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May 03, 2007
Stuff is stuff is stuff
Here's one of the easiest things to keep in mind with GTD:
Stuff is stuff is stuff
It all gets processed (decided) the same way. No matter what. Whether it's a voice mail, email, thought in my mind, scratch piece of paper in my Inbox, drive by delegation from someone, it all gets processed by asking, "What's my outcome? What's the next action?" That should be good news to you. It becomes like a game of objectively looking at your stuff and asking those two questions.
How it is organized will vary, but even that can be consistent enough that it becomes like second nature. For example, I have two folders in my email Inbox to organize my actions that have already been decided: "Action" and "Waiting For". I have two plastic folders that serve the same purpose and are called exactly the same thing.
For me, it all gets tracked in one central place: my Palm Desktop lists. I prefer the simplicity of going to one set of lists to show me all of my work. That means, whatever is in the Action or Waiting For folders, the action that represents has been captured on one of my lists. (By the way, other people don't necessarily do it this way and choose to have the folder be the reminder. It's personal preference.)
Posted by Kelly at May 3, 2007 09:42 AM
Comments
It's pretty amazing how effective this simple little habit is. I've found that no matter how stressed out I am about something, and no matter what area of my life it's about (work, relationships, anything) I immediately feel better by asking myself what I plan to do next.
I didn't know when getting into it that GTD could make you a much happier and positive person too, but I'll take it :D
Posted by: Rohit at May 9, 2007 04:12 PM
I wholeheartedly agree. I am a happier person because my head is clear and I know what my agreements are with myself and others. It's the core of GTD and what keeps me doing it all these years.
Posted by: Kelly at May 11, 2007 10:41 AM
