Is Doing even part of GTD?

R

Roger

0
A couple of recent threads have led me to consider this question.

On one hand, yeah of course it is -- it has its own chapter in GTD and everything.

On the other hand... hmmm. Taking a good look at that chapter, it doesn't really talk about Doing itself very much. The chapter is properly titled "Doing: Making the Best Action Choices". But the process of making the best choice of what to do isn't really Doing.

So it may be that Doing, itself, lies outside the scope of GTD. Which I'm totally okay with. I'm just a bit surprised that it's taken me this long to notice.

Cheers,
Roger
 
Yep, Roger, you still have to do the doing. GTD just makes the doing a lot more doable.

So, I hate shredding. It's loud and time-consuming and should be left to the professionals. And it's on my project list.

So here's how I tricked myself into doing it:
Next action: Move shedder to family room.
That's it. No other expectations. My next action after that would be to pull out all of the full sheets I'd stuffed into it's big cavity, and, again, that's it. No other expectations.
Break it down into tiny bites.

But here's what happened:
When I got it into the family room, well, the power outlet's right there... I'll just plug it in. "Hey, I wonder what's on Netflix... Grumpy Old Men? I love that movie!" And by the time Jack Lemmon and Ann-Margret had gotten married and Walter Matthau was on his way to the VFW dance, I was FINISHED!

So, sometimes the doing sneaks up on me. But I still have to do it, Roger. :wink:
 
Shredding and how I solved it

I hate shredding too. So I got a big shopping bag and just starting loading things in there to shred. Then I took it down to the local office supply store the next time I went in for supplies and paid around $4.00 for someone else to do it. Money well spent!
 
Yeah, I think doing is really outside the scope of GTD. How to actually do things, or in other words GET THINGS DONE is not explained in GTD. Ironic, isn't it?

Gtd is more about how to not think about your commitments more than necessary. I have no problem with this either. When you really think about it GTD system is completely unnecessary to get things done.
It's necessary however to stay relaxed and stess free when you have a lot of plates spinning at the same time.
 
My mind is not very subtle about avoiding doing, it's more like "what if I don't do as planned and go re-watch The Walking Dead instead?". :D

GTD has a lot on creating next actions, but I'm not sure what information on doing would be. Basically GTD helps you get to the point where all that's left is "just do it". It assumes you have the resources to do it (knowledge, time, etc), e.g. how to repair your TV if that's what's on your list.

Not that it's ever that easy, even if I'm in the right context and have the time and energy (although I often do have some energy problems) and the stars are aligned etc I might still not do it for mysterious reasons. Are you looking for information on how to stop procrastination?
 
A lot could be said about doing, I think. Procrastination, resistance, lizard brain - many names for the same problem.
I think there isn't much about doing in gtd because David Allen hasn't really figured it out as well as other phases of workflow...
Could be a good topic for another book! "really gettings things done" LOL!
Hmm.. Maybe I'll write it and become a millionaire, someday/maybe.
 
Procrastination is a big and important topic and I wouldn't mind if DA said more about it, but it isn't doing per se. It's also a preliminary, just like writing next action lists. (But maybe that's what people are looking for, to get rid of those last obstacles to doing.)

Edward de Bono has a book specifically on doing, though: Six Action Shoes:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Six-Action-Shoes-Edward-Bono/dp/0006379540

(I have it but haven't gotten around to read it yet. Oops.)
 
Oh, my god! There are books by Edward de Bono I haven't read yet! He's one of my favourite authors! I'll have to ... um ... get my list of books to read sorted by priority or something. And make a more complete list of favourite authors and check what books they've written. OK, I added that to my "home computer" next action list. (Phew. Maybe I'm not very far off the GTD wagon after all.)
 
feature request

Just FYI, I put in a feature request (thanks, John) for a "Like" button...
and this is one of those times I wish I had one:

cwoodgold - oh, you made me smile! I "like" your post!

Dena
 
Sure, doing is part of GTD.

You look at the list for the context you're in, select the actions
that are doable with the time and energy you have, sort them
by priority, and then do one of them. Rinse and repeat.

GTD makes things more doable by: the two-minute rule;
choosing a physical next action; writing the phone number
next to a phone-call action; presenting yourself with
a list of actions all of which are actually doable in the context
you're in at the time; and further winnowing those as described
above.

It's called "getting things done", after all.
 
Next time send the bag to Poland!

Barb;95672 said:
I hate shredding too. So I got a big shopping bag and just starting loading things in there to shred. Then I took it down to the local office supply store the next time I went in for supplies and paid around $4.00 for someone else to do it. Money well spent!
Click to expand...

Funny! I love shredding! I love to feed a shredder and watch how sheets are forgetting the information.

Next time send the bag to Poland! :-)
 
How much to ship?

TesTeq;95702 said:
Funny! I love shredding! I love to feed a shredder and watch how sheets are forgetting the information.

Next time send the bag to Poland! :-)
Click to expand...

It might cost me $100 to ship my shredding to you! I really do hate it if it's more than a few sheets. I keep up with it unless I'm doing a big purge.
 
cwoodgold;95697 said:
Oh, my god! There are books by Edward de Bono I haven't read yet! He's one of my favourite authors! I'll have to ... um ... get my list of books to read sorted by priority or something. And make a more complete list of favourite authors and check what books they've written. OK, I added that to my "home computer" next action list. (Phew. Maybe I'm not very far off the GTD wagon after all.)
Click to expand...

He's pretty good. I've been planning for ages to study and apply the six hats more but there's a dark force of some sort stealing all my time.

There's a neat-looking six hats app for the iPhone that I'm planning to get.
 
Barb;95712 said:
It might cost me $100 to ship my shredding to you! I really do hate it if it's more than a few sheets. I keep up with it unless I'm doing a big purge.
Click to expand...

I really did hate shredding too - then I bought a shredder with auto feed and now I don't mind at all since the only thing I need to do is put the pile of paper in the shredder and it will take care of the rest. I was definitely worth the extra money.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top