Set a Reminder That Checks Back Before It Is Due

You can set a reminder with a due time and have your muse check, an hour before it is due, whether it is still open, then nudge you if it is.

What it does

An ordinary reminder fires once, gets swiped away, and is gone whether the job got done or not. This one follows through. You set it through your muse, with what needs doing and when it is due, and the muse puts it on your reminders list. An hour before the due time, it looks at that reminder again. If you marked it done, nothing happens. If it is still open, you get a nudge while there is still time to act. It suits deadlines that carry a cost when they slip, such as filing something, sending work, or paying a bill on its last day.

How to use it

1. Ask in one message: "Set a reminder for [what], due [date and time]. Check back an hour before it is due and nudge me if it is still open."
2. Do the task the way you normally would, and mark the reminder done on your phone when you finish it. Marking it done is what tells the muse to stay quiet.
3. If the nudge arrives and the job is already done, mark the reminder off then. The muse was reading the list, not watching you work.
4. If the nudge arrives and the job is not done, you have an hour. Do it, or move the due time and tell the muse the new one.
5. Save this for the few reminders that matter. A check-back on every small task becomes noise.

What you need

• A muse account
• Your phone reminders, which the muse can set and read
• A clear due date and time for each reminder

What to watch for

• The check reads the reminder, not the real world. A task you finished but left open will still draw a nudge, and a task marked done by mistake will draw none.
• The nudge is only as good as the due time you gave it. A vague time, such as "Friday," gives the check nothing firm to work back from.
• Time zones matter on travel days. A reminder set at home and checked abroad can land off, so restate the time when a deadline falls on a trip.
• You stay in charge of the list. The muse sets the reminder and reports what it finds. Whether the work gets done, and whether the deadline moves, are your decisions.