I recently presented a seminar where a participant brought up the project of getting her daughter into college.  Since that had been a project for me as well, I wrote to her about how I applied the “Natural Planning Model” to this project. For those of you unfamiliar with the Natural Planning Model, it is David Allen’s approach to getting projects creatively under control. The specific details of this five-phase approach can be found starting on page 54 of David Allen’s book, Getting Things Done.

Here is the email I sent to this participant regarding her project:

Dear Sara,

I wanted to share with you what I did to help my son with his efforts to get into college. [Read more →]

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GTD simply emerged after paying attention to the things that get in our way…

Mr. Allen.

I am writing to pay a special tribute to my Grandfather – who passed away last week at the age of 94.  He led a good, long life and was successful in many things.  He was the first President of Fording Coal and Superintendent of Mines for Comino in British Columbia, Canada.

I was in Vancouver last week, helping the family with the final tasks that are inevitable after a loved one passes.  Now – for the record, I have read all of your books and personally, have struggled with being successful in the implementation of the full GTD System. [Read more →]

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Meghan Wilker–mom, social media maven, and GTD’er-extraordinaire, brings her tips for surviving the holidays GTD-style. Enjoy!

This weekend kicked off the holiday season which, for most people, is synonymous with utter chaos. Often, work projects need to be wrapped up by end-of-year, we are inundated with party invitations from friends, clients, and vendors and — on top of all that — family commitments multiply. Oh, and then there’s that whole “buying presents” thing, which is made all the more fun by the current economy (aka “these uncertain times”).

Here’s how GTD can help you maintain your sanity this holiday season:

Calendar Kung Fu
If you haven’t already gotten a calendar management black belt, use the next two months to earn it. My favorite moves include:

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This community contribution comes from Tara who uses GTD to care for her ill mother.  It’s a wonderful story from someone who–already naturally organized and productive–found ways to improve on her systems to provide the best care she could for her mother.

Dear David,

I’m probably in the camp of those who need GTD the least and who benefit from it the most. I’ve always been an “organized” person and have been praised for my ability to get things done and not let things “fall of my plate” or “radar screen” depending on the metaphor you prefer. That said, my life has taken a turn for the more complex and chaotic recently and I’ve found GTD to be the thing that helps me keep it together. [Read more →]

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We wanted to share this amazing letter from Kevin, who recently attended a GTD Mastering Workflow class with Danny Bader.  He describes what he did after the class, including a wonderful experience of connecting with his daughter.  For those of you feeling like you’re in “always on” mode in your work and personal life, Kevin’s story may be inspiring to you to see what’s possible…

[Read more →]

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We’ve all had experiences in life that feel like an sucker punch to our world.  In a matter of minutes, things are not as they were.  We received this heartfelt letter from André, who wanted other GTD’ers to know how he dealt with a difficult family situation using the GTD principles and practices.

The last three weeks were the most bizarre in my life so far. Thanks to GTD I didn’t get lost. I want to share my story with you and all interested GTD’ers:

On Saturday 26 September 2009 my dad passed away because of a sudden brain hemorrhage. He was on a trip in Israel with members of his church. It was his dream for 35 years to see The Promised Land himself.

Wednesday 16 September 2009, 16:07h. It was my second workday after a four-week-holiday. I had my Areas of Focus clear and my Project list straight to get back on track again. Ready to dive into the details.

Then the phone rang. It was my dad’s pastor calling from Eilat, Israel. My dad had an accident on the beach of the Red Sea. His body functions had stopped. After a succesful reanimation he came back to life. Immediately he was transported by ambulance to the Intensive Care of the nearest hospital. Dad was in coma and has not come out of it again. [Read more →]

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GTD enthusiast Kerry Gallivan has been working with a wonderful project in Maine that is bringing MacBooks,  OmniFocus & GTD to nearly 60,000 students and educators.  It’s an amazing story and congratulations to all involved in making this happen.  Truly a remarkable achievement which will greatly benefit the students, teachers, their families and communities.

As a GTD evangelist myself, last March I was fortunate to attend the GTD Summit in San Francisco. This was a first-ever event hosted by David Allen, author of Getting Things Done, and his company, David Allen Company. It was a networking event which brought together all of the best and brightest GTD practicers from literally around the world. It was at the GTD Summit that I met Ken Case – the President of the Omni Group.  Being a Technology Director at a school district in Maine and a GTD evangelist, I encouraged him to consider donating OmniFocus to the MLTI program as a first step in exposing the educational community within Maine to the benefits of the GTD system.  Read more–>

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We love hearing from GTD’ers around the world who are getting value out of David’s work.  This one came in from Richard in Japan:

Dear David,

I read your book and I wanted to share with you the incredible change it has made to my career. Since picking it up at a JFK airport bookstore during a business trip, I have implemented many of the techniques and I have developed ‘trust’ in my system to keep me on top of things. Not only has my career been taking off– [Read more →]

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