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Getting Things Done

After hearing surprisingly positive reviews from a few independent sources, I’ve decided to read Getting Things Done.

Does anyone use the system described in GTD? Comments, tips, or related thoughts would be appreciated.

I’ll collect the best ideas and post a review later.

Posted by Dan Grossman on Wednesday, December 7th, 2005 at 5:11 pm.

12 Responses to “Getting Things Done”

Dan,

Yeah - GTD is a real internet phenomenon. 43folders is a hugely popular blog on GTD - you’ll find more there:

http://www.43folders.com/

Personally, I read the book, but didn’t really adopt the “system”. Works for some people, I’m told. Kinda like Atkins for geeks.

Left by Pete Cashmore on December 7th, 2005

The Gadget Show podcast…featuring David Allen
http://www.thepodcastnetwork.com/gadget/2005/03/05/the-gadget-show-podcast-featuring-david-allen

Left by Dimitar Vesselinov on December 8th, 2005

Dan,
I did the CD audio series for GTD on the way to work for a week. More than anything it validated my homegrown system for tackling projects. I do not follow orthodox GTD practicies but I think a lot David’s ideas are on point. The idea of getting things out of your head and into “collection buckets” is like feng shui for the mind- clear your clutter. Dissecting looming, nebulous todo’s into discrete actions helps me to beat procrastination and dive in. His idea of “triage” for knocking out tasks that can be completed in 2min vs. filing the rest in the inbox is cool. His system is definitely worth a look

Sean

Left by Sean Tierney on December 8th, 2005

I use a hacked version of GTD. Most of my work is done at a computer so most of the @context stuff is usless to me. Following a discussion I had on a GTD message board (http://finance.groups.yahoo.com/group/Getting_Things_Done/) I decided that my contexts should actually be my projects.

I find it invaluable in capturing all my data in such a way that I don’t need to worry about it, the upside of which is that I rarely forget to to things (my memory was like a sieve before) and I can sleep at night without constantly thinking “Oh I must do…”

My one complaint in “Getting Things Done” is that Allen glosses over projects and doesn’t really explain how to tailor GTD to a multi-project environment.

As well as checking out the excellent 43 folders have a look at http://www.lifehack.org which has some good GTD tips and tricks.

Left by Katy on December 8th, 2005

Dan, if your lucky enough to be on OS X, you absolutely have to give “kGTD”:http://www.kinkless.com/kgtd a test drive. I’ve been semi-lax in my commitment to the GTD lifestyle, but kGTD almost makes me want to GTD. It’s simple, intuitive, not to mention the relaxed sensation you get when you finally “get everything down”:http://www.flickr.com/photo_zoom.gne?id=71184026&size=o.

-Cheers

Left by Justin Palmer on December 8th, 2005

I read and adopted most, and maybe all, of the suggestions. It’s been a huge help to me. The main positive I’d say about the book is that his system is not about specific ways to do things as much as it’s about the approach to managing and accessing your stuff while keeping your brain out of it — makes room for thinking. It’s NOT about tools, it’s about thinking and processes, which makes it extremely flexible and useful. 200 + e-mails a day and my inbox is empty. Yes, it works.

Left by Steve on December 9th, 2005

Dan -

I have not followed GTD to a tee, however implemented a website for my own use, that others saw and said, hey, I’d like that.

So, www.ewizmo.com was born. It’s simple really, allowing you to send yourself a note, thought, reminder, etc. to your email address. In the event you have GMail (or any email with labelling or filtering capability), ewizmo allows you to label your note as well as assign a priority flag. It’s best suited for GMail, but I have over 600 users signed up so far (it’s free).

Feel free to check it out at www.ewizmo.com.

Left by Joe on December 19th, 2005

Seems like good decorating advice to me. Just remember to keep your home feng shui compliant.

www.fengshuihouse.info

Left by Feng Shui House on December 8th, 2006

[…] As I mentioned earlier, I recently decided to read Getting Things Done (GTD). As most of you know already, the book describes a relatively simple methodology for dealing with the “stuff” (calls, appointments, projects, etc) of daily life. […]