Can Setting up of work place be collected in "in" item?

[Goutam Hegde]

Scenario 1:
I am working on weekends at my home, I don't have access to office to set up an "Office Work-space".

What should be done? Put those tasks of setting up work-space at office in in-tray.

Scenario 2:
Same thing as Scenario 1,
I am working on weekends at my home, I don't have workspace at home and I feel setting up workspace
overwhelming, shall I list the tasks of setting up work space at home in in-tray and move to collecting
tasks?

 

[Oogiem]

If you work and live in different locations I'd set up a folder of stuff to shuttle to and from. If you are at home, and you think of something that has to be done at the work location, write it down or capture it however you capture stuff and put it in the folder you take with you to work. When you get to the work location the very first thing you should do is take out all the stuff in your To Work folder and add it to your work inbox.

If you are just starting then yes, add a note or project "Set up work inbox" and give it the context of "at Work"

For scenario 2 you are in the place where that task needs to be done. So why do you find it overwhelming? What tiny single action would move the project along? It might be something as simple as decide what room to put my desk in, or if you won't have a desk in your home it might be decide where to store my portable home office materials. It could be that you use your table or a counter to do the work but you will still need a place to put stuff, your inbox, both a physical one and an electronic one. It might be a pretty basket that sits in the living room, or whatever but you will need something.

Starting GTD can seem overwhelming at first. Just try to hang in there and follow the steps as the book lays out and just trust that it will all work out in the end. You may not see the end goal from the start but it really does eventually make sense. That making sense stage may take a year or more so be patient with yourself.

 

[Goutam Hegde]

and give it the context of "at Work"

What do you mean by give it context of "at Work"?

So why do you find it overwhelming?

Not specifically for this scenario but to be honest what really makes overwhelming is the anxiety of loosing track on the operations
as this requires to pause the day to day.

And Yes. I am able sense the relaxation upto a Descent extent, Even though still there is a little anxiety when take a break, some thoughts
like "How long this process is going to take? Are my goals getting delayed forever?"
"Will I make comfort zone of remaining away from the operations/Responsibilities?"
"Is this really going to work?"
Such kind of things.


But Affirmations like

• "If I don't go through this process things will be more overwhelming",
• "The reason I have choosen to read and go through more grip in the operations and of course GTD is for the purpose of Getting the things only so anyway I will be back to the operations quickly" and something like
• "Several people who have more responsibilities than me have gone through this process have been benefited from it. If it works for so many people, it is going to work for me "

Are helping to keep me motivated and have patience to move further.

 

[Geeko]

I think your main problem for scenario 1 is that you do not have access to your lists and calendar when you are working from home. If you want to make your office “mobile” for working from your office and from your home, you have to build your system to fit this. Maybe your company can provide you with external access to the systems you need.

Scenario 2 sounds to me like a project. These can sometimes look overwhelming but all you have to do is define a clear outcome and divide the project into next actions. Maybe you should have a look at the Natural Planning Model in the book for some inspiration on how to do that. It might start with very simple actions such as “set up desk”, “set up inbox”, … The important thing is that you start your project. Most next actions will become clear naturally during the process.

I hope this helps you.

Cheers,
Tristan

 

[Bill Myers]

If it were me, I'd handle it as follows:

Scenario 1: I'd like to set up my office but I'm at home when I think of this. I'd create a project for "set up workspace at office," and add that to my projects list. I'd decide on one or more next actions, and then add those actions to the appropriate context lists.

Scenario 2: I'd like to set up my home workspace and I'm home, but I don't want to or can't do it right now. In that case I'd do the same thing: add a project to the project list, and the next action or actions to the appropriate context lists.

The beauty of GTD is that if you think of something to do that you can't or don't want to do where you are now, you can park those things and get them off your mind.

 

[Oogiem]

What do you mean by give it context of "at Work"?

Not specifically for this scenario but to be honest what really makes overwhelming is the anxiety of loosing track on the operations
as this requires to pause the day to day.

A key component of the GTD system is that you set up your work so that you only see the things you have to do when you are in the location or have the tools necessary to do those things.

So if you have to do something at "work" but you are at home, you can't do anything about them so why clutter up your mind or your lists by seeing those things then?

So by setting the project and actions necessary to get a GTD control center set up at work to a context of work, you won't see any of those when you are at home or on vacation or anyplace but at work.

It's normal to feel like you are losing control when you first start your GTD practice. It's such a different way of working and thinking about your work, like and why you are here compared to what most folks do that it will seem odd. Think of it as if you are picking up a completely new sport and stretching your mind and body to learn it.

IMO there are 3 critical functions that you MUST do to start to feel comfortable with the GTD methodology.

1. Capture and collect everything you have on your mind no matter how small and insignificant you then tell yourself that item is into an external source. (paper, or electronic, the key is not in your mind)
2. Allow enough time each and every day to fully process those items. It will take between 1-2 hours a day just to process what the average person has coming in. I'm a farmer, with slow cycles of work but I still need about an hour and a half a day just to handle incoming new stuff.
3. Review your GTD system at least once a week or more often at first if you need it. A good weekly review should take about an hour to hour and a half if you've been keeping up with your daily processing. If I am on top of processing I can do a reasonable review in half an hour. I do longer 4-6 hour reviews once a quarter but the weekly one is a ritual I try to miss only in case of emergencies.

Try to consistently perform all 3 key activities for at least 2 months and then see where you are. Or follow the 12 week year guidelines and give yourself 3 months before you make any major changes or decide the system isn't for you.