Making It All Work, Washington, D.C., October 14 2010

[mjbengt]

Wow, I had a great time at the Making It All Work seminar in D.C. I have been using GTD for several years now, but had not yet attended a public seminar. The setting was beautiful --- a riverfront glass-paned room on the 24th floor. Being with other people who are working toward the same objectives was so recharging. And some of the things I took away from the seminar were not completely GTD-related. For instance, David Allen mentioned that we were making a choice to unhook and to treat ourselves to a special day. How true. It felt good to be free from work for a day, in a beautiful setting with intelligent and funny people, enjoying a real treat just for me. David's presentation and delivery were excellent (goes without saying). Rachelle's oversight and execution of the event were flawless. I will definitely do this for myself at least once a year. Also, hearing the infamous one-liners and insightful aphorisms from David's many years of experience and observation were priceless. I can't emphasize enough that doing this is a good idea if you really want to make GTD a part of your daily life. The afternoon portion of the presentation was particularly interesting to me. It dealt with everything from the brain, to cognition, to habit forming, to learning techniques (re: making GTD stick). Bravo on that portion. The discussion of the thermostat set-point and how it relates to my internal stasis I will never forget. It is a tool that can be applied to all areas of my life. The discussions on visioning and other techniques, taken from years of hard road experience were also very valuable to me. It was a truly a great experience with thoughtful people. Thank you very much David Allen and Rachelle and all other people who were involved with this event.

 

[dougbracey]

I was there, too, and want to echo these thoughts as well. It was my first GTD seminar, and what a priviledge to have my first one by taught by David Allen himself. David has a "relaxed energy" style to his presentation that made 8 hours seem like about 8 minutes! I could have happily spent a whole week focused in a seminar like this, what with the great information, inspired attendees, and beautiful setting.

The material presented near the end, going over people's obstacles to either getting started or sticking with GTD, was especially golden. This is going to be very helpful to me as I continue my effort to be the pied piper of GTD within my team and my department.