How to Create a Project Template with a Pre-Defined set of Tasks

In this tutorial, I’ll show you how to build a project template with a set of predefined tasks using Notion Automations. This is currently the best method for creating project templates that automatically generate standard tasks when you create a new project.

Method 1: Using Notion Database Automations (Paid Plan Required)

This is the cleaner, more advanced approach that requires a Notion paid plan:

1. Navigate to your Core Projects Database (found in Databases and Components in Ultimate Brain 3.0)
2. Create a new automation by clicking on the Automations button
3. Name your automation (e.g., “Filming Project Task Creation”)
4. Set up the trigger:

• Select “Where name contains [Project Name]” or “Where name is set to [Project Name]”
• This will trigger when you create a project from your template

1. Add actions to create tasks:

• Click “Add action” and select “Create a page” in your Tasks database
• Name your first task (e.g., “Filming Task 1 from automation”)
• Set the Project property to “Trigger page” (this links the task to your new project)
• Configure additional properties as needed:
  • For due dates, you can use formulas like dateAdd(dateTrigger(), 30, "days") to set due dates relative to project creation
  • Set status (e.g., “Doing” for the first task)
  • Set assignee (e.g., “Person who triggered”)

1. Duplicate the action for each additional task you want to create:

• Rename each task
• Adjust properties as needed (e.g., different due dates for subsequent tasks)

1. Save your automation

When you create a new project using your template, the automation will trigger and automatically generate all your predefined tasks with the properties you configured.

Method 2: Manual Template Method (Works on Free Plan)

If you don’t have access to Notion’s Database Automations, you can use this alternative approach:

1. Go to your Core Projects Database
2. Unlock the database if it’s locked (click the lock button)
3. Duplicate an existing project template
4. Rename it (e.g., “Filmmaker Project”)
5. Remove the filter options in the task view within the template
6. Create your predefined tasks directly in the template:

• Add task names (e.g., “Filming Task 1”, “Filming Task 2”)
• Configure properties as needed (priority, labels, etc.)
• Note: Don’t set project or due date properties yet

1. Drag these tasks out of the database view and drop them below the task view

• They will become standalone pages without database properties

1. Rebuild the filter for the task view:

• Set it to filter for the current project

When you create a new project from this template, you’ll need to manually drag those standalone task pages into the task view, and they’ll convert to database items with the properties you pre-configured.

Recommendation

The automation method is significantly more powerful and efficient. While Ultimate Brain 3.0 works perfectly on Notion’s free plan, if you frequently create projects with standard tasks, upgrading to a paid Notion plan is worth considering for access to these automation features.

The automation method allows you to:

• Automatically create tasks when a project is generated
• Set relative due dates based on project creation
• Pre-assign tasks to specific people
• Set default statuses and other properties

For more information about Notion Database Automations, check out the detailed video on the Thomas Frank Explains channel.