I want something more than that, though.

I don’t want to have to “recover” from Christmas. I don’t want to start the new year eight pounds heavier. I don’t want my children focused only on the electronic gadgets they hope Santa brings. But everything I don’t want will probably become my reality–unless I take the initiative to implement what I do want.

David Allen’s Natural Planning Model seriously saves my sanity on everything from birthday party planning to creating new programs for my website, so this year, I decided to use the five steps of the Natural Planning Model to create a Christmas experience that is both magical and meaningful.

Step One: Defining Purpose and Principles

For this part, I sat down with my children and gave them the following prompts:

• What’s the purpose of this season?
• What do you want this Christmas to feel like for our family?
• Please finish this sentence: “I would be happy with any Christmas celebration, as long as . . .”

Then I took good notes, and the beauty of their responses continues to amaze me.

Step Two: Outcome Visioning

We did this part on a separate day with an informal breakfast discussion, which basically took our ideas from Step One to a deeper level.

My 11-year-old was the scribe:

We agreed that we want to be well-rested, reasonably-paced, and organized throughout the holiday, and we’re going to continue exercising and eating well so we’ll be in better health by the time the tree comes down.　

We’re all going to be happy with our Christmas gifts–even if we don’t get the “big” stuff that all the kids at school are talking about. We’ll purchase and wrap our presents by the first week of December, shop together for a beautiful tree that will be trimmed with homemade decorations, and focus the majority of our activities and expenses on making others happy.

Just typing these things out gets me so excited about the holiday season. Certainly, there will be days that won’t go as planned (probably most days), and some of us will be whiny or emotional while others will be frustrated or exhausted, but that’s just life. We can still aim high, can’t we?

On to Step Three: Brainstorming

This step is my favorite because it gives us a place to write all the ideas we’ve been cooking up over the past few months.　

We looked carefully at our notes from the first two steps and then gathered as a family one evening to brainstorm around seven areas of focus. Here they are:

• Activities and Outings
• Helping Others
• Uplifting Media
• Christmas Cards
• Gifts
• Meaningful Traditions
• Healthy Food

Then my daughter added an eighth area called, “Unhealthy food.” (She needed a place to include the gingerbread house.)

Photo courtesy of Shawni Pothier

Seeing our areas of focus as clusters on one page helps us to realize that the “all-consuming” holiday planning really is finite. We can create boundaries around our time, we can control our expenditures, and we can make sure our energy is spent on what’s most important.　

In many areas, there’s a clear overlap. Can’t we create meaningful traditions that help others? Can’t healthy Christmas goodies and beautiful music be part of our Christmas-gift giving? Looking at the big picture clarifies everything.

Step Four: Organizing

This part initially feels hard. How am I going to take all these brainstorms and make them manageable?

Simply jump in.

I wrote out all the components and sub-components on little slips of paper.

Then I moved them around and organized them according to priority and sequence.

Here are my three sub-clusters: things to do this week, things to do before December 1st, and things to do in early December.

I noticed that four of these slips contained two-minute tasks, so I quickly accomplished those and then moved onto the next step.

Step Five: Identifying Next Actions

As I was getting all my ideas out onto Post-it Notes, I realized that some things I wrote down were projects, while others were tasks.　

I created a list of Current Christmas Projects,

and then I created two Next Actions Lists: one for immediate Next Actions–things to accomplish within the next week, and one for important Next Actions–things to accomplish as soon as it’s convenient.

Then I simply put these sheets into my inbox to organize during my next Weekly Review.

I’ll create calendar triggers for the Christmas plans that mean the most to me, and then I’ll just do my best with the rest, knowing that ultimately, spontaneous events might replace those I’ve planned, some of these projects might not seem as important three weeks from now, and what really matters is how this holiday feels.

Your family’s Christmas planning will likely be much different than ours. There’s no one “right” way to do this, but I hope that this exercise using the Natural Planning Model will help you to create a wonderful Christmas for you and the ones you love.

April Perry is the mother of four children and Co-Director of The Power of Moms.

• Set up Lotus Notes To Do’s for your projects and actions
• Use the calendar as a critical foundation for actions
• Get email to zero consistently
• Create useful reference lists
• Organize contacts
• Move faster with speed keys and shortcuts

Instructions in the Guide are primarily written based on Notes 8.5, with helpful references to differences in previous versions.

