Getting Started

[joetab24]

Hi,

I look forward to learning from everyone.

I was first exposed to GTD a few months ago. I read one book by David Allen and quickly began carrying around a pocket of index cards. Capturing ideas in one place has helped a lot. I did a few weekly reviews but for the most part I haven't turned carrying around index cards and writing down ideas into a "system". I want that to change.

I am currently carrying around some index cards, a hipster PDA if you will. I actually lost the 10 or so cards I was carrying around for weeks. That could be a problem with the index card method.

I have been trying to make a list of all of my "in boxes" .

@work
office mailbox--------0 every day or so
email----------------self deleting...prob a 100 or so
voice mail-----------check almost every day

@ home
snail mail------------trash junk...put bills into green inbox for processing
yahoo email---------26000!!!
green inbox---------not that much, need to process
laundry-------------daily or every other day

I am going to continue using YAHOO calendar tool.

I need to process daily the items on the index cards.

 

[joetab24]

My index cards are my ubiquitous capture tool. I need to review them daily to see what needs to be processed. What is my system for doing this?

@work
book counts for brad asap
mike t ec, dave k 5
file parent contact card

@bjs
rice
chicken
shredd cheese

@calendar
dentist 5/12

I just processed my capture cards.
I need to process my green inbox. There are some cards in there. Where should I be writing the above info? In a notebook?

 

[ChristinaSkaskiw]

Re: Getting started

I have been trying to make a list of all of my "in boxes" .

@work
office mailbox--------0 every day or so
email----------------self deleting...prob a 100 or so
voice mail-----------check almost every day

@ home
snail mail------------trash junk...put bills into green inbox for processing
yahoo email---------26000!!!
green inbox---------not that much, need to process
laundry-------------daily or every other day

The snail-mailboxes aren't really inboxes, because you don't process stuff out of them, you just dump their contents into your actual inbox (the green one in your case). (Might want to get an inbox on your desk at work too.)

I just processed my capture cards.
I need to process my green inbox. There are some cards in there. Where should I be writing the above info? In a notebook?

Regarding index cards, some people use them as their lists, e.g. contexts and project list. They carry them around and capture next actions straight into their system. They don't *process* them and re-write elsewhere, they just *review* them. I didn't use cards like that, but had a loose leaf paper planner (filofax) for a long time and had lined note pages in it for the same purpose as the index cards. They had headings like @home, @calls, ...

You'd still want a capture tool, so either have separate cards for capturing ideas that need further decision on next actions (to process at some point) in addition to your context cards, or some other notebook.

Best wishes
/C

 

[joetab24]

Just wanted to check in to update my progress.

By the end of this week, my second week trying to get things done, I need to back up my cards. I am worried I am going to lose them and my system will fall apart.

I conducted my first weekly review and I feel like I have the basic methods of capture and process down.

I have a project list written on an index card. I want to read how others handle their projects. I am thinking I am going to dedicate a page per project in a notebook. Under each project I can come up with and document next actions, that I will then transfer to an index card, one at a time.

 

[Brent]

As to how I handle Projects: I have a page for my Projects on my clipboard. I carry the clipboard with me pretty much everywhere. I also have a page for Next Actions, and another for Waiting Fors, on the clipboard.

Index cards (in my ubiquitous capture tool) go into my physical inbox on my desk. When I process that inbox--every day, roughly--I write down the appropriate Next Action(s) and Project(s) on the clipboard pages. My Someday/Maybe list is digital, so if it belongs on SD/M, I'll take the card to my computer.

Note that the words I write on the index cards aren't necessarily the words I write on my clipboard pages. I often re-frame the work once I look at it. I also need to get better at recognizing that a neat idea I get for something to do shouldn't necessarily become an active Project. I have other commitments already; it should usually become a Someday/Maybe, then re-evaluated for inclusion during my next Weekly Review. I'm probably resisting this partly because I've been lax in performing full Weekly Reviews lately.