How to Use Evernote for GTD® - Zapier

Evernote is among the best apps for productivity and much of its success comes from its flexibility. Evernote lets you create and save ... WhyZapier?HowZapierworksProducttourCustomerstoriesSecurityExplorePopularwaystouseZapierAppsthatworkwithZapierExploreZapierbyjobroleResourcesBlogReadtheZapierblogfortipsonproductivity,automation,andgrowingyourbusinessExpertsHireaZapierExperttohelpyouimproveprocessesandautomateworkflows.HelpcenterGethelpwithZapierfromourtutorials,FAQs,andtroubleshootingarticles.CommunityAskquestions,shareyourknowledge,andgetinspiredbyotherZapierusers.ZapierUniversityVideocoursesdesignedtohelpyoubecomeabetterZapieruser.WebinarsLearnaboutautomationanytime,anywherewithouron-demandwebinarlibrary.Teams&CompaniesZapierforTeamsShareandcollaborateonworkwithyourteaminZapier.ZapierforCompaniesManagemultipleteamswithadvancedadministrativecontrolsinZapier.PricingSearchapps…LoginSignupLoadingHomeProductivityApptipsApptips8minreadHowtoUseEvernoteforGTD®ByJillDuffy·May22,2018Evernoteisamongthebestappsforproductivityandmuchofitssuccesscomesfromitsflexibility.Evernoteletsyoucreateandsavewhatevertypeofnotesyouwant,fromaudiomemostodoodlestophotos,withawealthoftoolstostore,sort,andorganizethem.It'ssoflexiblethatyoucanevenuseitforGTD.GTD®standsforGettingThingsDone®,boththenameofaproductivitymethodologyandthetitleofthebookthatdescribesit,writtenbyDavidAllen.Thebookwasfirstpublishedin2001,andtheoriginalimplementationofGTDusespencil,paper,folders,andafilingcabinet.Sincethen,awholemarketplaceofappsforGTDhasevolved.SomeoftheappsarestraightforwardinmatchingthelanguageandmethodologyofGTD,whileothers,suchasEvernote,areinsteadversatilesolutionsthatletyoucustomizeyourproductivityapproach.BecausethereisnoonerightwaytouseEvernoteforGTD,hereyou'llfindalistoffeaturesinEvernotewithexplanationsforhowyoucanusethemwiththeGTDmethodology.GettingThingsDone®andGTD®areregisteredtrademarksoftheDavidAllenCompany.WhatIsGTD?TheGTDmethodcanhelpyouanswerquestionssuchas"WhatshouldIworkonnext?","WhatcanIdotomakesureIneverforgetanythingimportant?",and"Arethereanytrickstohelpmenotprocrastinate?"Ifyouwantexplicitrulesregardingwhatyoushouldandshouldnotdotobeproductive,thenGTDisrightupyouralley.Itsclarityisundeniablypartoftheappeal.Essentially,GTDisafive-stepprocessinwhichyou:CaptureallthetasksyouneedtodobywritingthemdownDecideforeachtaskwhetherit'sactionable,important,somethingyoucandelegate,orsomethingyoucandiscardOrganizethesetasksintolistsWorkonthosetasksbypriority(called"nextactions"inGTD)ReviewyourprogressonactingonthesetasksFormoreonwhatitentails,seeouroverviewoftheGTDmethod.Thatsaid,manypeoplemodifyGTDtousethepartsthatworkforthem.Othersborrowcoreconceptsandimplementthemdifferently.HowyouchoosetoGTDisuptoyou.Ifyouareoneoftheseadaptivetypes,Evernoteisagreattooltouseinconjunctionbecauseofitsflexibility.HowtoGTDWithEvernoteWhetheryoufollowGTDtoateeormerelyborrowthepartsthatworkforyou,Evernote'sfeaturescansupportyourproductivityapproach.FromindividualnotestoEvernoteNotebooks,Stacks,Tags,SavedSearches,andafewotherfeatures,you'llbeabletocustomizeEvernotetoseethemostimportantinformationattherighttime.Notes:SaveEverythingYouWanttoRememberAcentraltenetofGTDisthatyoushouldneverfeeltheneedtostoresomethinginyourheadwhenyoucanwriteitdown.Whyuseupbrainspaceforthoughtsyoucanreferencelater?OneofEvernote'staglinesis"yoursecondbrain,"soyoucanseehowthatethosfitswithGTD.Evernoteisdesignedtobetheplacewhereyouputstuffyoudon'twanttohavetoremember.NotesaretheheartofEvernote.IntheGTDfashion,youcanusenotesto:writedowntasksstoreandaccessinformationyouneedonspecificdates,suchastravelconfirmationnumbersmakeacopyofmaterialsyouwanttoread,suchasmagazinearticlessaveanyotherreferencematerialyoumayneedlaterChecklists.Fortasks,youcanmanagetheminavarietyofways,whicharenotmutuallyexclusive.Feelfreetomixandmatchthem.Forexample,oneoptionistocreateachecklistoftaskswithinanote.PerhapsyoucallthisnoteToDoToday