Drowning in things to do
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Drowning in things to do

The heart of a good 'Getting Things Done' process is to have a Single trusted system where you capture your tasks.

I guess I'm Doing It Wrong :-(. Here's all the places where I distribute my todo list...

  • In my current moleskine (pronounce it with me -- Moh-leh-skeen-ah) on pages 9, 12, 31, 57 etc.
  • in my phone
  • in outlook (at work)
  • in my code using //TODO: tags (scattered over numerous projects)
  • in my code using NotImplementedExceptions.
  • in timesnapper's hosted fogbugz account
  • in 'nextaction' on my work pc
  • in 'nextaction' on my home pc
  • in 'nextaction' on my laptop
  • in my gmail account (emails labelled 'todo')
  • in my gmail account (emails marked with a star)
  • in my gmail account (any emails from me)
  • in my other moleskine, beside the bed

Still, I think i'm pretty good because I do actually tend to 'get things done'. But also because i resist keeping lists in all these other places:

  • in iGoogle
  • in sharepoint (at work)
  • in my gmail account (using the Gmail Tasks plugin)
  • on pieces of paper on my cubicle wall
  • in my other notebooks
  • in timesnapper using flags/tasks/notes
  • in yet another todo.txt file
  • on sticky notes randomly decorating places I inhabit
  • in twitter
  • in tada list
  • in that surprisingly popular codeproject todo list
  • in remember the milk
  • in a tiddly wiki
  • in the iphone i don't have
  • in the PDA i don't have
  • in chandler
  • at trimpath 'next action' web site
  • on my blog
  • using tattoos (memento style)
  • in google calendar

There's no shortage of places to keep your things to do.

I don't worry about having too many systems. A bigger fear is failing to capture a problem as it arises.

You frequently get just one chance to capture an idea, so I capture it anywhere I can.





'Don2' on Sat, 18 Apr 2009 09:23:52 GMT, sez:

Moleskine ftw!!

And I tried to read 'getting things done' but i didn't get through it.



'Alex Lyman' on Sat, 18 Apr 2009 10:05:16 GMT, sez:

I (try to) keep my todo list in Remember the Milk. It has very direct support for the apps I use the most: iGoogle, Twitter, and Google Talk. I use it so much that, in iGoogle it's literally the very first widget on my main tab.

I do have //TODO and NotImplementedException's in my source, but I'm usually fairly good at creating a RTM task for myself, too.

I'm not saying that it actually helps me "get things done" — my overdue list is much larger than my upcoming list :P



'Marko' on Sat, 18 Apr 2009 10:16:12 GMT, sez:

Nobody sais that the *system* has to be only one thing. The Wikipedia definition for system is "a set of interacting or interdependent entities, real or abstract, forming an integrated whole."
So when the above entities make up your system that you trust that should be totally fine.



'lb' on Sat, 18 Apr 2009 10:30:42 GMT, sez:

@marko
cheers, that is reassuring.

it does make it harder to review your current tasks, when you have to fish them out of numerous places.

@alex
regarding //TODO and NotImplementedException's in source.
at work, i track these by using a plugin to the continuous build system that greps for tokens, and gives us a running tally. it helps to keep them down.



'David H' on Sat, 18 Apr 2009 10:32:23 GMT, sez:

I wrote on the back of my hand to ask this question in SO, got that done. Haven't got around to doing any of the things people suggested, yet ;b
http://stackoverflow.com/questions/19155/how-do-i-become-a-programmer-who-gets-things-done



'Farmer Jeb' on Sun, 19 Apr 2009 23:03:11 GMT, sez:

I have only 3 TODO lists and they're almost independent:
1. Track-It! manditory task-tracking system at work - tasks entered by me and others.
2. Recycled envelope on fridge for add-it-as-it-runs-out grocery list
3. To do "feature" in my Nokia 6120c phone.
My only wish is that I had a better version of (3). It's so minimal. I just want a rank/priority. Categories would be nice too.



'marty' on Tue, 21 Apr 2009 04:41:08 GMT, sez:

I had a moleskine, and always wrote in it in pencil. It was great.

Until my wife washed it.



'Simon' on Tue, 21 Apr 2009 13:58:36 GMT, sez:

I have a load of lists too, but they usually expire. I guess there should be an úber list that collates the individual lists. They've all got APIs, right? My Moleskine certainly has.



'mike' on Sat, 25 Apr 2009 17:40:50 GMT, sez:

Leon, I think you have here the basis of a book/DVD/lecture tour/consulting business on the patented, copyrighted "Getting Quite a Few Things Done System"(tm), motto "Capture those tasks as they arise!"(sm).

aka "Getting organized for just ordinary people, sheesh." :-)



'Boyd Campbell' on Sat, 02 May 2009 22:11:47 GMT, sez:

I just recently rolled *everything* into OneNote. I've taken my list, similar to yours, down to shared Notebooks.

Dood, it rawks! I blogged about it here: http://tinyurl.com/c32vqd




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