I'm Amir Salihefendic, CEO of Doist, and This Is How I Work

Todoist is an old contender among to-do list managers, helping people corral their work into manageable tasks for almost a decade. TheA.V.ClubDeadspinGizmodoJalopnikJezebelKotakuLifehackerTheRootTheTakeoutTheOnionTheInventoryDoeverythingbetterShopSubscribeHomeLatestFood&DrinkTechHealthMoneyHomeParentingWorkRelationshipsTravelLifeinGeneralDoeverythingbetterHomeLatestFood&DrinkTechHealthMoneyHomeParentingWorkRelationshipsTravelLifeinGeneralAboutLifehackerAdvisorLifehackerStoreExploreourothersitesHomeLatestFood&DrinkTechHealthMoneyHomeParentingWorkRelationshipsTravelLifeinGeneralInterviewsByAndyOrin2/15/175:00PMComments(9)Todoistisanoldcontenderamongto-dolistmanagers,helpingpeoplecorraltheirworkintomanageabletasksforalmostadecade.It’sgrownintoacross-platformtoolthatcanbeusedforcollaborationandprojectmanagement,butwascreatedsimplybecauseAmirSalihefendicneededawaytokeeptrackofhiswork.AdvertisementAmiristheCEOofDoist,thecompanyhefoundedafterTodoistevolvedfromaside-projecttoafull-timegig.Hepreviouslyco-foundedPlurk,amicro-bloggingsocialnetworkthatremainspopularinAsia,andnowmanagesadecentralizedteamthatcollaboratesontheirworkover20differentcountries.You’llneverguesswhatappheusesasato-dolistthesedays.Here’showAmirworks.Location:Santiago,Chile(visitingmywife’sfamily).OurhomebaseisBarcelona,Spain.CurrentGig:Founder/CEOofDoist(notagig,morealifetimeproject)Onewordthatbestdescribeshowyouwork:FocusedCurrentmobiledevice:iPhone6sandGooglePixelCurrentcomputer:MacBookProfrom2014Save$60GolabsPortablePowerStationDon'tcallitageneratorEquippedwithtwostandardUSB-Aports,aUSB-C30Woutputanda60Winput/outputUSB-Cport,aswellastwoAC110Vpuresinewaveoutlets,twoDC12Voutlets,anda12Vcarcigarettelighter-styleoutlet.Buyfor$240atAmazonFirstofall,tellmealittleaboutyourbackgroundandhowyougottowhereyouaretoday.IwasborninBosnia,butduetothewarinthe90’sIgrewupasarefugeeinDenmark.AdvertisementDuringcollege,Ihadalotofsideprojects,andoneofthemwasTodoist.WhenIstartedTodoistinJanuaryof2007,IhadnoperspectiveofwhatIwascreating.Itwas asimpleto-dolistappthatIcreatedformyselftomanagemyownchaoticlife.Todoisthassincegrownfromasmallpersonalprojecttoaservicethathashelpedmillionsofpeoplecompletetensofmillionsofprojects.Tobehonest,Ineverimaginedthatonedaywewouldbetheleaderinourmarketandthatitwouldevolveintoacompanywithalmost50peoplefromaroundtheworld.AdvertisementWhatapps,software,toolscan’tyoulivewithout?Why?I’veprobablyusedTodoisteverysingledaysince2007.It’smypersonaloperatingsystemwhereIhaveeverythingIneedtodoallinoneplace(bothworkrelatedandpersonalthings).Ievenhaveanameforit:Systemist:)Youcanreadmoreaboutmyspecificworkflowhere.AdvertisementForcommunicationwithourremoteteam(we’renearly50peopleinabout20differentcountries)IuseTwist,anappwe’vebeenworkingonforthelasttwoyearsandjustrecentlylaunchedtothepublic.BesidesTodoistandTwist,IloveiAWriterforwritingandVimfordevelopment.VimissomethingI’vespentatonoftimeon—infact,Ihaveoneofthemostpopularconfigurations(thatI’vespentyearsperfecting.Iamunsureifthisisagoodorabadthing😄AdvertisementWhat’syourworkspacesetuplike?Coffeeshopwithlaptopandheadphones?Homeofficewithastandingdesk?IhaveawonderfulhomeofficewithastandingdeskwhereIworkfromduringmostoftheweek.Somedays,though,IdogointoacoworkingspacebecauseIfeelthatbeinginyourhomeforalotoftimecanstarttoaffectyounegatively.WhenIwork,Ialwaysusenoisecancelingheadphones,andIusuallylistentoelectronicmusic.AdvertisementWhat’syourbesttime-savingshortcutorlifehack?Iwouldstronglyrecommendstartingthedaywitha7minuteworkout,tenminutesofmeditation,acoldshowerandthenahealthybreakfast.I’vefoundthatthiscombinationisagreatwaytokickstartmybodyfortheday.Afterthis,onceyousitdowntowork,Iwouldrecommendworkingoncreativeproblems(e.g.writing,coding,designing)andnotcheckingsocialnetworksorrespondingtoemailsrightaway.AdvertisementWhat’syourfavoriteto-dolistmanager?I’mnotgoingtolie,it’sobviouslyTodoist😄Besidesyourphoneandcomputer,whatgadgetcan’tyoulivewithoutandwhy?Noisecancelingheadphones—IuseBoseQuietComfort35.Theseareespeciallyusefulwhenyou’retravelingorareinanoisyofficeorcoworkingspace.AdvertisementWhateverydaythingareyoubetteratthaneveryoneelse?What’syoursecret?Iamexcellentatmakingeggs,that’soneoftheonlythingsIcancookthatisdelicious...Thesecret?IcopiedtherecipefromGordonRamsayatsomepoint,IthinkyoucanfinditonYouTube.Whatdoyoulistentowhileyouwork?Gotafavoriteplaylist?Ordoyouprefersilence?IlistentoelectronicmusiconSpotify,IusuallylistentotheDiscoverWeeklyplaylist.ThemusiccouldbeDaftpunkorTrentemøller.AdvertisementWhatareyoucurrentlyreading?Orifyou’renotreadinganything,what’ssomethingyou’drecommend?IamcurrentlyreadingTheUndoingProject,anewbookbyMichaelLewis(theauthorofMoneyball).Beforethat,IreadTheDailyStoic.AdvertisementIdoreadatonandalwaystrytofindwaystogetabetterperspectiveandtolearnnewthings.OneofthebooksthathasmostinspiredmeasaCEO/founderhasbeenLetMyPeopleGoSurfing:TheEducationofaReluctantBusinessmanbyPatagonia’sfounder,YvonChouinard.Howdoyourecharge?Whatdoyoudowhenyouwanttoforgetaboutwork?Iusuallyplaysoccertorecharge,asithelpsclearmymindandstopsmefromthinking.IfIdon’tplaysoccer,IenjoywatchingagoodmovieorwatchingKoreanStarcraftstreams.(StarcraftisapassionI’vehadformanyyears.)AdvertisementWhat’syoursleeproutinelike?Areyouanightowlorearly-riser?Iamterribleatsleepingandhavebeenmostofmylife.Idotrytohavesomeroutinethough—rightnowIgotobedataround1AMandwakeupataround8AM.ThisissomethingI’mactivelytryingtoimproveasI’dlovetogetaroundeighthoursofsleepperday.AdvertisementFillintheblank:I’dlovetosee_____answerthesesamequestions.ElonMusk.What’sthebestadviceyou’veeverreceived?It’stolovetheworkthatyoudo.Onaveragepeoplespend87,600hoursontheirworkintheirlifetime...That’sovertenyears!It’scriticaltofindsomethingthatismeaningfulandthatyoureallylovedoing.AdvertisementIsthereanythingelseyou’dliketoaddthatmightbeinterestingtoreadersandfans?IwouldlovetothankLifehackerandtheLifehackercommunity.Todoistwascoveredonthissitein2007anditbroughtthousandsofusers(manyofwhomstilluseTodoist!)Here’stheoriginalarticlebytheawesomeGinaTrapani:TodoistonlinetaskmanagerWeb-basedtaskmanagerTodoistisaninterestingcalendar/todoapplicationworthlookingat,even…ReadmoreAdvertisementTheHowIWorkseriesasksheroes,experts,andflat-outproductivepeopletosharetheirshortcuts,workspaces,routines,andmore.Havesomeoneyouwanttoseefeatured,orquestionsyouthinkweshouldask?EmailAndy. WorkInterviews