How to Group Tasks from GitHub, Jira, Asana, Linear, and Emails in One Place for Freelancers

If you work with multiple clients or projects, chances are your tasks are scattered across GitHub, Jira, Asana, Linear, and even your inbox. Checking each tool separately not only wastes time but also increases the risk of missing deadlines or priorities. The solution isn’t migrating everything to a single platform (impossible if your clients already use their own tools), but grouping tasks from multiple apps in one place where you can see, organize, and act on them without switching contexts. In this guide, we’ll show you how to do it with Foco Plus, step by step and without losing data.

Why You Need to Centralize Your Tasks (and Why Generic Apps Don’t Work)

Imagine today you have: a pending pull request in GitHub for Client A, an issue in Jira for Client B, a task in Asana for a personal project, and an urgent email from a new client. If you use a notes app or a spreadsheet, you’ll have to manually copy each task, assign it to a client, and update it constantly. If you opt for a project management tool like Asana, you’ll run into two problems:

• Limited collaboration on the free plan: Asana only allows 2 users on its free plan, forcing you to pay for at least 2 seats (21.98 USD/month on the Starter plan) even if you work alone. If you manage multiple clients, each with their own workspace, the cost multiplies.
• Lack of client context: Asana is designed for teams within the same organization, not for freelancers who switch between different clients’ projects. There’s no native way to group tasks by client and view them all at once (or filter by one when you need to focus).
• No automatic integrations with technical tools: While Asana has integrations with GitHub or Jira, they require manual setup and don’t automatically bring in tasks assigned to you. Every time you’re mentioned in an issue or assigned a pull request, you’ll have to copy it manually.

The real time-saver isn’t having more tools, but reducing the steps between seeing a task and acting on it.

How to Connect GitHub, Jira, Asana, and Linear to Foco Plus in 5 Steps

1. Set Up Your Workspaces in Foco

Before connecting anything, create a workspace in Foco for each client or project. For example: "Client A (Web Development)", "Client B (Mobile App)", and "Personal Projects". Assign each a different color (blue for Client A, green for Client B, etc.) to identify them instantly in Panorama mode, where you’ll see all your tasks mixed together. If you prefer to focus on one client, switch to Focus mode: the dashboard will automatically filter tasks for that workspace.

2. Connect Your Tools via OAuth

Go to Settings > Connections and select the platforms you use. Foco will connect via OAuth (no passwords required) and automatically pull in:

• GitHub: Issues, pull requests, and reviews where you’re mentioned or assigned.
• Jira: Issues assigned to you in any project.
• Asana: Tasks assigned to you in shared projects.
• Linear: Issues assigned to you or where you’re mentioned.
• MCP Servers: Any tool compatible with the MCP protocol (like Mattermost or ClickUp) via its URL.

Each connection has two key options:

• Destination workspace: Choose whether you want Foco to automatically decide which workspace to assign the task to (using AI to analyze the content) or fix a specific workspace (e.g., all GitHub tasks go to "Client A").
• Complete in origin too: If enabled, marking a task as done in Foco will also close or comment on it in the original tool (e.g., close an issue in Jira or a pull request in GitHub).

3. Set Up Email Capture for Urgent Tasks

Foco Plus gives you a unique forwarding address (e.g., u-xxxx@in.heyfoco.com). When you receive an email with an urgent task, forward it to that address. Foco will automatically extract:

• The task title (from the subject or email body).
• The due date (if mentioned in the text, like "by Friday").
• The original email attached as a note, for reference later.

Example: A client emails you, "I need you to review the login feature by Thursday at 3 PM." Forwarding the email to Foco creates a task titled "Review login feature," with a due date of Thursday at 3 PM and the email attached. No manual copying required.

4. Organize Your Tasks with Foco’s Views

Once all your tasks are in Foco, use the three views to manage them based on the moment:

• List: Groups pending tasks by date (Today, This Week, Later, No Date) and shows a collapsible section for completed tasks. Ideal for daily prioritization.
• Kanban: Customizable columns (e.g., "To Do," "In Progress," "Blocked," "Done"). On desktop, drag and drop tasks; on mobile, use tabs.
• Calendar: Displays your tasks and synced events from Google Calendar or Outlook in a weekly or monthly view. Perfect for planning weeks with tight deadlines.

You can filter by start date (when you’ll work on the task) or due date (the deadline). For example: If today is Monday and you have a task with a start date of Wednesday but a due date of Friday, it will appear under "This Week" in the List view, but not under "Today."

5. Automate Repetitive Tasks with AI

Foco Plus includes AI features to save time on recurring tasks:

• Burst: Dictate multiple tasks in a row, and Foco will separate them automatically. Example: "Review login pull request for Client A, update API documentation for Client B, send invoice to Client C." When you stop speaking, Foco shows the detected tasks for review before saving them all at once.
• Voice Capture: Dictate a task, and Foco extracts dates, times, priorities, and reminders from the text. Example: "Important task: review payment bug for Client A, urgent, due Thursday at 10 AM, reminder 30 minutes before." The task is created with those details filled in and the audio attached.
• Daily Briefing: At your chosen time, Foco generates a summary of what you accomplished yesterday, what’s due today, pending tasks from others, calendar updates, and the day’s most impactful event. Optionally, it sends it to your email.