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I’m a fan of gadgets. I love shiny new objects that promise to deliver bigger, stronger and faster results. The problem with a lot of these shiny new objects is that there is a learning curve for most (if not all) of them and even when the knowledge is set firmly in place, they are only part of the equation. It’s the other part that often lets us down. That other part is us.

We often get bogged down in the details, mired in a slew of hidden tasks that pile up in our electronic folders and leave us with our heads spinning. And as a bit of a technophile myself, I’ve had it happen to me on several occasions. When this happens, I turn over my trusted system to a device that I can trust with its implementation: paper.

Paper is a powerful device in its own right.  It is simple in both design and execution. You write something down, and with the act of writing it out you have enhanced your chance of doing something productive with it.

There’s no framework as to how you lay out your productivity plan when you have a blank piece of paper in front of you. You can build your own, use an existing template or adapt an existing system to make it your own. As long as you’ve got a system in mind, you’re only limited by how it appears on paper by your own imagination. In a sense, paper is freeing.

There is simplicity in using paper over electronic devices. It doesn’t have an operating system that needs rebooting, and it is always wireless.  If you hand someone a piece of paper with action items on it, they can look at it and understand it without having to refer to a manual. The only operating system that would ever require rebooting when paper is used is the user.

The cost of paper is another bonus. Costs can range from a few dollars for a simple junior legal pad to hundreds of dollars for elegant paper products. Again, it is the user who will define how well the paper is used — so an expensive planner could be worthless if not used diligently while a dollar store legal pad that is used extremely well would be priceless.

Whether you choose paper to implement GTD or some form of software comes down to personal preference and choice. Some, like me, might use software to handle the bulk of their work while using paper to outline other work.  It all comes down to to what works best for you. Paper is a great gateway device for someone getting started with GTD.  For those who have more experience with the methodology it can be used to great benefit as well. Anyone with some GTD know-how can tailor paper to the fit the system.

The key is not tailoring the system to fit the device. Doing that will result in doing very little.

An obvious but rarely noticed tool may be my key to ultimate productivity.

At David Allen Company, we consider many things when setting up a workspace. I recently reconstructed my workspace in a way that has stepped up my energy and focus to a whole new level. I made this improvement by switching to a stand-up desk. This is an amazing tool that has helped me to be more productive and ergonomically correct; a win for my company and for me.

The benefits of a stand up desk have really surprised me.

I didn’t realize that the reason it felt so hard to sit at my desk during the day was because I am naturally inclined to move a lot. I have energy coursing through my body every minute of the day and found it increasingly difficult to stay focused for a long amount of time without getting up to move. I was blaming my lack of focus on a need for social interaction, because I’d get up to mingle or grab a cup of tea. But it was actually something much simpler.

Many people are comfortable when they are sedentary, or prefer a comfortable chair while working. However, we can’t assume that this works for everyone. It took someone else in our office – OK, the someone is my sister – requesting a stand up desk, on a suggestion from her GTD coach, for me to see the light on this issue. When I saw her working on her feet I realized that she was embodying a free physical space, which allowed her to move easily from her inbox, to her files, to her shelves and back to her computer. When I started using a stand-up desk, not only did it inspire a more efficient movement in workflow, but it was a huge relief to know that there was a way for me to feel energized while doing my work, and not locked into one position all day.

Since I have gotten my stand-up desk, I have noticed the following benefits:
• I am much more inclined to work through a solid block of time without needing an interruption for my energy to explode.
• When I do need to sit, I can do so in smaller increments and stretch my legs out which eliminates the need for me to interrupt my work to stretch or take walks (although I still love taking walks on my break).
• I no longer feel the tightness in my legs when I walk out of the office at the end of the day, nor do I dread sitting down again for my commute home.
• I feel the release of a “constricted” mindset, which inspires creativity and freedom in my work.
• I have quicker access to my surrounding workspace.

For those of you who have become fans of yoga, Pilates or stretch classes on your lunch breaks, please consider that movement can exist throughout your entire day. And for those who don’t participate in those classes, it might make sense for you to take a look at how you can keep your energy fluid and vibrant. Do not be discouraged if you work in an office that has not offered this option; you might be surprised at the reaction you get when you explain what effects it might have on your efficiency. Remember that your mind is constantly processing data, but your body is also taking in a constant flow of information and energy. Make sure you are taking care of both.

