Dream Afar + Trello: Visual Project Management with Focused Execution

Trello is excellent for visualizing projects and collaborating with teams. But boards can become overwhelming, and constant checking becomes a distraction. Dream Afar helps you extract daily focus from Trello while protecting your productive time.

This guide shows you how to combine Dream Afar with Trello for project management that's both comprehensive and focused.

Why Dream Afar + Trello

Trello's Strengths

• Visual project overview
• Team collaboration
• Flexible workflow management
• Clear project progress

Trello's Challenges

• Easy to spend too much time organizing
• Boards become cluttered
• Constant checking for updates
• Visual overwhelm with many cards

Dream Afar's Solution

• Daily focus extracted from Trello
• Priority visibility on every new tab
• Distraction blocking during work
• Quick capture for ideas

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Setting Up the Integration

Step 1: Optimize Your Trello Setup

Before connecting with Dream Afar, ensure Trello is organized:

Standard board columns:

Key principle: The "Today" column drives Dream Afar content.

Step 2: Configure Dream Afar

1. Install Dream Afar
2. Enable todo widget
3. Enable notes widget for quick capture
4. Set up focus mode

Step 3: Create the Sync Ritual

Morning sync (5 minutes):

1. Open Trello → View "Today" column
2. Copy 3-5 cards to Dream Afar todos
3. Close Trello
4. Work from Dream Afar

Evening sync (5 minutes):

1. Review Dream Afar completions
2. Update Trello cards (move to Done)
3. Add any captured notes as new cards
4. Set tomorrow's "Today" column

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The Daily Workflow

Morning: Extract Daily Focus

8:00 AM:

1. Open new tab → Dream Afar with yesterday's todos
2. Clear completed items
3. Open Trello briefly
4. Check "Today" column for any changes
5. Update Dream Afar todos to match:

   [ ] Design homepage mockup [Project X]
   [ ] Review PR for auth feature [Project Y]
   [ ] Write documentation section [Project X]
   [ ] Team sync at 2pm
   

6. Close Trello — work from Dream Afar now

During Work: Focus Mode

9:00 AM - 5:00 PM:

• Every new tab shows Dream Afar priorities
• Trello is closed
• Block trello.com in focus mode if tempting
• Work through todo list systematically

When new tasks appear:

1. Capture in Dream Afar notes
2. Continue current work
3. Process to Trello later

Afternoon: Quick Sync

3:00 PM (optional):

If your team updates Trello frequently:

1. Quick Trello check (2 minutes)
2. Any urgent new cards?
3. Add to Dream Afar if needed
4. Close Trello, continue work

Evening: Update and Plan

5:30 PM:

1. Open Trello
2. Move completed cards to Done
3. Review team updates
4. Add Dream Afar captures as new cards
5. Set tomorrow's "Today" column
6. Clear Dream Afar, add tomorrow's priorities

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Advanced Trello Strategies

Strategy 1: The Focus Card

Create a special Trello card:

Title: "TODAY'S FOCUS" Description:

What I'm working on RIGHT NOW.
Check Dream Afar for full daily list.

Pin at top of "Today" column.

Benefits:

• Team knows your priority
• You articulate your focus
• Accountability to commit publicly

Strategy 2: Label-Based Priority

Use Trello labels strategically:

Morning routine:

• Add all Red labels first
• Then Orange as space allows
• Maximum 5 items in Dream Afar

Strategy 3: The Daily Card Template

Create a Trello template card:

## Today's Goals (copy to Dream Afar)
1.
2.
3.

## Notes (add to Dream Afar notes)
-

## Completed
-

Each morning:

1. Create card from template
2. Fill in goals
3. Copy to Dream Afar
4. Update throughout day

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Team Collaboration

Staying Visible to Your Team

The challenge: Working from Dream Afar means you're not in Trello

Solutions:

Option 1: Status Card Keep a "Status" card in "In Progress" updated:

Currently focused on: [task]
Next available: [time]
Checking Trello: Morning and evening

Option 2: Daily Update Comment Comment on your main cards:

[Date] Focus: Working on X. Dream Afar focus mode until 5pm.

Option 3: Team Norm Establish that team members work from their own systems (Dream Afar, etc.) and sync twice daily.

