You'll find me now on GTD Times and GTD Connect

To make it simple and easy for our clients & friends to get the latest and greatest GTD news, tips, tricks and coaching perspectives, I'll be blogging now over on GTDTimes.com,and posting to our online membership program, GTDConnect.com.

You can still search this blog for anything that might be useful. See you over on GTD Times & GTD Connect!

http://www.gtdtimes.com/

http://www.gtdconnect.com/

Be well.
Danny

I delivered GTD to some wonderful college students in Montreal in January and met this past week again for a follow up. Some have really begun to develop strong habits based on GTD principles. Others are focused to continue their journey.

One of the most frequently expressed challenges by people beginning to work GTD is they do not have the time to Process and Organize. When I describe Processing and Organizing generically, I say it is the act of looking at new inputs (emails, meeting notes, mail, memos, receipts, etc), trying to figure out what to do with/about them and then organizing them appropriately. I then ask folks, "Ok, if we were to follow you around for a day, how much time would we see you looking at new inputs - sometimes for the second time, trying to figure out what to do with/about them and then organizing them appropriately?" Many in the group - especially those open to growth - usually get a smirk on their face as the proverbial light bulb goes on.

The folks I know that really work GTD get time back in their day. Why? I believe because they now Process and Organize with a well-tested approach - What is the outcome I am seeking? What is the next action to move toward this outcome?

Remember....THINKING

precedes ACTION.

Be well.
Danny

For me, having hundreds of GTD'ers in one place was great because I perpetually seek the value people receive from GTD.

I paraphrase some responses I heard last week from some very cool people:

- I have been promoted 8 times.
- I am much more creative.
- I am just a different person than I used to be before GTD. My output has probably tripled and I am
enjoying my work more now than ever.
- I pray better.
- It is really nice to have reconnected with my personal life; when I am home, I am really home.
- My direct reports tell me I am different, that I am more "present' when I am in meetings.
- I have more free time.
- I sleep better.
- I have begun working out again.
- It is easy for me to keep track of things and follow up.
- I am reaping the benefits of more free time and greater focus not just through my own application of
GTD, but also through coaching my team on GTD principles.

Would love to hear what value you receive from GTD!

Be well.
Danny

It was obvious to me that all of these people were in the session to evolve - to undergo continuous and gradual change. So there is that word - change. Why do we want to change? How do we change? How do we keep our change around long enough and strong enough so it morphs from change to habit?

At 45 years of age it seems to me that change is a result of one of two things.

The first is that a person or team or organization moves toward change because they see the value it will produce. They move toward an imagined state, a vision: increased earnings, stronger health, increased revenues, or decreased expenses, greater market share, international expansion, deeper, fuller relationships.

The second is that a person or team or organization moves toward change because they can no longer tolerate the pain of their reality: financial hardship, failing health, declining revenues, or increasing expenses, loss of market share, shallow and unfulfilling relationships.

I discovered an interesting article about how our thinking - what goes on in our brain - may either encourage, or discourage changes in our behaviors. I found it interesting not only because I believe change comes from our thinking, but also because GTD itself is a way of thinking. I was on a call this morning with a young guy who is new to GTD and is seeking to get better with it. He said to me, "I am realizing that GTD is more like a lifestyle."

I agree. GTD is a lifestyle for me that has developed over the past 3 years because I made the choice to think differently about how I manage my commitments.

Take a look at the article (below) - it may cause you to think about how you think.

http://www.workplacecoaching.com/pdf/CoachingTheBrainIJCO.pdf

Be well.
Danny

Would you clarify the use of the @Action folder? It has bugged me for weeks. I find myself putting e-mails in there as I'm processing my Inbox that I could just as easily use to create a project, task, or appointment (and later often do). What is supposed to go in the @Action folder?

The @Action email folder is a great place to organize emails that you still need to take action on, and this action is longer than 2 minutes.

The use of this folder is personal. I have worked with some people who prefer to drag their email into a "task" so all of their actions are in one place.

