Things that Aren't Someday/Maybe or Deferred

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furashgf

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I've been trying to agressively prune projects out during the weekly review that are important, that I really should do something about, but are less important than other projects I'm going to have to hack on.

They're not really Someday/Maybe. e.g., "See The Proposition on DVD" is a someday/maybe. I'll do it if I get around to it, or not. They're not really "Deferred", since it's not like they suddenly need to become active on the 5th. They're real projects, that I would be working on if I wasn't working on the other projects.

I might be thinking about deferred wrong. I usually think of deferred tasks are tasks that are sitting around because I can't do them temporally until that time (e.g., I can't call jim until jim gets back from vacation.).
 
Have you thought of using the due date, or priority?

Have you thought of using the due date, or priority? If I recall correctly, in the seminar, David said he does not use priority at all, or use dates in the task list, but he also says if it works for you it works.

I add a due date to projectstasks that either have a fixed due date or are current priorities. I sort my task list by due date then priority - that way tasksprojects flagged with a due date appear at the top of the list and get considered first when reviewing the list. (I don't use priority, so the rest of the list ends up in entry order)
 
furashgf, I think the "Someday" in Someday/Maybe is ideal for this type of situation. Someday/Maybe can contain projects from the mundane to the incredibly important, but they rest there simply because (and this is the key) you deemed in your Weekly Review that you can't or won't handle them this week.
 
I got this idea somewhere else and I think jethro pretty much said it: separate out Someday/Maybe into Someday and Maybe lists. Someday being ones you've decided to do but not start yet, and Maybe ones you're not sure if you want to do or not but still want to review occasionally.
 
drivers said:
I got this idea somewhere else and I think jethro pretty much said it: separate out Someday/Maybe into Someday and Maybe lists. Someday being ones you've decided to do but not start yet, and Maybe ones you're not sure if you want to do or not but still want to review occasionally.
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I didn't know anyone but me did this, but using someday and maybe as seperate catogories is a big help.

For this person though it sounds like "not this week" or how I think of "deferred" (though perhaps not the original use) is what you're talking about. One can also cut down next action lists as only things one is going to (likely) do in the next...week or so.
 
Yea, I'm thinking I really have:
deferred to a specific date
deferred because I want to do it, soon, but have too much on my plate right now
someday - want to do it but not now, could live with never
maybe - might never
 
furashgf said:
Yea, I'm thinking I really have:
deferred to a specific date
deferred because I want to do it, soon, but have too much on my plate right now
someday - want to do it but not now, could live with never
maybe - might never
Click to expand...

In one of the David Allen/43 Folders podcasts, they talk about how important it is that Someday/Maybe not be a bucket where when you look in it you have to rethink everything in it every time. If your S/M bucket includes these four things and you need to keep them separate, keep them separate.

I put deferred on a date on the calendar, deferred because it is too much right this moment in my S/M list in Kinkless GTD, and the other two categories in simple texts lists. But whatever work for you, you know?
 
I think they still belong on your Projects list with a next action attached to them as well as a context. If you have a spare moment in that context then you can hack away at one.
 
I ended up breaking my someday/maybe categories into the following categories:

DEFERRED - Items that can't be done until a specific date
INCHOATE - Non-committed items that need some more thought
MAYBE - Items that I may or may not ever do
SOMEDAY Should do if I can
WAITING - Cannot do right now because of a predecessor

I plan to, within that, organize them by context (or project), pruning as I go.
 
If something is to be "deferred to a specific date," wouldn't it be "cleaner" to put that in your tickler or on your calendar?
 
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