Set up Getting Things Done (GTD) in Outlook and To-Do

Setting up Microsoft To-Do for GTD ... Now, do yourself a favor and try to be clear and concise when describing a task. Force yourself to start ... byJeffreyKusters13.August2020Tips&Tricks13MypersonalGTDactionsandto-domanagementsystemLikeformostpeople,mypersonalandprofessionallifehasbecomeincreasinglybusy.I’vegotabusyfamilylifewithalovelywifeandtwobeautifuldaughters.MyFieldCTOroleatITQiskeepingmeprettybusy,mostlyduringofficehours.IpickedupteachingasafreelanceITdocentattheNoviHogeschoolinUtrecht.Iwanttogetbackinshape,soIpickedupplayingbasketball,runningandgoingthegym,andIalsohavesomedormantambitionsintermsofstudyandeducation.Inotherwords,abusybutveryenjoyablelife:-).IhaverecentlysetupGettingThingsDone(GTD)inOutlookandTo-DowithBraintossasmycapturetooltohelpmanagemyactionsandto-dos.I’vebeenoutonsummerholidayandthatgavemesometimetoreflectandthinkofwaystobetterorganizemy“stuff”.Idecidedtostartwritingthisnon-technicalblogposttogetsomethoughtsinwriting.Iputitawayandpickeditbackupanumberoftimessotheremightbesomeinconsistencyhereandthere.It’salsoprettylongforasingleblogpost,butIdecidedtokeepitthiswayforreadabilitypurposes…Myfullschedulerequiresaroutineandwayofworkingtostayontopofthings.Aboveall,Ineedasystemtokeeptrackofallmyactionsandto-dos.Mybraincannolongerkeeptrackofeverything,soIneedanexternalsystemIcanrelyon.I’vebeenintriguedbytimemanagementandself-managementsystemsandmethods,andItriedvariousovertime.UsingeverythingI’vereadandlearnedalongtheway,IcreatedaneasytouseandfairlysimplesystemformyselfinwhichIbasicallycherrypickedbitsandpieces.MaybethisblogposthelpsorinspiresothersandImightevenfindwaystoimprovemyownsystembytryingtoexplainitinthisblogpost.GettingThingsDone(GTD)asthefoundationIreallylikethefundamentalconceptsofDavidAllen’sGettingThingsDone(GTD).Ihighlyrecommendhisbookandthereisatonofinformationavailableontheinternet.ThereisahugeGTDcommunityoutthere.Thereareexcellentguidesouttherebuteveryoneneedstofindapersonalwayofworkingandsystem.IdecidedtosetupGettingThingsDone(GTD)inOutlookandTo-Doaftersomeexperimentation.PersonalvsWork?Withawork/lifebalanceunderpressureandour‘alwaysconnected’industry,Idecidednottodifferentiatebetweenworklifeandpersonallifeinmysystem.It’snotlikeIcanswitchbetweenapersonalandworkbrain.Importantworkstuffpopupinmyheadinpersonaltimeandviceversa.Ofcourse,IcanplanwhenandwhereIwanttotakeonpersonalactionsandworkactions,butmysystemissetupasasinglesystemwithallmyactionsandto-do’sinoneplace/system.CapturingEVERYTHINGinaSingleInboxIliketheconceptofhavingasingle“Inbox”(orin-trayinGTDspeak)forallthestuffthatgetsthrownatmethroughouttheday(orIthrowatmyself).Thiscanbework-related,personal,thingsthatpopupinmyhead(oftenatthemostimpracticaltimes),emails,phonecalls,messagesonSlack/Teams,stuffIread,socialmedia,etc.etc.Iwantaneasywaytocaptureitall.AfterexperimentingwithvarioustoolsandappsIhavenowsetupGettingThingsDone(GTD)inOutlookandTo-Do,withmyOutlookInboxasmy“Inbox”.Mostwork-relatedstuffandalotofpersonalstuffiscominginviae-mailanywayandtherearesimplewaystocapturerandomstuffusingemail.TheunifiedInboxinOutlooknicelyconsolidateseveryaccount’sinboxtoasingleinbox.I’musingtheappBraintosstoquicklycapturestuffthatpopsupinmyheadusingaquicknoteoranaudioclip(reallyhandywhendriving!).IalsocapturestuffonlineusingBraintoss,andIcanquicklysnappicturesofphysicalitems.WhenIscanmyTwittertimeline,forexample,IoftencomeacrosssomethinginterestingandIdon’thavethetimeorenergytodigestitatthatmoment.So,IquicklycaptureitinBraintoss.BraintossautomaticallysendseverythingtomyemailInbox.Ourbrainworksincuriouswaysandrandomstuffthatneedstobedoneatsomespecifictimeorlocationpopsupinthemostinconvenienttimesandplaces.Braintossallowsmetocapturethechaos.BraintossApponiOSDealingwiththeInboxwithGTDWithaneasysysteminplacetocaptureeverythinginmyInbox,wenowneedtosetuparoutinetofrequentlygothroughalltheitemsintheinbox.AtsettimesorwheneverIfeellikeit,IopenmyInboxandgothroughallthestuffinthere.Ithendecidewhattodowithit.TheGTDsystemprovidesagreatworkflowfordoingthis:GTDWorkflowItlookslabourintensivebutit’sreallysimple:doestheitemrequiremetodoanything?Inotherwords,isitactionable?Iftheanswerisno,IbasicallydecideifIwanttotrashitorfile(reference)it.Let’ssayIboughtsometicketsforthemovies.Idon’tneedthemrightawayandthereisn’treallysomethingIneedtodowiththemexceptfilingthemsomewhereIcaneasilyfindthemwhenI’mgoingtothemovies.IuseEvernoteasmydigitalpersonalarchive.Istoreallmyimportantpersonalstuffthere.TheindexingisgreatandyoucanevensearchtextinPDFs.TheScannableappallowsmetoeasilyscansnailmailusingmyiPhoneandthemacOSintegrationallowsmetoeasilyarchivedigitalstuffintoEvernote.Allmywork-relatedimportantstuffissecurelystoredonITQ’sOffice365.IftheitemISactionable,GTDtellsyoutodoitimmediatelyifittakeslessthan2minutes.Thetimeittakestoplanitisprobablylonger.AlthoughIlikethecompletenessoftheGTDworkflow,Itypicallydon’tbotherexplicitlywiththeothersteps.Ifit’sactionable,IcreateaTaskthatgoesintoMicrosoftTo-Do.ThismeansIcaptureallmystuffinOutlookbutallmyactionableitemsgointoTo-Do,whichismuchbetterequippedtohandletasksthanOutlookis.Thiswayofworkingalsoensuresmye-mailinboxisalmostalwaysemptyornearempty,whichisareallybigplusandstressreliefnowIsetupGettingThingsDone(GTD)inOutlookandTo-Do.SettingupMicrosoftTo-DoforGTDWenowhaveasystemthatallowsmetoquicklycaptureeverythinginmyInbox,IcanarchiveimportantpersonalstuffinEvernoteandimportantworkstuffinOffice365atITQ.Wecaneasilycreateactionabletasksbyright-clickinganemailmessageinOutlookandselectingCreate–>Task:CreatetasksfromemailmessagesinOutlookNow,doyourselfafavorandtrytobeclearandconcisewhendescribingatask.Forceyourselftostartthetaskwithaverb.Thathelps.Don’tcreateataskcalled“ImportantJohn”becauseyouarelikelytoforgetwhatwasimportantregardingJohnifyoulookatitaweeklater.Instead,say“CallJohnaboutprojectXYZtodiscussdeadline”.Takesyou10secondslongerbutnothingismorefrustratingthanknowingsomethingimportantisinyournextactionslist,butyoucan’trememberwhatneedstobedone.IsetupGettingThingsDone(GTD)inOutlookandTo-Doasakindof“GTDlite”system.Ididn’tcreateallthefoldersthatGTDuses