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1. Gtd Evernote Pdf
2. Gtd Notebook System
3. Gtd And Evernote

Table of Contents

1. In depth discussion
   1. Evernote
   2. Todoist
   3. NirvanaHQ [winner]
   4. FacileThings

May 2, 2019 - Explore John Burns's board 'Gtd' on Pinterest. See more ideas about gtd, evernote, getting organized.

1. Evernote is a powerful tool not just for capturing information, but also planning projects and tasks. My Simple Curiosity has a very detailed guide to incorporating Evernote templates into your GTD.
2. Evernote is a powerful tool not just for capturing information, but also planning projects and tasks. My Simple Curiosity has a very detailed guide to incorporating Evernote templates into your GTD.

If you’re unfamiliar with Getting Things Done, I strongly urge you to go read the book, it’s a life changer. I do not intend to repeat the contents here, but I will include some nice variable-length summaries I’ve found and enjoyed:

It’s not a perfect book (I gave it ★★★★☆), but the abstract concepts behind it are so powerful that in combination they feel like acquiring a superpower.

Getting Things Done is one of those very rare books that changed my life. Before reading it in 2014 I considered myself a smart and driven person, but also unreliable, irresponsible and chaotic. I would pick up and drop projects on a whim, forget tasks that I promised to do, arrive late to everything and generally I just felt unproductive and stressed. The trust between present-me and future-me was pretty low.

After several years of practicing the GTD system, I became an objectively more reliable, consistent and productive person. Present-me and future-me have become great allies and even more importantly I enjoy the process of planning and performing my tasks and work.

The book was published almost 20 years ago and today is still, in my opinion, the best and most complete personal productivity system out there. While originally it was implemented with physical files, folders and papers, it has since been transformed by many practitioners to accommodate to the digital age.

When I started practicing GTD, the best implementation I found was in Evernote. It was called “The secret weapon” and it worked well — I’ve used and refined it for years, until last year I finally decided it’s time to switch. Surely a better implementation must exist by now.

After taking a couple of months to try different software solutions, I’ve settled on using NirvanaHQ. In the next section I explain why.

For those who just want a straight answer, NirvanaHQ is my winner. After sticking with it for months, I’m still very happy. I summarize the comparison below:

Evernote: my first GTD implementation. Used it in 2014-2018 and it completely worked. Clunky to set up and clunky to use, but versatile enough to deliver a full GTD experience. In my opinion it was the best option until recent years.

Todoist: a well designed and implemented general task-management app. Requires a lot of tinkering to fit to the GTD system and then it’s a proper solution. I love how responsive and intuitive the app is and that it has many third party integrations. Currently my second choice.

NirvanaHQ [winner]: finds a great balance between true GTD implementation and a light, well designed modern service for web and mobile. It’s not perfect (I am sorely missing integrations with outside services such as calendar or IFTTT/Zapier and support for task images / attachments), but it really achieves the GTD vision simply and beautifully. My current choice.

FacileThings: the most true, hard-core implementation of GTD I’ve seen and a great tool to introduce newcomers to the system with a guided experience. The only tool that has built in consideration of your purpose, vision, goals, areas of responsibility and even formalized a weekly review process. Too bad the UX is not so well designed and requires a lot of clicks to get anything done, and perhaps a bit too restrictive in doing GTD “the right way”.

I’ve also tried other apps like AnyDo, Wunderlist and Remember The Milk but didn’t find them to fit well with GTD.

If you’re interested in setting up a GTD implementation for a non GTD-native app like Evernote or Todoist, read on…

What is required to implement GTD?

As far as I can see, to implement GTD you need two things:

1. Mutually exclusive folders/labels to represent task status: [Inbox / Now / Next / Someday-Maybe / Waiting-Delegated / Complete].This is trivial: I need to be able to move a task from one status to another and have it erase the previous one automatically (otherwise, when I label something as next I’d have to also remove the label soon).
2. Concurrent labels to represent context:
   • What: properties of your tasks such as: priority, low/high energy, estimated time and so on. They can also be keywords such as: health, finance, family and so on.
   • Where: places where you’re likely to do tasks.
   • Who: separate tags for people you frequently work with or delegate tasks to.

The context labels allow me to figure out what to do next that fits my context. For example when I’m driving, need to fill 10 minutes or am in the mood to do something specific.

