7 ms·

Getting Things Done is by far the most influential book I've read. It has changed the way I think about everything. However, I have never been able to find a g

Getting Things Done is by far the most influential book I've read. It has changed the way I think about everything. However, I have never been able to find a good implementation of the system. I know that David Allen (GTD) and Charles Simonyi (Intentional Software) were working on something at some point, but I haven't heard anything since.

f_allwein 9y ago
I have a homemade implementation in Google Sheets that sort of works. I use it sometimes more, sometimes less. Template at https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1YUG6--8BOk_TdxDTSY9AQEFGue_0msiJ3p_JDA8UB_4/edit?usp=sharing https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1YUG6--8BOk_TdxDTSY9A... - feel free to try.
mathgeek 9y ago
Adding things to calendars is the biggest habit I've built from reading the book years ago. That's the one thing I recommend as the best takeaway if you only have one.
- mindlessmarty 9y ago
  I haven't read the book, since this comes across as new to me...but doesn't this just makes you more alert/self-aware? Which is good but what is the point of adding things to do in a list or calendar if you don't actually go and make them? Is this discussed in the book?
  - rtb 9y ago
    It is discussed in the book. You should just read the book if you want to consider this seriously. If you're just looking for a summary: there is very little point writing things in a list if you don't read the list, obvs. The key to GTD is that if you actually do write everything in lists and calendars, then you are freed from having to remember things. If you can reach that inflection point, then it frees up a lot of mental capacity and is glorious. Remembering things is surprisingly mentally draining, as it basically consists of thinking about them every now and then. Read the book.
  - PeOe 9y ago
    It is in fact discussed in the book. GTD is great for procrastination if used wrongly, because only adding stuff to the lists isn´t going to complete the tasks. Also, it is important to note that GTD isn´t a fool proof system. Without constantly reviewing the tasks and checking whether tasks should be added to another list, the inbox piles up and then the system doesn´t make sense anymore.
Azareus 9y ago
The only implementation I have found worthwhile is paper, and to a certain extent, plain markdown/org files in Dropbox. Everything else, like OmniFocus and whatnot has had severe issues with the flexibility inherently required.
- PeOe 9y ago
  May I recommend http://zenkit.com http://zenkit.com It´s really easy to use, offers tons of different views on your data and grows with your product. Disclaimer: I work at Zenkit.
- Jtsummers 9y ago
  Out of curiosity, what are your issues with OmniFocus? I have some issues with it (primarily that it's hard to share information from it with other people), but otherwise I find it to be a fantastic personal tool for GTD (I'd use it for work, but my office is all Windows). That said, I do like paper and org-mode at least as much. I definitely find paper best for writing down my intentions and clarifying them before I enter them into OmniFocus.
  - Azareus 9y ago
    I currently still use Omnifocus for part of my system because it is still pretty great, and has excellent cross-device support, but my gripes are: - The context support is weak. It ideally would be replaced by a tagging system, but I doubt that's coming at this point. - No support for making sequentially dependent tasks -- I can't mark task A to be doable as soon as task B completes. (I guess I could, if I do a lot of sub-projects with sequential dependency) - In addition to this, subprojects are janky. They're just kinda awful to use, from the awkward indentation to the fact that the side-bar projects view is not actually a full tree, and just works with folders. This would need to be changed to also expand/be usable for sub-projects, not just for folders and top-level projects. - The system maintenance tools are lacking. One of the core tenets of GTD is to make sure that every project always has a next step, and OmniFocus has no support for this whatsoever, aside from manual review. I realise that paper also doesn't do this, but it seems like something a digital solution should have. - No sharing information, as you said, aside from exporting things as TaskPaper. - Support for deferments, but not for Tickler files, which are one of the handiest things about a paper-based system. - Reference and storage, per nature of OmniFocus, has to be completely separated, which adds jank. I realise this is massive scope-bloat, so it's probably not fair to complain about. Things I really like and will probably keep even after I drop OmniFocus: - The dedicated mail drop. I think even after I move away from OF, this is going to be something I keep. - The "due" list view. OmniFocus pushes you towards using this a lot, even if it's not completely in the spirit. - The good integration between my laptop and phone is going to be hard to live without again. I hope this shed some light on my gripes and issues with OmniFocus. :)
cJ0th 9y ago
There are two implementations I find quite good. 1. ThinkingRock It's a desktop client for all operating systems. There are two versions. A free one (v 2.x - still available on sourceforge [0]) and one you have to buy (v 3.x)[1] 2. Getting Things Gnome I find it slightly less convincing than ThinkingRock. What's more, it appears not to be maintained anymore. The offical website is down and there have been no update on github[2] for a while. However, it might be just what you're looking for so you should also give it a try. [0] https://sourceforge.net/projects/thinkingrock/ https://sourceforge.net/projects/thinkingrock/ [1] https://www.trgtd.com.au https://www.trgtd.com.au [2] https://github.com/getting-things-gnome/gtg https://github.com/getting-things-gnome/gtg
galfarragem 9y ago
A loose implementation: https://github.com/galfarragem/hamster-gtd https://github.com/galfarragem/hamster-gtd
PeOe 9y ago
Maybe this will help you. https://blog.zenkit.com/how-to-set-up-gtd-in-zenkit-902fa6960f8 https://blog.zenkit.com/how-to-set-up-gtd-in-zenkit-902fa696... Disclaimer: I work at http://zenkit.com http://zenkit.com
dogruck 9y ago
I use OmniFocus as my tool.
mcshicks 9y ago
I've tried many systems over the years for implementing GTD (Palm Pilot, MS Outlook, Evernote, One Note, paper) adding scripts and tools like autohotkey. For me by far the best system is org-mode in emacs, but getting proficient in emacs is not trivial. For me at least emacs also seems to work much better under linux, and org-mode works better if you use emacs as your email client. This is a good reference http://doc.norang.ca/org-mode.html http://doc.norang.ca/org-mode.html
zentiggr 9y ago
In over a decade of fiddling with manual / desktop OS / Palm / Palm / Palm / Android versions of tool after tool, I finally realized the only important part of GTD is the "write down enough thoughts to ease the stress of forgetting, in a system you trust". Everything else is jump starting detail, valuable to get going toward less stress but will be adjusted & customized by everyone eventually. Like another answerer to this comment, I finally rolled a custom Sheets layout that works the way I think about things, and over the last few months, have slowly tweaked it closer and closer to my personal thoughtflow. It's not the details of the system that matter, it's the relieving of the stress that makes it worthwhile.