.Icreatedthefollowingfoldersandlists:MicrosoftTo-DofoldersandlistsWaitingforIfI’mwaitingforsomeonebeforeIcancompletemytask,Imovemyactionintothislist.IfIleftJohnavoicemailmessageforexampletocallmeback,Iwanttomakesuretokeeptrackofit.HereIusehashtagsinTo-DotokeeptrackofwhoI’mwaitingfor.Hashtagsallowyoutoeasilysearchthroughallyouractions:WaitingForlistProjectsThetermprojectisabitambiguousinGTD.Itdoesn’tmeanitneedstobeaformalproject.Itsimplymeanssomethingneeds2actionsormore.Youdon’twanttohavebigfuzzyprojectsinyoursystemasasingletasklike“Finishnewwebsite”.Youneedtobreakthisdownintosmalleractionableitemsanddecidewhatthenextphysicalactionshouldbetomovethis“project”ahead.So,workprojectsgoontotheworkprojectslistandpersonalprojectsonthepersonalprojectlist.Next-ActionListsMysetupreliesheavilyonlistsinTo-Do.Thenext-actionsfolderisprobablythemostimportantandholdsmymostfrequentlyusedlists.[ItriedOmniFocusforawhileandIlikedtheuseofcontexts/tagsandhowitsisfullybuiltaroundGTD,butthereisn’taproperintegrationwithOutlooksoIdecidedtodropit.]Certainactionscanonlybecompletedataspecifictimeorlocation.IfIneedtorecordaLightboardvideoforITQforexample,IneedtophysicallybeattheITQoffice.Mostpersonalstuffcan,andofcourseshould,onlybedoneathome.Inpractice,alotofmytasksareonline/digitalandcanbedonefromeveryplaceandeverytime.So,mostofmyactionsgointotheAnywherelist.Remember,justbecauseI’mfilinganactioninacertainlistdoesn’tsayanythingaboutwhenI’mgoingtoworkonit.It’sjustsayingIamnotconstrainedtoacertainlocation,timeorthing.TheCallslistcontainsallthepeopleIneedtocall,obviously.Thisisahandylistbeforejumpinginthecar!Remembertobeexplicitaboutwhoyoushouldcallaboutwhattopic.Youcangetreallycreativewiththesenext-actionlists.I’veseenpeopleorganizetheirtasksbasedontherequiredlevelofeffort(low,mediumandhigh)and/orenergylevel.Ifyouhave20minutestosparebetweenmeetingsyouprobablydon’twanttotakeonsomethingcomplexandchallenging.Youcansimplypicksomethingfromthe“lowenergy”list.MeetingsAfairdealofmytimeisconsumedbyrecurringmeetings.InmyroleasFieldCTOIneedtoalignwithnumerouspeopleatITQonaregularbase.Ialsohaveanumberofdifferentteammeetings.IcreatedlistsforallofthemsoIcaneasilycaptureagendaitemsortopicstodiscuss.Let’ssayIhaveamonthlymeetingwithJohn.Duringtheweeksinbetweenmeetings,severaltopicscancomeupwhichIneedtodiscusswithJohnduringour1:1.Theyallgoonthelist“John”.Thesamegoesforteammeetings.IfIwanttoaddresssomethingintheupcomingsalesmeeting,Icaptureitonthelist“Sales”.ChecklistsI’mgettingabitlazybyusingthissystem,soIcreatedanumberofchecklistsforrecurringthings.IhaveatravelchecklistwhichcaptureseverythingIneedtopackandpreparewhengoingonbusinesstravel(nomoreforgettingmyUS/UKtraveladapterormypassport).Yes,itevenremindsmetopackunderwearandsocks.Anotheroneisforfilingmytaxesforexample.EveryyearIwasgoingthroughallthedocumentsIneedtosendmyaccountantandalwayswonderingifIwasn’tforgettinganythingimportant.Reallyhandytocreateachecklist!Someday/MaybeThisoneisalsostraightoutofGTD.TherecanbestuffIwouldliketodobuttherereallyisn’tacommitment,deadline,oranythingrelated.Thatgoesonthislist.OnceeverywhileIgothroughitanddeleteabunchofstufformoveittomynext-actionlistsorprojects.Summaryoftools:BraintosstocapturestuffOutlookasmyInboxMicrosoftTo-Dotohandletasks/actionsEvernoteasmypersonaldigitalarchiveScannabletoscanphysicaldocumentsintoEvernoteOffice365asmyworkdigitalarchiveAreasofimprovementPrioritizingAsyoumighthavenoticed,thisblogpostdescribeshowIcaptureallmytasksandhandlethem.Idon’tshareanythingaboutprioritizing.ThisissomethingIneedtogetabettergripon.BasedonsomeexcellentfeedbackandcoachingfrommymanagerandITQCEO,RobertHellings,Iamgoingtoidentifyweeklyandmonthlygoalsformyself.Byarticulatingwhat’simportanttoMEandmyownresponsibilities,Icanbetterprioritize.ThiswillpreventasystemoverloadinwhichI’mconstantlychasingotherpeople’spriorities.Thisdefinitelyneedssomsattention!WeeklyroutineAsImentionedinmyintro,myweeksareprettyfull.Ihavedifferentresponsibilitiesatworkandinmypersonallife.Istartedtocreateaweeklyroutine/scheduleinwhichIwanttotakeonandplandifferenttypesof“tasks”.Thismeansplanningtimeforrunning,goingtothegym,andplayingbasketballoutsideofofficehours,butalsowhenI’mdoingdifferenttypesoftasksatITQ.ItwillnotalwaysbepossibletosticktomyroutinebutatleastIhavesomesolidguidelines.ExternaltaskmanagementsystemsOnethingIneedtoworkon,ishowI’mgoingtodealwithexternaltaskmanagementsystems.AtITQweoftenworkwithMSPlannerforexample.TasksassignedtomedropintoTo-Do,butIcan’tpullthemintomysystemofnext-actionlists.Ialsoworkforcustomersandtheyoftenalsohaveasystemsetup,likeJiraorTrelloforexample.Idefinitelydon’twanttoduplicateeverythingandkeeptrackofstuffinmultipleplacesbutIalsodon’twanttohavetodealwithmultiplesystems.Ineedtothinkthisoverabit…ConclusionThat’sisfornow.ThisishowIsetupGettingThingsDone(GTD)inOutlookandTo-DousingBraintossasmymaincapturetool.I’mreallyexcitedtostartworkingonmyroutineandimprovingmysystem.Whenthingsgethecticit’stemptingtocutsomecornersbutI’mreallygoingtotrytostickwithmysystem.Inthelongrong,I’mconvinceditwillsavemealotoftimeandstress.Ifyouhaveasimilarsystemsetuporhavethoughtsaboutimprovingmine,pleasereachouttomeonTwitter.Sharethis:FacebookLinkedInTwitterRedditPocketLikethis:LikeLoading...13thoughtson“SetupGettingThingsDone(GTD)inOutlookandTo-Do”1jlister6onAugust25,2020ReplyReallyusefulthankyou,ihavebeenusingonenotetocaptureeverythingandapagefortodolists,ihavestartedusinggtdandthings3athomebutworklaptopiscompletelylockeddownforsecuritysowillgiveoutlooktodoatrythanksforsharingyoursetup2AlessandroVicinellionOctober6,2020ReplyIusedyoursameworflowforabout6monthsbutIhadsomeproblemswithfiltersandtags.Unfortunatelywecan’tusebooleanoperatorawhenyoudragtasksbeetweenlist(ifyoudonotremovetags)theywillstillpopupwhenusigtagsforsearcing3FernandoDiazonDecember21,2020ReplyVeryinteresting!Couldyoudetailyourworkflowwithyourdigitaltools?Thankyou!4MarcelWientjenonFebruary8,2021ReplyYoucansendyourBraintossmessagestoyourMicrosoftToDoapp,allautomated.Formoredetailshow,pleasecheckBraintosswebsitehttps://braintoss.freshdesk.com/support/solutions/articles/17000113825-using-braintoss-with-microsoft-to-