If you can make these two requirements work, you’ve got yourself a basic GTD system and the rest is details (which can sometimes still be very important!).

Further considerations:

• Separate work and life tasks easily.
• Have useful reminders that pop up at the right time, in the right context, in the right location.
• Integrations with other services (such as your calendar).
• Great UX and a snappy multi-platform experience.

Side note:
The minimal implementation of GTD that exists is probably todo.txt.

Evernote

My first GTD implementation. Used it in 2014-2018 and it completely worked. Clunky to set up and clunky to use, but versatile enough to deliver a full GTD experience. In my opinion it was the best option until recent years.

Implementation

The best implementation of GTD that I’ve seen for Evernote is The Secret Weapon. The only thing I strongly object to is their decision to implement task status as tags, under a .when label (see their setup page).In Evernote, I think task status must be implemented using the notebooks, since they are the only mutually exclusive kind of tag (reasoning given above).Below is a screenshot of my own setup which has worked for me for years. Note the separation of work and life into two notebook stacks. Task status switches are very easy to manage.

Pros

1. Super easy to capture tasks, ideas and information. Evernote implemented a great capturing tool on android by creating a 1-click widget to capture text, photos or voice. Everything goes into the inbox to be processed later.
2. Extremely flexible. Using notebooks and tags you can set up your system any way that you want. Tags have infinite hierarchy.

Cons

1. Not GTD-native. By that I mean that while Evernote is versatile enough to implement GTD, it wasn’t built with GTD first in mind. The result is a somewhat clunky daily experience. For example:
   • Tasks are just Evernote notes, which don’t have standard task properties like energy levels, time estimation or the ability to “tick” a box when done in a satisfying manner.
   • Reminders in Evernote are weak and it is hard to define and properly follow self-imposed due dates.
2. Two GTD notebook stacks are required to separate work and life tasks. Or at least that’s the best separation I could think of.

Todoist

A well designed and implemented general task-management app. Requires a lot of tinkering to fit to the GTD system and then it’s a proper solution. I love how responsive and intuitive the app is and that it has many third party integrations. In my opinion even after proper setup it’s second to NiravanaHQ, but for non-GTD-purists it might be a winner.

Implementation

The setup in one picture:

The main problem with implementing GTD on Todoist is that this software is oriented around due dates and there is no clear way to implement task status. This could be solved by either having a set of mutually exclusive labels (for task status) or simply nested labels (for projects, which would free up the Todoist projects pane for task status purposes). Unfortunately both features are missing, so I’m facing a dilemma:

• If I use the projects tab for task status, then I have to implement my actual projects as labels, which sucks because Todoist labels are not nested and generally not first class citizens.

• If I use labels for task status, they are not mutually exclusive which is one of the two requirements above.

How to solve this? Interestingly, I found a way around this limitation with the use of filters: give each task-status a label.

For each task-status create a filter which shows only tasks for which that status is the highest priority.Add the filters to favorites and then view the task statuses from there.

As an example, say I have the task “buy milk”. At first I add the label Soon to it. Then at some point the task becomes relevant and I add the label Next to it. The filter for Next is set up in such a way that it shows everything with label Next, so the task will be seen under it. But! The filter for Soon is set up so that tasks which belong also to Next do not appear under it, and so the task is effectively gone from this view.

To define the filter simply enter: Soon & !Next which translates to: “Show me tasks which belong to Soon and don’t belong to Next”.

Naturally I setup the other task-status the same way.

Pros

1. Full of integrations with other services
2. A very smooth experience both on web and mobile
3. Powerful reminders and repeating tasks

Cons

1. Not GTD-native and not trivial to set up proper GTD even when trying. And to be honest, even after proper set up I was still missing some critical GTD features like assigning a contact person to a task (it’s possible to implement contacts as labels, but since there are is no nesting with Todoist labels it becomes a mess).
2. I don’t really get the purpose of the karma system (scores your productivity).

NirvanaHQ [winner]

Nirvana Finds a great balance between true GTD implementation and a light, well designed modern service for web and mobile. It’s not perfect (I am sorely missing integrations with outside services such as calendar or IFTTT/Zapier and support for task images / attachments), but it really achieves the GTD vision simply and beautifully. My current choice.

