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What are your contexts?
kenzi | Apr 18 2006
I have been rereading some of Merlin's posts now that I have started GTD implementation and his post about contexts was really helpful because I am unsure about the contexts that I have set up. I found it interesting to read his list of contexts, and thought it would be helpful to hear what others have in their lists of contexts. Please post your contexts, maybe with a little explanation about the logic behind your system. Thanks. Here is my list (feel free to critique it): home: computer My logic: I have a home business that involves selling stuff online, meeting clients outside my home and also having clients to my house, plus I have a night job (for rent money and benefits) where, if I have downtime, I can do whatever I want (within reason) including phone calls, research, errands etc. I split out errands to "out" and "work" because there are some errands I can do near work, but actually those can be done at anytime, like on my way to work, so I will probably eliminate "work: errands". "Home: do" is a catch-all for chores and non-work stuff around the house that doesn't fit the other categories; I am thinking of breaking that out a little more. "Think, create" is another catchall for brainstorming, sketching, mulling in a controlled situation...not just daydreaming, but working out ideas for a specific project. 79 Comments
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 I wrote this last night...Submitted by genagtd on April 23, 2006 - 9:02am.
I wrote this last night and couldn't post. Oh well. Here are some of the things I noticed about contexts. Of the seventeen people that posted their contexts, everyone except sonia_simone had a version of @home. Her @home group was broken into smaller chunks. Two people separated inside the home from the outside. [cut out a paragraph here that was causing the reply feature to bug out] Speaking of work, michaelramm had the most IT-related computer contexts. Many people just went with either @work by itself or added @work_computer. Those that did break it down further tended to go with location-specific contexts: this office or that, the lab, campus, or department, etc. For @Errands, there are two types of people -- those that lump 'em together and those that like to split 'em up. The splitters tended to sort out shopping or the library from other tasks I don't have @calls or @phone contexts -- no use for them. Either I only have two or three calls that need to be made sometime in the vague future, or I need to make the call ASAP (to report a problem, etc.) Although I bet it's also just the fact that I don't like calls and tend to use email whenever possible. Calls are interruptions, IMO, whereas email allows the recipient to set the pace. Seventeen is, of course, a tiny sample. Chrome47 appeared to be the one most into creativity (art, sketching, etc.). He also confused me a bit with the second post adding/changing? context lists. I wanted to ask sonia_simone what goes in her @paper context and give her the gold star (again, IMO) for coming up with an important context: Home <- -> work (things that need to go from one to the other). I think there is something to be learned from both ends of the spectrum -- emory, solidsnot, and forgeron's minimal approaches are simple enough to get anyone on the "context bandwagon" and michaelramm, chrome47, and sonia_simone have taken customization and made it work. gah. I feel like I'm writing a paper from my college days. All because I couldn't post the spreadsheet that lead to these nifty thoughts! I'll leave you with two other items: Gena » POSTED IN:
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