mannie1972 said:
Currently running a paper diary to co-ordinate everything whilst still keeping all the various on-line elements up to date. Advice for this 42 year old coffee addict please.
Stick with paper and implement the procedures and habits of GTD. Then perhaps consider changing your technology to better suit you.
Sign on for the free GTD Connect Trial and see if you have access to the hints on how to set up GTD systems on paper and in Outlook. I;m on a Mac and use Omnifocus, DEVONThink, Mac Calendar and Mac Mail so my choices won't be suitable. What matters is the process not the tools.
Read the book again in about 6-8 weeks, it's amazing how much you pick up after you've started.
Weekly Review as if your life depends on it. Maybe start even doing them twice a week.
Develop the habit of capturing EVERYTHING, no matter how small. I use pen and paper and am just starting to use my phone and voice notes but the method doesn't matter. Important thing is capture it and then process it.
Plan on an hour to 1.5 hours a day to process new inputs. Seems like it's far too much time but in my experience it's barely enough. If you don't process new stuff you'll get even further behind. DOn't want TV, cut back on reading or stay up an extra 15 minutes a day to get a bit more time but don't skimp on processing.
Separate backlog for processing as a separate project from current incoming stuff. When you first get going it may take months to clear the backlog of stuff. That can get overwhelming so tackle it slowly while learning how to stay current.
When processing your backlog tackle a single system/area at a time. Perhaps e-mail, then computer files then paper files or clear the desk of misc stuff, doesn't matter where you start but pick one, perhaps the one that is most bothering you and stick with it until it's clean then move to the next one. Think of it like spring cleaning for your life and tackle it one "room" at a time.
In 6 months or so get and read the other 2 books, they make more sense after you've implemented GTD for a while.
The process gives you as much as you put in - and the result is marvelous when you master it to a high degree. I read the book in 2005, but I did not really apply the method in a good way until about two years ago. Take some coaching, that speeds up the learning curve. I have not done that either but doing this yourself is like learning to serve in tennis (that is, it takes longer time).
