Projects and Next Actions - Just Starting GTD - Using Reminders app on MacOS

GTDoner

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I just wrapped up GTD webinar and am excited, and a little confused, about making it work for me. Some feedback would be great on organizing my system. I plan on using the Reminders app on the MacOS

Let's say I have a project called - Kid's Rooms and my next action is to "set budget with kids" and my context is At Home. Does this approach make sense:
I want to create a Project (get clear about it!) and then collect all my actions on that list. Would I then move them into a Context List? Do I need to know that the item "Set budget with kids" came from a Project list?

A change in behavior I am making is going from knowing everything I have done (record keeping of completed actions) and instead Getting Things Done. Once it's done, I will know because I have achieved the desired outcome. Right,

Thanks for any insight, ideas, and experience you can offer.

- Kirk
 

mcogilvie

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Apple Reminders is not a bad choice if your needs are simple. I recommend the DavidCo setup guide, although it is does not consider the latest features in Reminders. I think you will need another app for project support materials because the note field in Reminders has some inadequacies. Apple Notes is ok for this.

I’m going to critique your example project from a GTD perspective. First, “Kids’ Rooms” is not a good project title. You want something that tells you the goal, at least in short form. Many people find noun-verb order helpful: “kids’ rooms destroyed/decorated/organized” or whatever done looks like. Being clear here is important. While some people really insist on writing out lists of next actions, GTD is not intended to work that way. Next actions are just that: the next things you can do to move the project forward. Most simple projects, maybe 80-90% of all projects, don’t need complicated plans, just a project and next actions and a few notes somewhere. For more complicated projects, use the. Natural Planning Model. If “set budget with kids” is a next action, I would write is as “Set budget with kids for room demolition.” This is an Agenda item, not a “Home“ item because you can’t do it without the kids. But I doubt this is a next action now. Do you have parameters you need to clarify before talking with your kids? Like cost, or tastefulness? Not blowing the budget on a PS5? Do you want to give the kids a chance to think about the project before meeting with you? Writing good next actions is a skill, and it takes most people time to get proficient. Looking at good and bad examples is a good way to learn. You might want to look at the GTD Workbook for that.

Good luck and welcome!
 

Gardener

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I just wrapped up GTD webinar and am excited, and a little confused, about making it work for me. Some feedback would be great on organizing my system. I plan on using the Reminders app on the MacOS
You may find that Reminders is too simple. I want to recommend OmniFocus, but I know that OmniFocus doesn't work well for a lot of people.
Let's say I have a project called - Kid's Rooms and my next action is to "set budget with kids" and my context is At Home. Does this approach make sense:
I want to create a Project (get clear about it!) and then collect all my actions on that list.
I agree that "kid's rooms" should be more specific--Remodel Kids' Rooms? Decorate Kids' Rooms? Those aren't outcome-based project names; I don't use outcome-based project names. If I did, I might find that it's helpful, but so far I don't.

And "set budget" sounds like too big an action, unless all you mean is "Tell the kids that they get X dollars apiece." Otherwise, "set budget" kind of sounds like a project of its own--it sounds like it would involve research and decisions.

It's often (for me, always) a mistake to pre-plan all your actions for a project. In your actual project-and-action lists, the ones that you work off of several times a day, I wouldn't recommend having so many actions. This is especially true if you're using Reminders, because there aren't a whole lot of features. If you do want to plan the whole thing, just to think it through, I'd recommend brainstorming in Notes or some other app, rather than cluttering up your main action lists with a lot of extra actions.
Would I then move them into a Context List? Do I need to know that the item "Set budget with kids" came from a Project list?
I do need to be able to tie an action to its project. Not everybody does. I don't know the recommended way to deal with both projects and contexts in Reminders. In OmniFocus, the action would be tied to both a Project and a Context, and you could view your actions either way.
 

GTDoner

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Thank you. I am excited to get better at GTD and the comments were very helpful. Clarifying the outcome, and simplifying the approach, seems like the Next-Actions for me to get GTD right. I can then figure out the tool to use. The future looks good!
 

GTDengineer

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The reminders app will work great. You should review your GTD training material because it appears you don’t have a good understanding of the project list and context list concepts.

A couple of tips:

The ‘projects’ list is just a list to remind you what to have committed to accomplish. Each project will be a new “reminder” within that list. Like others said, write it in the form of the intended outcome, to maximize the mental value of re-reading it during your weekly review.

The next action lists are all labeled by context. So each context is another list in the reminders app, and each action is a ‘reminder’ on that list. Whenever you find yourself in that context during the day, check the appropriate list to remind yourself what needs to be done next.
 
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