ForumsGetting Things Done®Any suggests for GTD with iterations?


Any suggests for GTD with iterations?
Author Message
Tim Gordon

Posted: Feb 05, 2010
Score: 0 Reference
I'd like to know how people organise themselves using Toodledo so that they can focus by prioritising projects, perhaps selecting a few deliverable projects they'd like to see completed in the next 3-month review cycle, while still allowing the efficiency benefits of GTD to be felt by picking off other 'tasks of opportunity' as you change between contexts to keep things moving along when you've a little enforced spare time (eg travelling).

I create a folder for every project I work on - this includes deliverable projects which will produce something tangible in the near-term and ongoing projects that have no foreseeable end-date.

The best way I can think of for working on iterations is during every 3-month review create two custom searches:

- Urgent/Next Iteration. Captures all the projects I'd like to deliver or focus on in the next 3 months.
- Not-Urgent. I know it's there but have no immediate plans to work on it.

These are then bulk-updated to above-default and below-default priority respectively. Tasks that come up during the iteration are then default priority. During the weekly review Urgent/Next Iteration bulk updates can be used to keep the projects in the iteration moving first.

Whenever I'm working on my todo lists I should switch to context, deal with due-by date first, then look at priority.

I have to say my system feels too complicated - it takes a long time to do reviews and I feel I go over the same stuff again and again.

Can anyone suggest a better way? People talk a lot on the forum about using subtasks (I'm a pro subscriber). Is creating subtasks better because they'll inherit the priority of the parent task? Isn't it annoying that the parent task is always visible? How do you do your weekely review and capture project tasks and check that they that have no subtasks and need more brainstorming?

I've read some interesting posts about goals too but they seem too high-level to be relevant here as they seem to apply at the 1-year review cycle level.

Any help with the overwhelming much appreciated!
CJD

Posted: Feb 05, 2010
Score: 0 Reference
I am a long time TD subscriber, and my TD becomes so large that it is overwhelming at times and I have ignored it. Recently I read through Promimo's GTD thread and it is simple and straight forward. I read the entire thread (which I have never done in my life) and everyone there has good things to take from.

One thing is that I used to do what you do regarding having a folder for every project. I am like the an older ADD poster child and it becomes overwhelming.

After reading the ProxiGTD thread I now have a folder called "Projects" (really I use Context, but that is for my personal needs).

When you have a folder for projects, your project becomes the task, and the subtasks become flexible, and unfortunately they don't by take the attributes of the task automatically.

So in your projects folder could be a task labeled, "Find Spouse a New Car to replace her Toyota" Subtasks could be "car-Research Consumer Reports findings"
"car-Go to dealer and test drive"
"car-Compare financing"

that way you can review your projects weekly and move subtasks in to your action folder.
because Subtask in other folders have no reference to original task you should put some hint in it, like "car"
mstave

Posted: Feb 09, 2010
Score: 0 Reference
I use:

Star: do this now, or "these, today"
Status - next action : one per project (folder) unless it's important to parallelize. Choose next star from here
Status - action : choose next next action from here, usually by priority
Status - someday : revisit these periodically - such as at your iteration boundaries

I use other stuff too but it's not directly related to your question.
You cannot reply yet

U Back to topic home

R Post a reply

To participate in these forums, you must be signed in.