GTD and repeating tasks

[Anonymous]

Does GTD address the subject of repeating tasks? How does one handle
routine tasks, that repeat or recur every day or
week or month? Examples are paying the bills, grocery shopping, exercising. I have read the book Getting Things
Done, and have searched the index, but I cannot recall from my
reading any mention about tasks that recur. Perhaps I missed it.
It seems
more efficient to make a one-time decision on when these tasks will
be done rather than make the decision on the spur of the moment. Should these have a regular time slot in the calendar?

Mark

[Jason Womack]

The "tickler" system (either paper-based, using manila folders, OR calendar-based) works really well for recurring reminders.

Using my digital calendar, I have tens of recurring reminders. ("Send b-day card to..." "time to feed the roses...") I also use my paper-based tickler to remind me of repeating tasks. (For example, my ZIP disk that I use to back up my computer comes up on the 20th of each month. I do the backup, then just put it in the folder for 4 weeks in the future.)

"Doing" GTD just means that you've acknowledged your agreements with yourself and others and have a way to track those. Whether the task is a one-off next action, or something you want to see every 6 weeks for the next two years, we suggest you write it down!

Jason
jason@davidco.com

[jledesma]

Yeah I couldn't agree more with Jason, the Tickler system is great and it can be highly visible. I've configured it in dbk5 using an icon that looks like a Bell, a yellow bell, which stands out quite nicely on my pda among my other scheduled actions, Also dbk5 can handle repeating items, If you have a Palm OS handheld I recommend it, its downloadable at www.pimlicosoftware.com, its also got a very active yahoo group