,andyouupdateitdaily.Thismethodworkswellforquickandsimpletasks,suchasthosethattakenomorethantwominutestocomplete.NoteasTask.Anotherwaytomanagetasksistouseonenotepertask.Thisoptionworkswellfortasksthathavemoreinformationassociatedwiththem,suchasmakingadoctor'sappointment,whenyouneedthemedicalofficephonenumber,perhapssomeinformationaboutwhenprescriptionswillrunout,andsoforth.Notesastasksarealsousefulwhenyouwanttoaddaremindertoatask.RemindersinEvernotesupportbothdateandtimefields,andtheappsendsanotificationattheappropriatetime.NoteasParentTask.Onemoreoptionformanagingtasksistocreateanoteforaparenttaskorprojectandaddachecklistforsubtasks.Let'ssayyouneedtoenrollyourchildinanewschool.Thesubtaskstothisprojectmightbetofilloutforms,provideproofofresidency,andsupplycopiesofyourchild'smedicalrecordstotheschool.NoteasReadingMaterialorReference.Seeingasnotescancontainpracticallyanythingyouwant,youcanusethemtosaveonlinearticlesandothermaterialthatyouwanttoreadlater.YouhaveafewoptionsforgettingreadingandreferencematerialintoEvernote.Forstarters,ifthecontentisonawebpage,asisthecasewithonlinenewsandmagazinearticles,youcanclipitusingEvernote'swebclipper.Second,ifthecontentisinanemail,youcanforwardthemessageintoEvernote;freeEvernotemembersdon'tgetthisoption,althoughyoucangetarounditbyusingZapiertoconnectEvernoteandemail.Youcanalsotakeaphotoormakeascanofphysicalreadingmaterialusingyourphone'scameraandsaveittoEvernote.Oryoucanuploadattachmentstonotes.Notebooks:InboxandTicklerFilesNotebooksarewhereyougroupsimilarnotes.They'reessentiallyfolders.InGTDfashion,youshouldstartwithonecalledInboxtodumpallyourideasandnotestogetherinoneplacebeforeprocessingthem(decidingwhattodowiththemandthenfilingthemintoappropriatefolders).SettheInboxnotebooktobeyourdefaultwhenyoucreatenewnotes.WhenyousetanEvernotenotebooktobethedefault,newnotesyoucreatewillgointothatnotebookautomatically,unlessyouspecificallychooseadifferentnotebookforthem.WhenyouusetheEvernotemobileappinparticular,havingtheInboxasyourdefaultmeansyoucancreatenotesveryquicklynomatterwhereyouareandnotworrythatthey'lldisappearintowhatevernotebookyoumostrecentlyused.Instead,bystashingnewnotesintotheInbox,you'llbesuretoseethemthenexttimeyouprocessyourInbox.Here'sasuggestionofNotebookstocreateforGTD:Inbox,adefaultplacetoputnotesuntilyoucansortthemorotherwiseprocessthemNextActions,fornotesthatyouwillactonintheimmediatefutureSomeday/Maybe,forideasandtasksthataren'tvitalbutyou'dliketogettoifyouhavethechanceReading,aplacewritedownwhatyouwanttoreadReference,whereyouputinformationyouneedfromtimetotimebutwhichdoesn'tnecessarilyrequireactionBrainstorming,forcreatingandkeepingroughideasastheycometogetherTicklerFiles,whereyouputinformationthat'sspecifictoeachdayormonth(morebelow)Goodtoknow:Productivityenthusiastsarelikelyfamiliarwiththetrickofaddinganasteriskorunderscoretotheirmostimportantfoldernametoforceittoappearatthetopofalistwhensortedalphabetically,asin_Inbox.WithEvernote,however,youdon'thaveto.Instead,youcanuseShortcutstoorderyourfavoritenotebooksanywayyouwant.Oldhabitsdiehard,though,soifyou'recommittedtousingaspecialcharacter,don'tletanyonestopyou.GTD'sTicklerFilesystem,alsosometimescalled43folders,easilymapontoEvernote'snotebooks.Youcreate43foldersthatrepresenteachmonthoftheyear(12)andeachdayofthemonth(31).Onthefirstofanymonth,all31dayfoldersshouldbeinsidetheappropriatemonthfolder.Youfileintoeachdayfolderwhateveryouneedonthatday.Thatway,youhaveeverythingyouneedonthatdayandnothingelsetodistractyou.Youcanreducethenumberoffoldersyoucreateandstickto12monthfolders,whichwillcutdownontheamountoffoldercreationandfilingyoudo.Instead,writethedatethefilesareneededonthenoteitself.Youcanthensearchforadateintheapplicablemonthfoldertonarrowdownthecontentstoonlywhatyouneed.Besureyournotesalluseaconsistentdateformat,andbesuretocorrectanyonitemsyou'veforwardedintoEvernoteviaemail,copiedandpasted,orclippedfromtheweb.StacksofNotebooks:GroupSimilarNotebooksANotebookStackisagroupofnotebooks.YoucanuseStackstocreateconsolidatedarchivesofoldticklerfiles.Youcanalsousethemtogrouprelatednotebooks,suchasaProjectsStackforallnotebookscontainingproject-stylework.StackscandowondersforhowyouorganizeEvernote,althoughIdon'tnecessarilyadvocateusingthemtoomuch.Forexample,somepeopleliketocreateanInboxStackcomprisingnotebooksforTasks,Reading,Reference,andsoon,althoughIdon'tlikethisimplementationbecauseastandaloneInboxseemstoworkbetterinEvernote.WhenInboxcomprisesjustonefolder,youcanuseitasacatchallfornotesyoucreateonthego.WhentheInboxisaStack,youenduphavingtosortmoreoften,whichcreatesneedlesswork.Similarly,youmaybetemptedtocreateStacksforGTDcontexts,suchashavingastackforHomeandoneforWork,butbeforeyoudo,readthesectionbelowonSavedSearches.Theyofferanothersolution,andwhileitmaynotbetheoneyouendupusing,youcertainlywanttoexploreyouroptions.Shortcuts:KeepFrequentlyUsedNotebooksinReachYoumightuseEvernotesolelyforGTD,oryoumightendupusingEvernoteforotherpurposes,too,suchaskeepingadailydiary,savingrecipes,writinganovel,draftingpresentationsforwork.Ifyouraccountstartstofeelcluttered,makeuseofEvernote'sShortcutsforyourGTDfolders.ShortcutsstickatthetopofyourleftrailinEvernotesothatyouseethemfirst.TocreateaShortcut,youdraganotebooktothattopoftherail.MakeaShortcutforyourInboxNotebookandanyothersthatyouuseregularly.GTDstressesthatit'simportanttoseeonlywhatyouneedatthemomentyouneedit,soyoudon'tgetdistractedbyotherinformation.WhenyouuseShortcuts,youcancollapseyourNotebookviewtohelpminimizevisualclutter.Tags:AddDetailforSortingTagsletyoucategorize,sort,andfilternotes.Theygiveyoumoreprecisionwhenyouneedtoviewnotesthatarerelevanttoyouatthemoment.YoucanpileuptagsintogroupsthesamewayyoucangroupNotebooksintoStacks.Whichtagsyoucreateandhowyouorganizethemishighlydependentonyoursituation,thekindofworkyoudoandhowyouliketodoit.Buttogiveaconcreteexample,inGTDyoumighthavetagsfor:Prioritieshigh-prioritymedium-prioritylow-priorityPendingpending-signoffpending-fundspending-informationContexts@office@calls@family@errandsBecauseyoucanaddmultipletagstoanote,youcaneasilyfilterallofyournotestofindjusttheonesyouneedtosee,[email protected]:YoucannothaveanyspacesinanEvernotetag.Also,onceyou'vecreatedatag,besuretowatchforauto-suggestionsofitsothatyoudon'taccidentallycreateaduplicatetagthat'sslightlydifferent,suchas"pending-funds"and"pending-funding."SavedSearches:SeeOnlyNotesThatMatchYourContextSavedSearchesareanotherexcellentfeatureinEvernoteforGTDfollowersbecausetheyletyouquicklyfindhighlyspecificinformationinoneclick.Forexample,let'ssayyouwanttoseeonlynotesthatarebothinyourInboxandhaveapriority-hightag.Youcancreatethissearchonce,saveit,giveitaname,andthendragtheSavedSearchintoyourShortcutssection,rightwiththeShortcutsyou'vealreadymadetoNotebooks.SavedSearchesinShortcutsgetamagnifyingglassiconwhereasNotebookShortcutsgetabookicon.BedeliberateandselectiveaboutthenumberofSavedSearchesyoucreate.Ifyouhavetoomany,theylosetheirpurposeofgivingyouveryquickaccesstothemostimportantideasyouneedtofind.MoreEvernoteGTDResourcesDavidAllen'scompany,calledTheDavidAllenCompany(hereallycutstothechasewhenitcomestonaming)sellsaGTDguideforsettingupEvernote,ifyou'dpreferthebrandedinstructions.EvernotealsooffersfreeGTDtemplatestouseinitsapp,thoughthey'remeanttohelpyouprepareforspecificprojectsandtasks,ratherthancarryoutaGTDmethodology.TheSecretWeaponisanotherresourcethatspecificallyexploresusingEvernoteandGTD,anditspecificallytacklesemailaswell.Ifyou'realreadywellestablishedwithGTD,youmightalsofindthesefivehiddenEvernotefeaturesusefulinadvancingyourknowledgeoftheapp.GetproductivitytipsdeliveredstraighttoyourinboxSubscribeWe’llemailyou1/wk,andnevershareyourinformation.JillDuffyWriterJillDuffyhasbeencoveringtechnologybroadlysincetheearly2000sandproductivityinparticularsince2011.Followher@jilleduffy.mentionedappsEvernoteRelatedarticlesImproveyourproductivityautomatically.UseZapiertogetyourappsworkingtogether.SignupSeehowitworks