Time to start “Getting Things Done”
October 18th, 2005 | by Tim Wilson |It seems to be an epidemic. There’s too much to do and not enough time to do it. That’s the primary reason that I haven’t been writing much lately. Trying to keep my head above water has left precious little time to reflect on my own practice as a leader or to be out looking for the kind of cool Internet applications that I love so much. Something has to change.
I bought a copy of Life Balance a few months ago and I like it. But I’ve always felt like there was a bigger system missing that I needed to make significant progress on getting and staying organized and working at peak efficiency. Lots of people on the Life Balance forums seem to be devotees of David Allen’s Getting Things Done system. I bought the book and plan to spend the next few days going through it and posting my thoughts.
Anyone else using the GTD method? (That’s what the faithful seem to prefer calling it.) To be fair, I’m probably overemphasizing the “system” part of this from what I’ve read. One of the things that attracts me to the GTD method is that it doesn’t require buying a particular planner or using a specific piece of software. It can be molded to fit whatever tools you prefer using. Check out the low-tech Hipster PDA to see what I mean.
This should be an interesting adventure.
4 Responses to “Time to start “Getting Things Done””
By Becky on Oct 19, 2005 | Reply
I’ve been using GTD for several months now. It’s working pretty well for me. I had several false starts in coming up with a way to handle my various “to do” lists, but eventually found TaskToy which I have set as my browser home page. That’s a big help for me. Every time I go on the web, I have to confront a reminder of what I ought to be doing. I also use a paper calendar and keep a handful of 3×5 cards handy at all times. I love the new mindset I have in taking care of the small tasks immediately. Overall, I’m happy with the system.
By Joe Luft on Oct 19, 2005 | Reply
I’ve been wading into GTD for a month or so now and am finding it quite helpful. Recently stumbled upon a great tool that utilizes OmniOutliner Pro - http://kinkless.com/pages/kgtd
By John Pederson on Oct 19, 2005 | Reply
I’m about 1 year into GTD. It has made an unbelieable difference in how I approach all of the “stuff”. GTD did for my thinking what finally switching back to OS X did. It’s that kind of “powerfull”. :O) I’ll also chime in for the Hipster PDA. I’ve been through Newtons, Palms, Day Runners, multiple iPaqs, Tablet PC’s, etc. The Hipster is the first strategy that I’ve consistantly held onto for longer than 4 months. It’s highly compatible with the GTD system.
Get through the book and find yourself a groove with GTD. Revsist the text a few weeks out for a refresher. I also highly suggest http://www.43folders.com.
Good luck. Let us know how it works.
By todd on Oct 25, 2005 | Reply
I’ve been GTDing for a couple of months. I like that it allows me the freedom to choose the tools that work best for me. A few tools I’ve been using: gmail, Tracks, Newton, and online bookmarks (local install of scuttle).
Good luck!