David Allen's Blog, page 55

David Allen on the Dr. Oz Show

David was on the Dr. Oz show talking about GTD.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Watch this 3 1/2 minute clip to see him answering audience questions about GTD, such as:

“At the end of the day, and the things that I wasn’t able to get to, how do I not feel like I failed?”

“I’m the queen of to do lists, and I make a to do list to remind me to do my to do list. Is it really strange that if I’ve done something that wasn’t on my to do list, I write it on my to do list just to cross it off because it makes me feel accomplished?”

“As a mom, working-at-home entrepreneur, and wife, how do you prioritize the things you know you need to do to be successful for the day without being guilty? How do you know how to prioritize when everything is as equally important to you to get done?”

 

Are you appropriately engaged?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Getting coached by David Allen

Here’s a rare glimpse inside David Allen coaching someone on the Getting Things Done methodology. He addresses some of the common challenges people have with GTD, and shares his wisdom on making it work. 15 minutes.

To learn more about our GTD Coaching Services, click here.

Podcast #9 – GTD and Technology

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

What role does technology play in productivity? Since GTD is software-neutral, can technology help us be more productive? Join us for a conversation with Ken Case, CEO of the company that makes the popular OmniFocus software.

Listen

The essentials of GTD in 2 minutes, 22 seconds

Our friends over at Epipheo made a great video capturing the essentials of GTD. Well worth watching!

GTD is not an overnight little time-management tip

GTD is not an overnight little time-management tip and trick that’s going to change your life. It really is a whole lifelong, lifestyle, art and craft about how you manage the flow of life’s work. You know, how good can you get at cooking, or parenting, or playing the flute, or karate? There’s no end to those things and there’s no end to how good you can get at managing the flow of life’s work. –David Allen

3 new public courses just added

We just added 3 new public GTD courses to our U.S. schedule!  This is good news for those of you who weren’t able to get into the sold out Atlanta Level 1 course.

Join us this fall for a Level 1: Fundamentals course in:

Dallas, TX – October 13

Seattle, WA – November 11

Washington, DC – December 11

Be sure to register early, as these events do fill quickly!

 

Podcast #8 – Introducing GTD to a Friend

 

David Allen Company President and CEO Mike Williams interviews Andy Armstrong, with a focus on what it’s like to introduce GTD to a friend. Years ago, Mike gave Andy a copy of Getting Things Done. They talk about how Andy’s GTD practice has developed, the value of the Mind Sweep, and how he approaches the Weekly Review. Andy is a great example of stress-free productivity.

Listen

Moving from tree-hugging to forest management

Thanks to E. Jones for sharing his story below with us about his journey with GTD. David Allen has often said that learning GTD is like peeling an onion–the layers continue to unfold.  Here is E.’s story about how his knowledge, tools, and mastery of GTD has evolved:

Hey GTD Crew,

I’m an aspiring GTD practitioner – not necessarily a novice, but definitely not a master.  Was introduced to GTD back in 2007 or so.  Took me a while, but have finally gotten the “Desired Outcome, Current Status, and Next Action” themes ingrained in my way of daily thinking.

As with many who aspire to effectively and efficiently use the GTD methodology – you sometimes fall off the wagon, and new events help you recognize the need and value of getting back on.  I’ve had a couple of those lately, and just wanted to share a few thoughts:

1. In November of 2014, I stepped into a new role.  Lots of change – a good bit of turmoil – and a much faster environment.  Things like that help you to immediately recognize the need for a system.  I felt very much prepared because I had a “system” (at least I thought I was prepared).

2. After a few months in the new role, I realized how much my “system” was tailored to my previous environment.  It became evident that what worked well for me before wasn’t going to work well for me now.  That was a significant (not monumental – but significant) challenge.  I had to learn what pieces of my system would work “as is”, what pieces needed tweaked, and what pieces needed overhauled.

3. As I continue to refine my system, I started (re)reading Getting Things Done (the 2015 version).  I should add that in the midst of all the above, I got a new manager.  Here’s where one of the big light bulbs went off.  I have long recognized the value of the Weekly Review, but mine can be a bit draining – and time consuming.  I try to be thorough – and if I haven’t touched a particular project in a while, that can add to the challenge and time required for a Weekly Review.  In preparation for a 1-on-1 meeting with my new boss, I spent about 3 hours doing a good Weekly Review – capturing current status and next action on 20-30 projects.  That structure worked well.  I think my boss appreciated the structure and the thoroughness – and has asked me to continue that practice.  At the same time, I read a key statement in the 2015 version of GTD:

“A complete and current Projects list is the major operational tool for moving from tree-hugging to forest management”.  

That practice has (and will continue) to help me.  So what’s the next action?  I’ve decided that the tool I was using to capture my Weekly Review needs to change.  I’m very visual – so I love the practice of doing a Weekly Review on a big whiteboard – the issue is the time it takes to transfer the results from “being in the zone” at the whiteboard to something more portable.  I used to use OneNote as a tool for Weekly Review (still do use it for general capture) – but am now working on a master projects list in Excel.  Will share some of the secrets if it helps others – once I get the kinks worked out.

Keep up the good work!!

What’s your GTD story? We’d love to hear from you!

New GTD Guide for Android now available!

We’ve added a new option to our catalog of popular Setup Guides. Android users can now learn our GTD best practices for using Google Apps on their handheld. This Guide is packed with practical recommendations, loads of screen shots, tips, tricks, and options for getting the most out of GTD on the Android. It’s a great complement to our Google Apps for Desktop Setup Guide as well.

You’ll find both Guides in our online store.