The Getting Things Done methodology has become a buzzword at my work place, considered as the ultimate solution to personal task and project management. Well then, time to take a look into this classic piece of self-improvement.
There is criticism that this book is too long and that Allen could have described the technique much more condensed. On the hand this is true and it takes some effort to keep reading, on the other hand the repetition of the key principles, in an almost preaching manner, makes it so persuasive in adopting this methodology. Probably, this is the reason why it is so popular. There are no spectacular new insights. For instance, having some sort of physical in-tray, a calendar, an organized email in-box and a check list for tasks are things are so essential and common tools, that no one probably remembers having learned to utilize these things. But the message of the book is strong, really putting emphasis on the right utilization of these basic tools, so that you most effectively manage your work and life. I decided to follow this methodology and also research and experiment to find the right task manager tools, so that I can implement GTD most conveniently. Because there is no exact practice about how you keep track of your tasks. It could be conventional with Post-its and ticker files or fully electronic with integration of all kinds of software tools.