This article is a community contribution by John Lewis. Enjoy! As a follower of GTD, I am fortunate to receive many things, including the Productive Living newsletter. This particular edition included some “food for thought” about decision making, which I found extremely nutritious! Information and accuracy It brought to mind two things that I have …
What are the first steps in getting organized?
David Allen answers the timeless question, “What are the first steps in getting organized?” If by “getting organized” you mean getting relaxed and in control, it actually involves five steps, only one of which is actually the specific “organizing” component. 1) Collect the work. Corral everything that has potential meaning for you. 2) Process the …
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How can you trust your GTD system?
A new GTD’er asked: Once collected, how do you learn to trust the integrity of the system and not spend a lot of time trying to remember whether you put something down? David Allen’s reply: Trust comes with consistent use. The Weekly Review, plus reviewing the appropriate action lists when you have any time that …
Tips for taking meeting notes
Michael (who calls himself a GTD implementer for two years and counting), wrote to us with this question: Curious if anyone has any tips/symbols or shortcuts for notetaking. I tend to write circles next to actionable items when I’m taking meeting notes and starring important items, but always looking for a better system. Here is …
GTD for Educators
Tim, a high school administrator in Utah, sent us this letter about his experience with GTD: Four years ago, I left a job at a University Research Center and took a job as a High School Administrator. I went from a relatively relaxed job, to a high stress, high volume experience. It has been the …
Embracing Your Perfectionism
Q: Do you have any pointers for perfectionists? David Allen: Just focus on doing the next action perfectly, which is a lot easier than trying to be perfect about how you approach something bigger. Be as retentive as you want. The only problem is when it stops action. Be a perfectionist about the process, which …
Paying attention to the things that get in our way…
GTD simply emerged after paying attention to the things that get in our way… Mr. Allen. I am writing to pay a special tribute to my Grandfather – who passed away last week at the age of 94. He led a good, long life and was successful in many things. He was the first President …
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GTD – It’s All About Gratitude This Season
A Community Contribution from Stephanie Dickison During the holiday season, it’s easy to get caught up in the “stuff” of the holidays – buying, buying, buying, giving, planning, traveling, cooking, packing, etc. This season, I am spending my time on gratitude and simplifying the holidays so that I don’t burn out, so that I don’t …
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A GTD Year in Review
A Community Contribution from Sarah From My Year in Review, by Sarah From This time last December, I was working in an office crammed with stuff. Conference programs, old speeches, copies of travel receipts, notebooks brimming with ideas from half a decade ago, and drafts of reports long-ago published were filed and piled around me. …
Tracking Projects
Dear DavidCo: After working with the GTD system for quite awhile, I find tracking next actions in Outlook to be pretty easy. The harder part is tracking projects. Where do you do that and how do you move from the 10,000 ft. level to the runway? Wayne Pepper, a senior coach and presenter with David …
Put your office on the same path with GTD
Looking for the perfect Christmas gift for your co-workers? Out of ideas on what to get the boss who has everything? Still hoping your co-workers would just “get” GTD and make your life easier? Buy them the new GTD Workflow Map! We have a new “office bundle” that includes one large Workflow poster, one small …
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Finding Your Motivation
In David Allen’s latest Productive Living newsletter, he wrote about the tricky business of motivation. Here’s more sage advice from David on that topic… Q: How does one get motivated to do these things? Yes, I can put pressure on myself; know that I SHOULD do them, but there is pain and suffering that takes …
Tricks for capturing Waiting For emails
One of the key buckets in your GTD system is Waiting For. So what’s the biggest creator of Waiting For? Sent emails. Sure, you could slog through your Sent folder for which ones you actually need to make sure to track, but that’s like searching for a contact lens on the beach. Good luck having …
A day in the life of Fred
What’s it like to do GTD when you are an bioinformaticist? Here’s a community contribution from Fred, sharing about his recent week: After a monstrous review today, I felt compelled to sit down and write this: I started a new job a week ago squeaky clean. A review the Friday before got everything squared away. …
What are your killer apps for your GTD system?
Wikipedia defines a killer app as “…so necessary or desirable that it proves the core value of some larger technology.” So, what are your killer GTD apps? What do you use regularly AND find to be essential to your GTD implementation? Where do you keep your lists? Your calendar? Do you sync to a handheld? …
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David's tip for traveling with batteries
David Allen shares a tip in the category of what he calls “dumb-dorky-things-to-do-that-work.” Rubber band your charged ones I’ve been slightly bugged for years in places like hotel rooms, looking the next morning at my unpacked stuff, wondering which batteries I had run down and which ones were still charged. I finally found a solution …
Infusing GTD into Your Marketing
Sometimes people think GTD is primarily about lists of next actions and projects. But the most valuable elements of GTD to infuse into your business are the ones that get the least attention. For example, I was at a meeting where we were planning out a targeted mailing to a key group of clients. I …
When do most people feel best about their work?
“When do most people feel best about their work? Just before a yearly vacation. They think it’s because of their upcoming vacation. I disagree. It’s because in order to take that vacation they’ve cleaned up, clarified, organized, reviewed, and renegotiated all of their agreements with themselves and others. They’re highly motivated to be able to …
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David Allen presents for ASTD
ASTD is hosting a free Webinar with David Allen next Wednesday for its members. Visit ASTD site to learn more.
Working with file attachments in Outlook
Often, your project support will include documents on your computer like Word or Excel files. You can attach the actual document, but what happens if you update the original? How can you be sure you have the latest attached? We got this very question from a GTD’er and thought it would be useful to pass …
