inputs/outputs

I’ve been using a Hipster PDA for the past year now, and it’s really helped me implement GTD. Hopefully, this new GTD idea will help other people be a little more productive. It’s nothing groundbreaking, but then again, when are GTD ideas groundbreaking? Advanced common sense, they say.

I brainstormed, and came up with the two most appealing things about GTD/hPDA. If these apply to you, Pockets GTD might just be for you.

• The fact that the entire system fits inside of my pocket. Pen and all. I only have to use the web when I need to text myself a reminder as a designated time, or when I’m using Gcal as a hard landscape. Otherwise, I’m all analog.
• Contexts. I love that I can be in front of a computer and pull out a computer card, go running errands and have an errand card, be at work and have a work card, etc. I don’t want to think about any other context than “work” when I’m at work.

So, out of these two elements, I’ve devised a new system. I call it GTD Pockets. The entire system works like a conveyor belt. Now, it takes a little bit of setting up, but once it’s in place, it doens’t take any real thinking/effort. Here’s how you set it up and how you implement it.

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Yesterday, as I was driving home from work, I realized that I was coming up with a ridiculous amount ideas (about everything) and I remembered that I had recently signed up for a web service called Jott, and I grabbed my phone. The process, for me, works like this.

1. I have an idea/thought. I carry around a notebook and I write down any idea that comes to me. These ideas include blog posts, song ideas, ideas about websites/technology, gift ideas, plans, etc. But there are definitely times when I can’t write stuff down, like when I’m driving. And driving happens to be the time when my ideas are flowing like a fountain.

2. I call Jott. So Jott lets me call a number and, without even having to log in, I can tell my idea to the computer on the other end. The thought/idea can last for 30 seconds, and I can do this for as many minutes as I have on my phone plan.

3. The idea is transcribed and logged. With pretty decent accuracy, the thought is transcribed and logged into my Jott account on a list, which I can sort/organize later.

4. I review and process the list. Not only are my thoughts now transcribed and listed, they can be organized into folders, and I can even listen to the original message that I left for myself.

This is fantastic for GTDers who don’t have a regular inbox. I wish Google would do something like this for Gmail or Gcal. Go and sign up!