Kari McGee is an enthusiastic team member at David Allen Company. She works on the administrative team for our GTD Essentials program and GTD Interactive course. We hope you enjoy her story!

• GTD Times – This is the the official blog for the David Allen Company. Loads of helpful advice, tips, special offers, tricks & strategies for implementing GTD.
• Podcasts - Includes the GTD best practices series with David & his team.
• GTD Connect – The two-week free trial is a fully-functional experience of our online learning center (except for downloads.) There’s no obligation, no payment required, and nothing to cancel.
• Articles, Handouts & Learning Tools - Essays from David on GTD best practices, the original workflow map and more available as free PDFs from our store.
• GTD-Q - Measure how you’re doing with control & perspective. Take it as often as you like (especially you crazy makers). There are also some free articles and videos on this site too.
• GTD Facebook Fan Page – A great place to connect with other GTD’ers chatting about a wide-range of GTD topics.
• GTD LinkedIn Network – A great network of GTD enthusiasts with more of a business focus.
• Twitter - Follow David Allen and GTD Times
• GTD YouTube Channel – A collection of fun and useful videos of David and GTD practitioners.
• Productive Living newsletter – David’s free newsletter with “David’s Food for Thought,” product specials & community news. Sent about once a month.
• Video of David @ Google – A great overview from David on the keys to control + perspective.
• DavidCo Discussion Forums – These rich forums are a great way to ask questions, search for answers and connect with other GTD’ers around the world.

GTD® WORKFLOW MAP SET – SMALL FOLDED VERSION

The GTD Workflow Map is a stunning visual learning tool for understanding how David Allen’s models for control & perspective come together. Set includes: one small folded color Workflow Map and a DVD with David coaching you through the Map. This folded version of the Map is idea for international customers looking for more cost effective shipping options.

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I have some of my best ideas in the shower.  I don’t know if it’s the hot water or the lack of distractions, but things pop into my head and I know that I’ll need to take action on them.  But when I’m halfway through a shower, I only have two choices: try to remember it, or get out and write it down.  Neither really works well. One results in a wet floor, and the other means I spend the rest of my shower anxiously trying not to forget.

Of course, the GTD answer would be to write it down. But pen and paper don’t survive long in the shower.  Fortunately, I remembered that when I’m scuba diving I sometimes carry a small writing slate to more easily communicate underwater.  I grabbed my slate and put it in the shower.

Now, I write down anything that comes to mind when I’m showering.  After I’m dressed for the day, I can grab the slate and add any action items to my queue.

You can get a dive slate from your local dive shop, or from an online store.

In a nutshell, I am very excited to report this audio program is EXCELLENT!

Imagine sitting in the room with David, Marian and Meg and, basically, they are discussing all of the best practices and experiences around projects, projects planning, organizing, etc. It gives you the feeling that you have 3 personal coaches for a few hours. Many examples are discussed in great detail–big projects, smaller projects–to make it easy to understand the very fine points of how “successful outcome” project planning works in real life.

There are great tips here on how to make sure you really have ALL of your projects on the list AND how to keep that list at a manageable level. Linking projects to next actions and/or areas of focus (which Meg taught me during a telecoaching session) is also discussed.

Subprojects–should I or shouldn’t I have them? Lots of good discussion around that.

If you manage others and delegate projects, some terrific tips for you!

Recommendations: If you are relatively new to GTD, this is GOLD. Please consider getting this set as soon as you can.

For long term GTD-ers: YES, you will also find lots here for you too. Let’s face it–we get LAZY. Even if you know some of this stuff, this set will give you new ideas to implement to jazz up your system.

Barbara Bailey, Bailey Consulting Group, LLC (posted on 11/20/2010 to the GTD Connect discussion Forums)

We have also received requests that some of you would like a download version of this product. Thanks for letting us know!  Our products team is looking into that as an option for 2011.

GTD Connect members save 10% on this product.  Be sure to log in to GTD Connect first, then head to the store for your member discounts to apply.  Not a member? Try a free guest pass.

Order your GTD Managing Projects set today.  Limited quantities available.

Highly recommended if you will be in the DC area next week.

Click here for all the details!

If anyone is telling you a specific piece of software is required for GTD–good chance they don’t understand GTD.

We do have a few key tools that we personally use and recommend that have gone through David Allen’s extensive vetting process. You can find a link to those in our online store.  If you don’t see your software listed here, it means we do not have a recommendation at this time, but a search on GTD Times and our public Forums should give you quite a few helpful suggestions about what other GTDers are using.

