(A tray you can put all new papers, documents and envelopes into as they arrive.) You can use one or a combination of tools for this like: This system will allow you to keep track of your responsibilities, while not being constantly distracted or worried about forgetting something important. You need a reliable system in place to catch everything you think you need to do something about. The first step of GTD is to capture all those unfinished tasks or items that pop into your mind. There is no reason to ever have the same thought twice, unless you like having that thought. Capture all important thoughts and items in a reliable place They no longer stress or worry about what they might be forgetting to do.Ģ. Instead, they feel free to focus totally on whatever is in front of them, whether that’s a work project or playing with their kids. The solution to overwhelm is capturing and organizing all our ideas, projects, plans and concerns OUTSIDE of our heads, in what could be called an “external brain.” To put it simply, it’s about writing down everything that you are working on, so you don’t have to keep track of a hundred different things in your mind.ĭavid Allens says when he coaches people to do this, they don’t feel constrained by having more organization. Roy Baumeister has done interesting research backing this up, showing that incomplete tasks limit our available focus. When we are trying to constantly keep track of everything we have to do inside our heads, that will interrupt and distract our focus.

If you don’t pay appropriate attention to what has your attention, it will take more of your attention than it deserves.ĭavid Allen says the cause of our modern overwhelm is simple: Our brains were never designed to hold a lot of information at one time.įor example, if you’re in the middle of writing your PhD paper, but your train of thought is constantly being broken when you suddenly remember that you have to file your taxes… or water your plants… or buy your friend a gift… or walk your cat… then you can’t be very productive! Relieve stress by creating an “external brain”

Getting things done book