(last edited on April 29, 2014 at 1:28 am)
After reading Get Things Done this weekend, I’m very stoked to start systemizing my activities. It’s interesting to compare my old habits to the new, GTD-related ones.
For example, today I woke up and immediately started mentally reviewing the things I wanted to get done in general. These are:
- Breathe life into stalled external projects
- Finish up some current projects for a deadline by the end-of-the-week
- Start GTD
- Get the house ready for Dad’s impending visit
- Do some what is my niche of one clarification
- Update the website with one of those new-fangled “bottom information pane” things, to consolidate some of the sidelink areas into more browsable form
- Plan a networking / how to find new business campaign
- Get some of the upcoming PCEO forms into “initial release” shape…there’s two on the drawing board that have been sitting for a couple weeks.
- Write a book outline for some kind of PCEO-related ebook
- Get the podcasting software installed, rope Brad into helping
- Financial Housekeeping and systemization
- Converting ad-hoc household chores into collectable color card format, a modern form of me
- Get back on that [Spaceship Drawing][spaceship] thread, and develop more story pieces
- Keep up with Barcamp Manchester, currently being organized by Ian Muir
- Catch up with everyone. Everyone!
- Exercise and lose 20 pounds, in case I do end up going to my 20ish-something High School Reunion.
That’s not a bad start for my list. The first thing I thought of today was that I wanted to make one of my Menu of the Day forms to clarify my thinking, but I immediately saw that this was a reaction to one of the general premises of GTD…anxiety caused by lack of knowing where things are. Menu of the Day is a focusing trick that works in the absense of having the big picture in an accessible, trusted format, which is what having a functioning GTD system place would take care of. Fascinating.
Since I’m not following GTD yet, I am putting “Do Collection Phase” on my Menu of the Day to bootstrap my way into it. Competing for attention is the paying client work, and a scheduled haircut in Danvers, which is about an hour each way by car.
Another interesting sensation is knowing that implementing GTD will resolve a LOT of the lingering system issues I’ve been having, at least at the higher levels. I won’t know what specifically needs to be developed until I try it, but it’s cool knowing that there are thousands of people who’ve already done this, and will have posted their solutions. Should be a lot of fun!
2 Comments
I’ve got to read this book. I’ve been trying to systemize things in my life and get organized but it just isn’t working. Maybe a litte advice/inspiration is what I need. I guess I’ve also got to accept that with a 10 month old, there’s a limit to how systematic things can get.
I’m really stoked that you’re going to be doing more with the spaceship/story pieces. I’ve been trying to get motivated to make this game I’ve had swirling around in my brain and everytime you publish more spaceship stuff it gets me re-energized a bit. I’ll have to post some EVE screenshots for you.
Also, I know how hard it is to lose weight. I’ve lost about 40lbs over the past year and it’s been a lot of hardwork. In fact, I think I might have to write a blog post about it. It might help you and others out by sharing what’s been successful for me.
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Yo Dave,
Check me off your ‘Catch up with everyone’ bullet. I’ve been a bit unproductive myself recently. Putting off what can easily be done quickly. In those situations, I say “It took me 3 weeks and 5 minutes to do it!” Three weeks procrastination, 5 minutes production.
Barry