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Mike DamphousseNov 1, 2008 9:45:00 PM2 min read

Getting Things Done (GTD) - Don't Slip

b2b sales leads<-- This recent entry on one of me and my daughter Rebecca's hall of fame sites, the live art project PostSecret, reminded me of a post I've been wanting to write.

How do I stay on top of what needs to be done for the company, the house, my family, for? A few years ago I started using the GTD system that became popular as a result of the book Getting Things Done by David Allen . The technorati have flocked to the GTD system because of its simplicity, it's ability to adapt to any lifestyle, and the fact that most geeks have tons going on at once. There is plenty of information online, a great place to start is the Lifehacker interview with Merlin Mann, the author of 43 Folders blog. The article links to all sorts of online resources.

To my point, since 80%-90% of my life comes and goes through email (more if I count the emails I send to myself), I use the firefox addon GTDinbox which uses gmail to provide a GTD skin on your life. Two key points to remember as it pertains to being successful with any organizational system:

Take it Easy - always do the easy stuff first. The emails where the response cycle goes: reply, "yes", send take about 5 seconds and they are done. Then hit archive or delete and never worry about it again. It feels good to accomplish something and it feels satisfying that you are moving on.

Life Goes On - Don't forget to keep your personal goals, to dos, dreams and desires organized as well. As much as that job, blog, and your friends keep you ticking all day. Give some priority to yourself. Accomplishing something for you keeps you feeling good so you can accomplish things for others or a greater good. An example from my GTDinbox is a folder called Food Ideas. When I stumble upon a recipe, food article, cooking technique or other foodie crumb that must be tried, I file it in there and make a point of cycling through the folder a couple times per week. Working with food relaxes me and it usually means a shared meal with others...one of life's greatest pleasures. What better feeling of getting something done for yourself could there be?

Don't Slip - being unorganized and overwhelmed is like an addiction, and like an addiction, once you have kicked it, you can never slip up. If you do. If you go even a few days without getting back on track, you will spiral out of control. This happened to me this week as a result of an overwhelming business issue that redirected my efforts and now I have an inbox that is loaded with unfilled, uncategorized and unfinished items. It will take me hours to get back on track as opposed to the seconds it would have taken me to stay on track. Mea Culpa!

 
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Mike Damphousse

Mike brings a hard-nosed, pragmatic aspect to category design, baked in from two decades as a company founder, CEO, CMO and sales executive. He understands how companies work and how to take a category plan from concept to implementation.

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