Good digital solution for Windows PC/Apple iOS combination?

[TripleJ]

Hi,
I'm a long time GTD'er but new to this forum. I currently manage my GTD process separately for work and personal life. At work, we are O365 so I use a combination of Outlook, ToDo and One Note, and it does almost everything I want it to.

Personal use is where I'm struggling to find the right mix of software. I have an iPhone device, but don't live entirely in the Apple ecosystem. My email and calendar system is Google and I use Windows laptop or PCs, not a Mac. I interact with the iPhone most because it's always around, and I do find the Reminders app to be good. I can easily organize things and use shortcuts for inbox capture or voice capture via Siri to get thoughts into the inbox easily.

The 2 biggest challenges I have are 1) getting emails (GMail) into Reminders in an efficient way, and 2) accessing my Reminders lists on a Windows device, I have to log into iCloud via browser. It's possible, but not as easy as I would like (or as easy as Office 365 apps that do work on iPhone).

I am teaching GTD to my college age son and would like to find a good mix of software that works between Windows and iOS, to help with his adoption. I would prefer to use Microsoft Outlook, ToDo and One Note for personal use, but that requires a Micrsoft hosted email to work best (e.g. Flagged emails syncing to To Do) and we both have too much history tied to our Gmail address to switch.

Does anyone have a good workflow that allows easy capture of emails, ideas/thoughts into the GTD system that works easily on Windows devices and iPhone, when tied to a Gmail

 

[mksilk2]

Nirvana is possibly your answer, or any other GTD system that allows an email to be sent to the GTD application. So I use a combination like you. Work is O365 so I use Outlook Email, Calendar, OneNote and ToDo (how I wish Microsoft would take ToDo more seriously and develop it) with an iPhone. At home I use Nirvana, Hotmail (ie Outlook), TheBrain, OneNote on Windows, with an iPhone. Nirvana is such a better GTD system than ToDo, so i manage my non-work tasks and projects in Nirvana. I'll give you an example. Yesterday I received my latest electricity bill via email into my Hotmail account. I simply forward that email to my Nirvana Inbox. I do the same for online orders. I receive an email of confirmation of my order and I immediately forward that to Nirvana. Then in Nirvana I process my Inbox. Online orders goes into a 'Waiting for - delivery' bucket, paying the elec bill goes into Next Actions etc. Nirvana also has an app on the iphone so it crosses the ecosystems of Windows/iOs nicely.

 

[mcogilvie]

Nirvana and Todoist are probably your best choices, and you will probably like one more than the other. I think they both are too expensive, but they can work well for GTD.

 

[Y_Lherieau]

Given your preferences and the challenges you've outlined, finding a GTD workflow that bridges the gap between Windows and iOS platforms, especially when tethered to Gmail, requires a bit of creative integration. Since you already have an established workflow for work using Office 365 tools and are familiar with iOS functionalities, leveraging cross-platform tools like Todoist could serve as the backbone for your personal GTD system. Here's a recommendation that should align with your needs:

1. Email to Task Management: Since shifting away from Gmail is not preferred, and you're looking for seamless integration between Gmail and a task management system on both Windows and iOS, Todoist offers a robust solution. Todoist's cross-platform availability means you can easily add emails as tasks from Gmail on any device or handle your emails within Outlook mobile. For capturing emails directly from Gmail into Todoist same goes from mobile Outlook, use the Todoist for Gmail or Outlook add-on on the web and the integration feature in mobile apps. This will allow you to convert emails into tasks, set priorities, deadlines, and even assign them to projects directly from your IOS inbox.
   
   
2. Cross-Platform Note Taking: For note-taking, OneNote is already a part of your workflow. Continue leveraging OneNote for capturing ideas, meeting notes, and any other reference material. OneNote's cross-platform nature ensures you can access your notes on both Windows and iOS devices seamlessly. If needed, integrate OneNote from within mobile Outlook.
   
   
3. GTD Setup in Todoist: Structure Todoist to reflect your GTD system—set up projects for each area of your life or work, use labels for contexts, and filters to manage tasks by priority or due date (you can use the GTD setup guide for Todoist). Todoist’s flexibility allows for a detailed GTD setup, where you can review tasks easily across different platforms.
   
   
4. Calendar Integration: For calendar management, sticking with your current preference for the native iOS Calendar is advisable due to its simplicity and the ability to view multiple calendars in different colors. Since you use Google Calendar, you can sync it with the iOS Calendar app to keep all your appointments in one place. For important meetings, I am using an iOS Shortcut to create customized alarms. Todoist also offers a calendar integration feature, allowing you to view your Todoist tasks directly in your calendar app, providing a comprehensive view of your commitments and tasks.
   
   
5. Reminders and Voice Capture: For capturing tasks on the go, you can use Siri with the Reminders app for quick voice capture. To bridge the gap between Reminders and Todoist, you can explore automation platforms like IFTTT or Zapier to automatically sync tasks added to Reminders with Todoist, thus maintaining a unified task list accessible from both Windows and iOS.
   
   
6. Teaching GTD to Your Son: For teaching GTD to your son, using Todoist as a central task management tool, complemented by OneNote for note-taking and the native iOS Calendar for scheduling, provides a simple yet effective ecosystem. This setup minimizes the learning curve and facilitates a smoother adoption of GTD practices, with the added benefit of being scalable as his needs grow.