Digital or paper
DerekS
to use a digital method or a paper one for GTD?
Right now most reference and notes are kept in MS OneNote, which I
love, but paper is more portable right now...
I am considering a planner for most and reference in OneNote...
I was wondering what others are doing?
Hunt Jon
Do you travel with your laptop anywhere you go? In commuting?
Do you already have a perfect backup system of you computer?
Do you have a printer close to your computer so that you can print out
some/all of your notes instantly?
What about your mobile device? Cell phones? Or "smart" phones?
BlackBerry? iPhone? Does your digital system work seamlessly with your
mobile device?
In your email subject "Digital or paper", have you considered the option "Both"?
I can only give you a hint... I use Macs so I can't help you very well.
psyberduck
that you have to be all or one is artificial...use the tools that work
best with who you are. For reference material, I use Evernote, and I
occasionally use email for capture. But most of my capture is my hPDA
and cell phone voice recorder, and my lists and calendar are all
paper. But that's what works for me. I was a Palm user for almost a
decade (so, pretty much since they came out), and really liked
Lifebalance as a task manager, but I came to find that the tiny screen
(or even my laptop screen) felt confining when it came to looking at
my tasks and projects, and I needed something I could layout and
manipulate in wide open spaces, and didn't conform me to particular
styles. Hence the cards. Even used the d3 wiki to print them at
first, as I transitioned, but ultimately found that good ole pen and
paper were best.
But again, that's just me. You could always use OneNote for capture,
and then transfer down to cards, or to a mobile device. Depends on
which part of the system you want with you on the go, lists you can
review, or blank space for capture. I even hear of some good iPod
apps for displaying your task lists, but they're so hard to read on my
iPod Shuffle... :-D
Jim Barrows
I don't use OneNote, but I do transfer a lot of my notes digital.
Makes it easier to search and sort when I need too.
I do both. I stay digital for 90% of GTD. Notes, and new
tasks/appointments get written down in my notebook. then get
transferred over, most of the time.
If something comes in via email, or while I'm near a computer I do it.
I use a project planner for big projects.
Then I go tired of it all... none of the online stuff worked the way I
wanted.. so I'm writing my own. Early Beta. I've got a round of bugs
to fix, this weekend and if you're
interested, I'll shoot folks the link and a ticket to get it.
> >
>
--
James A Barrows
Derek Schauland
I currently use google calendar for hard landscape items and One Note for reference. The reference notebooks are stored on a flash drive for portability.
I have an account at rememberthemilk, but am not sure it works well for me... and was looking at tasks/next actions either in one note or in a paper based system.
I also have folders for things like brochures or paper materials that arent well suited to scanning into OneNote...
Just trying to get some thougths overall
Derek Schauland
2008 Microsoft MVP
Jim Barrows
<de...@derekschauland.com> wrote:
> I didnt mean to imply an all or nothing scenario but it seems to fit best.
>
> I currently use google calendar for hard landscape items and One Note for
> reference. The reference notebooks are stored on a flash drive for
> portability.
>
> I have an account at rememberthemilk, but am not sure it works well for
> me... and was looking at tasks/next actions either in one note or in a paper
> based system.
>
> I also have folders for things like brochures or paper materials that arent
> well suited to scanning into OneNote...
>
> Just trying to get some thougths overall
>
One of the things that I've noticed about implementing GTD, is that it
lends itself to analysis paralysis. If you look at a lot of the posts
here, and on the david allen site,
you see a LOT of what's best posts. The advice is almost always the
same.. what works best for the folks replying. Which leads me to one
conclusion about GTD... You cant
Think Things Done, you have to Get Things Done. Or, more doing, less thinking.
Being an engineer, and a software developer by hobby as well.... It's
kind of like pulling teeth.. but I do a lot more just do it, then
tinker with the system.. :)
--
James A Barrows
Derek Schauland
Perhaps the question I asked was a bit off...
I have projects which I keep in OneNote
These have Actions which at some point become next actions and the actions get done
Hoe the heck does everyone keep from Action-overload or Action management overload?
If I spend time listing my actions for each project and then my next actions so I know what I can do... how does it not take the rest of forever to keep the lists straight?
Am I updating the list(s) too often?
Jim Barrows
<de...@derekschauland.com> wrote:
> Thats a good way to look at it...
>
> Perhaps the question I asked was a bit off...
>
> I have projects which I keep in OneNote
>
> These have Actions which at some point become next actions and the actions
> get done
>
> Hoe the heck does everyone keep from Action-overload or Action management
> overload?
>
> If I spend time listing my actions for each project and then my next actions
> so I know what I can do... how does it not take the rest of forever to keep
> the lists straight?
