April 27, 2008
Rolling up your hoses when you're not fighting fires
We were in a staff meeting the other day discussing some of the finer points of David Allen's 3-Fold nature of work. Part of the Doing phase, the 3-Fold nature describes how you spend your time:
Doing Pre-defined Work (choosing from what's already processed and organized on your lists and calendar)
Doing Work as it Appears (responding to latest, loudest and new opportunities)
Defining Work (your own processing and reviewing time)
Everyone has a mix of all three of these choices. It won't necessarily be an even split of your time and attention. Depends on your job, and frankly your personality. I often like to do bite size chunks of doing work as it appears to stay interested and engaged in something that's taking more mental effort. It's a balance though and only you will know if you are in/out of balance with any of these choices.
If you think about it, even someone whose job is about doing work as it appears, like a fireman, is still working on being ready for the fire while they are not IN the fire. In fact, their ability to deal with that fire effectively requires them to have spent time getting their gear ready so that they can move quickly.
It's no surprise, whenever I cover this module in a GTD class, the majority of the participants find themselves spending more than than they think they should in Doing Work as it Appears and not nearly enough time in Defining Work. The tricky part about it is that each of these phases can really affect one another as well. The less time you give yourself to define your work, the less defined work you have to choose from and the greater the tendency to do work as it appears.
Do any areas of 3-Fold nature seem out of balance to you? Anything you can you do to shift that?
Posted by Kelly at 12:30 PM | Comments (3)
April 23, 2008
Sun, Fun & GTD
I'm doing a public Getting Things Done class next week in Newport Beach, California. Here's your chance to master your GTD skills, as well as pull "learn to surf" off of your Someday/Maybe list!
Posted by Kelly at 10:26 AM | Comments (2)
April 15, 2008
A short list of a few good GTD list managers
Choosing a GTD list manager is much like walking onto a car lot and choosing what kind of car you like. Good chance you're going to be attracted to something completely different than the person next to you.
Good news is that, like a car, if the one you choose has the core components we recommend, it'll get you where you need to go.
A good GTD list manager should give you a bullet-proof, rock solid, trusted place to track your projects and actions. A starter set of lists David Allen recommends to store in that system would include:
Projects
Someday/Maybe
@Agendas
@Anywhere
@Calls
@Computer
@Errands
@Home
@Office
@Waiting For
A few questions to get started:
1. Are you a paper or electronic list person? There is a big difference and it's not only based on how technical you are. Some people prefer the touch and feel of paper. Some prefer electronic. It's usually personal preference and both work well with GTD. If you went to jot down a quick reminder to yourself right now, what would you reach for, your computer or pad of paper on your desk? That might give you a clue.
2. Do you want your lists to sync to a handheld (Palm, BlackBerry or Windows Mobile?) If so, you'll need an electronic list manager to make that happen.
3. Will other people need to see your data? Such as an admin or family member? Electronic may be easier for that than paper.
4. Are you away from your computer most of the time and don't have a handheld? If so, then you'll want to be able to print your electronic lists to work with them when you're on the go or use a paper planner.
5. Any security issues to consider? Some companies, for good reasons, don't want their employees putting company data, like the kind of stuff that would go on lists, on a web-based tool outside of the secure network.
6. Where is your calendar now? Many people will put their lists in the same program as their calendar, to have a central dashboard.
Continue reading "A short list of a few good GTD list managers"
Posted by Kelly at 11:32 AM | Comments (8)
April 14, 2008
Easy interruptions to eliminate
While you can't necessarily stop your colleagues from interrupting you, you can tell your tools not to. Start with email notifiers. It's nearly impossible for people to not notice email notifiers when they appear on your screen or make a sound. I created a 30 second video demo to show you how to turn off email notifiers in Outlook, which are set to alert you by default. DON'T WORRY -- email will still pour into your Inbox. It just means you won't get notified by Outlook every time a new email lands.
Nearly every email program has some kind of notify feature you can turn off. In Lotus Notes, it's under Tools>Preferences>User Preferences>Mail. Look for the When New Mail Arrives area to uncheck all of the ways it wants to notify you.
Posted by Kelly at 02:16 PM | Comments (7)
April 10, 2008
What makes a good GTD list manager?