Other people drag many of their longer than 2 minute actionable emails to their calendar as an all day event to be done anytime on a certain day, while others drag these emails to a certain time frame on their calendar to be completed then.

I do both of these and use the @Action email folder.

Here are my guidelines:

- If the action in the email is context-based (call, errand, conversation to have with someone, etc) I will usually drag it and create a task in the appropriate category.

- If the action in the email is time-sensitive - according to me or another person - I usually drag it to my calendar.

- If the action in the email requires me to read/review/digest the email and respond, I usually drag it to the @Action email folder. I do this so the email stays in email form, thus enabling a quick retrieval (less clicks).

It is also the practice of many GTD'ers to add to the subject line in CAPS (so you know what you changed) before moving the email to @Action folder so you do not have to "re-think" the email (see below).

Are you doing anything different with your actionable emails? Remember, GTD offers much freedom in how you organize.

Have a wonderful and relaxing Holiday Season and be well!

Danny

Then over the passage of about 40 days many of us shift our attention to the things, and outcomes, and way of living we want to achieve and create over the next year or two of our lives that exist only in our imagination and dreams. For many people, this shift is instigated by that spot on our calendars we call New Year's Day. I am no longer surprised by the fact that only about 10 - 20% of the people I interact with at GTD sessions have an externalized list of their personal and professional goals, and a clear vision for themselves 3 to 5 years down the road of life. This is what I call the "There."

For years I did not have them either, but I have come to realize an absolute correlation between the strong externalization of our goals and vision - and the realization of them.

This movement between where we are and where we want to go is a perpetual process, and it should be.
You see, when we arrive at "There", another wonderful opportunity arises as it becomes a "Here" once again.

So what does this have to do with GTD? Or even better what does GTD have to do with this? Everything! GTD is unique in that it begins with the "Here"; the commitments we are dealing with right now. It is then after one gains control over their current commitments that they move toward a greater perspective.

For me this is made real and tangible through David's simple interpretation of the different levels of our lives referred to as the Horizons of Focus. They are listed below and you may want to read or re-read pages 200- 210 in Getting Things Done for a deeper explanation of these Horizons.

As I write this on the busiest shopping day of the year, Black Friday, I know the proverbial page on our calendars - January 1st - will be here in what seems to be the blink of an eye.

If this blog entry has you thinking about where you are, and perhaps where you want to go as we approach the shores of 2009, you may want to review the Horizons of Focus. And as you gaze across the open waters of your life pay attention and capture what is showing up.

Your path may be as simple as looking at these words next to one another: HERE THERE.
You realize there is only one letter that is the difference, the T.

So, anything you need to do to add your "T"?

What actually reminded me of this is one of those clever ads featuring Tiger Woods that I consistently see in my travel through airports. The ad campaign - run by Accenture - has the theme of "high performance".

The ad below shows Tiger focused on his task at hand - making the putt - while the fountain rages in the background. I once read where Tiger's father, Earl, used to jingle change in his pockets and drop things to make loud noises as Tiger was practicing his putting. The purpose was to allow young Tiger to develop the ability to get his mind still. I recall where someone once wrote, "You will never reach peak performance until your mind is still."
This stillness is captured in the ad through the use of a "distractions scale" showing a measurement of 0%.

GTD has several behaviors that promote a still mind and greater focus. We GTD'ers know it as "mind like water", our state of mind that is clear and free of distraction.

These GTD behaviors include:

- writing things down
- putting them into a trusted place where you will see them again
- deciding the next action on that which you collected
- getting clear on the outcome you want to be true
- placing a reminder of the next action in an external system so your mind can let it go

Many folks say that this clear mind is an addictive state that drastically increases their ability to execute actions, and respond appropriately to the constant flow of new inputs entering their lives from emails, phone calls, bosses, spouses, kids, and the list goes on and on.

So how is your mind today?

Anything you could do to get it clear?

There is tremendous power in a blank piece of paper and a pen; and when your mind is added to that mix you may be surprised with what shows up!

Be well.
Danny