What to Do When a Task Is Complete (and How to Close It Everywhere)

When you mark a task as done in Foco, you have two options:

• Only in Foco: The task disappears from your view but remains open in the original tool (e.g., the issue in Jira). Useful if you haven’t finished the work but want to remove it from your pending list.
• In Foco and the origin: If you enabled "complete in origin too," Foco will close or comment on the task in the original tool. For example: close an issue in Jira, add a comment to a GitHub pull request, or mark a task as completed in Asana.

For recurring tasks (e.g., reviewing pull requests every Monday), set up recurrence in Foco. When you complete it, the next occurrence will be created automatically with the same settings.

Foco vs. Asana: Which to Choose If You Manage Multiple Clients

If we compare Foco Plus with Asana for freelancers juggling multiple tools and clients, these are the key differences:

• Pricing: Asana Starter costs 10.99 USD/user/month (billed annually) with a minimum of 2 seats (21.98 USD/month total), while Foco Plus costs 20 EUR/month (approx. 21.70 USD) per user, with no seat minimum. If you work alone, Foco is more affordable; if you collaborate with a small team, Asana may be more expensive due to the 2-user minimum.
• Automatic integrations: Asana requires manual integration setup and doesn’t automatically pull in tasks assigned to you in GitHub, Jira, or Linear. Foco does this for you, with no extra steps.
• Client management: In Asana, there’s no native way to group tasks by client and view them all at once. In Foco, each client is a workspace with its own color, and you can toggle between seeing all tasks (Panorama mode) or filtering by one client (Focus mode).
• Task capture: Asana lacks email or voice capture with AI. In Foco, you can forward an email or dictate a task, and it will be created automatically with dates, priorities, and reminders extracted from the text.
• Collaboration: Asana is designed for teams within the same organization, not for freelancers working with multiple clients. Foco lets you invite collaborators to a specific workspace (e.g., a client) without giving them access to the rest of your tasks.

Asana is a better option if you work in a large team with advanced needs (like portfolios or complex automations) and everyone uses the same tool. But if you’re a freelancer or manage multiple clients with different tools, Foco saves you time by grouping tasks from multiple apps in one place without migrating data or paying for unused seats.

Practical Example: A Day in the Life of a Freelancer Using Foco Plus

Maria is a freelance developer working with three clients: one uses GitHub, another Jira, and the third Asana. Here’s how she manages her day with Foco:

• Morning: Opens Panorama mode and sees all her tasks mixed together (blue for GitHub, green for Jira, red for Asana). Uses the Calendar view to check what’s due today and plan her day.
• Midday: A client sends an urgent email. She forwards it to her u-xxxx@in.heyfoco.com address, and Foco creates a task with the email attached and an automatic due date.
• Afternoon: Uses Burst to dictate three quick tasks: "Review pull request #45 for Client A, update API documentation for Client B, send invoice to Client C." Foco separates them and assigns them to the correct workspaces.
• Evening: Marks today’s tasks as done. Those from GitHub or Jira are automatically closed in the original tools.

Without Foco, Maria would have to open each tool separately, manually copy tasks, and update them constantly. With Foco, everything is in one place, organized by client and with automatic reminders.

Conclusion: Fewer Tools, More Action

Centralizing your tasks doesn’t mean abandoning the tools you already use, but grouping tasks from multiple apps in one place where you can see, prioritize, and act on them without wasting time switching contexts. Foco Plus is designed for freelancers like you: with automatic integrations, email and voice capture, and a flexible system to manage multiple clients without complications.

If you want to try it, Foco’s Free plan lets you create unlimited workspaces and tasks, use the List and Kanban views, and capture tasks via text and voice. When you need more (like the calendar, integrations, or AI), you can upgrade to Foco Plus for 20 EUR/month. Learn how to sync Notion, Linear, and GitHub tasks in one list without migrating data or discover how to apply the 1-3-5 rule for productivity across multiple jobs without feeling overwhelmed.

FAQ

Can I connect tools other than GitHub, Jira, Asana, or Linear to Foco?

Yes, Foco Plus supports any MCP server via its URL. You can also use email capture to integrate tools without direct connections by forwarding emails with tasks to your personal Foco address.

What happens if a task is updated in the original tool (e.g., GitHub)? Does it sync in Foco?

Currently, Foco pulls tasks from connected tools when they’re created but doesn’t sync them in real time. If a task is updated in GitHub or Jira, you’ll need to update it manually in Foco or reconnect the tool to refresh the data.

Can I use Foco Plus without paying if I only need to connect one tool?

No. Connections to tools like GitHub, Jira, or Asana, email capture, and the daily briefing are exclusive to the Plus plan (20 EUR/month). The Free plan includes unlimited workspaces and tasks but no automatic integrations.

Does Foco work offline?

Yes, you can view and edit your tasks offline. Changes will sync automatically when you regain internet access. However, features requiring internet (like integrations or email capture) won’t work offline.

How do I prevent Foco from assigning tasks to the wrong workspace?

You can configure each connection to send tasks to a fixed destination workspace (e.g., all GitHub tasks to "Client A"). You can also use the "Automatic" option and review the AI’s suggestions before saving tasks.