GTD For Moms and Other Homies: Getting Started

I wrote last week about my new trick for keeping on top of email. That was nothing! I was so excited about the relief I experienced with an empty email inbox that I started poking around for more tips. I read stuff at sites like The David Allen Company and 43 Folders. It was not long before I was at Barnes and Noble buying the book, Getting Things Done, by David Allen. This guy's got tricks on tricks. It's not the lightest reading, unless you're a total nerd (like me). I have been racing through it, clearing clutter from my office and my brain, and labeling like mad. I'm going to try to pass on some tips here on Mondays. That's the plan. So here's a little something to get you started.

GTD For Moms and Other Homies Tip #1

Start somewhere, anywhere. It could be a room, a bookshelf, a drawer. Determine how much to tackle by the amount of time you have available. Take absolutely everything out that doesn't belong there permanently. Now take your pile and pick up one piece at a time and decide what to do with it. You only have four choices:

1. Throw it out.
2. Take care of it IF it will only take 2 minutes or less.
3. Give it to someone else.
4. Put it on a list. It's now a project.

David Allen calls this something like dump it, do it, delegate it, defer it. You will be utterly shocked at how fast you can clean things out when you're not obsessed with doing the whole thing at once. In other words, you don't have to fear your office computer armoire (as I did!) because you're not going to do anything that takes longer than 2 minutes for any one thing.

It is a miracle I got my entire office under control yesterday. I'm talking bookshelves, desk, armoire, and storage units, created files, etc. PLUS - I got all my projects and other items organized into very effective lists. But we'll talk about that next week! Just do it - then come back here and comment for moral support!