As librarians and information workers, we are experts at managing and organising collections. But what about our own information? How do we manage incoming information such as emails, blog posts, paperwork etc.? How do we prioritise what tasks we should be doing? How do we break down projects into more manageable tasks and track our progress? This session will introduce you to the basics of David Allen's Getting Things Done principles and consider how you can apply this in your own work. It will include active discussion and practical examples of some of the tools you can use to help you Get Things Done.

1. Managing yourself:
how to be productive with your time
Jo Alcock
Birmingham City University
@joeyanne
www.joeyanne.co.uk

2. Session aim
To equip you with tools to help you clear your mind so
that you can focus on Getting Things Done

3. Learning outcomes
By the end of this session, participants will be able to:
1. Implement the Getting Things Done methodology in
their work and personal life
2. Employ systems (physical or virtual) to manage and
organise information
3. Apply productivity techniques to focus on progressing
towards short, medium and long term goals

4. Session overview
• Introduction to Getting Things Done methodology
• Stages of Getting Things Done (with discussion,
individual and group activities, and software
demos)
• Alternative systems for productivity
• Additional tips and tricks
• Applying what you have learnt into practice

5. My story

6. Your journey

7. What is Getting Things Done?
• Productivity methodology
devised by David Allen
• Series of processes to help
you organise information and
make decisions about what to
do when
• Sometimes known as GTD
• Can be used as full system, or
certain elements can be used

8. Getting Things Done overview
Collect
Do Process
Review Organise

9. Stage 1 - Collect
• Aim of this stage is to clear
your mind to record all
physical information and
anything you are currently
trying to remember
• ALL sources of information
should ideally come into
one place (physical or
virtual)

10. Suggestions and ideas
Physical collection Virtual collection

11. Stage 2 - Process
• Process each item one at a
time, in order
• Decide what each item is and
what to do with it
– Trash
– Reference
– Action
– Project (multi-step action)
– Someday
• Don’t leave anything in your
‘inbox’

12. Stage 3 - Organise
• Separate actionable items
into distinct, separate
categories:
– Next actions
– Scheduled actions
– Waiting for
• If any action takes less than 2
minutes, do it now

13. Using lists
“I have a secret. I make lists. That's how I handle
stress. And whether they actually help me
accomplish more or not,they make me feel so much
better. If I can jot down all the tasks that swirl
around in my head, I shift from feeling deluged and
stressed to feeling in control and calm. And this is
before I even do anything on the list.”
Suzanne Riss (2007) in Maggio (2009)

14. Next actions – To-do list
• Record next and scheduled
actions
• Utilise contexts
– @errands
– @computer
– @online
– @home
– @calls
• May assign projects/tags
• Accessible from anywhere

15. Suggestions
Physical Virtual

16. Projects vs. actions
• Each project will have a number of discrete actions
with clear end points
• Actions should be written in the following format:
Verb Noun Subject Action
EXAMPLE:
Prepare agenda for next project team meeting

17. Setting deadlines
• Do personal deadlines
help you focus or make
you feel guilty? Get the
balance right for you.
• Work backwards from
the due date to calculate
deadlines for the
subtasks of each project

18. Tickler file (43 folders)
• Set reminder triggers for
time-based items to
‘tickle’ your memory
– Agendas for meetings
– Tickets for travel
– Event information
– Materials needed for
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YG0FU_M_YB8
scheduled task

19. Tickler file (e-mail)
• Email folders (or labels)
for each month and date
• Time-based emails
moved into appropriate
folders/labels

20. Stage 4 - Review
• System needs regular review
• Every day
– Daily calendar
– Action list
– Tickler file
• Weekly (?Fri afternoon)
– Full 5 step process
– Ensure all lists, files, folders,
and calendar are up-to-date
• Less frequently
– Bigger picture reviews for
goals

21. Stage 5 - Do
• Assess situation depending
on following factors:
– Context
– Time available
– Energy
– Priority

22. Knowing what not to do
• Do you need to do this?
• Do you want to do this?
• Is it something you feel you
should do? Why?
• Can it be deleted,
delegated, or simplified?

23. Getting started
"The secret of getting ahead is getting started"
Mark Twain
• Adopt the 15 minute rule - spend just 15 minutes
starting a task. You may find that you are so into it
by then that you want to continue, but at minimum
you will have at least started.

