Next Actions related to Projects List

[bcmyers2112]

I scribble quite a lot, too
Paper is one of my "inboxes" - very useful e.g. while talking with other people.

Not writing things down was my first, biggest stumbling block toward adopting GTD. I'd do my weekly reviews, process my inboxes every day, and still carry a ton of stuff in my head. I don't know why, but for some reason it didn't occur to me how important it was to write things down. Now I always have a writing instrument and paper with me and whenever something pops into my head or comes up during a phone call, meeting, whatever, I jot it down. You'd think the need to do that would be self-evident, wouldn't you? For whatever reason, it wasn't for me.

 

[Gardener]

Re: "But since there was only one next action on the list, I will make no more progress on project A, because it's not on my list of actions to do."

I tend to add a new action when I finish the previous one, or in a mini-review before the weekly review. I also tend to process my inbox to zero substantially more often than the weekly review.

Also, it's definitely fine to just keep on working on a project, even if there's no Action telling you to do so. Many people start with the recorded Next Action, charge ahead for hours or days, and only when they stop do they record another Next Action.

So that's three (three and a half?) potential opportunities for the project to pick up another action. Only if all of those fail is the project left actionless until the next weekly review.

But this is definitely one reason why the choice to have a single Next Action per project, or several, depends heavily on many aspects of you, your job, and your life.

If you do most of your work with your GTD system in grabbing distance, it's easy to keep everything fed with actions.

If you load up a day's worth of actions and go away somewhere for a day to do the work, it's harder. If you load up a week's worth and go away for a week, it's even harder.

If your work follows a predictable sequence, a series of Next Actions may be useful. If the outcome of the current action might affect the next one, creating that series might have been a waste of time.

And this ignores personal things like your tolerance for a large number of actions in your system.

So, It Depends. For me, my system is usually handy, my tolerance for a large number of actions is very low, and the predictability of my work is limited. So I usually have one and only one next action per active project--as well as a very limited number of active projects. In fact, at work I've narrowed things down even further, so that I have a severely limited number of items in a personal Kanban board. I'm considering doing the same thing at home.

 

[bcmyers2112]

But this is definitely one reason why the choice to have a single Next Action per project, or several, depends heavily on many aspects of you, your job, and your life.

Yes, it does. Those factors will influence the types of projects you have and whether and how much they require the application of the natural planning model.

If you do most of your work with your GTD system in grabbing distance, it's easy to keep everything fed with actions.

If you load up a day's worth of actions and go away somewhere for a day to do the work, it's harder. If you load up a week's worth and go away for a week, it's even harder.

That's why DA recommends that your GTD lists, particularly next actions, should be in a format that is easily portable whether that's on paper or a digital app you can access on a smartphone, tablet or some other portable device.

If your work follows a predictable sequence, a series of Next Actions may be useful. If the outcome of the current action might affect the next one, creating that series might have been a waste of time.

Like you I have many projects for which the sequence of events is unpredictable. I'm a salesperson, and most of my professional projects relate to deals I'm working on. Often there is only one logical next action, like "Call 'Client A' to schedule a meeting." Any additional next actions will depend on the outcome of that meeting. There could be one or multiple follow-up items, but it would do no good to try to anticipate them ahead of time. I'd likely have to revise my lists later and that would be a frustrating waste of time.

On the other hand, I used to be board president of a non-profit and was responsible for time-sensitive projects with a lot of moving parts that could be identified ahead of time. For example, I ran some fundraisers that had been done before so there was much about the overall projects that could be planned ahead. In those circumstances it would have been counterproductive for me to limit myself to one next action at a time. I would have missed opportunities to move on other pieces of the project in a timely fashion, which would have been irresponsible given the commitment I had made to the organization.

And this ignores personal things like your tolerance for a large number of actions in your system.

So, It Depends. For me, my system is usually handy, my tolerance for a large number of actions is very low, and the predictability of my work is limited. So I usually have one and only one next action per active project--as well as a very limited number of active projects. In fact, at work I've narrowed things down even further, so that I have a severely limited number of items in a personal Kanban board. I'm considering doing the same thing at home.

