sales-motion

What this skill does

# Motion Platform Help

## Step 1 — Gather context

If `references/learnings.md` exists, read it first for accumulated platform knowledge.

Ask the user:

1. **What's your Motion challenge?**
   - A) Setting up Motion for the first time (calendar, tasks, projects)
   - B) Controlling how Motion auto-schedules my tasks
   - C) Integrating Motion with other tools (API, Zapier, CRM)
   - D) Managing AI credits and billing
   - E) Mobile app issues
   - F) Evaluating Motion vs alternatives
   - G) Something else

2. **What's your setup?**
   - A) Solo user (individual plan)
   - B) Small team (2-14 seats)
   - C) Larger team (15+ seats)

3. **Which Motion modules do you use?**
   - A) Calendar + Tasks only
   - B) Calendar + Tasks + Projects
   - C) Full suite (including Meeting Notes, Docs, Workflows)

**If the user's request already provides most of this context, skip directly to the relevant step.**

## Step 2 — Route or answer directly

| If the question is about... | Route to... |
|---|---|
| Scheduling strategy across multiple tools | `/sales-meeting-scheduler [question]` |
| Choosing a dedicated AI note-taker | `/sales-note-taker [question]` |
| CRM integration patterns | `/sales-integration [question]` |
| Everything else | Answer directly using Step 3 |

When routing, provide the exact command.

## Step 3 — Motion platform reference

**Read `references/platform-guide.md`** for the full platform reference — capabilities, pricing, data model, integration recipes, code examples.

Answer the user's question using only the relevant section. Don't dump the full reference.

## Step 4 — Actionable guidance

You no longer need the platform guide — focus on the user's specific situation.

- For task scheduling control: explain do-dates vs due-dates, deadline types, and the "not auto-scheduled" escape hatch
- For integrations: check API rate limits (12 req/min individual, 120 team) and recommend Zapier for simple flows, API for custom pipelines
- For billing: estimate AI credit usage based on their workflow and recommend the right plan tier

If you discover a gotcha, workaround, or tip not covered in `references/learnings.md`, append it there.

## Gotchas

> *Best-effort from research — review these, especially items about plan-gated features and integration gotchas that may be outdated.*

- **Task shuffling is by design.** Motion's optimizer continuously reschedules tasks to fit deadlines. If you need a task at a specific time, set it as "not auto-scheduled" or use a calendar event instead. This is the #1 user complaint.
- **No webhook support.** The API is one-directional — you can create/read/update/delete but can't receive event notifications. Use Zapier polling or build a cron-based sync instead.
- **Zapier has no triggers.** Only actions (Create Task, Create Project, Update Task, Find Task). You cannot trigger external workflows from Motion events natively.
- **AI credits increase bills.** Pro gets 7,500 credits/mo, Business gets 15,000. Heavy AI Chat, Docs, and meeting notes usage can push bills up 20-40%. Monitor usage in Settings.
- **Mobile app lags behind desktop.** Missing features like task snoozing, full notification options, and some views. Use desktop for setup and configuration.
- **Rate limits are low for individuals.** 12 requests/min on individual plans vs 120 on team plans. Batch operations need throttling and retry logic.
- **Setup takes 2-4 weeks.** Full value requires calibrating task durations, priorities, and schedules. Start with just Calendar + Tasks before adding Projects and Docs.

## Related skills

- `/sales-meeting-scheduler` — Cross-platform scheduling strategy (booking pages, no-shows, round-robin)
- `/sales-note-taker` — AI meeting note-taker comparison and API integration
- `/sales-reclaim` — Reclaim.ai platform help (main competitor — AI task scheduling with free tier)
- `/sales-vimcal` — Vimcal platform help (keyboard-first calendar)
- `/sales-integration` — Connect Motion to CRM and other tools
- `/sales-do` — Not sure which skill to use? The router matches any sales objective to the right skill. Install: `npx skills add sales-skills/sales --skill sales-do`

## Examples

### Example 1: Solo founder setting up Motion for the first time
**User says**: "I just signed up for Motion. How should I set it up as a solo founder?"
**Skill does**:
1. Recommends starting with Pro AI plan ($19/mo annual) and Calendar + Tasks only
2. Walks through connecting Google Calendar and setting working hours
3. Explains the do-date vs due-date concept for task scheduling
4. Sets up a simple task workflow: email → task creation, with duration estimates
5. Configures Zoom integration for auto-generated meeting links
6. Advises waiting 1-2 weeks before adding Projects module
**Result**: Clean first-week setup focused on calendar + task scheduling — avoids overwhelm

### Example 2: Syncing Motion tasks to a CRM via the API
**User says**: "How do I automatically sync completed Motion tasks to HubSpot?"
**Skill does**:
1. Reads platform-guide.md for API details
2. Explains that Motion has no webhooks — must use polling approach
3. Provides a Python script that polls `GET /v1/tasks` every 5 minutes with cursor pagination, filters for completed tasks, and creates HubSpot activities via HubSpot API
4. Notes the 12 req/min rate limit for individual plans and recommends upgrading to team for 120 req/min if polling frequently
5. Suggests Zapier as a simpler alternative if the workflow is straightforward
**Result**: Working polling-based sync pipeline with rate limit handling

### Example 3: Evaluating Motion vs Reclaim for a small team
**User says**: "Should my 5-person team use Motion or Reclaim?"
**Skill does**:
1. Compares core approaches: Motion auto-schedules aggressively (tasks placed on calendar automatically), Reclaim defends existing schedule (focus time, habits, buffer)
2. Notes pricing: Motion $19-29/seat/mo (annual), Reclaim free tier available then $8-15/seat/mo
3. Highlights Motion's project management advantage (Gantt, dashboards, capacity planning on Business plan)
4. Highlights Reclaim's advantage for calendar defense and free tier
5. Recommends Motion if team needs project management + scheduling in one tool, Reclaim if team already has a PM tool and wants calendar optimization
**Result**: Clear decision framework based on team's existing tooling and primary need

## Troubleshooting

### Tasks show "Could not fit" at the top of calendar
**Cause**: Task can't be scheduled within the auto-scheduling window due to conflicting events, too many high-priority tasks, or unrealistic duration estimates
**Solution**: Check task duration estimates — are they realistic? Reduce priority on lower-importance tasks. Extend deadlines where possible. If a task truly can't fit, Motion is telling you your schedule is overcommitted. Consider delegating or removing tasks. Check that working hours are correctly configured.

### Double-booking across personal and work calendars
**Cause**: Personal calendar not connected, or calendar sync is one-directional
**Solution**: Connect all calendars (Google, Outlook, iCloud) in Motion Settings → Calendars. Verify bi-directional sync is active for each. Personal calendar events should show as "busy" blocks that Motion schedules around. If using multiple Google accounts, connect each one separately.

### Zapier tasks created without correct scheduling
**Cause**: Zapier's Motion connector is in beta and doesn't expose all API fields
**Solution**: Set `autoScheduled` to true and provide `dueDate`, `duration`, and `schedule` fields. If Zapier doesn't expose these, switch to the API directly — create tasks via `POST /v1/tasks` with full control over scheduling parameters. Use Zapier only for simple task creation where auto-scheduling defaults are acceptable.