Are neat people more productive? How easily you can make a mess is how truly productive you can be. Maximum freedom to generate and play around in creative chaos is the optimal condition for constructive thinking and work. This is true on a project, in the kitchen, in your office, and at your writing table—anywhere …
David Drake’s GTD Story
Tell us a little about yourself: My name is David Drake, MS, PhD. I am a professor of microbiology & infectious diseases. I am in the Iowa Institute for Oral Health Research, College of Dentistry, University of Iowa. How did you hear about GTD? When I became an Assistant Professor many years ago, I realized that …
When did email become my job?
Question: At what point did answering e-mail become my job? David Allen: Well, at what point did answering anything—your mail, having conversations in your hallway—become your job? It’s all your job. You just have to decide what your work is. As the late, great Peter Drucker said, that’s your biggest job, to define what your …
What should you do?
What should you do? With many choices you are given moment-to-moment, what should you do? There are five steps in the Mastering Workflow model of GTD®: Capture, clarify, organize, reflect, and engage. So which step is most important? How do you decide whether to collect stuff, process an inbox, organize your work, reflect on all …
The 2019 GTD® Organizer is now available
What is the GTD Organizer? The 2019 GTD Organizer is an elegant, functional, and complete system, built on the GTD principles. We created it to give people a way to get people up and running with a tool that is completely aligned with GTD. How to Use It The GTD Organizer comes as an editable …
Getting things off your mind
Even very important things can be on cruise control and not on your mind. If your attention is being grabbed, then there’s almost an inverse relationship there. The degree to which your attention is being grabbed is the degree to which you are not free to place your attention where and how you want to. …
Aliman’s GTD Story
Tell us a little about yourself: My name is Aliman Sears from the Island of Oahu, Honolulu, Hawaii (Kailua side). My primary work is chief operating officer and co-founder of a nonprofit psychiatric social work agency. I am also adjunct professor of philosophy at Chaminade University, Honolulu. How did you hear about GTD? In 2016 during …
Getting to inbox zero
Question: According to David Allen, we should get clear daily. Does this mean daily inbox zero for email? I feel like if I got to inbox zero daily, especially with email, that’s all I would do. Coach Kelly Forrister: Great question. It’s really a daily balance …
Where should I start with GTD?
People worldwide are discovering the Getting Things Done® methodology; and often I’m asked, “Where should I start with GTD?!” They have either read the book, been to a course, heard about it on a podcast or from a friend; and they have sufficient inspiration or at least curiosity to test it out. But because there …
GTD® & Nirvana® Setup Guide
We’re excited to release a guide that many people have requested over the years–GTD & Nirvana. This elegant app, built with GTD in mind, is a great option for managing your lists. This new GTD & Nirvana Guide will show you how to: – Understand the fundamental GTD best practices – Optimally configure Nirvana in …
Doug’s GTD Story
Tell us a little about you and your work My name is Doug Crane and I am a librarian by profession for over 22 years. I currently have the honor to serve as Director of the Palm Beach County Library System in southeast Florida where I oversee the major executive functions of a busy seventeen-branch …
What are the Best Apps for GTD?
A question we often get from the GTD community is, “What are the best apps for GTD?” While we would love to give you a simple answer that tells you exactly what to use, it’s not as simple as that. GTD is tool neutral One of the first things to understand is that GTD …
What is GTD?
Keys to the GTD® Methodology People often ask us, “So, what is GTD?” If you’re new to GTD or have been looking for a succinct way to explain it to others, check out this short video where David Allen shares the keys to the Getting Things Done® methodology. Hear why GTD can help you feel …
20 Things GTD is Not
GTD is not about managing time better It’s about managing your attention GTD is not about having better control over the world It’s about being in control on where you put your focus GTD is not about setting plans and achieving fixed goals It’s about having the freedom to explore options GTD is not about …
The Resistance to To-Do Lists
The main reason people resist to-do lists I understand the resistance to to-do lists, and the complaints about keeping them. I’ve noticed a couple of reasons for this. The main one is that most to-do lists are incomplete lists of still un-clarified “stuff.” Looking at them creates as much stress as they might have relieved in …
What to know about GTD Setup Guides
About GTD Setup Guides The GTD methodology is software neutral. Some software will certainly work better than others, but it means that the apps you use for your GTD implementation are up to you. Over the past 15 years, we’ve built up a library of GTD setup guides for the most common software apps. Each …
Natasha’s GTD Story
About Natasha What do you do for work? I am a certified GTD Master Trainer and GTD Trainer for Level 1. I also work as an origami creator. Where do you live? My home country is Slovenia, Europe. Recently I moved from the capital to the Slovenian coast (Adriatic sea). GTD Background How did you …
GTD Courses and Coaching
Looking for GTD Training? David Allen Company Global Partners offer GTD public and private courses and coaching services around the world. Here are a few links to get started: GTD Training in the United States GTD® Focus GTD Focus is the Exclusive Partner for the delivery of Getting Things Done® (GTD®) individual coaching in the …
There is always more to do than you can do
Is there anything besides GTD?
QUESTION: Is there something else besides GTD worth exploring in the area of personal process management? DAVID ALLEN: Frankly there is nothing in the area of “personal process management” beyond the GTD process itself. Many people mistake GTD as something that has to have all the suggestions in the book in some format; and most …