After reading Getting Things Done, there were two main points that made an impression on me. The first point was that GTD’s main objective is to relieve stress. Sure, project planning and making long-term goals were addressed, but the main point was to remove the reliance on memory and to delegate to the GTD system.

The second point follows from the first, and he uses a trite example to illustrate it. David Allen brings up the story about flashlight batteries - it is pointless to remember you need to buy new batteries when you are trying to use the flashlight, but instead it’s better to get reminded when you are at the store. When I first heard this story, I thought this was a gross simplification (I still do somewhat), but it’s the crux of the system: only worry about what is present and in front of you. GTD ensures that whatever you need to do is appropriately scheduled when you should worry about them - namely, at the time you can do something about it. The long-running To-Do lists has evolved into the eight folders of the outer ring of the workflow, shown below:

Iterative Initiation
The book emphasized how when you start this system, you should allot two full days to pile up all your To-Do things and to incorporate it into this system. I definitely see the merit of this since it’s the most efficient way to sort through all your Post-Its and other reminders you have and to consolidate in one fell swoop. My trouble was that due to client and family commitments, I didn’t have two days coming for a long time. Instead, I went the route of what I call iterative initiation. I pretty much separate my work life and my home life, so I used the divide-and-conquer strategy and just focused on my work. I still have to go back and take care of the home stuff (which entails finance, blogging, professional organizations, personal projects, etc…), and I won’t be able to be completely stress-free until I do this, but the iterative initialization makes it feasible to start.

Implementing GTD
An important part of the workflow is the inbox. I really appreciate the workflow diagram that Stephen had in an earlier post that illustrated how his inbox had multiple sources. I decided to use my electronic PDA as the ultimate source of my inbox… when it comes to emails, phone calls, post-its, etc., my note-taking is not complete until it winds up in my PDA.

My To-Do list on my organizer is capable of being post-dated, which enables me to only focus on my immediate action items. The Someday/maybe folder, also known as the tickler folder, can be an elaborate filing system that consists of 43 folders… thirty-one for each day of the upcoming month, and 12 more for the subsequent months afterwards. There was a running debate on whether the 43 folders should be physically created or not as the tickler folder. The majority recommended doing so, but there was a minority that did not use it much since they hardly ever dealt with paper items. I know I fall into the paperless category, which might be because I work in software. Hence, I have physical folders for my active projects, my archives/references, and only a single one for my tickler. All my other folders are electronic.

Monday (today) is my weekly review, so I don’t have anything yet to report on that, but already I do feel good about GTD. I think it’s because I feel I’m finally in control of what I need to do. I’ve always been in a reactive mode and always putting out fires, but I feel GTD will allow me to be pro-active with my schedule and allow me to be stress-free.

GTD is all about how to Collect, Process, Organize, Review and Do. I still have to organize the non-work part of my life, but that will be for next week’s post!