Calendar, Documents & Your Daily Digest with Claude Cowork

With Claude Cowork you can connect Google Calendar, turn recurring paperwork into structured records automatically, and set up two standing reports: a Daily Executive Digest every morning and a Sunday week-ahead preview.

What do I need before I start?

• Claude Cowork with scheduled tasks
• Google Calendar and Google Drive (Drive is what lets Claude read the contents of a photo or PDF)

Step 1: How do I connect Google Calendar?

Calendar works differently from Gmail: it's full read and write, so Claude can create, update, and find events — not just read them.

1. Open Claude Cowork, click Customize in the left sidebar, then Connectors.
2. Click +, find Google Calendar, click Connect, and authorize access in your browser.
3. Connect Google Drive here too if you haven't already.

Test the connection:

What's on my calendar for the next 7 days? Give me a simple day-by-day list.

Step 2: How do I automate any recurring paperwork?

The same pipeline — Drive folder in, Claude reads it, structured result out — works for almost any recurring paperwork. Plan it first:

• Document type (e.g., receipts, invoices, signed forms)
• Drive folder to watch
• What Claude should extract
• Where the result should go
• How often it runs

Then fill in this template and paste it into a new scheduled task:

Set up a recurring scheduled task that processes [document type] I save to my Google Drive folder called "[Folder Name]".

Each time it runs, it should:
1. Check the [Folder Name] folder in Drive for any new files that haven't been processed yet.
2. For each new file, read it and extract: [fields, e.g., vendor name, amount, date, due date].
3. [Action — e.g., add a new row to my Google Sheet called "[Sheet Name]" with the extracted information, OR create a calendar reminder for the due date].
4. Once a file has been processed, move it to a folder called "Processed" so it isn't picked up again.
5. Run this every [daily / a few times a day].

Ask me about the sheet's column layout or the extraction fields before you finalize the schedule.

Two examples:

• Receipts → Expense Tracker: watch a "Receipts" folder, extract vendor/amount/date/category, add a row to a Google Sheet called "Expenses 2026," then move the file to "Processed."
• Invoices → Payment Tracker: watch an "Invoices" folder, extract vendor/amount/due date/invoice number, add a row to a Sheet called "Accounts Payable," and create a calendar reminder three days before the due date.

Step 3: How do I build a Daily Executive Digest?

A short morning briefing of your inbox, calendar, and anything unresolved.

1. In Cowork, click Scheduled → New task → Create with Claude.
2. Paste this prompt with your preferred time:

Set up a daily scheduled task, run every morning at [time], that gives me a Daily Executive Digest:
1. Summarize important emails from the last 24 hours — anything from my VIP list, and anything in a category that usually needs my attention.
2. List today's calendar events, in order, and flag any that likely need prep beforehand.
3. Note anything sitting in my triage system's "Other" folder for more than a day.
4. Keep it to one short, skimmable summary — headlines, not paragraphs.

Ask me if you need clarification on which email categories or calendar details to prioritize.

Step 4: How do I get a weekly calendar overview on Sundays?

Set up a weekly scheduled task, run every Sunday at [time], that gives me a preview of the week ahead:
1. List every event on my calendar from Monday through Sunday, grouped by day.
2. Flag any day that looks overloaded (back-to-back meetings with no breaks) or any conflicts/double-bookings.
3. Note any events that likely need prep beforehand, such as calls with new contacts or meetings with no agenda.
4. Call out any light days or open blocks I could use for focused work.

Keep the summary short enough to read in under a minute.

Tip: Already have Slack connected? Add a line to either prompt asking Claude to post the digest to a specific Slack channel — no new connector needed.

Where do I manage these automations?