GTD Method too Complex? Try this Simplified Approach Instead!

[@Flatability]

I think there are many, myself included, who have tried David Allen's GTD system but have then gone on to devise their own methodology. Thanks for sharing your thoughts about this - it's always interesting to see what other people are doing.

[@PlanningwithChloe]

I think it was in an interview Tim Ferris did with Allen where Allen essentially said that he created a game where the players can make the rules 🤪 (which lead me to think he is an evil genius 😂).

[@drjones762]

Why did you move away from the GTD system and what are you using now?

[@JT1358]

Life is too short to implement the GTD method and you'll still miss something. I prefer tick-boxes and just use arrows, ticks and crosses to signify what stage things are at, a bit like the bullet journal method. Every couple of months I have a clear-up and just create an updated list - and that highlights the things I've been avoiding. Simple! Love the outfit and hair!

[@PlanningwithChloe]

Love this Jean, sounds like you've found your perfect sweet spot for keeping on top of things easily! Thanks for watching (and for the compliments 🥰)

[@PlanningwithChloe]

Essentially yes, there are aspects of bullet style journaling, it's about having that quick visual cue and quickly figuring out how and when an item can be slotted into a schedule

[@jung_interessted]

Had to listen to it all two times.... The first time I got sidetracked by this beautiful pullover ❤.

[@PlanningwithChloe]

Aw, thanks! It's so thick and warm too, perfect for winter

[@iamgodgirl]

My goodness! I think that is one of the most attractive and professional looking sweaters I have ever seen. Where did you get it?

[@PlanningwithChloe]

Aw thank you 🥰 I actually got it a few years back from a UK brand called Mint Velvet - they describe their style as 'relaxed glamour', I like to think of it as boho but grown-up

[@sergiorodrigues6694]

My problem with GTD - and I think it is a problem of many people, as well - is the broad David Allen definition for projects, as everythig that demands more than one action to be completed. I my view that causes confusion since we are used to define project as some kind of goal or objective we want to achieve and not just a sequence of trivial tasks.

[@PlanningwithChloe]

That's a very valid point! It's easy to let semantics trip one up though, and possibly, in my opinion, the GTD system is more focused on personal productivity (working through tasks/do more with less stress) than personal development (embodying our dharma). That said, GTD does seek to create the 'mind like water' clarity that should allow one to self-actualise.

[@madnessofmymind]

The new listing brochures & associated marketing shtuff that I have to do are most definitely projects of a mind numbing amount of individual tasks. They are by no means goals. I've never once confused those two items. 🤷‍♀

[@JJ1689ZA]

Not sure LTP is any less complicated - it adds in a lot of "project planning" stuff (duration time, energy needed, priority) that is absent from ground level GTD. The flowcharts you mention, once you understand them you don't need them - the clarification comes naturally - is it rubbish? reference material? actionable? to go in the diary? etc etc... I love a lot of the hacks around GTD - the "tickler file" (1-31, Jan-Dec folders), General Reference System (A-Z), only put stuff in the diary that has to be done (or an event) on that day etc... Where I have trouble with GTD is the long lists - specifically the Next Action list and the Project List. Great ideas in principle, but if you do it on paper I have struggled with cross referencing them - so when you review either list it takes too long to find the corresponding item on the other list. So what I do is ... put projects on a simple list by month of the year (this is a rough project plan for the year) and add a project number (one line per project). Then my Next Actions (on a physical card) that are for a specific project will simply have that Project Number written on them. Simple Next Actions have no number and no matching project. My Action list is divided by context - a GTD concept I am not sure you address? @Home @Shops @Parents @Agenda-Brother etc... My Project list is on Word - I mark up alterations during the month then just edit once per month. My Action list is on 6"x4" index cards in a box, divided by context. My Periodic Actions (stuff that has to be done say every month) lives in my "tickler" file system (the 1-31, Jan-Dec files). That's it. I found your video really interesting and it challenged me to think about what I was doing more carefully.