f_allwein 9y ago

I have a homemade implementation in Google Sheets that sort of works. I use it sometimes more, sometimes less. Template at https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1YUG6--8BOk_TdxDTSY9AQEFGue_0msiJ3p_JDA8UB_4/edit?usp=sharing https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1YUG6--8BOk_TdxDTSY9A... - feel free to try.

mathgeek 9y ago

Adding things to calendars is the biggest habit I've built from reading the book years ago. That's the one thing I recommend as the best takeaway if you only have one.

mindlessmarty 9y ago
I haven't read the book, since this comes across as new to me...but doesn't this just makes you more alert/self-aware? Which is good but what is the point of adding things to do in a list or calendar if you don't actually go and make them? Is this discussed in the book?
- rtb 9y ago
  It is discussed in the book. You should just read the book if you want to consider this seriously. If you're just looking for a summary: there is very little point writing things in a list if you don't read the list, obvs. The key to GTD is that if you actually do write everything in lists and calendars, then you are freed from having to remember things. If you can reach that inflection point, then it frees up a lot of mental capacity and is glorious. Remembering things is surprisingly mentally draining, as it basically consists of thinking about them every now and then. Read the book.
- PeOe 9y ago
  It is in fact discussed in the book. GTD is great for procrastination if used wrongly, because only adding stuff to the lists isn´t going to complete the tasks. Also, it is important to note that GTD isn´t a fool proof system. Without constantly reviewing the tasks and checking whether tasks should be added to another list, the inbox piles up and then the system doesn´t make sense anymore.

Azareus 9y ago

The only implementation I have found worthwhile is paper, and to a certain extent, plain markdown/org files in Dropbox. Everything else, like OmniFocus and whatnot has had severe issues with the flexibility inherently required.

