An AI-powered daily workflow that turns your morning brain dump into a structured action plan.
The unlock: AI connected to your local files. Any AI that can read your notes, see what's been sitting, and write your daily plan.
You wake up with 47 things swirling in your head. Yesterday's unfinished tasks. Today's meetings. That thing you promised someone. Random worries.
Traditional approaches fail:
- Todo apps require manual entry (friction)
- Calendar apps show meetings, not context
- Your brain drops things between days
- ChatGPT/Claude web can't see your files (no memory)
The cognitive load of "figuring out what to do" consumes energy that should go toward doing.
Connect AI to your files. Using any AI tool with file access, you get direct access to your notes folder. It can:
- Read yesterday's note and carry forward incomplete tasks
- See what's been sitting for 3 days and flag it
- Write directly to today.md
- Track your backlog and prompt weekly reviews
Talk, don't type. Do a 2-3 minute voice brain dump each morning. Say everything on your mind.
AI extracts and structures. Your AI reads your transcript and:
- Extracts action items
- Categorizes by priority (Must/Should/Could/Waiting)
- Flags stale items ("This has been in Must Do for 3 days")
- Suggests your Top 3 focus areas
Work from clarity. Your today.md becomes command central.
This isn't copy/paste to a chatbot. AI has direct file access:
| Capability | What It Means |
|---|---|
| Read | Sees yesterday's note, your backlog, project files |
| Write | Creates today.md, updates backlog, archives old notes |
| Track | Knows what's been sitting, what moved, what's stale |
| Remind | "This urgent task has been here 3 days" |
Today's Dump works with any AI that can access your local files:
| Tool | Type | File Access |
|---|---|---|
| Claude Desktop | Chat app | MCP filesystem |
| Claude Code | CLI/IDE | Direct + skills |
| Claude CoWork | Collaborative | Workspace files |
| Cursor | IDE | Project files |
| Windsurf | IDE | Project files |
| VS Code + Copilot/Continue | IDE | Workspace |
| Nimbalyst | Automation | Connected folders |
| AntiGravity | Agent | File system access |
The pattern is the same: Point the AI at your notes folder, give it a CLAUDE.md (or equivalent instructions file), and it works.
See Setup Guide for tool-specific setup.
- Open claude.ai
- Paste this prompt:
Here's my morning brain dump. Please:
1. Extract all action items
2. Categorize as: Must Do Today / Should Do Today / Could Do If Time / Waiting On Others
3. Flag anything that sounds urgent
4. Suggest my Top 3 priorities
Brain dump:
[Paste your stream-of-consciousness here]
- See the value. Then set up file access for the full experience.
See Setup Guide for:
- Claude Desktop with MCP filesystem access
- Claude Code with skills
- Backlog tracking and weekly reviews
- Staleness alerts
# Today: Monday, January 14, 2026
## Top 3 Priorities
1. [AI-suggested based on deadlines and staleness]
2. [Your most important work]
3. [Key commitment]
## Stale Items ⚠️
<!-- AI surfaces these automatically -->
- "Send proposal to Client A" - in Must Do for 3 days
- "Follow up with Bob" - marked urgent on Friday
## Brain Dump
[Your raw morning thoughts - AI processes this]
## Tasks
### Must Do Today
- [ ] Hard deadlines, critical items
### Should Do Today
- [ ] Important but timing flexible
### Could Do If Time
- [ ] Nice to have
### Waiting On Others
- [ ] Blocked items with context
## End of Day Reflection
**What got done:**
**What blocked progress:**
**Tomorrow's focus:**A separate file for someday/maybe items:
# Backlog
## To Review
<!-- Items pushed here get reviewed weekly -->
- [ ] Redesign the onboarding flow (pushed 2026-01-10)
- [ ] Research new CRM options (pushed 2026-01-08)
## Someday/Maybe
- [ ] Learn Spanish
- [ ] Build personal website
## Archived
<!-- Decided not to do -->
- [x] Old project idea (archived 2026-01-05: no longer relevant)Every Sunday (or your chosen day), AI prompts:
It's weekly review time. Let me check your backlog...
## Stale in Backlog (sitting 7+ days)
- "Research CRM options" - pushed here Jan 8 (6 days ago)
- "Redesign onboarding" - pushed here Jan 10 (4 days ago)
## Recurring Incomplete
- "Exercise" appeared in Could Do 4 of 5 days, never completed
## Questions
1. "Research CRM options" - pull forward to this week, or archive?
2. "Redesign onboarding" - still relevant?
3. Want to schedule "Exercise" as a Must Do?
AI tracks how long items sit:
| Duration | What Happens |
|---|---|
| 2 days in Must Do | Flagged in Stale Items section |
| 3 days in Should Do | Suggested to demote or address |
| 7 days in backlog | Prompted in weekly review |
| Recurring skip | "You've skipped this 4 times - archive it?" |
This prevents the "infinite todo list" problem.
| Path | Who It's For | Guide |
|---|---|---|
| Claude Desktop | Simple chat interface | Setup Guide |
| Claude Code | Terminal power users | Setup Guide |
| Cursor/Windsurf | IDE-native workflow | Setup Guide |
| Other AI Tools | Nimbalyst, AntiGravity, etc. | Setup Guide |
- Download the zip: todays-dump-starter.zip
- Extract to your Documents folder
- Point your AI at the folder (MCP, workspace, project folder)
- Say: "Read my CLAUDE.md and help me get started"
The zip includes everything ready to go - just extract and connect. Works with Claude Desktop, Cursor, Windsurf, Nimbalyst, AntiGravity, or any AI with file access.
