Getting Things Done: Update

re: Getting Things Done: Update

Adam Kinney — Wed, 28 Apr 2004 05:36:00 GMT

Thanks for the comments, I too have started to read David Allen's viral book. So far it looks promising.

re: Getting Things Done: Update

Tommy Williams — Wed, 28 Apr 2004 05:51:00 GMT

I'm just now starting to get comfortable with the ideas in the book. I didn't realize that I had my own system, but I did. It worked well in terms of not dropping important things. But there was a mental cost associated with my old system because it meant I had to keep a lot of things in my head.

My productivity has actually dipped while I've been learning how to implement the system and make it work for me, but it's starting to come back online.

One thing about emptying stuff out of my head (and I still haven't convinced myself that I can trust the system completely yet, so stuff isn't entirely out of my head): I got a great deal of value from holding lots of items in my head -- lots of things that came from associations among these items that wouldn't otherwise occur.

If I use this system the way it's supposed to be used and free up my mind to spend time on strategic items rather than purely tactical ones, I need something to replace that loss of association.

I think mind mapping may be it. It should actually be even better because, up to now, the associations have been only been lucky and random. With mind mapping, I can start driving it.

Only problem? There's something fundamental about mind mapping that the people who practice it all take for granted and don't communicate to those of us who are used to analyzing situations linearly. I'm reading Tony and Barry Buzan's "The Mind Map Book" but even here it's clear that they're expecting some insight or intuitive understanding from me that I'm missing.

Another key component for me about implementing the GTD system: OneNote is going to be an incredible help. The Outlook add-in is useful for the mechanics of the GTD system, but there's no facility to handle the planning aspects of projects, and Outlook is, for me, a very unnatural way to go about it. OneNote, on the other hand, works very well. It's also a great place to pull things to store. I've got a complex set of folders in Outlook but I actually hate my storage scheme. There are too many opportunities where a given message could go in multiple folders and the system encourages me to save stuff that I really don't need to save. Yet there's so much in it that the idea of weeding and cleaning is too daunting. OneNote is going to get me out of this, one I spend enough time thinking critically (and maybe mind mapping once I get the gestalt of the thing) about what to put where, why, when, and how often to look at it again.

re: Getting Things Done: Update

Ralph Poole — Thu, 29 Apr 2004 04:33:00 GMT

I agree with Laura. I am fairly new to the system but I now empty my inbox every day and I transfer my to dos to an action list. I have much better control of my time and I am not letting things slip. The Outlook add-in is an essential part of the process for me since I spend most of my time at my computer. All my "processing" is done in one single place, so setting priorities and staying focused is a real benefit for me.

Getting Things Done 2 months later

Omar Shahine's WebLog — Fri, 30 Apr 2004 05:04:00 GMT

Omar & LauraJ are Getting Things Done

Marc's Outlook on Productivity — Fri, 30 Apr 2004 15:04:00 GMT

Omar Shahine has a great post today about his Getting Things Done experiences. I've seen a number of Microsoft folks and bloggers picking up on David Allen's methodology in the past few months and the reports are almost universally positive. Read Omar's post for some insight into how great an impact GTD can have after only a couple of months. Getting Things Done 2 months later It was about 2 months ago that I started using the Getting Things Done system. First I bought the book, then I got the software, then I organized my life and now I'm a lot happier for it. LauraJ just wrote a post on how GTD has impacted her, and Marc's blog has many useful posts on the subject. I feel almost exactly the same was Laura does, so read her post and then come back to mine. David Allen has been blogging (as reported here and elsewhere some time ago). Yesterday, he posted about the idea of finding a "pause button" for your life to allow a time for reflection. Here's an excerpt: What are your "pause buttons"? I was on stage with Beverly Kaye this morning in Phoenix, and she mentioned a...

Ironic?

blog.dvhome.co.uk — Fri, 30 Apr 2004 21:37:00 GMT

Ironic?

blog.dvhome.co.uk — Fri, 30 Apr 2004 21:38:00 GMT

re: Getting Things Done: Update

Colin — Tue, 04 May 2004 18:34:00 GMT

Hi,

I encountered on your blog by chance and noticed the post about the book GTD. I have just got my copy today so am looking forward to reading it. One question maybe someone could help me with - what is Outlook Addin you have mentioned? Where can I get it?

re: Getting Things Done: Update

Hans Christian Schmid — Thu, 08 Jul 2004 15:44:00 GMT

Tommy Williams should look at Boswell or something like it. It would seem a useful too for dumping associations out of your brain iand into a trusted sytem. Once input (or imported from source files) you could simply search the database for keywords and all of the association would appear.

Good Luck!

Lets Get Orgamanized

Savior Machine — Wed, 15 Sep 2004 13:27:00 GMT

I am a disorganized mess at times. Papers everywhere, things stacked up on top of each other with "plans" of organizing them. So when I saw this book Getting Things Done making the rounds online and getting some rave reviews....

Review of FranklinCovey's PlanPlus

Jonathan Hardwick — Tue, 12 Oct 2004 06:59:00 GMT

Review of FranklinCovey's PlanPlus

Jonathan Hardwick — Thu, 21 Oct 2004 23:51:00 GMT

Review of FranklinCovey's PlanPlus

Jonathan Hardwick — Fri, 06 Jul 2007 01:44:42 GMT

“Everybody gets so much information all day long that they lose their common sense.” Gertrude Stein.

Lifes a Bench » Blog Archive » Ironic?

Lifes a Bench » Blog Archive » Ironic? — Wed, 08 Oct 2008 23:29:31 GMT

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