GTD handling E-mail that contain tasks

[Todd V]

This is a huge pet-peeve of mine: that users can't manipulate email data in a way that gives them the most control. It is still considered a static message you have to read with very little flexibility other than where to file the entire email. This *does not* leave clean edges with respect to email and thus it creates drag on the mind -- even more so when these emails are automated and forwarded and cc'd or bcc'd from others.

This is one of the major reasons I decided to develop my own file-based approach to getting things done on the Mac. One of the things Mac OS X allows users to do is make a clipping of text by simply selecting the text and dragging it to the desktop (or some folder). Since my system is all based in the file-system of the Mac OS, I just cull my emails for actionable items, select each piece of actionable text, and drag it to my desktop folders to process and review. I can still keep the original email in an archive if I wish (though I usually delete it because I like seeing my inbox emptied and I know I've got this information the way I want it now).

I think any strategy that gets these important pieces of information out of your email program and into a system you trust to review later is better than a strategy that tries to use the email program as a filing system.

Not sure what your setup is, but this is what works for me.