do5jkustersonFebruary18,2021ReplyThanksforthetip.I’mgoingtocheckthatoutbutkeepingmymailasmyprimary“inbox”iskindofthepinnacleofmysystem.IoftenuseBraintosstodoaveryquickanddirtydumpofwhateverpopsopinmyhead.InmyworkflowIworkthroughmyInboxandthendecideifit’sanactionableitemthatneedstogotoToDo.6tomstiffonMarch27,2021ReplyIamcompromisedbymyADHDandmultipletasks.IworkasanAccountingManagerforacompanyandhaverolesin3otherfoundation/church/nonprofitorgs.Fromyourillustration–whichareMicrosoftOulookfoldersandwhicharetodolists?Thankyou.7JeffreyKustersonMarch29,2021ReplyHiTom,Idon’tuseMicrosoftOutlookfoldersatall.IusetheunifiedinboxfeatureofOutlooktotakecareofallmyincomingmail(personalandbusiness).IthenusetheCreateTaskfeatureonactionableitemstocreatetasksinToDo.8SteinnonApril23,2021ReplyGreatreadJefferey–IwaslookingforawaytogetGTDtoworkwithOutlook/To-Doandthisreallyhelped.Atip,youcancreatecustomQuickStep’sinOutlookthatcreateoneclickto1)createatask,2)markasread,3)movetofolder.HowdoyouhandletheDefertoCalendar?Doyoucreateanappointmentstraightawayblockingtime,ordoyoucreateataskanddecideontheslotwhenclosertothedate?9TristanonJune14,2021ReplyHiJeffrey,whatdoyouhaveunderyourProjectsgroupinMSToDo?NextActionspertinenttothatprojectoralistofactionsthatneedcompletingatsomepointbutaren’tthe‘nextaction’orcan’tbescheduled/prioritiseduntilyou’vehadaresponsetoa‘WaitingFor’action?10ToddLohenryonJuly16,2021ReplyExcellentarticle!Thankyouforwritingthisup…11goldtitanonJuly16,2021ReplyHowdoyoutieanextactiontoaproject?Iusedtouse#ProjectName,butIdon’tlikegoingbacktofindthenameoftheprojectIdecidedonearlier.Iknowitisweird.12KlaasonJuly27,2021ReplyHiJeffrey,Irecognizetheproblemwithmultipleexternaltaskmanagementtools.Didyouhadanynewthoughtsaboutit?MyofficeworkswithJiraandoftenourclientsworkwithothertaskmanagementsoftware.Togetourinternalplanningstraightweneedtogetourtasksinoneplace,Jira.Soweneedtoduplicatethetasks.LuckilyalotofthesetoolscaneasilyexportthetaskstoJira.Sothereisnotalotofmanualduplicationgoingon.13StephenReynoldsonOctober22,2021ReplyReallyusefularticle,andtheepiphanymomentformeisthatratherthanusetheGTDfoldersinOutlook,iemovethemessagesintoactionlists,youconvertrelevantmessagesintotaskortodo,thatwaythelargedatabaseofsearchablemessagesofoneinboxisretained.LeaveaReplyCancelreplyPostnavigationPreviousPreviouspost:NAKIVOBackup&Replicationv9.4GAwithAmazonS3supportandInstantP2V[Sponsored]NextNextpost:EnablingdataprotectioninTanzuMissionControlusingVeleroSidebarSearchfor:BlogsponsorsArchivesDecember2021October2021September2021July2021June2021May2021February2021January2021October2020September2020August2020June2020May2020April2020March2020January2020September2019August2019July2019June2019May2019April2019March2019February2019December2018November2018October2018August2018July2018June2018May2018April2018March2018February2018January2018December2017November2017October2017September2017August2017July2017June2017May2017March2017December2016November2016October2016September2016August2016TagsAWSAW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