Having a total life reminder system is a key to GTD and a trusted list manager to track projects and actions is one of the first choices for people to make when implementing the system.
Unfortunately, some of the programs out there that are trying to be "GTD list managers" miss the mark not by what they didn't include, but by what they did include. Some of them build in too many convoluted features, that in GTD terms make the whole thing more complex than it needs to be. Not saying you can't get value from some of those programs, but you'll be watering down the simplicity and elegance of GTD if you force yourself into using every feature that some of them include. If you get what the core components should be, you can usually get creative at customizing or ignoring what will end up being a drag for you down the road. So what makes a good GTD list manager?
Key features to look for:
* Sorting lists by context - many programs have a "category" feature that will easily support this.
* Ability to assign a due date - not forcing it on all of them, but allowing it for those that need it.
* Portable for on the go access - can be synched to a handheld or printed.
* Easily accessible - less than 60 seconds to get something in/out.
* More attractive to you than repelling - you've got to like the system you're entrusting your brain to.
* Doesn't force priority codes - if you know GTD, you know that forcing priority codes is old news and rarely accurate anyway.
* Place to capture additional notes - attached to an item to capture relevant info related to the item.
* Ability to search and sort in various ways.
* Robust enough to handle all of your stuff.
Is there a perfect GTD list manager out there? Probably not. But lots of them will work just great if you keep it simple and stick to the core features that work, without you thinking about how to make it work. It becomes seamless and like second nature to you.
Making the simple complicated is commonplace; making the complicated simple, awesomely simple, that's creativity.
- Charles Mingus
Continue reading "What makes a good GTD list manager?"
Posted by Kelly at 04:29 PM | Comments (18)
April 05, 2008
Dealing with interruptions
Interruptions are a fact of life in every job and in every company. It's one of the most common things people tell me drags on their productivity. Formany of us, our jobs require us to handle work as it appears, so the only choice really becomes to get better at managing the interruptions. I received a letter from someone recently asking me for advice on this topic:
My day generally consists of interruptions, and interruptions to the interruptions... I get critical items referred to me in the hallway on the way to handling another interruption... How do I keep track of all this and avoid the mental "stack overflow" involved?
Having "collection tools" on hand all the time is critical. Studies show the average adult can only hold 7 things in your "working memory" at one given time (+ or - 2 items.) That's not much and from what you describe, your working memory gets pinged constantly. Most people do these days with not only interruptions from others, but cell phones going off, new mail notifications, instant message, etc.
- Walk around with a small pad and paper in your pocket at all times to collect this stuff in a place other than you head. Seriously, go low tech with this. Pad and pen. If you want David Allen's version of this, it's in our online store.
- Don't be shy in telling people, "Hey, can you send me an email or leave me a voice mail about that?" If it's really important to them, they will. That way, you can process it on your own time.
- Treat yourself to what David Allen calls the Mindsweep as often as you can, and at least once a week in a Weekly Review process. Sit down and just clear your head. Your head is an Inbox, just like your email, paper and voice inboxes, so you've got to empty it on a regular basis along with the others to avoid that "stack overflow"
and get to stress-free productivity.
- Make sure you've got a physical Inbox (tray or folder works great) to capture your incoming stuff at your desk, especially when you need to reroute your brain quickly onto something else. For example, if someone interrupts you and it's something you've got to take, "bookmark your brain" about where you just were on a piece of paper and drop that into your inbox. You'll not only be more present with the person in front of you, since your brain won't trying to hold on to that place you just were, but you will also have a trusted place to go back to (your Inbox) to pick up where you left off.
- Take yourself offline sometimes when you really need to get stuff done. It will be easier for some of you than saying "No" to the interruption. Turn off email notifications. Go offline on IM programs. Even close your email Inbox if you keep getting distracted by new mail pouring in. Close your door, if you've got one.
Consider this: every interruption you take trains other people about how to work with you. If they know they can drop something on you at the last minute, they'll have no reason to think that's not the way to work with you next time as well. Are there any interruptions you are getting that in retrospect, could have been handled a different way? Good opportunity to do some retraining with those around you.
