Actionable and »Sometimes/Later«

[Andrea!]

Hi,

in the workflow structure, why is »Sometimes/Later« under "not actionable"? Things like "paint kitchen" are definitely actionable, aren't they?

Thank you
Andrea

 

[Gardener]

I'm not sure which workflow structure referring to? (I'm tentatively assuming one of the books, but can you point to a chapter?)

For what it's worth, I'd say that "paint kitchen" is a project, rather than an action. But I don't know if that would end up being relevant to your question.

 

[cfoley]

It is because putting something on Someday/Maybe is a choice to not commit to it right now. You might choose to make it actionable again at some point in the future. I think of Someday/Maybe as a source of inspiration rather than a list of commitments.

 

[mcogilvie]

in the workflow structure, why is »Sometimes/Later« under "not actionable"? Things like "paint kitchen" are definitely actionable, aren't they?

David Allen uses the term “Someday/Maybe”, which is not equivalent to “Sometimes/Later”. Someday refers to an indefinite day in the future, while sometimes is a synonym for “occasionally”: “Sometimes I go to the beach.” It’s tricky because “sometime”, without the final “s” is used like someday: “Stop by sometime.” On the other hand, “later” usually refers to something that will happen, while “maybe” refers to something that might happen. In modern business English, “actionable” is often used to mean “actionable now” although the word has other meanings, including a legal one.

 

[Andrea!]

In modern business English, “actionable” is often used to mean “actionable now” although the word has other meanings, including a legal one.

Thank you, that is the explanation, I think.

So far, I understood actionable = "an action ist possible". Apparently, it means "an action is necessary/wished in the near future."

All the best
Andrea

 

[Gardener]

Thank you, that is the explanation, I think.

So far, I understood actionable = "an action ist possible". Apparently, it means "an action is necessary/wished in the near future."

All the best
Andrea

Yep. I'd add "plausible". If you'd like to paint the kitchen tomorrow, but there's no chance you'll have the time (or money, or be able to be without the kitchen, or whatever reason makes it not plausible.) for six months, then IMO painting the kitchen isn't actionable.