If you have been wanting to try out a Tickler File, here’s your chance. The David Allen Company store has their popular GTD Tickler System file folder set on sale for $29.95, a discount of 25% off the regular price.

Check it out now! 

A Community Contribution from Jason Verly

For anyone who uses a Mac and utilizes the GTD method, you may eventually look into what software you can use to help manage your project and next action lists. Currently on the Mac, the leading apps to help manage your lists are OmniFocus and Things. Each app covers four of the five steps of the GTD workflow: Collect, Process, Organize, and Review. (Sorry, but you still have to do ‘Do’ on you own.)   Here is a comparison of how each application handles these four steps.

Read more from Jason Verly’s article

Editors Note: Many of you know we are partners with OmniGroup. We wanted to provide this article to our GTD Times readers, as Jason has done a great job comparing these two popular applications.  It should give you some great information from a fellow GTDer, when choosing which one is best for you.

See a sample

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What people are saying on our Forums about the new Guide:

“As are all the GTD products I have purchased, the new GTD Implementation Guide is of very high quality. This guide outlines completely, yet succinctly, how you can implement and maintain the GTD process.”

“I’m no GTD rookie and STILL I bought this new product! I’m glad I did! There are things in here that will help me get closer to black belt. This would have cut 3 months off my initial implementation easily!”

Learn more…

For more GTD videos, check out GTD Connect, our online learning center. You’ll find nearly 100 Videos on GTD Connect, from “2 Minutes with David Allen” clips to replays of our monthly Webinar classes.

• Are there any tools already in place that you plan/need to still use? Like a corporate calendar?
• Where is your email?  Not required, but certainly helps to have your email and lists near each other.
• Who else needs to see your data?   Does it need to be on a shared server or would local be fine if you go digital?
• What do you tend to be drawn to–paper or digital?
• Is security a concern?
• How would you back it up, if needed?
• What are you willing to carry around?
• What tools are you already familiar with?
• Would you trust putting almost anything into it?
• Is it scale-able?
• Can you easily learn how to use it?
• What are you willing to pay for it?
• What does it need to sync to?

Is there a perfect GTD system out there? Sure, it’s the one you trust and use so your mind is free.

• Where do you keep your lists? Your calendar?
• Do you sync to a handheld? If so, what is that?
• Your favorite collection tools?
• Killer desk supplies?
• Project planning, brainstorming and creative mapping tools?
• What else??

[Small request:   If you are commenting about an app, please disclose if you are the developer and/or involved with it in some way. Thanks.]

Before we get started, I should identify the basic function of the software.  MyCaption allows the user to create and annotate Tasks, Appointments, Memos, Email, SMS messages, at the touch of a button.  The process is such that after the software captures the user’s vocal recording, that data is sent to the company’s servers, where it is delivered to the BlackBerry device as one of the above formats.

So how can it work for GTD?First, as a Collection Tool.  Let’s say I’m out and about and I have a thought that I want to remember to watch David Allen’s latest Webinar on GTD Connect.  I would push the side button on my BlackBerry (which I’ve specifically mapped to the Task function) and a recording interface pops up.  I can then speak for up to 3 minutes, offering whatever information I might need (“watch David’s Webinar on Priorities”).  What I then receive back within 5 minutes is a notice that MyCaption has created a new Task, and I’m given the option to go to Tasks.

Notice however, that I identify this function as Collection.  That’s because I cannot yet place that Task within a Category, neither can I create a new Category if I wanted to.  In speaking with the developers of MyCaption, this is a function that they are currently investigating, but for now it’s unavailable.  So after creating this new uncategorized Task, I’ve essentially captured “stuff” that needs to be processed.  What I will do then is to sync my BlackBerry at some later point in time, and the Task shows up in my Outlook Tasks uncategorized (at the top of my view) and I now can Process this new input as I would any other new piece of collection: by asking “what is it?” “is it actionable”, etc.  Using my previous example, I would open the Task and categorize it as something to do “@Online”.  The inability to categorize while you speak is clearly a limitation, however the MyCaption solution is much more streamlined than paper collection as far as I’m concerned.

