I read an article about GTD (Getting Things Done by David Allen) a few months ago but shoved it aside; however, with so many projects demanding my time recently, I started looking into it again (read: need better time management).
I have just barely started using Allen’s system, but have found it to be SO helpful (and quite easy to learn) that I’ve decided to spend more time incorporating it into my everyday life – see the GTD tab above? Sorry, it’s password-protected as it’s for my own use.
So, what is GTD anyway, you might ask? Well, let’s check out what Wikipedia says…
GTD is an action management method and it rests on the principle that a person needs to move tasks out of the mind by recording them somewhere. That way, the mind is freed from the job of remembering everything that needs to be done, and can concentrate on actually performing those tasks.
The premise of GTD, as I understand it, is do the tasks you’ve noted down (in the GTD way) based on the context you’re currently in (i.e., “In front of computer,” “In the car,” “At the office”). Of course, it’s not as simple as that, but it’s not very hard to understand and apply either.
Check out the diagram below to get a better understanding of this system.
Fig. 1.1 – GTD Flow Diagram (view top to bottom)
If you have access to a LAMP server, I recommend installing gtd-php and jump right in – this was the fastest and only way I actually understood it.
To end, I recommend setting up some time to read up on it and give it a try. There’s nothing to lose and maybe a lot to gain… =0)