24. Staying on task
• If during a task you hit a
hurdle or need extra
information, make a note
of the question or jot
down the extra task to
come back to after you
have completed the rest
of your original task

25. Dealing with procrastination
• Discover the source of
procrastination - lack of
commitment, knowledge,
motivation, fear of failure,
overwhelmed?
• Deal with the problem
• Just do it - even if only for
15 minutes
• Set yourself a reward
mechanism

26. Pomodoro technique
• Choose a task to be
accomplished
• Set the Pomodoro (timer) to
25 minutes
• Work on the task until the
Pomodoro rings, then put a
check on your sheet of paper
• Take a short break (5 minutes
is OK)
• Every 4 Pomodoros take a http://www.pomodorotechnique.com/
longer break

27. GTD overview
Five stage process for
managing information and
improving productivity:
1. Collect
2. Process
3. Organise
4. Review
5. Do

28. Alternative productivity systems
• Zen to Done
• The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People
• Never Check E-Mail in the Morning
• Bit Literacy
• The Four-Hour Workweek
• One Year to an Organized Work Life

29. Tips and tricks

30. Understand your Bodyclock
• Are you a morning person
or a night owl?
• Can you structure your
most difficult tasks when
your energy is high?
• Consider utilising 'slump'
time to organise to do list
and revitalise energy
• Block day into periods of
work (ideally 90 minutes)

31. Dealing with interruptions
• List is constantly evolving
• Priorities will shift and
change on a regular basis
• Use time-based or priority
rankings to help you
reorganise your tasks

32. To-don't list
• Keep a list of activities that you sometimes feel you
'ought' to do but know drain your energy, take up too
much of your time, or are unrewarding
• Be sensible and realistic about your capabilities, skills and
commitments
• Practice saying no - be firm but kind when turning down
opportunities and offer an alternative if possible e.g. "I'm
sorry, I can't do that but Mr X might be interested"

33. Saying no
“Not saying no often enough is one of the biggest causes
of being too busy”
Maggio (2009)
• Before responding, let person know you'll get back to
them but spend time making the right decision
• Don't give excuses if it's something you don't want to do,
be honest and keep your response simple
• Saying no is much kinder than saying yes and not
fulfilling your commitment

34. Email management tips
• Try choosing 1-4 periods of
the day to deal with email
• Turn off email alert signal
• Store informational email in
reference folders
• Practice replying to emails
in as few words as possible

35. Extracting information from calls/
meetings
• Make notes at meetings
and during calls
• Highlight any actions
and record these in your
list immediately after the
call/meeting
• Store your notes for
reference - somewhere
you can easily recall
them

36. Profersonal mix?
Professional Personal

37. Adapting your process
• We are all different
• This is your own journey
• Regularly review what is
working well and what isn't
- ditch or change what isn't
working

38. Feel free to contact me
Jo Alcock
Evidence Based Researcher
@joeyanne
jo@joeyanne.co.uk

39. Recommended reading
• Allen, D. (2001) Getting Things Done: How to achieve stress-free
productivity. Piatkus.
• Hines, S. (2010) Productivity for Librarians: How to get more
done in less time. Oxford: Chandos Publishing.
• Houghton-Jan, S. (2008) Being Wired or Being Tired: 10 Ways to
Cope with Information Overload. Being Wired or Being Tired: 10
Ways to Cope with Information Overload. Ariadne [online], 56.
• Maggio, R. (2009) The Art of Organizing Anything: Simple
Principles for Organizing Your Home, Your Office, and Your Life.
New York: McGraw Hill.

40. Image sources
http://www.flickr.com/photos/lwvc/6306132745/ - tickbox
http://www.flickr.com/photos/rcpl/4881969613/ - storytime
http://www.flickr.com/photos/aigle_dore/5849712695/ - journey
http://pokechild.com/gtd-flawed-system-helpful-system/ - GTD flowchart
http://www.flickr.com/photos/crystaljingsr/3915514724/ - investigation
http://www.flickr.com/photos/schlosi/6413179977/ - inbox
http://www.flickr.com/photos/crystaljingsr/3915516040/ - group discussion
http://www.flickr.com/photos/71804756@N00/410602044/ - wine glasses
http://www.flickr.com/photos/dmachiavello/3327609638/ - to do list
http://www.flickr.com/photos/joelanman/366190064/ - calendar
http://www.flickr.com/photos/29254399@N08/3187186308/ - clock
http://www.flickr.com/photos/wwarby/4782854680/ - hurdle
http://www.flickr.com/photos/nataliejohnson/2122722198/ - Quality Street
http://www.flickr.com/photos/jrhode/4632887921/ - toolbox
http://www.flickr.com/photos/splic3/6811683059/ - alarm clock
http://www.flickr.com/photos/renaissancechambara/2927082003/ - do not disturb
http://www.flickr.com/photos/27282406@N03/4134661728/ - thank you
http://www.iconfinder.com - icons