org-random-todo

This will show a random TODO from your org-agenda-files every so often. It uses alert to show the notifications – see that package on how to use other notification methods than message.

If you want to navigate to the most recently shown random TODO, use M-x org-random-todo-goto-current; navigate to a new one with M-x org-random-todo-goto-new.

Installation

MELPA

If you use MELPA, you can just do M-x list-packages, find org-random-todo in the list and hit i x.

Manual

Install alert, and ensure you’re running org-mode version 7.9.3f or later. Then just put org-random-todo.el somewhere in load-path.

Usage

Manual, loading on startup:

Put this in your ~/.emacs.d/init.el:

(require 'org-random-todo)
(setq org-random-todo-how-often 1500)
(org-random-todo-mode 1)

With use-package

I have this in my ~/.emacs.d/init.el to install it if not installed yet, and only load it after I’ve opened at least one org-mode file, and use notifications instead of message for this package:

(use-package org-random-todo
  :ensure t
  :after org
  :commands (org-random-todo-mode
             org-random-todo
             org-random-todo-goto-current
             org-random-todo-goto-new)
  :config
  (setq org-random-todo-how-often 1500)
  (org-random-todo-mode 1))

(use-package alert
  :defer t
  :config
  (alert-add-rule :mode     'org-mode
                  :category "random-todo"
                  :style 'notifications
                  :continue t))

Related

• org-randomnote lets you go to a random note with M-x org-randomnote, which is shorter to type than M-x org-random-todo-goto-new
• https://www.emacswiki.org/emacs/RemembranceAgents are programs that try to suggest relevant information from your personal data (while org-random-todo just suggest information)