Stress Free Productivity – #4 in a Series

Guest post by @terryeva, a solutions architect for AOL and a social media enthusiast

The first, second, and third posts in this productivity series examined actionable lists, efficient use of calendar entries and a brief overview of Getting Things Done (GTD). This last post, in the productivity series, will show you the tools I use for Getting Things Done!

Collecting->processing->organizing->reviewing->doing are the five stages one must go through as one manages their workflow using the GTD methodology.  David Allen, the author of Getting Things Done, recommends separating the stages throughout the day.  Failure with this system is largely because individuals attempt to do all five stages at once. David Allen notes, “The dynamics of these five stages need to be understood, and good techniques and tools implemented to facilitate their functioning at the optimal level.”

The Tools

A Calendar is essential to GTD.  Time-specific actions, day-specific actions, and day-specific information will be stored in Calendar. I use Google Calendar for tracking time specific or day specific actions or information. Google Calendar easily syncs with Microsoft Outlook and is supported on the majority of mobile devices.

A Smartphone is not essential to the GTD methodology but I use a Smartphone as my tool of choice for practicing GTD on the go. I currently use an iPhone but my methodology of GTD can also be used on the iPad, Android, Blackberry, Palm Pre, or even Windows Mobile.

Lastly I use Evernote to collect, process, organize and review.

Setting up Evernote for Productivity

A simple Google search on “Evernote and GTD” will return hundreds of articles on how to use Evernote as a productivity tool. As you become familiar with GTD,  feel free to set up Evernote in a manner that works best for you.  My configuration is simple.

Notebooks – I created three notebooks.

• Inbox – This is my collection notebook
• Next Actions – All deferred items are stored in this folder. Deferred does not mean forget about it. These items are actioned as soon as possible.  Note: An item may be placed on the Calendar instead of in this notebook
• Reference – If I really need to remember something and locate it at a later date I store the item in the reference folder.

Tags – Tags are used like folders. The Tags I created are:

• .PROJECTS – Project planning and project actions. I create sub tags for each individual project.
• @ – Tags with the @ symbol are Context tags. The actions I choose to work on depend on context.
  • @ANYWHERE – I can do these actions anywhere
  • @CALLS – These actions require a phone
  • @Computer – These actions require a computer
  • @Errands – These actions can take place when I am shopping or running day to day errands
  • @Home – These actions must be completed at home
  • @Read/Review – These are articles or information I want to read when I have time.
  • @WAITING FOR – These actions are dependent on someone or something.
  • @WORK –These actions must be completed at work

• SOMEDAY/MAYBE – This holds a collection of tags of things I might do someday. Some examples are:
  • Books to read
  • Cultural events to attend
  • Gift Ideas

Collect

I use the main notebook of Evernote as my inbox. The inbox is where I place all things I consider incomplete or tasks I have to do.  I create actionable items as needed. I have my email from multiple accounts forwarded to Evernote. This is truly my one inbox to rule them all.

The inbox is emptied on a regular basis. Empty does not mean I have finished the task or item in my inbox. Empty means I have taken a task out of the inbox, decided what the task is and what I am going to do with it. A task is never put back into the inbox.

Process & Organize

Process is not about organizing incoming items from your inbox. Process is item-by-item thinking that allows one to empty the inbox. Process means asking what the item is. Once we decide what the item is we must ask if the item is actionable. If an item is not actionable, does not need to be stored for later review, or kept as reference, then it must be deleted. Items kept for later review or reference, are tagged and then moved to the Next Actions or Reference Notebooks.

If the item is actionable and the action can be accomplished in two minutes or less then one should just complete the incoming item. If the item will take longer than two minutes the item should be delegated, placed on Calendar if appropriate, or deferred. Tag the deferred items and move them to the Next Action Folder.

I treat projects the same way I treat deferred items. A project simply requires more than one actionable item to be completed before the project is finished.

Process is the act of deciding the action one will take on an incoming item. Organizing is simply the act of organizing the items into actionable lists (Tag and move to appropriate notebook).

Review

Reviews are not just for projects and the day to day grind. The purpose of reviews, David Allen said, is to “review the whole picture of your life and work at appropriate intervals and appropriate levels.”

Day to day, review the Calendar and Next Actions by context (@WORK, @HOME, etc).  Projects, waiting for, and Someday/Maybe can be reviewed as needed to keep one from wondering about the items in those lists.

Weekly reviews consist of reviewing the items in Evernote. David Allen notes the Weekly review is the time to:

• Gather and process all your “stuff”
• Review your system
• Update your lists
• Get clean, clear, current and complete

DO

Do is where the rubber hits the road. Having a system without execution is a hallucination. (My apologies to Mr. Edison who originally said, “Vision without execution is hallucination.”) There are multiple models for choosing what to do.  I use the Four-Criteria Model for choosing actions in the moment.

Context ­­- Most actions require a specific location or tool. Depending on the context I may need to be @WORK or at the @COMPUTER to complete an action. Context matters.

Time – If I only have 10 minutes before I change Context I may not be able to complete an action @WORK or at the @COMPUTER. Instead I may spend the 10 minutes @READ/REVIEW.

Energy Available – 5:00 p.m. on a Friday may not be the best time to start an action requiring a lot of thought. I may want to save that action for Monday morning at 9:00 am when I am refreshed from the weekend.

Priority – Given the three above conditions, completing which action will give you or your customer the most bang for your buck?

GTD is a productivity system that consists of five stages: Collect->Process->Organize->Review->and Do. The four productivity posts were meant to provide the reader with a taste of GTD and to highlight the benefits. I encourage everyone to read the Getting Things Done book by David Allen. Integrate the system with your daily life and make it your own. “Do or do not, there is no try” – Yoda,  Jedi Master.