Posted by Kelly at 07:03 PM | Comments (3)
March 24, 2008
Getting GTD off the ground
If I had to guess what the biggest challenge people have with GTD, it's not maintaining the system, it's building it. And you might feel that the task of building it seems daunting and undoable, given the world doesn't really slow down because you've decided to take time for yourself to get this thing off the ground. I doubt your colleagues are sitting back saying, "Hey, let's not send emails to him or pull him into this meeting. He's really trying to get his work defined and his GTD system built." Not likely. So right off the bat, unless you've got two days of uninterrupted time to dedicate to the building phase, as David suggests in Part Two of the GTD book, you're more likely going to build it in stages. It will take longer, but a great system can be built in stages.
1. Choose a list manager to track your projects and actions
2. Get a good reference filing system built for your non-actionable stuff
3. Get In/Pending/Out buckets/folders/trays to be able to move things through the system.
Once the constructing is done (your house is built), then you're in populating mode (move your stuff in.) Get everything from all of your collection buckets, processed and organized into your new system. Look for the major places you have stuff coming in. Likely the big "stuff" piles to go after first are your head, email, paper and voicemail.
In my GTD classes, I suggest people setup a project called "GTD Up + Running." Then assess and draft a simple project plan to capture all of the potential next actions to get the system fully setup. If you think doing this in pieces is going to work best for you, pick one or two to start that will give you the biggest payoff to get under control and add that to your calendar or next actions list or just go do it. Then move your way through your project plan until the system is up and running. I bet it will take less time than you think.
One tip on choosing a list manager: Don't let the quest of finding the "perfect list manager" stop you from getting GTD off the ground. Consider that there is no one perfect system. Nearly any list manager can be adapted to work with the GTD model, from spreadsheets to paper planners to corporate programs you're already using for your calendar and email. Choose one you like and you know you'll actually be attracted to use.
Posted by Kelly at 02:44 PM | Comments (11)
March 15, 2008
Step away from the inbox
A few times lately in GTD classes, people have asked me for recommendations on how often I process email. There are some approaches out there that suggest people only check email once a day. Sounds pretty extreme to me, especially if your world moves pretty fast and real work is getting done through email. I check email as often as I need to and at least once a day my Inbox is at zero. However, I do think stepping away from the constant stream of new input can be helpful, if not essential, to getting things done. Otherwise, it can be like standing in front of a fire hydrant with water blasting you in the face. You'll keep getting pelted until you step away from it.
Here are a few tips around processing email:
1. Only check email when you think you can process whatever you open to completion. Remember, deciding is not doing. Processing it to completion can mean you've decided your next action and parked that in a place you trust. It doesn't mean DO every email in your Inbox.
2. Give yourself offline time. For many of us these days, there's a constant stream of input. Even getting your Inbox to the holy grail of zero will only last until the next time you Send/Receive. Be willing to close your Inbox, go offline, turn off your Internet connection--whatever. I do this sometimes when I know the temptation of new stuff coming in will be too great and I'm trying to get some big project done, like writing or reviewing something that's outside of email. In Lotus Notes, you can change your location to "Island" mode to go offline. In Outlook, try File>Work Offline.
3. Get a general agreement going with your team about email response times. Is it within 15 minutes? 1 day? 1 month? I bet there are huge differences among your co-workers about the standard for replying to mail. Within our company, it's 24 hours on normal business days. Now, replying within 24 hours could just mean letting the sender know you got and you're on it--it doesn't always mean you've completed the action or whatever they're asking for.
There's also a new article I wrote for Coach's Corner about processing + organizing email.
Hope this helps.
Posted by Kelly at 10:06 AM | Comments (1)
February 26, 2008
Handling meeting notes
Someone recently asked David Allen for his best tips, tricks and processes for handling meeting and conversation notes.
Since this is a common question we tend to get, I thought I would share David's reply:
"I process most meeting notes into our custom contact manager database. That's where I track most everything that's worth tracking. Sometimes I just put a small note in the notes field of my tel/add for the person, if it's just like on this day we did this and that...
The real question to ask yourself is: What's the purpose of the notes? Only with a clear answer to that do you know how much detail you need to keep, and where and how you should keep it.
Many times I just keep my handwritten notes in their file, in my general reference files.
There's no clear black and white delineation about information, if it's just information that "might be useful" at some later time. Always a judgment call, weighing the payoffs and the prices."
