What is GTD and why I use it?

GTD (or Getting Things Done) is, simply said, a time management system. In 2002, David Allen published a book called Getting Things Done: The Art of Stress-Free Productivity. This book started it all. David’s book is a must read for anyone interested in practicing GTD.

For me, GTD has been a godsend. Over time, I have used a Day-Runner, a Day-Timer, then I followed Covey ( of course, with my Covey notebook), and eventually developed my own “system” for organizing myself. Nothing ever worked very well. I was always searching for the “silver bullet” organizational system. For me, GTD has been that silver bullet.

I cannot say enough good things about GTD. GTD has allowed me to:

• Provide a balance with my work and life activities.
• Be better prepared for meetings, discussions, trips to the grocery store, hardware store, video store, etc.
• Get out of my e-mail inbox! At certain intervals throughout the day, my inbox has ZERO e-mails. Before I move something from my inbox, I know exactly what the “next action” is going to be.
• Free my mind… I don’t “wake up at 3AM worrying about things”. I have a moleskine notebook that gets an entry for anything that pops into my head that I need to follow-up on. If it’s in my moleskine, I don’t have to worry about it. I know the thought or idea is in a safe place.

I could go on and on… I’m pretty passionate because I have seen the results first hand. GTD is not about a software tool or using a PDA, don’t be fooled by anything you read about tools. GTD is about “freeing your mind” so that you can focus on the task at hand.

This blog is intended to:

• Show you how I’ve implemented GTD
• Provide you with some of the GTD best practices that I have uncovered
• Turn you on to some of the great freeware (free software) that I have found
• …and provide a forum for sharing life-hacking tips

Together, I hope we can all become productivity black-belts by implementing and sharing great ideas for Getting Things Done!