The Importance Levels strategy allows you to distinguish between tasks that are urgent (time-sensitive) and tasks that are truly important (valuable to your long-term goals).
Note: Long-time users might remember this feature as "Priority Stars/Levels."
How to enable
To enable this strategy, go to ☰ → Features/Strategies → Importance Levels.
How to use
Once enabled, you can assign importance levels to both Tasks and Projects.
Assigning Importance
Magic Words: Type
*important,*p1,*p2, or*p3in the task title while creating or editing a task.
Menu Action: Add the "Set priority" action to your Hover Buttons, Right-Click menu, or the Left Button.
Day View Shortcut: In your Day view ("My Day"), clicking the priority icon to the left of a task title cycles through the available levels.
By default, Marvin starts in "Simple Mode," but you can unlock more levels in the settings:
Standard Mode (One Star): A binary choice; either a task is Important (Star ⭐) or it isn't.
Advanced Mode (P1-P3):
P1 (Red): Most Important.
P2 (Orange): Very Important.
P3 (Yellow): Important.
Low Priority: You can also enable a "Low Priority" level (displayed as a down arrow) for tasks that should happen only when everything else is done.
Settings
You can customize exactly how this feature behaves:
Simple vs. Advanced: Toggle the Just two priority levels setting. Keep it checked for a simple Star/No-Star system, or uncheck it to use the full P1, P2, P3 hierarchy.
Low Priority: Check Enable low priority to add the "Low Priority" option (down arrow)
Use Theme Color: Color stars using the main theme color.
Icon Styles: Choose between lucide icons (outlined), filled icons, or Emojis to match your other Item Properties.
Why use this strategy?
The Eisenhower Matrix: Combine Importance Levels (Stars) with Urgency (Fire) to instantly see which tasks are "Important & Urgent" vs. "Important but Not Urgent."
Focus Filters: When you have 50 tasks for the day, filtering by "Important" helps you identify the 3-5 tasks that actually move the needle.