While that describes my primary use of the software, there are other features that many of you may find very valuable.  I can speak a reply (or replay all) to an email.  I can do the same with SMS text.  I can create an appointment through speech, you can annotate a Task so that my speech shows up as text in the “Notes” section of the Task.  My lifestyle is not so mobile that I find all these features useful, but as I hear of more and more BlackBerry users giving up their laptops on the road, these features may end up being mission-critical life-savers.

I should note that there can be a delay to receiving input (Tasks, etc.) from the MyCaption servers, and that can prove sticky if you’re trying to cleanly shift your thinking from one area to another, only to have the first area come back at you, but to me that’s a minor distraction, and the functionality of MyCaption well-compensates this downside.

There’s also the requirement that for email, recipients need to be either identified as MyCaption recipients on the BlackBerry, or your Contacts need to be loaded on the MyCaption servers, also a minor downside.

All in all, I find MyCaption to be one of the better GTD tools around for the BlackBerry.

Wayne Pepper is a senior presenter and coach with the David Allen Company.  While this review is based on his personal and objective opinion as a GTD expert and BlackBerry user, he received a free copy of this software to do this review.  Please note that this is not an official endorsement from the David Allen Company. We are not affiliated with MyCaption.  But they have a cool tool that works well, and we think you might like it too.

• GTD Times – This is the the official blog for the David Allen Company.  Loads of helpful advice, tips, special offers, tricks & strategies for implementing GTD.
• Podcasts - Includes the GTD best practices series with David & his team.
• GTD Connect – The two-week free trial is a fully-functional experience of our online learning center (except for downloads.) There’s no obligation, no payment required, and nothing to cancel.
• Articles, Handouts & Learning Tools - Essays from David on GTD best practices, the original workflow map and more available as free PDFs from our store.
• GTD-Q - Measure how you’re doing with control & perspective. Take it as often as you like (especially you crazy makers). There are also some free articles and videos on this site too.
• GTD Facebook Fan Page – A great place to connect with other GTD’ers chatting about a wide-range of GTD topics.
• GTD LinkedIn Network – A great network of GTD enthusiasts with more of a business focus.
• Twitter - Follow David Allen and GTD Times
• GTD You Tube Channel – A collection of fun and useful videos of David and GTD practitioners.
• Productive Living newsletter – David’s free newsletter with “David’s Food for Thought,” product specials & community news. Sent about once a month.
• Video of David @ Google – A great overview from David on the keys to control + perspective.
• DavidCo Discussion Forums – These rich forums are a great way to ask questions, search for answers and connect with other GTD’ers around the world.

Right before the podcast, I Tweeted that I’d be speaking with him and I asked Dean some of the questions some of you sent to me (such as getting tech support, Office 10 release, how it interfaces with Toodledo and more.)

Ken Case: The big thing that we tried to do as we were designing the application is really think about the parts of the GTD workflow that we could address, and automate those, and then maybe not try to touch the parts that didn’t make as much sense. For example, we don’t do calendaring; we leave that to whatever calendaring system you already have. I use the calendar app that’s built-in to the iPhone, but you can use a paper calendar or whatever works for you for that part of the system. We do focus on the GTD collecting and processing–capturing stuff out of your head and getting it into your inbox. We tried to make that really easy with a keystroke…

LISTEN NOW>>

Grab a list of all of the OmniFocus speed keys.

LISTEN NOW>>>

For those of you on Mac, you have a similar function through QuickSilver.  If you want to reach Buzz about ActiveWords or any of the other products he mentions, you can reach him at buzz@activewords.com.

In our recent podcast  on The Perfect GTD List Manager, we shared that one of the most common questions we get is, “Which tool should I use for my GTD lists?”  Specifically, you want to know which tools David Allen uses!  While the GTD approach is tool-agnostic, we have our personal favorites, as we know many of you do as well.  eProductivity for IBM Lotus Notes is one of those, and is the tool David (and most of the staff at DavidCo) use to help manage our workflow.  Even if you are not a Lotus Notes user, we think you’ll find value in hearing from Eric about what he learned would make the ultimate tool for David Allen to use.

In this podcast, Eric Mack (@EricMack) shares with Coach Kelly Forrister (@GTDCoachKelly) on some of the design philosophy and underlying features and principles that make eProductivity a tool David recommends.  (Note: There’s a free trial and on the podcast Eric also offers a $100 off to the first 50 people that contact him by June 15.)  Some of the features discussed on the podcast will make more sense if you check out some screenshots.    LISTEN NOW