Self-Help : Getting Things Done The Art of Stress Free Productivity
Getting Organized: Improving Focus, Organization and Productivity | 
 | 80% Recommended by our customers.
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Manufacturer: Penguin (Non-Classics)
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- ISBN13: 9780142000281
- Condition: New
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 Transformational and Life-Changing
I was in the middle of 14 hour workdays, 200 emails a day and an incredible amount of stress. Reading this book (required reading for management in my company), and implementing the system - got me to a 10 hour day and a clear email inbox at the end of every day and a whole lot less stress at work. Applying the system at home, has made my home paperwork and desk so tidy and organized. I feel a sense of control over life and work, and feel relaxed to really focus on whatever it is I want to focus on. A truly transformational and life-changing book.
It's not a clutter problem
I had a clutter problem - in general. So I got a book on clutter ("It's All Too Much" which is a good read btw). It worked! ...on everything except my relationship with papers. They are (soon to be 'were') everywhere: messing up my home office, the table where I eat, on the night stand, even on the floor. I mean, it looked like clutter so why didn't it work? Well, because my paper issue was some else entirely - an organization puzzle, not an extra-stuff puzzle.
This is where David Allen's book really comes in handy. It's especially good for everyday people whose lives are getting more multifaceted and whose personal and/or professional projects are getting bigger. The logic is impeccable. And the tools ought to be adjusted to your style. Plus there are tons of GTD fan videos online that can help you modify and personalize what he suggests in the book. Papers begone! It's working for me. If you have a monster of an inbox, certainly give Getting Things Done a try.
Wish I could give 10 stars
This guy is the best. I "went dark" one long weekend to get his personal organization system implemented at home, it actually took longer, but it is totally do-able and you are going to want to do it YESTERDAY once you read the book. In fact, you won't get through the whole book, you will start once you have read halfway, but finish reading the book eventually because the last part is terrific too. Of all the books that claim to be life-changing, this one delivered on the promise. All the mundane stuff that bedeviled my mind for decades is now in the system and I can't begin to tell you how that has upped my game in every quarter of life.
Finally, a system that works
After years of struggling to organize my chaotic life, I am embarrassed to admit how many "systems" I have tried... This book has some simple suggestions that have helped me stay on track both professionally and in my personal life. Like alphabetical filing... duh...
GTD: The Good, the Bad, and What to Keep
The Good:
David Allen presents quite a bit of helpful information in this book. GTD is a very valuable read if you find your email gets out of sorts or your desk becomes cluttered with papers more frequently than you would like. One quite useful idea Allen presents is that of "Stuff". "Stuff" for Allen is "Anything you have allowed into your psychological or physical world that doesn't belong where it is, but for which you haven't yet determined the desired outcome and the next action step." Allen suggests the presence of "Stuff" makes work difficult; it engenders internal resistance to work. Cutting down on "stuff" is the basis of Allen's system and becoming more productive.
Allen suggests creating inboxes to place your "Stuff" in order to get them out of your mental RAM. One common example (albeit maybe old-fashioned) is the physical inbox on a desk. Allen suggests creating such an inbox and placing all cluttered papers and "Stuff" on your desk in it. This frees up your mental RAM a bit as the "Stuff" is out of sight and out of mind. When the inbox is first created it will be quite full, but once that initial hill of "Stuff" is processed, the inbox should stay fairly empty as its owner should be frequently processing it. Allen provides a workflow diagram for processing "Stuff" and suggests doing so at least weekly.
Using this workflow, it is easy to cut through an inbox. This really helps one get a handle on their work and getting things done! I can attest to this as I've organized my email according to this methodology, and it works quite well. In Outlook I now have four main folders: inbox, next actions, waiting, and reference. Reference contains most of my previous folders; its where I store materials I might need to reference at some point. Waiting contains items I'm waiting on deliverables/dependencies from others before I can proceed. Next actions contains the next things I need to do that will take more than 2 minutes (if less than 2 minutes, I do them on the spot as per the diagram above). And my inbox is nearly at zero (always). That has probably been the biggest gift the book offered me. I review emails daily and file them according to the workflow system and am able to maintain a near zero inbox. This really catalyzes my productivity.
So, the good from GTD: "Stuff" principle, a physical inbox, the workflow, and (at least) weekly reviews of inboxes.
Another less but still beneficial principle Allen suggests is practicing "ubiquitous capture". Ubiquitous means ever-present or constant; the principle Allen suggests is to make a habit of constantly capturing your ideas. Never be without a pen and paper (or a PDA for some). This way you are able to capture ideas regardless of when they occur, and more importantly, your mental capacity is freed up from having to try to remember ideas. Jot your idea down on a 3x5 card and drop it in your inbox and forget about it. Focus on what is at hand and process it in your weekly review.
The Bad:
Yes, there is bad in GTD. First, the view of technology is antiquated. For example, Allen states that before implementing his system a person will need to purchase: paper-holding trays (at least 3), a stack of plain letter-size paper, post-its (3x3s), paper clips, binder clips, a stapler, scotch tape, rubber bands, an automatic labeler, and file folders. Any system that requires all of the preceding is simply not making effective use of technology. Furthermore GTD is overly reliant on paper and physical filing. It would be quite difficult to fully implement GTD electronically, and this is a major drawback given the growing movement to more and more electronic organization of work. Also, Allen's system is not flexible enough to handle diverse environments. If you Google GTD, you find many adaptations to his system people have needed to make in order to fit it to their specific situations.
What to Keep:
So what will GTD mean to me? Well, I now keep a physical inbox on my desk, I've reorganized my email (and have a tiny inbox!), complete a bi-weekly review, and utilize a simplified version of the workflow (the diagram above). I find that this frees up my mental capacity to work more effectively and be more productive. GTD is not a complete solution, and is certainly not perfect, but the basic ideas have proven helpful.
* Last, I should qualify my review here. I am leaving out vast segments of the GTD system for brevity's sake. Also, I did not read the latest edition of the book (I read the 2001 version), and the newer edition might make more effective use of technology.
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