[@PlanningwithChloe]

There's a lot I like about gtd, I hope that came across, but as I was going through the system there were things that were hurdles for me and by the sounds of it everyone has a 'hurdle' with at least one aspect of gtd - no one system can be perfect for every individual (because each individual's situation is, well, individual 😆) it seems like you have some solid solutions for how you're making gtd work for - I'll have to re-read your comment as you have some awesome tips 🙌 have you tried using Notion? I'm looking at how I can use a form if gtd in notion and it is a "game changer" (side note: has that phrase made it to the banned words/phrases list yet? It gets my vote if not - I cringe every time I say it 🤦🏽‍♀️)

[@JJ1689ZA]

Notion looks pretty powerful but personally I prefer to be closer to paper and index cards (although my Project List is held as a Word doc - I work off the print out until it needs a big edit). The issue I had with non-paper GTD systems (tried lots of things including Excel) is the time and effort to enter stuff - I always ended up bypassing the system because I couldn't enter new projects and actions (or updates) quickly enough.@@PlanningwithChloe

[@PlanningwithChloe]

It's a tough one - analogue vs digital. I love how I can easily carry a digital, cloud based system in pocket and gain access to it virtually anywhere, but I hate how disconnected from reality it makes me feel (in that I can keep adding endlessly to it with the reality of how much there is is hidden out of sight). Analogue is reality! Pen and paper is not only quicker but studies found you retain more of the info. But... my paper planning is system is a HEAVY A5 binder, it's gorgeous and I love using it, but it's not easily portable (even though it's A5) and it's time consuming updating / editing / reorganising tasks etc. 🤕 it's a goldilocks conundrum

[@WildRiverCamping]

Awesome system. Ive read The 7 Principles several times, along with GTD. I'm working on making Atomic Habits to improve my organization skills. I'm still at ground level. There should realy be training on this type of thing in grade school. Instead, im just starting to understand and teach myself these methods at 40 years old. Life is almost over at this point. Imagine all the time wasted by lack of organization and focus on important things.

[@PlanningwithChloe]

Atomic Habits and the Compound Effect were the 2 books that triggered an A-Ha moment for me and helped to put a stop to my to 'planner fails'! I agree that this stuff should be taught early on in life (my daughter is 13 and has asked me for a copy of Atomic Habits, without any prompting from me - yeay, small win) but I think that the education systems are, on the most part, still stuck in the 19th century. I'm 45 and although those thoughts of wasted time creep in I try not to waste more time dwelling on them, better late than never eh? 🫠 In Atomic Habits the biggest take away for me was 'make it easy', that was the domino to topple them all - what's yours been so far? Cheering you on

[@susanlynch6680]

I'm so surprised that you think that life is almost over at the age of 40. Shake that off! I'm 72 and will always look forward to each day. Best wishes.

[@lenoreriley4871]

My biggest takeaway, was I just need to be 1% better today… that’s it. Helped my mentality of I need to do it all right now… perfectly.

[@Hexapod1112]

What are those 7 principles, you're talking about?

[@WildRiverCamping]

@@Hexapod1112 , The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, a profound life altering book for me. Not the 7 principles. I mucked that up. But the book has principles described all throughout as well.

[@Ne0nLicht]

This is basically going back to a huge incomplete master list with complicated prioritization and without any process or clarification of most productivity systems pre-GTD, basically ignoring it's most important principles, which makes it the stress free productivity method, which are in essence (1) capture everything so that nothing falls through the cracks and more importantly that you can be stress free (or at least less stressed, because you're not afraid that you're missing something), (2) clarify what everything that has your attention means, so that you only need to think about things once (or a couple of times, instead of every time you look at the horrifying master list), and (3) get rid of the useless task master lists forever and organize actionable tasks by context (not by priorities, which is useless and stressful), which allows one to take action removing a lot of the friction of needing to thing about what really needs to be done at the moment of doing, instead of separating both, the clarification process and the actual doing.

[@PlanningwithChloe]