Pros

1. GTD-native. Easy to manipulate and process the tasks.
2. Intuitive UX and a smooth experience across web and mobile.
3. Using Areas, very easy to separate work and life tasks.
4. Overall, strikes a great balance between GTD purity and great UX.

Cons

1. No integrations with other services such as calendar.
2. No support for attachments of any kind. This service is only text-based for now.
3. Repeating tasks do not support countdown from the time your finished the previous iteration of the task.
4. Task capturing on mobile is weak (requires opening the app and then a long press on “+”). This is solved by adding an IFTTT note widget which sends an email to my Nirvana inbox.

Note:I was recently made aware that there is an offline-desktop clone of NirvanaHQ, called Everdo. After testing it for a few minutes, it is a near-perfect clone, down to exact UI placements. Personally I don’t like such blatent copying, but for some of you this might be an alternative to consider.

FacileThings

The truest, most hard-core implementation of GTD I’ve seen. It is the only tool that has built in consideration of your purpose, vision, goals, areas of responsibility and it even formalized the weekly review process. Too bad the UX is not so well designed and requires a lot of clicks to get anything done, and perhaps a bit too restrictive in doing GTD “the right way”.

One thing I’ve noticed about FacileThings is that it’s a great platform for introducing people to the GTD method. Some of my friends who were not that interested in reading the book were happy to just watch a youtube summary of it and then try FacileThings, which provided a guided, handheld GTD experience. As their free trial ended, some of these friends decided to continue with GTD, but not all of them stayed with FacileThings.

Pros

1. A great, very true implementation of GTD. I’ve actually recommended this service to friends as an introduction to the method instead of the book - it’s more interactive and forces you to work right.
2. The only implementation I’ve seen that incorporates higher GTD concepts such as the weekly review, areas of responsibility, Vision, life goals, etc.

Cons

1. Clunky UX. It’s too hard to manipulate tasks and get all their parameters right.
2. Mobile experience is not good.
3. Not flexible. You can’t do shortcuts that are against the pure GTD way. For example:
   • you can’t add a task to the inbox and immediately process it. It goes into a processing queue which means that I only get to fill out the details when I’ve already left the current context.

Other GTD apps

Since posting, additional GTD apps have been recommended to me by various readers of this post. I’ll try to keep a list of them here:

• Nozbe
• Everdo
• GTDNext
• Skedpal
• (Update 2019-11-04) Amazing Marvin - this one looks amazing. Extremely configurable and serious power under the hood.

I’ve given each of these at least a cursory glance and while some of them are quite nice, my overall recommendations remain the same.

Further discussion

Feel free to join the discussion about this post in the official GTD forums and on Reddit.Alternatively, you can leave a comment below.

Are you always putting off tasks until the last minute? Do you lie awake at night fretting about your upcoming appointments? Do you feel overwhelmed by all your commitments? Then you’re a perfect candidate for the Getting Things Done self-management system.

1. The 5 steps of the GTD method
   1. Step 3: Organize
   2. Step 5: Engage
2. Strengths and weaknesses of GTD

What is the Getting Things Done method?

Getting Things Done (GTD) is a time management and productivity system that helps you complete tasks and meet commitments in a stress-free and efficient manner using a comprehensive system of lists and calendars.

The fundamental idea of the GTD method is to put down all your tasks in writing to ensure that you won’t forget anything. In the long run, you’ll be less stressed because you won’t have to remember everything. And since you won’t have to constantly recall important tasks, your mind will be less fixated on planned tasks at inconvenient times of the day. In other words, you’ll lose less sleep worrying about what you need to get done. Thanks to a written organizational system, you can rest assured that you’ll get everything done on time and won't forget anything. Your mind can truly relax when it’s time to rest and can focus better on the tasks at hand because nothing else will be running through the back of your mind.

In this method, you break down larger tasks into smaller subtasks and set specific deadlines for them.Doing a regular review ensures that you’ll keep track of all your tasks and projects, identify weaknesses in your system, and make improvements.

US productivity consultant David Allen developed the system and presented it in his book of the same title, ‘Getting Things Done’, in 2001. The Getting Things Done method has gained millions of followers worldwide since the book was published.

