What’s the Problem?

Delaying the tedious, the boring and tasks with unwelcome consequences seems to be part of the normal human condition. It has certainly produced numerous academic studies and research projects into the syndrome. Procrastination is just part of life and yet we mostly feel guilty about it and look for ways to help us "Get Things Done". You only have to look around the web and you will find thousands of resources devoted to advising you on what to do, lots of software that is meant to help you and all sorts of systems based around forms or methods to help identify the tasks and keep you on track. It seems that many of us are looking for a solution for a problem that we are really not facing up to. A reality check may well suggest that the issue is a reluctance to do many things that need to be done but that we have no interest in even starting let alone finishing . In the end mostly we are looking for a crutch to support us, something that will help us overcome our natural tendencies.

I am among the world’s worst at GTD. I am not writing as some guru with the answers, but as someone who struggles on a daily basis to complete tasks, particularly at home. Work is a bit different, I struggle to complete tasks at work as well, but this is a factor of insufficient time. Thinking about these different situations makes me realise that there are at least two different factors in Getting Things Done, depending on the circumstances.

What Am I Doing?

I wrote briefly in this post - GTD - Getting Things Done - as an introduction to some of thoughts and issues. In the post I mention some of the software and tools I am currently using which include:

• MS Outlook - because I have to use this for work and it syncs to my work mobile and to my home PC
• Stickies - because this is an excellent freeware virtual sticky note program
• AAA - because this provides a multi-tab notepad with alarms and recurring event reminders
• Essential PIM (freeware version) - I would use this a lot more if I could easily sync with Outlook for free.

I have also tried gadgets like the AceCad DigiMemo (AceCad DigiMemo - Save Your Handwritten Notes and Convert to Images, Doc or PDF) to help me.

So what have I tried to do to help with completing tasks at work has been quite useful. I believe this is because at work the issues are to do with time management far more than reluctance to carry out the task. Various GTD sites on the web suggest that people often are afraid to start a task because of the fear of failure. This can be either in completing the work or in not meeting the expected standard. I like to think that most of the time this does not apply to my work tasks, although I can see that occasionally there may be a problem with a particularly difficult or unusual task. However, I never seem to be reluctant to start but may have some delay in the middle while I reflect on whether things are going well or if I have covered all the angles. Therefore, using tools that help identify what I need to do i.e my "To Do" list combined with time management and prioritisation through tabbed notes, alarms and reminders, keeps me on track.

What Am I Not Doing?

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I am constantly fascinated and frustrated at the same time by GTD or “Getting Things Done” hints, tips, lifestyle choices and changes etc. Probably this is because like many of you I am living a life of information overload, too many things to do in not enough time and a job with a workload that always seems to grow and never diminish. So ‘I constantly look for better, quicker, more efficient ways to do things. I think that maybe part of my fascination with computers and programming is that they (or really the people involved in computing) have always promised that computers would reduce our workload, give us freedom and time to do the things we want. My experience is that Parkinson’s Law always prevails and that work always increases to fill the available time. This just means more pressure to “GET THINGS DONE”. So I continue to search for the holy grail, or at least something that might just give me a little more time to find it!!! In fact the more you get into GTD the more you realise that the biggest obstacle to success isn’t tools (software or good old fashioned pen and paper systems) that are ineffective but the processes and determination of the person using them. (more…)

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