Getting Things Done (GTD)
Getting Things Done (GTD) is a work-life management system created by David Allen.
It is a method to organize your tasks, commitments, projects, ideas, issues, and information, instead of keeping it in your head, and put it into a reliable system outside your mind so that you can focus on doing things, instead of remembering them.
The point is not to "do more" or "be more productive," but to reduce cognitive load to help with prioritization.
5 steps
- Capture - brain dump of everything on your mind
- Clarify - turn vague stuff into concrete stuff and action items
- Organize - may happen simultaneously with Clarify - systematically categorize info/tasks into actionable, pending, projects, backlog, calendar, reference, and someday/maybe
- Reflect - regularly review to help with planning
- Engage - take action - do the work
Using GTD for Learning
A knowledge worker who must constantly process complex technical information can use the GTD method as a structured way to handle their own learning and output. Tackle new topics by applying the 5 steps:
- Capture: Collect every idea, resource, or link related to the topic that grabs your attention.
- Clarify: Define whether the captured information is actionable. Multi-step goals can become projects. Define the "Next Action" to move the learning forward.
- Organize: Sort items into clean buckets:
- Actionable items: Group by context or the environment in which you would do the item (on a train, in bed, at the office, etc.).
- Non-actionable items: Move to a reference system to keep track of these somewhere where they won't clutter your action list.
- Reflect: Conduct a weekly or monthly review to update your lists, acknowledge completed learning milestones, and ensure new captured items are clarified and sorted.
- Engage: Make choices about what to study/do in any given moment based on your context, time, and energy levels. Remember, the system only works if you engage!
Links/references
- Learn the Getting Things Done (GTD) Method in 4 Steps (nice visual flowchart in here)
- What is GTD?
- The 5-Minute Guide to GTD (Getting Things Done)