I don't think anyone is saying you're wrong. I am certainly not. What I'm saying is that DA recommends that for some projects where there are multiple next actions that can be acted on now, you should identify those actions and capture them in your next actions lists.

It sounds to me like what you are saying is that you rarely if ever have projects that can be planned to that extent, and for those sorts of projects trying to plan more than one next action would actually be counter-productive. That's a great point to make. In fact, my early forays into GTD were often derailed by over-planning projects.

 

[mike.gerety]

**edit** my original intention was to say thank you for all of the insight.. and of course I forgot to do that. But.. THANK YOU!
----
It's been a couple of days since i posted my questions, but this all makes perfect sense to me. I think my biggest stumbling block is thinking that I can't add anything to a list unless it goes through a formal IN process (daily/weekly review). If I finish something and intuitively know what 3 or 4 next actions are, there's no reason I can't just add them to my next actions and/or contents list right then at that very minute. Everything doesn't have to go physically through an Inbox, although it could.

I've been having paralysis getting started with GTD because I keep overthinking the system and trying to make it perfect (this is not an uncommon thing for me in general). I'm paralyzed at not knowing the "right" way to do things which is something I need to let go of, and just start using the methodology and adapting it for my specific needs.

 

[Gardener]

Everything doesn't have to go physically through an Inbox, although it could.

Right. As I see it, the inbox is not a required step, it's just a a parking place for thoughts that you can't or shouldn't (because you are productively focused on something else) turn your attention to. It helps to keep you from distracting yourself, and also helps to keep unformed, not-quite-an-action ideas out of your lists. But if you have a thought that is a legitimate action, there's no need to refrain from putting it on the list.

And if you get to an action that you've entered and discover, oops, that's not really an action, it's an unformed thought or a whole project, that's no big deal. You just process it to the form that it should take and the place that it should be, or you reject it back to the Inbox for processing later.

 

[Cpu_Modern]

Think of the "formal IN process" as a safety net to make sure nothing falls trough the cracks. Maybe re-visit the threefold model for evaluating daily work to get more clarity on that.

The "right" way of doing things comes from YOU, not from GTD or any other "productivity methodology." For example, how do you want to do your laundry? Once a week? Daily? Hire somebody? Etc. The answer is YOUR lifestyle choice, your choice. GTD will help you to execute this hassle-free, it also helps you to think about this with the Horizons of Focus model. Ultimately, though, it is you who decides HOW things are going to get done.

 

[DenaDahilig]

I've been having paralysis getting started with GTD because I keep overthinking the system and trying to make it perfect

Me, tooooooooo! Oh, I have SO been there! I gave up on GTD initially, but the one thing that stayed with me was the whole write-it-down, get-it-out-of-your-head thing. So that's where I started. I just made the commitment to write everything down and let the rest work itself out. Probably a year later I joined Connect and poured through the webinars, doing guided reviews and just absorbing the material as best I could. Maybe there's one thing in there for you that's easy to implement without getting paralyzed.

Dena

 

[jenkins]

I've been having paralysis getting started with GTD because I keep overthinking the system and trying to make it perfect (this is not an uncommon thing for me in general). I'm paralyzed at not knowing the "right" way to do things which is something I need to let go of, and just start using the methodology and adapting it for my specific needs.

“Aim for success, not perfection. Never give up your right to be wrong, because then you will lose the ability to learn new things and move forward with your life. Remember that fear always lurks behind perfectionism. Confronting your fears and allowing yourself the right to be human can, paradoxically, make you a far happier and more productive person.” -Dr. David M. Burns

“In order to arrive at what you do not know / You must go by a way which is the way of ignorance.” -T.S. Eliot

“Often in my life I have found that the one thing that can save is the thing which appears most to threaten . . . One has to go down into what one most fears and in the process, from somewhere beyond all conscious expectation, comes a saving flicker of light and energy that, even if it does not produce the courage of a hero, at any rate enables a trembling mortal to take one step further.” -Laurens van der Post

