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Greetings!
I just got back from the annual NAPO (National Association of Professional Organizers) conference in San Diego and boy do I have some amazing tips for you.
First off, I had the pleasure of spending time with organizing and productivity luminaries such as Julie Morgenstern, author of the classic "Organizing from the Inside Out" and "Time Management from the Inside Out." I will be sharing more about her excellent key note address in a later newsletter. In the meantime, check out more photos from conference on our Facebook page!
http://www.facebook.com/AKorganizing
 Second, in this newsletter I'd like to share with you the highlights of an amazing presentation entitled "3 Classic Time Management Systems and How they Can Work For You" given by leading San Francisco Organizer Emily Wilska of The Organized Life.
Lastly, I just wrapped up a 3 year long archiving project at the New School - organizing and cataloging 300 boxes of historical documents dating back to the founding of the university in 1919 - I know, pretty cool right? I am available to take on new projects. If you know someone who needs organizing services for their home or office, please let me know.
As a special thank you will receive a complimentary photo review and your friend will receive a bonus 1/2 hour of organizing!
You can reach me directly at 646-245-1248.
Until next time...
Be organized, be energized, be extraordinary!
Angela Kantarellis
AKorganizing |
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AK with Emily Wilska |
6 Time Management Systems and
How They can Work for You (Part I)
(Excerpts from a presentation given at the Annual NAPO conference by Emily Wilska)
In her presentation Emily went through 3 classic time management systems as well as 3 new takes on productivity. Over the next 6 weeks I will be sharing excerpts from each of them.
Part I: Getting Things Done by David Allen (2001)
"Out of your head; into a trusted system; review religiously."
A major cause of inefficient work is trying to hold too much information (especially about our tasks, projects and areas of responsibility) in our heads. Having a "mind like water" allows for "stress-free productivity".
5 Stages to Mastering Workflow
- Collect: Do a sweep of your home, office, calendar and mind to identify and capture (on paper or some other physical form) every "open loop" in your life.
- Process: Go through what you've collected and ask, "is it actionable?" If no, toss it or file it for reference or later action; if yes, decide the very next action, then do it (if under 2 minutes), delegate it, or defer it.
- Organize: Get actions/projects onto lists by context of into your calendar.
- Review: Take time each day to review calendar and action lists; once a week review and update action lists, projects and calendar. The weekly review is a critical component.
- Do: Choose actions based on context, time available, energy and priorities.
Required/Recommended tools
- GTD is emphatically "tool agnostic" i.e. you don't need any specific brand/type of tool to implement it.
- What's required: an inbox, a collection tool that's with you at all times, a list making tool/program, a calendar and a filing system
- Works equally well with paper and electronic tools
According to Emily, GTD is best for people who:
- Consistently overwhelmed by everyday tasks
- Need extra guidance in understanding the difference between a task and a project
- Find the idea of one master task list (or even one daily task list) overwhelming or unhelpful.
- Have the self discipline to commit to doing the Weekly Review or have someone else (like a professional organizer, spouse/partner or assistant to help provide that structure)
- In many cases have ADD
GTD is not so great for:
- People whose main time management struggle is procrastination that's not related to a lack of clarity between projects and actions/tasks.
- People who can't/won't commit to the weekly review
- Listphobes
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Stay tuned for the next installment in our 6 part - Time Management Series. Next week I will be covering The Franklin Covey system.
In the meantime, please feel free to call me to learn how AK can help you better organize your home, office and time! |