When Team Needs You Urgently

Set expectations:

• Trello is async (not for urgent)
• Urgent = Slack/text/call
• Check Trello at defined times only

Dream Afar enables:

• Deep focus during work blocks
• Responsive during sync times
• Clear about availability

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Project-Specific Workflows

For Product Development

Trello structure:

• Backlog → This Sprint → In Dev → In Review → Done

Dream Afar role:

• Today's development tasks
• Current sprint items
• Quick capture for bugs/ideas

Workflow:

1. Sprint planning → Fill Trello sprint column
2. Daily → Extract today's tasks to Dream Afar
3. Focus mode during coding
4. Evening → Update Trello, capture blockers

For Marketing Teams

Trello structure:

• Ideas → Planning → In Progress → Review → Published

Dream Afar role:

• Today's content to create/review
• Campaign tasks
• Quick capture for content ideas

Workflow:

1. Weekly planning → Set Trello cards
2. Daily → Extract content tasks to Dream Afar
3. Focus mode during writing
4. Evening → Move completed cards

For Client Projects

Trello structure:

• Per-client boards or columns
• Backlog → This Week → Today → Client Review → Done

Dream Afar role:

• Today's client deliverables
• Priority clients' tasks
• Quick capture for client notes

Workflow:

1. Weekly → Prioritize across clients
2. Daily → Today's client tasks to Dream Afar
3. Focus mode during client work
4. Evening → Update client boards

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Handling Trello Overwhelm

Too Many Cards

Problem: Hundreds of cards, can't see priority

Solution with Dream Afar:

• Trello holds everything
• Dream Afar shows only TODAY
• Maximum 5 cards in Dream Afar
• Clear separation: Trello = backlog, Dream Afar = focus

Too Many Boards

Problem: Multiple projects, multiple boards

Solution:

1. Morning: Scan each board's "Today" column
2. Compile all priorities in Dream Afar
3. Single todo list across projects
4. Project labels in todos:

   [ ] [Client A] Review proposal
   [ ] [Project X] Fix login bug
   [ ] [Personal] Update portfolio
   

Constant Trello Checking

Problem: Checking for updates too often

Solution:

• Add trello.com to focus mode blocklist
• Define check times: Morning, evening
• Trust Dream Afar for daily execution
• For truly urgent: team uses other channels

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Integration Tips

For Trello Power-Ups

If you use:

• Calendar Power-Up: Still extract to Dream Afar for daily focus
• Card Aging: Use to identify stale items to deprioritize
• Custom Fields: Can help with priority extraction

For Trello + Other Tools

Trello + Slack:

• Notifications go to Slack
• Check Slack notifications in communication windows
• Dream Afar focus blocks protect from both

Trello + Calendar:

• Due dates sync to calendar
• Morning: Check calendar + Trello together
• Extract to Dream Afar, close both

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Weekly Review Process

Sunday Planning (30 minutes)

In Trello:

1. Review all boards
2. Move completed cards to Done
3. Prioritize "This Week" columns
4. Identify top priorities for Monday

In Dream Afar:

1. Clear old todos
2. Set Monday's priorities
3. Note week's big goals

Daily Rhythm (10 minutes total)

Morning (5 min):

• Extract "Today" to Dream Afar
• Verify priorities

Evening (5 min):

• Update Trello cards
• Prep tomorrow's "Today"

Monthly Cleanup

In Trello:

1. Archive completed cards
2. Review backlog relevance
3. Consolidate or close old boards

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Troubleshooting

"Trello and Dream Afar get out of sync"

Solution:

• Accept they serve different purposes
• Trello = project truth
• Dream Afar = daily focus
• Sync twice daily, not more

"Team expects me to be in Trello all day"

Solution:

• Communicate focus schedule
• Set Trello check times
• Demonstrate increased output
• Team adapts to results

"I forget to update Trello"

Solution:

• Add "Update Trello" to evening Dream Afar todo
• Make it a ritual, not optional
• 5 minutes max — efficiency not perfection

"Too many urgent Trello notifications"

Solution:

• Reduce Trello notification settings
• Set expectation: Trello is async
• Urgent = different channel
• Check at defined times only

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Conclusion

Trello is a powerful project management system. Dream Afar makes it executable.

Trello's role:

• All project cards
• Team collaboration
• Full project visibility
• Long-term planning

Dream Afar's role:

• Today's priorities only
• Focus during execution
• Quick idea capture
• Constant priority reminder

The system:

1. Morning: Extract from Trello to Dream Afar
2. During day: Work from Dream Afar, ignore Trello
3. Evening: Sync back to Trello

This separation prevents Trello from becoming a distraction while keeping it effective for project management. You get the visual organization of Trello and the daily focus of Dream Afar.

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Ready to focus your Trello projects? Install Dream Afar free →