Motion Knowledge Base
  • Welcome to Our Help Center 👋
  • Tasks, Events, and Auto-Scheduling 101
    • Creating a Task in Motion
    • Creating an Event in Motion
    • What is Auto-Scheduling and How to Auto-Schedule Your Tasks in Motion
    • Customize Your Task Display in Motion
    • Understanding the Difference Between Tasks and Events in Motion
    • Understanding Free vs Busy in Motion
    • Why Tasks Look Different on the Calendar (Task States & Task Types)
    • Recurring Tasks and Events
    • Chunked Tasks: How and When to Use Them?
    • Understanding Schedules
    • Tasks Not Scheduling Where You Expect? Here's What's Actually Happening
    • How to Show Completed Tasks
    • How to Archive & Restore Tasks
    • Activity Feed: Tracking and Logging
  • Workspaces, Projects, and Workflows
    • Projects in Motion: Regular Projects, Workflow Projects, & Projects w/ AI
    • Ad-Hoc Stages in Motion Projects
    • PWT: Reusable Stages (Coming Soon)
    • Overview of Project Views in Motion
    • Gantt Chart: A Deep Dive
    • Kanban View: A Deep Dive
    • List View: A Deep Dive
    • Blockers
    • How to Set Up Your Workspace (Recommendations Based on Use Case)
    • Introducing Folders
    • Motion 'Favorites': Streamline Your Sidebar
    • Data Hierarchy: How Data is Structured in Motion (Task > Project > Folder > Workspace)
    • How Motion's Predictive System Helps You Adjust Projects on the Fly
    • Understanding Data Types in Motion
  • All Things Calendars
    • Calendar Settings (Understanding How Motion Works With Calendars)
    • How to Get Motion Tasks to Show on Your External Calendar
    • Understanding Calendar Integration in Motion: Google, Microsoft, and iCloud
    • Understanding Differences Between Google, Microsoft, and iCloud Calendars
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  • Motion Settings
    • Booking Links 101
    • Motion Display Options (Dark Mode, Start Week On, Task Breaks)
    • How to Color Code Tasks, Events, and Calendars
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    • How to Cancel Your Plan
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    • Why Motion for Teams?
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    • Native Integrations in Motion: Task from Email & Task from Siri
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  • FAQ’s
    • Most Commonly Asked Questions From Motion Customers
  • Google, Microsoft, and iCloud Calendars: What to Know
    • Everything Google Calendar: The Comprehensive Guide for Motion Users
    • Everything iCloud Calendar: The Comprehensive Guide for Motion Users
    • Everything Microsoft Outlook Calendar: The Comprehensive Guide for Motion Users
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On this page
  • Summary:
  • 1. Microsoft Calendar: The Foundation
  • 1.1 Account Creation and Interface Navigation
  • 1.2 Event Creation: The Building Blocks of Time Management
  • 2. Calendar Organization: Structuring Your Digital Time
  • 2.1 Sub-Calendars: Organize Your Life
  • 2.2 Color-Coding for Clarity
  • 3. Sharing and Permissions: Collaborative Time Management
  • 3.1 Sharing Calendars: How It Works in Motion
  • 3.2 Permission Levels: What They Mean for Motion
  • 3.3 Common Scenarios & Troubleshooting
  • 4. Recurring Events and Smart Scheduling
  • 4.1 Recurring Events
  • 4.2 Meeting Polls (Microsoft FindTime)
  • 5. Subscriptions and Imports
  • 5.1 Subscribing to External Calendars
  • 5.2 Importing Events (.ics Files)
  • 6. Motion and Microsoft Calendar Integration
  • 6.1 Syncing Calendars with Motion
  • 6.2 How Motion Uses Microsoft Calendar Data
  • 7. Best Practices for Using Microsoft Calendar with Motion
  • Conclusion: Mastering Time Management with Microsoft Calendar and Motion

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  1. Google, Microsoft, and iCloud Calendars: What to Know

Everything Microsoft Outlook Calendar: The Comprehensive Guide for Motion Users

PreviousEverything iCloud Calendar: The Comprehensive Guide for Motion Users

Last updated 2 months ago

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Note: This article assumes you've read "". If you haven't, we recommend starting there for foundational concepts.

Summary:

Motion's integration with Microsoft Outlook Calendar is a cornerstone of our productivity ecosystem. This guide dives deep into Microsoft Calendar's functionality, not because we're pivoting to calendar support, but because understanding Outlook Calendar is crucial for unlocking Motion's full potential.

Many users approach our support team with questions that, upon closer inspection, are more about Outlook Calendar settings than Motion itself. This guide aims to bridge that gap, helping you leverage both tools seamlessly.


1. Microsoft Calendar: The Foundation

1.1 Account Creation and Interface Navigation

To use Microsoft Outlook Calendar (and Motion), you'll need a Microsoft account.

  • Go to

  • The default view shows your weekly calendar, but you can toggle between daily, monthly, and agenda views.

  • The left sidebar includes a mini calendar and a list of your calendars.

  • Use the "New Event" button to create events quickly.

1.2 Event Creation: The Building Blocks of Time Management

Events are the foundation of Microsoft Calendar. Creating them is simple:

  1. Click the "New Event" button or select a time slot.

  2. Add a title, date, and time.

  3. Click "Save" to finalize.

For more advanced customization, click "More options" to:

  • Add participants

  • Customize notifications

  • Attach files

  • Specify visibility (public/private)

These details are crucial for Motion, as they determine how tasks and events are scheduled.


