Getting Things Done

For the “Getting Things Done” lab I organized my workflow process by using post-its and a pencil.  I am constantly making “To Do Lists” and like that I can keep the list in my purse or pocket to easily add or cross off a task.  September and October are very busy months for me…a lot of traveling back and forth for family birthdays and holidays, plus my regular work and school schedule here in Chicago.  To top it off everyday errands like going to the grocery store and cleaners keep getting pushed back and continue to fill up my list.  Sometimes I wish there were more hours in the day!  I have always been an organized person but since I started taking school full time, I feel my organization could use a little fine tuning.  It is important that I write things down what I need to do immediately.  Things can escape my mind as I feel like am doing fifty things at the same time.  For example at work, I may be writing an email to a customer, while answering the phone and having to switch my attention to the database.  This will then trigger me to remember to call a certain customer about an issue they are experiencing.  Having note paper next to me as I work is essential.  It allows me to quickly write a message to myself about something I need to complete that particular day or week.   

I had mixed emotions as I was going through this process.  The collecting of information was difficult because I had a lot of sticky notes with tasks on them all stuffed into my purse.  I wasn’t alone, as I recall Joe Fiorini from his podcast, “Mind like Water:  How to Get Things Done” was having the same experience.  It wasn’t until the organizing stage that I started to feel more on top of things.  Organizing the information and classifying it into the four groups of Projects, Calendar, Next Actions and Waiting For helped to highlight the items that had specific deadlines like projects for my MSU classes and appointments for work.  If there were a number of items that I needed to purchase from Walgreens, it was helpful to have those items organized together in my list.  My feelings of tranquility started to change once I started to create my “Next Actions” and “Waiting For” lists.  I began to feel overwhelmed when I saw how many tasks I had to complete and places I had to go.  Yikes!  I have a lot on my plate!

Going through this process was definitely helpful, as it allowed me see what tasks were the most important and needed to be completed first.  Even though my list of things I have to get done will always be long, I am learning to take a deep breath and realizing that not everything has to be completed at the same time.  I have to remind myself that it is okay to space things out and take a break.  J      

I will continue to use the process of pencil and paper to organize my workflow at this time.  I feel a sense of accomplishment when I can physically cross out the different tasks that I have completed on my “To-Do” list.  Since this engagement I have found it easier to use one piece of paper that collects all my tasks instead of random post-it notes.  As I add to my list, I try to organize it into groups suggested by David Allen; however, having a master list of everything I need to do is what works the best for me.  I am guessing that within time I will probably move to an application on my phone, but for now I am very happy with my current process!