O’Reilly Network: Getting Things Done with Your Mac

Giles Turnbull was kind enough to swap some emails with me that ended up making it into a swell article he’s written about Macs & GTD that’s up on O’Reilly’s MacDevCenter.

I have to admit, it’s really satisfying to read articles like Giles’. It wasn’t so long ago that “Macs” and “GTD” were two silos unconnected by a conveyer belt. Thanks to Giles and O’Reilly for the chance to say a few words on two things I like a lot.

I still treasure the idea that GTD can be seen as more than a set of elaborate rites that must conform to a notional canon; rather that its true value is in providing a framework that can and should be adapted freely—a skeleton of smart behavioral changes that can be skinned in innumerable ways. TMTOWTDI.

Gratuitous quote from Chairman Merlin:

All the productivity pr0n, and label makers, and lists of lists of lists can certainly be useful, but ultimately, they’re all McGuffins. The real trick is to find the handle that gives you self-awareness and access to the parts of you that could use the most “patching.” For many people, GTD ends up fitting that bill nicely — even if it sometimes takes a few weeks to get over futzing with ‘the system’.