Ooo... love this comment! I was inspired by what's known as 4th generation task management system (à la Covey's 7 Habits), because this style of system just makes more sense to my current stage in life - to focus on what is important rather than filtering everything though a task clarification process which I actually found stressful. I'm not against GTD - I think Allen is an Evil Genius of sorts (love his backstory - it's colourful to say the least) but to borrow his words: "...we laid out the game [...] how you play the game is very much up to you..." kzbin.info/www/bejne/ZnyZeGqYgZWUabc (from an interview where the interviewer actually addressed how followers of the system can get rather passionate about how the system should be implemented.) From my understanding, there will always be some sort of 'inbox', and it was essentially the task capture, clarify, organize process that wasn't my cuppa tea. I have more of an affinity to Eisenhower's Matrix - and that's okay. And then from a neurological perspective not everyone's brains are 'wired' to process information in the same way, just ask any neurodivergent person how it's going for them in terms of trying to function in a world designed mainly for the neurotypical, so... If GTD works for you straight outta the box, no mods required, that's awesome - drop me a link to your video/reddit/etc sharing how you do it. I did a fair bit of research on Allen, the system and how others were implementing it before sharing my thoughts. My aim was to present a balanced case with regards to what wasn't landing for me and why I decided to make my own modifications, and most importantly, I was brave enough to 'show my work' - borrowing from Austin Kleon. Thank you for sharing your thoughts, I really appreciate you taking the time to craft such an insightful comment, you're obviously very passionate about productivity protocols 🌟

[@mawawohuuuschwarz3721]

Thank you both for this. I myself am torn between being a stickler to the rules and loving the ideas behind David Allen's system AND being an overworked, often interrupted mom who wants to have a somehow simpler approach. I would love to be a GTD purist, BUT a) I have a huge backlog from the sleepless time with little children, b) I have not yet acquired a practical GTD routine yet and c) I am still drawn to making an additional to do list for each day with tasks I would like to do for the day, but which seem too tiny to find their place in a project, like "remember daughter asked for banana instead of apple in lunch box" and "remind husband to get batteries on way home".

[@halibutchaser6983]

​@mawawohuuuschwarz3721 I have found for reminders, I set scheduled texts for the person I need to remind. I do this with my husband and kids all the time, it works great. I've finally gotten my husband to start doing it as well for things he needs to remind me about that I'm not in a spot where I can write it down, or he knows I'll forget about it even if written down lol. As for school lunches, my kids were responsible responsible for their own lunch by 4th grade, and before that, they would help make their lunches the night before. Take some of the stress off your plate!

[@lajourdanne]

This was the most useful GTD video I’ve ever seen! ❤❤❤

[@scimeco]

the tag step look similar to the Eisenhower matrix with extra steps. perhaps Eisenhower combined with OKrs.

[@PlanningwithChloe]

Yeah 100%, I like the Eisenhower/Priority Matrix because it helps with focusing attention on the things that are actually important. OKRs aren't something I've really danced with - just because my research into it always ends up down a very corporate route (which is a bit too dry for my personality). Are you using an OKR methodology?

[@fundinghomes]

thanks for sharing your greatness. Very helpful

[@PlanningwithChloe]

Glad it was helpful!

[@MarcosVinicius-iv2yn]

Great video Girl! Keep GOIN!!!

[@caroldavis-wilkie3716]

Hi Chloe, Just discovered your channel and have subscribed. Nice to hear a black female UK voice in productivity and I wish you well in your channel. I very much like your approach and style of sharing. Thank you for your content. luv, Carol x

[@PlanningwithChloe]

Hey Carol, thanks so much for tuning in and supporting this channel, it means a lot to me 🫶

[@OscarRios]

Skip until 6 minutes into the video.

[@brucereiersen1978]

Hi. Enjoyed your video. Just to clarify, GTD isn't advocating writing things down, one item per sheet of paper (David Allen talks about a small notebook he keeps on him to capture thoughts so he can get it out and to his list. I think what you misunderstood is that he mentions getting everything from in your inbox (inboxes) (including every sheet of paper with a random thought, task, or idea drop your inbox) to a list (kind of like a dumping of sorts). May I ask how you would handle projects, those tasks that have multiple steps and are connected to other tasks? Thanks.

[@PlanningwithChloe]

I'd need to go back to reference the chapter he recommends 'having a stack of paper' but yes I do see that this is merely a means of getting started and isn't the tool to continue with (I actually use the Notes feature on my phone as a way of capturing on-the-go, and then add a reminder to the note so I actually do the next relevant action). As for projects I'm still experimenting - I did try a paper based system, which I like very much. However, I'm currently testing out Notion as a way of managing projects and assigning tasks to a project (I was a web developer doing backend coding so databases are kinda my jam)

[@Hexapod1112]

@@PlanningwithChloe How do you get along with the notion databases? I've used different versions of SQL in the past and I liked that everything is very clear and you can do quite complex selects. And now with Notion Databases, I feel that everything is too oversimplified.