Posted by Kelly at 10:19 AM | Comments (13)
February 20, 2008
GTD is for anyone, but those techies sure love it
While GTD's popularity seems to span across generations and professions...it's the techie groups that seem to be especially drawn to it. Perhaps it's due to the "open source" nature of GTD that allows people to engineer their own list manager. We don't tell you what tool or program you need to use. If you understand what builds a great system, there's tremendous freedom in what that looks like to make GTD work.
NPR explored this topic yesterday in a feature about GTD and it's appeal to the technology world. Running time 4 minutes.
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=19105832
Posted by Kelly at 08:58 AM | Comments (1)
February 12, 2008
It's either actionable or it's not--there is no gray zone
There are two forks in the road when you process an email: it's either actionable or it's not. Yet time and time again people tell me that they get emails that they think fall into this mysterious gray zone. It's the email from a coworker/customer/friend that implies action, but it's not an action they want to take. Yet their standard won't allow them to delete or ignore the email because some part of them thinks they should be doing something about it. Guess where the stress tends to show up? In the gray zone that gets created from the "shoulds without a decision" about this kind of stuff. Does receiving an email automatically create an agreement just because it landed in your inbox?
I was coaching someone recently who had tons of emails that fell into this gray zone and her reaction was to simply file them into a Reference folder. My role, when I'm a GTD coach, is to be vigilant with (and for) people when they are processing their stuff. I noticed that when she moved something into the Reference folder, she said "I'll get back to that someday," but she didn't track that action anywhere. So did she really let it go? Of course not. She still has an implicit agreement to do something about that email, so filing it away just moved it to a less obvious place.
I received an email recently that could have easily fallen into that gray zone if I let it. My first reaction was to delete the email but I knew the person would be expecting my reply. And they would have every reason to expect my reply because I've handled this kind of thing in the past, even though I don't consider it core to my job. So I can't blame them for sending it, I've trained them that it's OK to send that kind of input to me until I tell them otherwise.
One of the most powerful aspects of GTD, in my experience, is the part about agreements. What am I doing to create, promote or allow the input I am receiving? What's the agreement I am making with everything that I collect? Is there anything I can do to better communicate when my priorities and interests shift so I stay clean, even when things land in my world that I don't want or think I should do? Am I clear about my Horizons of Focus (runway-50k perspective) to know if this is my job to handle? There lies the simplicity and freedom in working GTD. Pay attention to what has your attention and agreement.
This all may generate more questions than answers, but I thought it was worthy of a blog post. I'd love to hear your input on this (no implied agreement! just for those of you who want to...)
Posted by Kelly at 08:34 AM | Comments (11)
February 01, 2008
Shifting your position
Did you ever move your bedroom around as a kid? Even a simple thing like moving your bed from one wall to another? Remember going to bed that night? It felt new and exciting. Same furniture, new perspective. If that worked for you as a kid, it can work for you as an adult. If you're feeling stuck, bored, repelled, low energy or uninspired when you step into your office space, change your perspective.
Here are 10 simple things you can do to breathe new life into your workflow systems:
1. If you've got a desk that can move to a new position, move it.
2. Rename your lists. I change the names of my GTD action lists all the time. It's a simple thing, but it works. @Computer becomes @Offline and @Online. @Calls becomes @Phone. @Agendas becomes @Talk to. Same purpose, just fresh new lists.
3. Clean something. Anything.
4. Get a labeler. It's a mystical thing. Ask someone who has one.
5. Get new gear like In, Pending and Out trays that you really like. Don't settle for the company issued ones if you don't like them.
6. Make sure your workspace ergonomics really work. I coached a guy one time who was right-handed, but actually endured his mouse being on the left side. He literally reached his arm across his body to use the mouse.
7. Update your framed pictures of your kids, friends, families or favorite vacation photos.
8. Get your reference filing system (hard or soft copy) to a place where you are actually more attracted than repelled by it. Review, purge, reorganize. Whatever it takes.
9. Get the best lighting you can for your eyes. If the fluorescent lights bother you, get a lamp for your desk that is closer to natural sunlight.
10. Do a GTD Weekly Review. Honestly, if it didn't work, we wouldn't suggest it.
Posted by Kelly at 06:15 PM | Comments (6)
