ZDNET’s key takeaways

• Slack has a new Lists feature that levels up your productivity.
• You can create boards and lists to track your projects.
• There’s also a template gallery to make using Lists easier.

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I use Slack  — a lot. Several of my clients require Slack for communication and collaboration. Because I write so much for several organizations, it’s easy to get lost in the process, which is why I was glad to find out that Slack has taken lists seriously.

Perhaps you’re thinking, “But I’ve been able to add bulleted lists into my threads and DMs for a long time.” That’s true, but the new Lists feature is a whole different can of cat food.

What is the new List feature?

The new Slack List feature allows you to create lists in a centralized location. But it’s much more than that. Not only can you create new lists, but you can also import lists from CSV files or even use templates to create your lists. And that’s just scratching the surface of the available features.

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The templates feature alone makes Lists worth using. You’ll find templates for deal tracking, feedback, bug tracking, project tracking, quarterly planning, help requests, backlog tracking, and contact tracking. Each template includes its own feature set (such as star ratings, description, status, and more. You can create lists as tables or kanban boards, add details, and much more.

Think of the new feature as a supercharged list option. With this feature, you can create and use lists that are far more useful than a standard collection of bulleted or numbered list items. This new list feature is all about productivity and management. 

I wish Slack would release its List feature as a standalone app. I’d use that in a heartbeat.

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The new List feature is as user-friendly as any other Slack feature. The only thing I’ve yet to figure out is how to add color to a custom list (as you’ll see in some of the available templates).  

Keep in mind that if you use Slack with a company, they might not have the list feature enabled. If that’s the case, I would recommend that you reach out to whoever administers the company Slack account and ask them to enable Lists.

How to use the Slack List feature

To access your Lists dashboard, open Slack and then click the More button. Click Lists from the pop-up, and the Lists dashboard will be front and center. 

Click New > Blank List, and a new window will pop up. Here, you can either begin customizing the new list or select from the list of available templates.

I recommend checking out the template gallery. If there’s a template you can use for your new list, it will save you some time in setting it up. If you don’t find a usable template, customize your list in the new window. 

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If you want to switch the new list from a table to a board (I do love a good Kanban board), click the Settings button and then, from the resulting pop-up, click Board. The only thing I have yet to figure out with the Board option is how to add a new Group (column). This should be obvious, but it’s not. 

Unfortunately, even the official Slack documentation is no help here (there isn’t even a mention of adding groups). The only option I’ve found for this is to use a board template (such as bug tracking) and then edit the groups (and other bits of information) to better suit your needs.

Hopefully, Slack will make it easier/possible to add new groups to a board; otherwise, you’re limited to boards with just two columns, and that’s not always helpful.

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Even with the oversight on boards, the new List feature makes using Slack even more productive. 

If you are a fan of organization and project management, the new Slack Lists feature will be right up your alley, so hop onto your account, open the Lists dashboard, and start creating.