Preparing a 1-to-1

The preparation screen gathers everything you need before a 1-to-1: the agenda on the left, and on the right, what was left open last time.

Opening the preparation

Any of these open it:

• Start a 1-to-1 in the toolbar, then pick a person.
• Prepare the 1-to-1 on a team member's page, or ⌘R.
• A meeting card, or the + on a free day, in the week strip on Today or This week.
• Prepare at the bottom of a person's column on This week.

If a 1-to-1 with that person is already scheduled or in preparation, CadenceOne opens it rather than creating a second one. Otherwise it creates a new one. Closing the sheet keeps the draft: you can come back to it later.

The header

The dark header shows the person, the meeting date, the days since your last exchange (or First 1-to-1), and how many topics were carried over. The ring on the left is the prep score.

Date and calendar

• Set the date and time in Meeting date.
• Add to calendar creates an event called "1-to-1 with first name" in your default calendar. The first time, macOS asks for write-only calendar access: CadenceOne can add an event but cannot read your calendar, and no invitation is sent to anyone.
• Once the event exists, the button becomes Open in Calendar.

If you change the meeting date after adding it to your calendar, move the calendar event yourself. CadenceOne does not update it.

Building the agenda

The agenda is the list of topics you want to cover. In meeting mode it becomes a checklist.

• Type a topic in New topic and press Return.
• Apply a template with the template button next to the agenda title. Its lines are added at the end of the agenda. See Templates.
• Click a suggested question to add it. Eight open questions are offered, such as "What is your main blocker right now?" or "What could I do better as a manager?". A question disappears from the suggestions once it is on the agenda.
• Drag a topic by its handle to reorder it.

Topics you add are shareable: once covered, they are listed in the follow-up email. Keep anything sensitive for the private notes in meeting mode.

A label on the right of a topic tells you where it comes from:

• Carried ×n: it was deferred in a previous 1-to-1.
• Your promise: it matches something you promised this person.
• Suggested: it is one of the suggested questions.

Carried-over topics

When you defer a topic in meeting mode, CadenceOne brings it back automatically: a new preparation starts with every topic deferred in the person's last completed 1-to-1, in the same order.

Where you left off

The right column is a read-only briefing, built from your history with this person. Each part appears only when it has content:

• What you owe: your own overdue promises to this person.
• Carried over: topics deferred last time.
• Goal in flight: a development goal in progress.
• Last decision.
• Previous summary: the shareable topics from your last completed 1-to-1.

Before your first 1-to-1 with someone, it simply says there is nothing from a previous exchange yet.

The prep score

The score, out of 100, tells you whether a 1-to-1 is ready. It is the sum of five checks, each one all or nothing:

The To reach 100 card lists the checks still missing. The ring is green at 100, amber from 60, red below. A meeting at 100 shows Ready in the week strip.

The scheduling check is earned when you click Schedule + reminder, so a brand-new draft cannot reach 100 until it is scheduled.

Finishing the preparation

• Close: keeps the draft as it is.
• Schedule + reminder: marks the 1-to-1 as scheduled, sets a reminder, and closes the sheet.
• Start the meeting (⌘↵): opens meeting mode.

Reminders

A scheduled 1-to-1 gets a local notification 15 minutes before it starts. It is produced by macOS on your Mac, without any server.

• By default, the reminder names nobody: it only gives the start time, so a notification on a shared screen reveals nothing.
• Turn off Hide details in notifications in Settings ▸ Privacy to include the person's first name. Topics and notes are never included.
• No reminder is set for a meeting less than 15 minutes away.

CadenceOne asks for permission to send notifications when it launches. If you refused, you can allow it later in System Settings ▸ Notifications.

Written for CadenceOne 1.0.1 on macOS. Last checked 2026-09-14. Something unclear or out of date? Tell us.