What to track, and what to leave out

An action item tracker is a list of commitments, not a transcript. Each row is something a named person will do by a date. Decisions belong in a decision log. Discussion belongs in the minutes. If a row has no verb, it is not an action yet.

Status is only Open, Blocked, or Done. “In progress” hides items that have not moved. Blocked means a named person or decision is in the way — write that in Notes.

How to fill the template after a meeting

1. Write the meeting name and date at the top. 2. One row per commitment, in the words you would say out loud: “Bea publishes the pricing FAQ by 28 Oct.” 3. If the notes are messy, paste them into the action item extractor first, then correct anything the draft got wrong. 4. Send the same list in the follow-up email.

The sample rows are illustrations (a pricing FAQ, a staging owner, a recap email). Replace them. Do not leave “the team” as an owner.

From a template to a tracker that survives the week

A template is a snapshot. Recurring meetings need the same rows to show up next time, which is a rolling action log, not a new file per meeting. Archive Done rows only after the next meeting has seen them.

MinutesLoop keeps that list as Open Actions: each owner has a Desk, and acknowledgement shows who has seen what they owe. Use the template today. Create an account when the spreadsheet becomes the thing people forget to open.