# Clone the repo
git clone https://github.com/jugbandman/todays-dump.git
# Create skill folders
mkdir -p ~/.claude/skills/start-my-day
mkdir -p ~/.claude/skills/end-of-day
mkdir -p ~/.claude/skills/weekly-review
# Copy skills
cp today-process/templates/start-my-day.skill.md ~/.claude/skills/start-my-day/SKILL.md
cp today-process/templates/end-of-day.skill.md ~/.claude/skills/end-of-day/SKILL.md
cp today-process/templates/weekly-review.skill.md ~/.claude/skills/weekly-review/SKILL.md
# Edit paths in each skill to match your vault locationThen use /start-my-day, /end-of-day, /weekly-review commands.
| File | Purpose |
|---|---|
| daily-template.md | Daily note structure |
| backlog-template.md | Backlog with Done section |
| start-my-day.skill.md | Morning routine with adaptive onboarding |
| end-of-day.skill.md | Daily wrap up with reflections |
| weekly-review.skill.md | Weekly backlog cleanup |
| claude-desktop-config.json | MCP filesystem config |
| extensions/time-tracking.md | Client time tracking for invoicing |
| File | Purpose |
|---|---|
| docs/setup-guide.md | Full setup for Desktop and Code |
| docs/extensions.md | Optional features (calendar, time blocking) |
| docs/cheat-sheet.md | Quick reference |
| File | Purpose |
|---|---|
| examples/what-you-can-do.md | Real scenarios and AI responses |
| examples/implementation-example.md | Complete implementation walkthrough |
| File | Purpose |
|---|---|
| todays-dump-starter.zip | Ready-to-use folder with all files |
| claude-desktop-package/ | Unzipped version |
Morning Brain Dump
↓
Claude reads brain dump + yesterday's note + backlog
↓
Extracts tasks, flags stale items, suggests priorities
↓
Writes to today.md (you confirm/adjust)
↓
Work your day
↓
End of day: reflection + push incomplete to tomorrow/backlog
↓
Weekly: backlog review, clean up stale items
Run /start-my-day multiple times - it won't recreate your file. If today.md exists for today, it:
- Scans for new brain dump content
- Checks for completed tasks
- Looks for new meeting transcripts
- Offers to update your priorities
On Mondays, /start-my-day automatically adds weekly planning:
- Reviews last week's completed and carried items
- Checks backlog for stale items
- Suggests weekly priorities before daily
Skills learn your workflow over time:
First run: Asks setup questions (paths, features, preferences) Ongoing: May ask 1-2 refinement questions based on patterns Pattern recognition: "You've skipped Exercise 4 times - different approach?" User control: Say "stop asking" to disable suggestions
Configuration saved to .today-process-config.md - edit anytime.
| Component | How to Extend |
|---|---|
| Task categories | Edit template: MoSCoW, Eisenhower, or custom |
| Staleness thresholds | Edit skill: change 2-day, 3-day, 7-day defaults |
| Client time tracking | Add _timelog.md per client for invoicing (see time-tracking.md) |
| Meeting integration | Add Granola, Otter, or custom transcript folder |
| Project surfacing | Add projects/ folder with MOCs |
| People tracking | Add people/ folder with commitments |
| Calendar | Connect via MCP for time blocking |
| Reflections | Enable/disable in config |
| Questions | Disable adaptive questions anytime |
The skills are markdown files - edit them directly:
## My Custom Phase
### Phase X: Check Email
Scan inbox for urgent items, add to Must Do if needed.Skills live at ~/.claude/skills/{name}/SKILL.md (Claude Code) or are embedded in your instructions file (CLAUDE.md, .cursorrules, etc.).
Why not just ChatGPT web? File access. Today's Dump needs AI that can read/write your actual files. ChatGPT web can't (yet). Use Claude Desktop, Cursor, Windsurf, or any AI tool with local file access.
Do I need Obsidian? No. Any folder with markdown files works. Obsidian adds nice features (linking, plugins) but isn't required.
What if I skip a day? AI sees the gap. It'll carry forward incomplete items and note what was missed.
Can I use this with my existing task manager? Yes. This is a daily planning layer, not a replacement for Todoist/Things/etc. Use it to decide what matters today.
What about mobile? Brain dump capture works on mobile (voice memos). Full AI integration is desktop for now.
How do I stop the setup questions?
Say "stop asking setup questions" - it saves your preference and only asks when you run /configure-workflow.
Can I customize everything? Yes. Skills are markdown files. Edit paths, thresholds, categories, phases - anything you want.
See real scenarios and AI responses: examples/what-you-can-do.md
See a complete implementation: examples/implementation-example.md
PRs welcome:
- Integration guides for other tools
- Improvements to templates
- Your implementation as an example
MIT - Use however you want.
Created by Andy Carlson. Works with any AI that can access your files.