How to Use Your Siri Shortcuts to Automate Your Daily Routines

If you are productivity obsessed and want a more joyful and efficient life; it starts with good habits. You have to prepare a sensible routine for success: plan your day, wash your face, early to bed, early to rise, etc. If you have an iPhone and you’ve updated to iOS 12, you can streamline those routines on your phone across apps, and maybe even create new habits. You can do this with the help of Shortcuts. You can choose to prompt the shortcut with custom Siri command, like “Hey Siri, get me ready for bed. You can do all kinds of things with Shortcuts. Here’s how you can use the feature for bedtime, work, school, and anywhere else you could use a few more seconds, and more peace of mind. Just ask Siri You can use some shortcuts without downloading the Shortcuts app. Navigate to Settings > Siri & Search to see suggestions for simple shortcuts, like “Edit Bedtime” or “Show weather in Lagos.” Some apps are already optimised to work with Siri Shortcuts. For example, if you have meditation app Headspace, you can add the shortcut “Open today’s meditation.” Mix it up If you want to create more complicated tasks across apps, download the free Shortcuts app. Once you’ve opened it, you’ll see two tabs. The Library tab contains all the shortcuts you’ve added or created. The Gallery tab suggests Apple’s pre-created shortcuts. The Gallery, explore some of the more complex shortcuts, like “Home ETA.” This shortcut integrates features from Maps, Messages, and Contacts. If you start the shortcut, it uses your home address and estimated arrival information from Apple Maps. Then, it generates a text updating a contact (a roommate, a parent, a partner) with your ETA. “Brush Teeth Timer” is a simple one. It lets you break down the actions that make up this shortcut: When you first start the shortcut, your phone shows an alert that says “Get your toothpaste!” Then, a timer is set for 60 seconds, then your phone vibrates and displays the notification “One more minute!” Another time is set for 60 seconds, your device vibrates, and you get one last notification: “All done!” Create Your Own Don’t stop there. You can program Siri to send you an additional reminder to floss. Shortcuts can be customised for all of your strange actions and quirks. To customise a shortcut like the “Tooth Brush Timer,” tap to expand the search bar on the bottom to add more actions like Find Music or Show Notification. Long press the actions in your workflow to shift the order. See the switch icon on the upper right? Tap on that to make even more customisations: rename the timer, add the shortcut to your home screen, and “Add to Siri” with a custom voice command. No shortcut to success Keep in mind that some apps’ functions are more integrated with Shortcuts’ API than others. So if you want a shortcut to show your upcoming events on Google Calendar, tough luck. At least for now, you have to use Apple’s native Calendar app. If you’re just starting out with Shortcuts, getting to know the variety of your options and stringing them together into custom shortcuts can be daunting. It’s a good idea to add shortcuts from the Gallery and toy with them, while you figure out the best shortcuts for you.