Live webinar on Time, with David Allen and friends

John Forrister

GTD Connect
Staff member
The webinar is called, "It's About Time." Join David Allen, Frank Sopper, Meg Edwards, and Julie Ireland for a discussion of how we process information, and our perception of time. Our brains have separate systems for processing information sequentially or associatively. Most of us have a preference for using one system or the other. Sequential and associative processors also relate to the passage of time in different ways. With examples from many years of working with people, David and friends will discuss how this applies to your GTD practice and focus. Includes time for Q&A.

May 31, 2018 7:00AM–8:15 PDT

The registration link is in the webinars panel on the right side of most GTD Connect pages.

Here is some additional information from Frank about Associative and Sequential information processing:
We have separate reflexive responses for the two dominant processes we use to think about things—our Associative and Sequential
processes.

Our Associative system allows us to instantaneously and simultaneously handle a barrage of information. This system activates for our context—all the things that are competing for our attention in the present moment and activates for our experience—everything we’ve learned and remembered, the patterns we recognize, and the analogies we can bring forward to help us understand and sort through everything has has our attention.

Our Sequential system allows us to catch a piece of information out of the information barrage. Once we’ve captured the information, the sequential processor allows us to slow and concentrate our attention of so we can explore how we know something, and how can we get something done.
 

AndrewJMason

Registered
Can't say how excited I am for this.

As an equal-parts associative / sequential spectrum thinker (And someone who freezes when it's decision-time at the drink isle of convenience stores), I'm unsure whether I should plan on attending or dream about what it would be like if I did. ;)

Either way? I'm in!
 

Jodie E. Francis

GTD Novice
Interesting, I'll have to look up my preference and see if my suspicions are accurate. I've found the sequential nature of speech is often frustrating as my associative brain struggles to communicate multiple connected pieces of information -- simultaneously. ;)
 

SDH

Registered
I found myself wondering about the connections between the sequential/associative preference and Myers-Briggs. I’m definitely an associative preference although generally very good at the sequential (mostly from having to learn to be). However, my knee-jerk reaction is always associative. I don’t know that I had any take-aways in terms of my organizational systems for tasks, but I did have some insights in another arena. Recently I started taking flute lessons again—used to play as a kid and into my young adult years and was pretty good and got a lot of enjoyment out of it. Then life intervened. Now that I’m empty-nesting and re-evaluating my self-care and identity, I decided to return to my flute after not having touched it for probably 15 years. My instructor is fantastic and I love my lessons, but my practice sessions have been nothing but frustrating. During today’s webinar, I got thinking about whether I was approaching my flute practice from an associative or sequential perspective and realized I was running a list of sequential tasks through my head every time I tried to play a note—“stand this way, hold my lips that way, pay attention to that marking, hold my right hand just so, my left hand just so....” It made practice sessions pretty miserable. So during the webinar, I worked on a mind-map about flute that started with associative and worked its way towards sequential. I’m now going to focus on associative for awhile to get myself to relax, and move into sequential a little at a time. I’m hoping I start enjoying my practice sessions again!
 

Longstreet

Professor of microbiology and infectious diseases
I found myself wondering about the connections between the sequential/associative preference and Myers-Briggs. I’m definitely an associative preference although generally very good at the sequential (mostly from having to learn to be). However, my knee-jerk reaction is always associative. I don’t know that I had any take-aways in terms of my organizational systems for tasks, but I did have some insights in another arena. Recently I started taking flute lessons again—used to play as a kid and into my young adult years and was pretty good and got a lot of enjoyment out of it. Then life intervened. Now that I’m empty-nesting and re-evaluating my self-care and identity, I decided to return to my flute after not having touched it for probably 15 years. My instructor is fantastic and I love my lessons, but my practice sessions have been nothing but frustrating. During today’s webinar, I got thinking about whether I was approaching my flute practice from an associative or sequential perspective and realized I was running a list of sequential tasks through my head every time I tried to play a note—“stand this way, hold my lips that way, pay attention to that marking, hold my right hand just so, my left hand just so....” It made practice sessions pretty miserable. So during the webinar, I worked on a mind-map about flute that started with associative and worked its way towards sequential. I’m now going to focus on associative for awhile to get myself to relax, and move into sequential a little at a time. I’m hoping I start enjoying my practice sessions again!
Very nice! Please keep us posted. Cheers!
 
  • Like
Reactions: cas

schmeggahead

Registered
Great Webinar to discover my associative tendencies.
I recently decided that since my weekly reviews were my biggest challenge, I needed to structure my system specifically for the weekly review.
I created a mind map to house the review view steps and included projects, horizons, contexts, somedays, not nows, on deck items so that I could view sections of the content rather than looking at sequential lists.
I think I know why that is working for me now.
Then I can pull a focus list for today to refocus on project items and next action items I have currently chosen to activate. Those focus lists are reintegrated into the system and discarded each day.
 

Longstreet

Professor of microbiology and infectious diseases
I like this idea of a mind map for my weekly review! I think that will work wonders for me.
 

sholden

Registered
This webinar had a lot to digest. I hope the audio was salvageable? I probably need to listen to the content a couple more times.
 

tchowes

Registered
Thanks for sharing the webinar, John. There is a lot of great stuff to digest.

I had sent an email prior to the webinar to Frank regarding the focus test that was offered and never heard back. I did take what I think is a similar test a couple years through OpenBook Learning. I did have my 17 year old son take one of their tests in the last few days and would love to explore engaging their services to help him up his level of game. Think I should ask Meg?
 

John Forrister

GTD Connect
Staff member
Thanks for sharing the webinar, John. There is a lot of great stuff to digest.

I had sent an email prior to the webinar to Frank regarding the focus test that was offered and never heard back. I did take what I think is a similar test a couple years through OpenBook Learning. I did have my 17 year old son take one of their tests in the last few days and would love to explore engaging their services to help him up his level of game. Think I should ask Meg?

I'll email you about this. Likely you took an earlier version of the Focus Survey from OpenBook. Why didn't we ALL take this survey when we were 17? Oh well, there's no time like the present.
 

tchowes

Registered
I'll email you about this. Likely you took an earlier version of the Focus Survey from OpenBook. Why didn't we ALL take this survey when we were 17? Oh well, there's no time like the present.
Thanks John. That's what I keep thinking. The trick is how to leverage it.

I'm glad to see GTD for Teens is coming out in July. Just saw the announcement on the LinkedIn GTD Group today. Excellent!
 
Top