Tools to Learn Apple's Shortcuts App

I talked a bit about using Apple’s Shortcuts for app iPhone and iPad to automate boring, repetitive, or frequently procrastinated tasks in my technology talk for the 2019 International Conference on ADHD , but I wanted to share additional resources if you want to learn more about Shortcuts.

1. Mac Sparky Field Guide for Shortcuts

Start here if you're unsure where to begin, but if you like technology, in general. David Sparks starts with the basics and really tries to cover his bases. He's a great presenter and works his way up to the more complex.

(Full disclosure, the Mac Sparky link is an affiliate code. I’ve long respected David's work and asked him about including his resources. Then he offered me the affiliate code.)

2. Take Control of Shortcuts

Rosemary Orchard walks through an introduction to Shortcuts, including some step-by-step Shortcut creations.

3. Matthew Cassinelli

Matthew was on the Workflow team back before Apple bought the app to turn it into Shortcuts. He lives and breathes Shortcuts and automation and is a great resource. He’s also a pretty nice and helpful guy!

4. Mac Stories Shortcuts Catalog

The articles in Mac Stories, including those about https://www.macstories.net/shortcuts/, are generally more advanced, but I adore hearing Federico talk about Shortcuts. If you go through these and want more, they offer more through their paid material in Club Mac Stories. I don't currently subscribe, but I have before, and there's some fun stuff in there. The publication also do some cool app reviews for other power-user apps.

5. Shortcuts Directory

Perhaps a little overwhelming if you’re just getting started, this directory attempts to include a vast library of Shortcuts resources.

6. Technology Coaching/Consultation

If these resources are all too overwhelming, and there's a task you're dying to automate, you can also hire me (or someone else with a similar specialty) with a consultation package. I can't promise that your dream automation is possible, but we'll do what we can. And I can tell you what isn't possible yet, so you can stop going down Google rabbit roles trying to find the solution. This is also more useful if you're trying to figure out what you really want from automation. Because we Life Coaches are generally pretty good at getting to the heart of a problem, then planning out the steps to get to the goal.