Getting Things Done, also known as GTD or the GTD method, is a self-management method developed by David Allen in which you record all your personal and professional tasks in to-do lists. Since you no longer have to expend any energy on remembering these tasks, your mind is free to concentrate on the task at hand. Your productivity should improve as a result.

The 5 steps of the GTD method

The GTD method consists of five steps that you do in a specific sequence. We’ll take a closer look at them below:

Step 1: Capture

Collect all your tasks, appointments and ideas in inboxes. These don’t have to be physical in-trays. An inbox can be any organizational system that lets you capture things in writing. That means you can use both digital and analog inboxes, such as your email inbox, Evernote or OneNote, physical trays or vertical filing systems. This first step can take several days when you first start using the Getting Things Done method. After that, you simply add new tasks, appointments and ideas to your inboxes as they arise. This rarely takes more than a few minutes.

Step 2: Clarify

You need to review and process everything you’ve collected in your inboxes. This means you have to decide where things belong in the Getting Things Done system. Ask yourself the following questions for each item:

• What kind of task is it?
• Is it actionable?
• What’s the next action?

When reviewing your inboxes, don’t put anything back in the inbox. Decide where each item belongs.

If no action is possible or necessary, choose one of three options:

• Trash it
• Put it on the ‘Maybe/Someday’ list
• Archive it for reference

Step 3: Organize

First, assign all actionable items to temporary trays or put them on lists and process them from there.

If you can complete a task in two minutes or less, do it right away and don’t add it to the Getting Things Done system.

Calendar

Only enter appointments in your calendar. Add tasks to be done to the ‘Next Actions’ list or record them as a project and break them down into smaller actions.

Projects

Any task that requires more than one action is a project in David Allen’s GTD method. A project can be anything from renovating your home to a professional marketing campaign for a product. Put all of your projects on a project list that you review regularly. You then define next actions for your project and enter specific deadlines for it in your calendar. Also, keep a reminder list for all the tasks that you’ve delegated to others. This allows you to keep track of the tasks others are doing for you.

Next Actions

Keep a separate list of all the next actions that are not project-specific. Depending on the scope of your tasks, you can also keep multiple context-specific lists 3ware driver download for windows. for personal tasks, work tasks, phone calls, errands, and so on.

Waiting For

Also keep a reminder list for all delegated tasks outside of projects. Set dates to follow up with others on how far they’ve progressed with a task.

Step 4: Reflect

You’ll gain clarity by organizing your tasks and appointments, but that alone won’t be enough to boost your productivity and ensure that you get everything done in the time allotted. To do that, you have to regularly review your lists.

You have to make sure that your system is up to date, otherwise you won’t be able to focus on the task in front of you without thinking about whether you might have missed an appointment.

Review your calendar several times a day and check your to-do lists at least once a day to select your next task. Empty your inboxes once a day.

In the GTD method, you do a weekly review once a week. This review consists of the following steps:

• Empty your head: At the end of the week, write down all the ideas going through your mind.
  
• Inboxes: Put new tasks, ideas and dates where they belong in the GTD system.
  
• To-do list: Is the list up to date? Have you crossed off all completed to-dos? What are your upcoming actions for the next few days?
  
• Project lists: Is the list up to date? Have you completed at least one next action in the past week to move your project(s) forward?
  
• ‘Maybe/Someday’ lists Do you want to transfer some of the items on this list to the project list and process them now?
  
• Calendar: Is your calendar up to date? Did you actually keep all your appointments? What are your upcoming appointments? Did you enter all your appointments?
  
• ‘Waiting For’ list: What’s the current status of delegated actions? Follow up with coworkers if necessary.

Step 5: Engage

In the GTD method, you use four criteria to decide what to do next: Context, time available, energy available and priority.

Context

You’ve created at least one to-do list in your Getting Things Done system. Since you usually have many different contexts in your life (work, family, hobbies), you should create different lists called context lists. That way you won’t have to work your way through a huge to-do list in order to decide on your next action. You can simply look at your short context lists.

Whenever you have free time that you want to use productively, ask yourself this first: What context am I in? What can I do right now? If you’re sitting in the waiting room at the doctor’s office and want to use your time wisely, you probably shouldn’t make confidential work phone calls. But you can definitely respond to a few short emails or send a message to friends.

