How to strike a balance between calendar and lists?

KW7

Registered
Yesterday I realized as I went to put something on my calendar (it was a very important time sensitive task) that most of my calendar was crammed with lots of items that needed to be done but probably shouldn't be on my calendar. And, surprise, a lot of thinks on my lists haven't been getting done lately. Progress is slow. The math makes sense though when I see how much time is already taken up on my calendar. Many times I end up moving phone reminders generated by my calendar items until the create this growing snowball by the end of the day -- maybe a few get done but the reminders wear me down and I'm sure impact productivity.
All this to say, has anyone discovered how to balance when to use the calendar and when to just leave something on your list? My original plan for putting something on the calendar is that I absolutely can't afford to miss it. It's got to be done soon. If I just have an item on my list, even if marked as a priority, interruptions during the day might cause me to miss it or not address it for several days.

Thanks for the input, folks.
 

mcogilvie

Registered
I believe many people who are using digital tools for next actions no longer put next actions which must be done today on their calendars, but use the due date feature on their list app instead. There are many combinations of apps which place next actions due in a list app directly on the calendar.

I’m not particularly good at checking my calendar, but it is displayed within Things 3, my list app of choice, so that helps. Ultimately, you have to find a process that works for you. I have a daily list within Things, and next actions due today are manually arranged by me to be at the top of the list. Things makes this very easy. I wouldn’t do it if it wasn’t, and would have to find some other way.
 

John Forrister

GTD Connect
Staff member
....My original plan for putting something on the calendar is that I absolutely can't afford to miss it.
Hi KW7,
For many people, the calendar is the trusted place to see what they have to do. As you've found, it's not efficient. Ideally you would build just as much trust in your next actions lists.

With GTD the only things that go on your calendar are time-specific (appointments, meetings), date-specific (must be done that day but can be done at any time), and date-specific information (e.g. a reservation number for the hotel you're checking into on that date).

If an item must be done by a date, but not done on a specific date, it would go on one of your next actions lists, with the due date. Ideally you would be scanning those lists often enough, and looking at due dates as they approach, so you would not miss anything.
 

mcogilvie

Registered
Hi KW7,
For many people, the calendar is the trusted place to see what they have to do. As you've found, it's not efficient. Ideally you would build just as much trust in your next actions lists.

With GTD the only things that go on your calendar are time-specific (appointments, meetings), date-specific (must be done that day but can be done at any time), and date-specific information (e.g. a reservation number for the hotel you're checking into on that date).

If an item must be done by a date, but not done on a specific date, it would go on one of your next actions lists, with the due date. Ideally you would be scanning those lists often enough, and looking at due dates as they approach, so you would not miss anything.
Thanks, John. I should have said that. For a long time I put major deadlines on my calendar as a kind of ”belt and suspenders” approach, but I now have trusted tools and an ingrained process such that I don’t feel the need.
 

Longstreet

Professor of microbiology and infectious diseases
Hi KW7,
For many people, the calendar is the trusted place to see what they have to do. As you've found, it's not efficient. Ideally you would build just as much trust in your next actions lists.

With GTD the only things that go on your calendar are time-specific (appointments, meetings), date-specific (must be done that day but can be done at any time), and date-specific information (e.g. a reservation number for the hotel you're checking into on that date).

If an item must be done by a date, but not done on a specific date, it would go on one of your next actions lists, with the due date. Ideally you would be scanning those lists often enough, and looking at due dates as they approach, so you would not miss anything.
John and mcgoilvie have given exellent responses. The only thing I would add - and this will shock them no doubt - is that it is also perfectly fine within GTD to add specific time blocks on your calendar for protected time. If you have 2-3 major projects that are due soon and you receive a lot of Zoom meeting requests like I do, then it is imperative that you protect time on your calendar for focused work.
 

mcogilvie

Registered
John and mcgoilvie have given exellent responses. The only thing I would add - and this will shock them no doubt - is that it is also perfectly fine within GTD to add specific time blocks on your calendar for protected time. If you have 2-3 major projects that are due soon and you receive a lot of Zoom meeting requests like I do, then it is imperative that you protect time on your calendar for focused work.
Excellent point. My zoom meetings had stabilized over the summer, and I knew what my availability for focused work was. Now as the semester is looming (we're starting late, Sept. 14th), I have to adapt to a new pattern of meetings.
 

Longstreet

Professor of microbiology and infectious diseases
Excellent point. My zoom meetings had stabilized over the summer, and I knew what my availability for focused work was. Now as the semester is looming (we're starting late, Sept. 14th), I have to adapt to a new pattern of meetings.
Yep -- there are times now when I can look at my calendar and see Zoom meetings appear - one after another. :D
 

Sarahsuccess

Registered
Yesterday I realized as I went to put something on my calendar (it was a very important time sensitive task) that most of my calendar was crammed with lots of items that needed to be done but probably shouldn't be on my calendar. And, surprise, a lot of thinks on my lists haven't been getting done lately. Progress is slow. The math makes sense though when I see how much time is already taken up on my calendar. Many times I end up moving phone reminders generated by my calendar items until the create this growing snowball by the end of the day -- maybe a few get done but the reminders wear me down and I'm sure impact productivity.
All this to say, has anyone discovered how to balance when to use the calendar and when to just leave something on your list? My original plan for putting something on the calendar is that I absolutely can't afford to miss it. It's got to be done soon. If I just have an item on my list, even if marked as a priority, interruptions during the day might cause me to miss it or not address it for several days.