2. Calendar Organization: Structuring Your Digital Time

2.1 Sub-Calendars: Organize Your Life

Sub-calendars let you separate different aspects of your life (e.g., Work, Personal, Side Projects).

  • In the left sidebar, click "Add calendar"

  • Select "Create new calendar"

  • Add a name and description, then save

In Motion, sub-calendars sync seamlessly, allowing tasks to align with specific categories.

2.2 Color-Coding for Clarity

Color-coding is a powerful tool for identifying event types. However, Motion cannot color-code individual Microsoft Calendar events due to how Microsoft handles event colors.

Why? In Microsoft Calendar, colors are tied to categories, not individual events. Categories are managed centrally in Outlook, and they don't sync seamlessly with Motion's task visibility layer.

How Colors Work in Microsoft Calendar:

  • You can assign a category to an event (e.g., "High Priority," "Personal").

  • Categories determine the event's color.

  • Colors cannot be individually overridden for single events outside of these categories.

Example: If you assign the "Work" category to an event in Microsoft Calendar, all "Work" events will have the same color. Motion will respect this default display but cannot customize the color further.


3. Sharing and Permissions: Collaborative Time Management

Many users ask, "Why can't I see XYZ calendar in Motion?" or "Why isn't my teammate's calendar syncing?"

The answer almost always comes down to calendar sharing and permissions in Microsoft Calendar.

3.1 Sharing Calendars: How It Works in Motion

When you share a calendar with someone in Microsoft Calendar, it will automatically pull into Motion as long as:

  • The calendar is shared with your Microsoft account.

  • The calendar isn't restricted (e.g., "View only free/busy").

To Share a Calendar:

  1. Right-click on the calendar name.

  2. Select "Sharing and permissions."

  3. Add the email address of the person you're sharing with.

  4. Set their permission level (more on this below).

3.2 Permission Levels: What They Mean for Motion

Microsoft Calendar offers four permission levels:

  • View only free/busy: They'll see your availability but no event details.

  • View all details: Full visibility of your events.

  • Edit: They can edit your events.

  • Delegate: Full admin access, including managing invites and permissions.

In Motion:

  • Calendars with "View all details" or higher will display event details.

  • Calendars with "View only free/busy" will only show blocked time.

3.3 Common Scenarios & Troubleshooting

  • "I shared my calendar, but my teammate can't see it in Motion."

    • Ensure sharing permissions are set to "View all details."

  • "Can I see my iCloud or Google calendar in Motion?"

    • Yes! But first, you'll need to sync it with Microsoft Calendar.

Steps to Sync iCloud/Google Calendars to Microsoft Calendar:

  1. Export your iCloud/Google calendar to .ics format.

  2. Import it into Microsoft Calendar (Click ‘Add Calendar’).

  3. Select ‘Upload from File’ > Select a destination calendar > Select ‘import’

  4. Once it appears in Microsoft Calendar, it will pull into Motion automatically.


4. Recurring Events and Smart Scheduling

4.1 Recurring Events

For repeating commitments:

  • When creating an event, select "Repeat" and choose a recurrence pattern (daily, weekly, monthly).

Motion respects these repeating blocks and schedules tasks around them.

4.2 Meeting Polls (Microsoft FindTime)

Microsoft allows meeting polls for group scheduling:

  • Create an event.

  • Add participants.

  • Enable FindTime Polls to allow participants to vote on times.

Motion recognizes these blocks and ensures tasks don't overlap with these tentative holds.


5. Subscriptions and Imports

5.1 Subscribing to External Calendars

You can add holidays, shared calendars, or public event calendars:

  • Go to Settings > Add Calendar > Subscribe from web

  • Add a public calendar URL.

5.2 Importing Events (.ics Files)

If you have events in .ics format:

  • Go to Settings > Import Calendar

  • Upload the .ics file.

Motion will detect these imports and incorporate them into your task scheduling.


6. Motion and Microsoft Calendar Integration

6.1 Syncing Calendars with Motion

  • Go to Settings > Calendar Integration in Motion.

  • Connect your Microsoft Calendar.

  • Ensure calendar visibility settings match your intended view.

6.2 How Motion Uses Microsoft Calendar Data

  • Motion pulls existing events from Microsoft Calendar.

  • Motion schedules tasks intelligently around those events.

  • Any Motion task set to "Show on external calendar" will appear in Microsoft Calendar.


7. Best Practices for Using Microsoft Calendar with Motion

  • Keep sub-calendars organized.

  • Use consistent category-based color coding.

  • Regularly review sharing permissions.

  • Sync external calendars to Microsoft Calendar first before adding them to Motion.


Conclusion: Mastering Time Management with Microsoft Calendar and Motion

Microsoft Calendar and Motion are two sides of the same productivity coin. Understanding how they interact unlocks smarter, more effective scheduling.

If something isn't syncing correctly, it's usually a permissions or sharing issue on the Microsoft Calendar side. For persistent issues, reach out to our support team.

Master these tools, and you'll see just how seamless and powerful your scheduling can become.

Calendar Settings (Understanding How Motion Works With Calendars)
outlook.office.com/calendar