke and done.

If you need another day, say: yesterday, tomorrow, etc. You can edit the date directly (because it’s just plain text) OR press shift <left/right arrow> next to the date to go back or forward a day.

I use this keystroke so frequently that it’s ingrained muscle memory. This is such an invaluable feature of org-mode for any practioner of Getting Things Done.

Additional articles on why I love org-mode:

• List cycling
• Hierarchy Manipulation
• Date Entry (this article)
• Plain Text