Thanks for the input, folks.

Hi
I would add an idea from the GTD book by David Allen.

There are three types of work:
1. Defining your work.
2. Doing work as it shows up
3. Doing predetermined work.

#1 means processing your inboxes and organizing onto your lists and calendar (and into trash and doing less than 2 min actions)

#2 means doing stuff that never makes it to your lists

#3 means doing actions from your lists and calendar.

It’s important to make time and make sure we are doing all three in a balanced way. I find that the hardest is #3, but when I make the time for that I trust my system more.

Also I make a daily paper list of 3-6 things that must get done that day. I believe I have seen that others do this and it’s not contrary to gtd practice, but someone please correct me if I’m wrong.

Hope this is helpful.

Sarah
 

Longstreet

Professor of microbiology and infectious diseases
Hi
I would add an idea from the GTD book by David Allen.

There are three types of work:
1. Defining your work.
2. Doing work as it shows up
3. Doing predetermined work.

#1 means processing your inboxes and organizing onto your lists and calendar (and into trash and doing less than 2 min actions)

#2 means doing stuff that never makes it to your lists

#3 means doing actions from your lists and calendar.

It’s important to make time and make sure we are doing all three in a balanced way. I find that the hardest is #3, but when I make the time for that I trust my system more.

Also I make a daily paper list of 3-6 things that must get done that day. I believe I have seen that others do this and it’s not contrary to gtd practice, but someone please correct me if I’m wrong.

Hope this is helpful.

Sarah
You can do whatever works best for you. GTD is a set of guiding principles. There are no GTD police who will visit you. We are all different and therefore one shoe size does not fit everyone.
 

Cpu_Modern

Registered
I believe I have seen that others do this and it’s not contrary to gtd practice, but someone please correct me if I’m wrong.
I wanted to say something about this, because it comes up time and time again. It is not necessarily not-GTD to do things contrary to GTD practice.

The problem comes when you do something contrary to GTD practice instead of learning GTD for starters.

The goal cannot be "I want to become a list making clone of David Allen." The goal was outlined by DA with the familiar descriptors "mind like water", fulfilling life's purpose as human spirit on earth, perspective, control, stressfree productivity, master and commander.

The problem is not in realizing that some or another of DA's recommendation don't work for you so well. Being overly rigid serves no good. OTOH, though, if you are too lax about it, you may miss out on really experiencing it eg. stressfree productivity.

In my vocational training I learned that in order to break the rules, one first have to master them, in order to know where and wehn to break them.

That is, what drives me to be rigid about what DA says all day, ironically. Sometimes, though, I add a "hack" to the mix.
 

Longstreet

Professor of microbiology and infectious diseases
I wanted to say something about this, because it comes up time and time again. It is not necessarily not-GTD to do things contrary to GTD practice.

The problem comes when you do something contrary to GTD practice instead of learning GTD for starters.

The goal cannot be "I want to become a list making clone of David Allen." The goal was outlined by DA with the familiar descriptors "mind like water", fulfilling life's purpose as human spirit on earth, perspective, control, stressfree productivity, master and commander.

The problem is not in realizing that some or another of DA's recommendation don't work for you so well. Being overly rigid serves no good. OTOH, though, if you are too lax about it, you may miss out on really experiencing it eg. stressfree productivity.

In my vocational training I learned that in order to break the rules, one first have to master them, in order to know where and wehn to break them.

That is, what drives me to be rigid about what DA says all day, ironically. Sometimes, though, I add a "hack" to the mix.
I see this as enhancing the basic principles in ways that make you more productive and happy. That is why I am such a strong proponent of time blocking to protect your time. We need to make our calendars our allies.
 

Gardener

Registered
My original plan for putting something on the calendar is that I absolutely can't afford to miss it. It's got to be done soon. If I just have an item on my list, even if marked as a priority, interruptions during the day might cause me to miss it or not address it for several days.

For a while, during a particularly chaotic period, I created a list or view or something that I called 'REMEMBER REMEMBER' for those things that I must not forget, but that didn't really belong on my calendar, because I wasn't going to do them at any specific time. And my rule was that I look at that a certain number of times a day, and I had a calendar reminder to do that. This meant that instead of haphazardly snoozing reminders and maybe over-snoozing some, I had a signal to briefly clear my head and look at those items.

I suppose this is similar to a TODAY list, except I would think of a TODAY list as being lower priority, and potentially containing more items.
 

Yasin

Registered
Having a busy calendar with carefully planned entries work perfectly. Until life happens. You receive an urgent request and are forced to reschedule everything. If this happens frequently, you lose your faith on your calendar and stop taking it seriously. When that happens, you either miss an important meeting or perhaps worse: live with the fear of missing an important meeting.
 

mcogilvie

Registered
Having a busy calendar with carefully planned entries work perfectly. Until life happens. You receive an urgent request and are forced to reschedule everything. If this happens frequently, you lose your faith on your calendar and stop taking it seriously. When that happens, you either miss an important meeting or perhaps worse: live with the fear of missing an important meeting.
If someone is living with the fear of missing an important meeting, either their meetings are more important than most of mine, or they are not having enough meetings.
 
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