PeOe 9y ago
May I recommend http://zenkit.com http://zenkit.com It´s really easy to use, offers tons of different views on your data and grows with your product. Disclaimer: I work at Zenkit.
Jtsummers 9y ago
Out of curiosity, what are your issues with OmniFocus? I have some issues with it (primarily that it's hard to share information from it with other people), but otherwise I find it to be a fantastic personal tool for GTD (I'd use it for work, but my office is all Windows). That said, I do like paper and org-mode at least as much. I definitely find paper best for writing down my intentions and clarifying them before I enter them into OmniFocus.
- Azareus 9y ago
  I currently still use Omnifocus for part of my system because it is still pretty great, and has excellent cross-device support, but my gripes are: - The context support is weak. It ideally would be replaced by a tagging system, but I doubt that's coming at this point. - No support for making sequentially dependent tasks -- I can't mark task A to be doable as soon as task B completes. (I guess I could, if I do a lot of sub-projects with sequential dependency) - In addition to this, subprojects are janky. They're just kinda awful to use, from the awkward indentation to the fact that the side-bar projects view is not actually a full tree, and just works with folders. This would need to be changed to also expand/be usable for sub-projects, not just for folders and top-level projects. - The system maintenance tools are lacking. One of the core tenets of GTD is to make sure that every project always has a next step, and OmniFocus has no support for this whatsoever, aside from manual review. I realise that paper also doesn't do this, but it seems like something a digital solution should have. - No sharing information, as you said, aside from exporting things as TaskPaper. - Support for deferments, but not for Tickler files, which are one of the handiest things about a paper-based system. - Reference and storage, per nature of OmniFocus, has to be completely separated, which adds jank. I realise this is massive scope-bloat, so it's probably not fair to complain about. Things I really like and will probably keep even after I drop OmniFocus: - The dedicated mail drop. I think even after I move away from OF, this is going to be something I keep. - The "due" list view. OmniFocus pushes you towards using this a lot, even if it's not completely in the spirit. - The good integration between my laptop and phone is going to be hard to live without again. I hope this shed some light on my gripes and issues with OmniFocus. :)

cJ0th 9y ago

There are two implementations I find quite good. 1. ThinkingRock It's a desktop client for all operating systems. There are two versions. A free one (v 2.x - still available on sourceforge [0]) and one you have to buy (v 3.x)[1] 2. Getting Things Gnome I find it slightly less convincing than ThinkingRock. What's more, it appears not to be maintained anymore. The offical website is down and there have been no update on github[2] for a while. However, it might be just what you're looking for so you should also give it a try. [0] https://sourceforge.net/projects/thinkingrock/ https://sourceforge.net/projects/thinkingrock/ [1] https://www.trgtd.com.au https://www.trgtd.com.au [2] https://github.com/getting-things-gnome/gtg https://github.com/getting-things-gnome/gtg

galfarragem 9y ago

A loose implementation: https://github.com/galfarragem/hamster-gtd https://github.com/galfarragem/hamster-gtd

PeOe 9y ago

Maybe this will help you. https://blog.zenkit.com/how-to-set-up-gtd-in-zenkit-902fa6960f8 https://blog.zenkit.com/how-to-set-up-gtd-in-zenkit-902fa696... Disclaimer: I work at http://zenkit.com http://zenkit.com

dogruck 9y ago

I use OmniFocus as my tool.

mcshicks 9y ago

I've tried many systems over the years for implementing GTD (Palm Pilot, MS Outlook, Evernote, One Note, paper) adding scripts and tools like autohotkey. For me by far the best system is org-mode in emacs, but getting proficient in emacs is not trivial. For me at least emacs also seems to work much better under linux, and org-mode works better if you use emacs as your email client. This is a good reference http://doc.norang.ca/org-mode.html http://doc.norang.ca/org-mode.html

zentiggr 9y ago

In over a decade of fiddling with manual / desktop OS / Palm / Palm / Palm / Android versions of tool after tool, I finally realized the only important part of GTD is the "write down enough thoughts to ease the stress of forgetting, in a system you trust". Everything else is jump starting detail, valuable to get going toward less stress but will be adjusted & customized by everyone eventually. Like another answerer to this comment, I finally rolled a custom Sheets layout that works the way I think about things, and over the last few months, have slowly tweaked it closer and closer to my personal thoughtflow. It's not the details of the system that matter, it's the relieving of the stress that makes it worthwhile.