[@sidequestsally]

That sweater tho!

[@luchobiondi]

Hey, how are you doing? I have a question for you: I want to teach the GTD methodology through an online course. However, I have a doubt: in what cases would I potentially infringe upon explaining GTD? I'm aware that GTD is a registered trademark. So, what legal leeway do we have for those of us who want to teach the methodology on our own? I ask because I see that you have a course teaching the method. Thanks, and greetings! Great video!

[@PlanningwithChloe]

Hey, I don't have a course so can't comment unfortunately. I just did a review of things I liked from the book, but more over things I didn't and what I did instead. If you want to teach gtd as a course I think you'll need to train through their official program to become an official coach - from memory it's all on their website. All the best!

[@savannahbanks]

Didyousee the vid where he personally collected a woman's items from all around her flat? Hundreds of to do’s!

[@PlanningwithChloe]

Oh gosh NO, sounds like death by the "silent to-do list". I don't think I could bear to watch 🫣

[@madnessofmymind]

Log = Capture Tag & Plan + CLARIFY lol The flow chart isn't actually all that hard and after a couple of times just becomes second nature. The one thing I hate about Allen's "write it on a sheet of paper" is OMG how effing wasteful! I just use the supply of free sticky notes we receive from companies and drop them in my physical inbox and sort out later.

[@swimm3r137]

Me too. Its a great idea but wtf -- 300pgs i need to memorize and implement? No, f that. It needs to be able to done by a 4 yr old or its not simple enpugh, imho. I got through the clarify section but then hit my head on the organize system.

[@PlanningwithChloe]

Getting to the essence of the basics and implementing them is not done in a day with GTD - I do love the concept and really appreciate Allen's thinking, but like you say a 4yo needs to be able to do it 👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾

[@drjones762]

LOL I mean this respectfully, but your system literally IS GTD with a different name & the steps not broken down as distinctly as GTD. 😂 I think David Allen would agree when I say that; GTD isn’t a prison; it’s not a set of chiseled in granite commandments; if there are certain aspects / steps of it that don’t work for you; fine; tailor it to suit your needs. When he says you should take 2 days to brain dump; again; it’s not a commandment. There’s no rule / law that says you can’t use GTD until you first block out 2 full days. We are all different, and what works for one, might not work for another. For myself personally; I think GTD literally saved my life in many ways, so I’m a huge proponent. I’m glad you found something that works for you…. Even tho it’s just reworked GTD. 😎 It’s OK: PARA is also basically GTD re-worded.

[@PlanningwithChloe]

😂👍

[@polishedandpoisedplanner]

I love GTD but it is time consuming. TFS

[@PlanningwithChloe]

So true!

[@Mamadriggs]

I tried the GTD method and found it far too tedious for me to keep up with. The bandwidth required to implement this and how I was seeing people write, rewrite, and RErewrite their items on a list.... that's just too much for me. That was just not feasible for me. I'm glad it works for people but yeah.... hard pass. I like this idea that you've created.... much simplified. I like it

[@PlanningwithChloe]

Thanks! I do like GTD and much of David Allen's ethos, but I think there are quicker ways to have a 'mind like water' 😅

[@dorotheawright2205]

Hi Chloe, did you see when the First book was published, in 2001! Don't you think maybe there's been some form of modifications, exactly what you have done to your own system 🤔

[@PlanningwithChloe]

Yes I know! Probably around 5 or so years after The 7 Habits if I'm not mistaken. But I do have a confession - I listened to the Audible version of GTD, which is the revised edition from 2016. While I was listening I made notes of the things I liked and wanted to go further with. I looked at his website for more tips, as well as here on KZbin (I watched so many interviews with David Allen 🤪). I also looked at how others were implementing GTD and considered getting either the physical book or the accompanying workbook, but every time I was left thinking "will I realistically stick with this method as is? There's got to be a simpler way?" That thinking created an itch I had to scratch, as they say😆

[@heejinslife]

Would have been more helpful if you didn’t tell all the stories up front.

[@PlanningwithChloe]

Ah but story telling is my jam baby 🙌🏾

[@cekirdekci32]

5 mins in the vid still waiting to hear her point:/ i dont really have thst much time either you know, yoy could have just get in to the point . Skipping this.

[@PlanningwithChloe]

current situation: working on cutting the fluff my dear 🙌🏽