>
> Am I updating the list(s) too often?
Yes, I think so, only because you feel the need to ask the question.
Or you're not automating enough. Depending on your point of view. If
you keep each projects tasks with the project, and only transfer the
tasks you need to the "in your face" list, that can keep management
down. Don't manage tasks, manage your time. Figure out what you can
get done, and do those. The lists just help you figure that out.
Another way to look at it.. getting things done is about being lazy.
The lazier you are, the more you will get done.
--
James A Barrows
Derek Schauland
OR do I update a list of next actions and see which of those I can do at any given time?
I guess figuring out how to create/manage NA lists is the biggest piece of the puzzle
Jim Barrows
<de...@derekschauland.com> wrote:
> So then if I am looking for something to do... review each project and see
> which tasks I could do...
Yepper.
>
> OR do I update a list of next actions and see which of those I can do at any
> given time?
I do that in the morning. I look at my schedule, my task lists and
transfer what I can do to my "Today list'. Actually, my task manager
does most of that for me. I just have to print it out if I need to.
It's also available via my PDA for access. Which I do depends on
where I'll be ( ie out of cell), and mood.
99.99% of the time this takes me 10 minutes at most. When it's longer
then 10 minutes it's because I have to juggle schedule and tasks
because of the unexpected, deadlines or size of the tasks.
If I'm overly pessimisitic about my time, I go looking at my other
lists to fill in. HOWEVER, the point of GTD is to give you more free
time, not fill in every waking moment with something to do. So, I
usually reward myself with something fun and non-productive. This
does require a degree of honesty with yourself. If you're going to
sandbag your list, admit it. If you're going to over commit, admit
it.
>
> I guess figuring out how to create/manage NA lists is the biggest piece of
> the puzzle
Nah. The workflow diagrams in the book and on the website have
already done that :)
--
James A Barrows
Derek Schauland
how does the NA list get used seems like extra steps if you are reviewing the projects outstanding daily
Jim Barrows
<de...@derekschauland.com> wrote:
> But if you review projects to see which actions you can/want to do
>
> how does the NA list get used seems like extra steps if you are reviewing
> the projects outstanding daily
It acts like a box of time. You put everything you need in it, and
take it with you. When someone asks for something urgent, you can
look in your box, and see if you have time for the urgent, and
determine if it's more important then what's in the box. It allows
you to have everything you need in one place to see if you need to
take something out of your box to put something else in.
It also acts like a detailed checklist. Let's say the project is
planning a party. The task is "Go Shopping for food". That's what's
on your project plan. We all know that this is going to get expanded.
So, you've already figured out the theme, you know what dishes to
prepare, so the "Go Shopping" task gets expanded on the NA list to:
1) Review Recipes and see what's in the pantry.
2) Make shopping list of things I don't have.
3) Check paper for coupons for all items needed.
4) Plan shopping trip.
Okay, you can't really do more on 3 & 4 right now.. you don't know
what stores you need to go to, or what stores have the best prices.
That will have to wait until later, and you have more information to
complete those.
Now, you're in the super market, and you meet Bob, Bob wants to go to
lunch and talk about something. You look in your time box (NA List),
and realize that you only have one more store to go to, and and the
restaurant is on the way, so yeah it fits in your box. Or, it
doesn't, you can tell Bob, sorry, I have too much to do today.
So, in the first instance it keeps you from having to detail every
step in a project plan to the last task. You can simply put as tasks
simple, easily understood tasks, without a lot of detail. That makes
project planning easier. It also means you put off some decisions
until you have more information. it can also keep you from having to
make the same decision twice.
Let's say that you have your party project all planned out in advance.
The food will be Mexican, and you've planned this out 3 weeks in
advance. The night before you go shopping, you're wife makes Mexican.
You don't really notice that all of the ingredients you thought had.
Now you have to make the decisions of what go shopping for AGAIN. Not
good. Not a disaster, not anywhere near a catastrophe, but
nonetheless.. a time waster.
--
James A Barrows
Derek Schauland
A notebook for the "hey can you help me withs" is a good thing to have, so you can capture these and see if they fit with projects when you return to that list (or your desk)...
Derek Schauland
Jim Barrows
<de...@derekschauland.com> wrote:
> And in this notebook perhaps 1 page per day to work from, rolling all things
> not completed to the next page with the date???
I don't date mine. When the page gets to be a PITA to read, I
re-print or re-do it. It's lazier. Then again my
organizer is not pre-printed in any way, so it doesn't matter. If
you're using one of the preprinted ones, that's great.
And to your comments below.. sure.. that works :)
--
James A Barrows