Organic Mutant

After a few months of hemming and hawing, I finally got myself on the GTD program last month. Although I had been petering around the fringes of the GTD blogosphere, I only really started to engage in actual GTD behavior thanks to the profound encouragement of (and living proof from) Nancy.

One day a while back, she was showing off her literally empty email inbox. At the same time, I was feeling stressed out about the 230+ emails (maybe 30 unread) in my own inbox. I had not really made a serious attempt to empty it, as that was not a mental framework I had access to, and so was feeling that daily sense of dread and woe associated with so many loose ends. So after sharing my sad reality with Nancy, she took the time to school me on building my inbox system.

First, she said, make two new folders: Next Actions and Waiting On. Then, tend to everything that takes 2 minutes or less. Then, for items that require action but take more than 2 minutes, into Next Actions. Items which require actions from other, into Waiting On. Everything else should be deletable or archived. I did as I was told.

Within a week I went from 230 unread/unarchived emails to less than 10. Eventually I got that number close to zero, until I stumbled upon Inbox Zero, (watch the video) which cemented my mindset. For the past few weeks, nearly every day when I leave the office, my email inbox is literally empty. This means I have been more responsive to my colleagues and managers, and more on top of my personal responsibilities.

Shortly after I started this program, I found myself at a major corporate bookstore and wandered over to the Self Help section where I spotted David Allen’s Getting Things Done in audiobook format. I snatched it up and so began my actual move into the wider world of GTD (e.g. beyond my email).

It could not have happened at a better time, as my August was especially challenging due to my Burning Man expedition, along with evening classes, my gym program, work, and generally trying to be a good person.

I bought myself a tiny Moleskine notebook, which I used as my central location to note all my tasks, as well as to chronicle my daily expenditures. For the first time in my life, I stuck to my ‘to do’ tool without fail. I kept copious records. I got a massive amount of things done. I actually kept an accurate tally of my spending. And I did it all with minimal stress. After all, since I knew that I could count on my system, I didn’t wonder and worry late at night whether I had done what I needed to do that day, or if I would remember what I needed to do tomorrow. Peace of mind!

It is a wonderful feeling. But the best part is looking forward and considering how much better this month - and next - will be. I have so much to do, but now, finally, at last, I have the tools to really get done the things that are important to me - without stressing out or adhering to some awkward program.