Time Available

How much time do you have right now? If you’re in the car and you’re 15 minutes away from your destination, you shouldn’t start a phone call that you know will take an hour of your time. A better choice might be to stop at the supermarket to cross some things off your shopping list.

Energy Available

Your energy level fluctuates throughout the day. We all have slightly different biorhythms. Watch your energy level change throughout the day for a week to find out when you have energy highs and lows. In future, schedule tasks that require your full concentration and performance at times that suit your biorhythm, when you’re feeling energetic and up to the task. You might want to prepare an important presentation in the morning rather than during the middle of the day. Or, if you’re generally more productive in the afternoon and evening, reschedule your tasks for those times.

Priority

If you’ve narrowed down possible actions based on the three criteria and have different options, let the priority decide for you: Which task is most important? Start with this task.

Let’s say you’re in the office and you have an hour of unscheduled time before your performance review. You could cross a few phone calls off your list, write a report, or continue working on an idea for a workshop. Since the workshop will be held in three days and you haven’t prepared yet, you choose this task. It has priority. The report, on the other hand, is a routine report, and the phone calls can wait a few days.

Strengths and weaknesses of GTD

The GTD method is polarizing. It has many enthusiastic followers, but also many critics.

Strengths

Reliability: The system ensures that you get all your tasks done (on time). If you frequently miss appointments, the GTD method can be a big help.

Comprehensive organization: Getting Things Done gives you a single organizational system for all your projects, both personal and work-related. That way you’re less likely to lose focus.

It helps you get things done on time: GTD keeps you from getting overwhelmed because it’s broken down into steps like organize, reflect and engage. The method breaks down large projects into smaller subtasks, making it easier to get started on a project.

Clear structure: The method’s many lists and guiding questions ensure that you use your free time efficiently and prevents you from randomly jumping back and forth between tasks, hampering your productivity.

Freedom: As detailed as the GTD method is, it gives you a lot of freedom in your day. It doesn’t dictate a specific daily or weekly schedule. It’s up to you to decide which task to do next. That can be motivating, but some people also view it as a weakness.

Weaknesses

No help with prioritizing: Priorities have a subordinate role in Getting Things Done. The system primarily ensures that you don’t forget anything and that you use your free time efficiently. But if you want to make sure that you’re prioritizing tasks correctly, you have to augment GTD with other methods like the Eisenhower Matrix.

No weekly or daily structure: Getting Things Done doesn’t help you optimize weekly or daily planning. The GTD methodology won’t be of much help if you generally have difficulty setting goals, defining next steps and effectively structuring your day. Systems like the ALPEN Method are better for daily planning.

Gtd Evernote Pdf

Complex system: You can’t learn Getting Things Done in five minutes and practice it in one afternoon. If you want to use the system effectively, you have to understand it in detail and practice it consistently. All or nothing. For example, the method won’t be as effective if you omit the weekly reviews or don’t learn how to split your to-do lists into context lists.

Too many new habits to learn: When you start using the GTD method, you’re confronted with having to change many habits in a short time. You have to regularly empty your inboxes, make time to review your Project Lists and Waiting For lists and get into the habit of keeping context lists.

Gtd Notebook System

This is the main criticism of Getting Things Done: So many readjustments can be overwhelming. If you struggle to establish new habits, you may want to find another organizational technique that better suits your personality.

Summary: Getting Things Done works, but it’s not for everyone

Getting Things Done is an effective self-management method. Countless supporters have testified to its success. But GTD isn’t a simple methodology.

Getting Things Done is great if you prefer a highly analytical and structured approach and already have some clarity about your goals and priorities. If you’ve been entrusted with a variety of different tasks, the system can be a practical tool for ensuring even better clarity.

However, the GTD method is usually excessive if you’re only involved in a relatively small number of projects and don’t have too many different personal and professional responsibilities. If that’s the case, it’s usually sufficient to keep a well-maintained calendar, have one to-do list for work tasks and another for personal to-dos, and set aside time each week to clean up your email inbox.

David Allen has published a follow-up to his bestseller ‘Getting Things Done.’ In ‘Making it all Work’, he puts GTD principles into a broader context and explains why control and perspective are the two most important self-management principles. If you want give Getting Things Done a try, this book provides helpful explanations and additional tips for practicing it in your day-to-day life.

Gtd And Evernote

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