GTD....without a BlackBerry - it IS possible!
My GTD system is pretty simple and straightforward - my work Outlook without the GTD Add-on that I can access at home via the web and everywhere else via my enterprise BlackBerry. Works well and although I love technology and new tools I have not sought to change this.
Then last week my BlackBerry died :shock: . Took me a couple of days to work out that it wasn't fixable so my work is currently ordering a new one and will ship it from head office within the next few days. In the mean time I found an old Nokia handset in the drawer at home and am using that for calls.
I'm not a slave to my BlackBerry - I have the email notification turned off so I need to physically check whether there are any new messages. What I've discovered though has shocked me. I actually thought to myself yesterday "this Nokia handset is rubbish - I can only make calls on it"! Not a comment you would have heard much just 5 years ago:o .
It then dawned on me how much I use my BlackBerry to access my contacts, my next actions, my calendar, my notes, my personal Gmail and of course my work email. I AM actually much more productive with it as I have learned to make use of valuable snippets of time here and there when out of the office (which is about half the time).
Having said all that the world hasn't ended and I have adapted my GTD system to cope, if only temporarily. Once a day now I print my next action lists which I carry with me and I have to really think ahead of time what other info I might need (like a telephone number) as I won't have access to the Internet whereever I am.
So, strange to discover how much I actually like ubiquitous access to my GTD information and comforting to know that I can adapt my system if I need to.
Simon
I made the Paper to BB move
Hi Cornell, noticed your comment, and also just thought I would chime in.
When I first started GTDing almost 2 years ago (has it been that long???) I was all paper. Part of that was that I wasn't sure if I wanted to spend all the money on a nice new PDA (that IT at work may or may not have let me set up), part of it was also just wanting to get used to the processes first, and part of it was enjoying writing on paper.
However, last May, I was issued a BlackBerry (Pearl, if it matters) from work, linked to our Exchange server, and rather than carrying my own cell phone, a BlackBerry, and a Classic size planner, I decided to make the move to a primarily electronic setup.
I'll also mention that I don't use the Add-in (IT again), but just plain vanilla Outlook 2002 (with an updated to 2007 coming soon). I've just customized a few task views, and use notes for my project lists and other short reference info.
I will admit, I was a little hesitant to make the switch, for a variety of reasons. For one, I enjoyed the paper system. I liked the tactile nature of it, and I find that if I had that with me, it was very easy to do any system maintenance tasks (rewriting, project planning, calendar cleaning, etc.) I was also somewhat hesitant about the addictive possibilities of being "always on".
So after 8 months, how do I find it? I love it. My lists are kept in Outlook, sync'ed to my BlackBerry, along with all my contact info, and the ability to keep in touch. I like having it all in a tiny package that I keep in my pocket. For example, last night I went to Indigo (large bookstore, a la B&N) to pick up a few books, and it was great just having my BlackBerry with me, with the list of books that I wanted to pick up. I used to keep my lists in my planner, the thing is, I wouldn't always have the full thing with me. Especially if I was just popping into a store randomly. This makes things much easier to keep at hand.
Now, I'll admit, there are a few downsides. I miss my paper calendar, I liked that week on two pages view, but I'm not willing to carry another item just to get it back, and this way I'm not having to manage two separate calendars (for work events through Outlook and for everything on paper).
The other thing I find is that I don't use the BlackBerry for Capture. Besides it's glaring omission of including a voice recorder function in the basic Operating System (seriously) it's just not the same as writing things out. That generally isn't a problem for me, though, as I've always got either a Blueline Notebook with me at work, or a Moleskine Pocket size with me elsewhere.
So, that was my slightly long and rambling post, but I hope there's a few tidbits in there you might like.
Cheers,
Adam