“An appreciation of process makes uncertainty bearable. A sense of freedom requires uncertainty, because we must be free to change, modify, assimilate new information as we go along. Uncertainty is the necessary companion of all explorers.” -Marilyn Ferguson

“What is important is to keep learning, to enjoy challenge, and to tolerate ambiguity. In the end, there are no certain answers.” -Martina Horner​

“Flowers do not force their way with great strife. Flowers open to perfection slowly in the sun . . . Don’t be in a hurry about spiritual matters. Go step by step, and be very sure.” -White Eagle

 

[TesTeq]

Right. As I see it, the inbox is not a required step, it's just a a parking place for thoughts that you can't or shouldn't (because you are productively focused on something else) turn your attention to. It helps to keep you from distracting yourself, and also helps to keep unformed, not-quite-an-action ideas out of your lists. But if you have a thought that is a legitimate action, there's no need to refrain from putting it on the list.

And if you get to an action that you've entered and discover, oops, that's not really an action, it's an unformed thought or a whole project, that's no big deal. You just process it to the form that it should take and the place that it should be, or you reject it back to the Inbox for processing later.

I fully agree. This is one of these "golden insights on GTD". I will translate to Polish and publish it on my blog if you don't mind.

 

[Gardener]

I fully agree. This is one of these "golden insights on GTD". I will translate to Polish and publish it on my blog if you don't mind.

Sure!

 

[bcmyers2112]

I've been having paralysis getting started with GTD because I keep overthinking the system and trying to make it perfect (this is not an uncommon thing for me in general). I'm paralyzed at not knowing the "right" way to do things which is something I need to let go of, and just start using the methodology and adapting it for my specific needs.

I've been there myself. I would give you two pieces of advice. First, trust your instincts. If something is impeding you rather than helping, then try doing it a different way. You are the only one who can say what's "right" about your personal systems.

Second, if you run into any other difficulties with GTD continue to use this forum to ask for help. Chances are good someone here has had the same challenge and can suggest a solution.

 

[devon.marie]

I think my biggest stumbling block is thinking that I can't add anything to a list unless it goes through a formal IN process (daily/weekly review). If I finish something and intuitively know what 3 or 4 next actions are, there's no reason I can't just add them to my next actions and/or contents list right then at that very minute. Everything doesn't have to go physically through an Inbox, although it could.

I feel like this is a GTD rite of passage. I know I certainly did the same! I only recently started putting things in my lists without properly labeling/tagging them and I felt like a sinner! But I realized that if it didn't impact my ability to get the task done in any way whatsoever, why bother with trying to make the system perfect? Sometimes I'll put a task that takes 10 minutes in my list, without any details whatsoever, just so that I can finish the task I'm on and then immediately get that other one done. I didn't forget in 10 minutes what I was supposed to do. Labeling didn't matter because I knew I'd do it next. It would have just been a waste of time to put all that work into labeling it.

I still felt like a sinner, though

 

[kelstarrising]

I'm going to tack onto this topic instead of starting a new one because it's very related.

Scenario: I've done my weekly review, and I've written down one/two next actions for my projects on my action lists. Let's say Project A has one next action written down.

Monday, I complete that action for Project A that was on the Calls list because I had some spare time. I have some more spare time, so I look at my lists to see other things to do and complete them. But since there was only one next action on the list, I will make no more progress on project A, because it's not on my list of actions to do. And my list of actions is supposed to help me intuitively know what I should be doing next based on context, priority, etc.

Now what? When do I look at that project again to generate the next action? A week from now at the weekly review? Let's say that from that phone call, I figured out the next 5 things to do for the project. I can do them now, but they're not "in the system". Maybe I collect them on some note paper and throw them into an "in" basket.. but I haven't processed them. They may not get processed until tomorrow morning.

It almost seems like defining one next action limits you from doing other things on that project until you "review the project again" When is that supposed to happen?

Hi Mike,

If I finish a project next action, I don't often wait until my Weekly Review to capture the next "bookmark" on the project. I am very often capturing right then what the next action is before moving on. I look at the Weekly Review more as the safety net to make sure every project has a next action--not the driver for keeping my system current. Does that help?