43 Folders

Back to Work

Merlin’s weekly podcast with Dan Benjamin. We talk about creativity, independence, and making things you love.

Join us via RSS, iTunes, or at 5by5.tv.

”What’s 43 Folders?”
43Folders.com is Merlin Mann’s website about finding the time and attention to do your best creative work.

What solutions do you use?

I have decided to implement GTD both at work and at home after listening to the Getting Things Done Now Seminar. I just borrowed the Getting Things Done Unabridged Audiobook and am going through that now.

However, I feel like my own work is conspiring against my successful implementation of GTD.

First off at work we use Lotus Notes. I thought at first I could use Notes for my organization, BUT I have 2 major issues:

  1. We don't run iNotes, so I can't easily access my data from home, without firing up my work laptop, VPNing in. Remote controlling the PC at my desk, and then logging into Notes. More effort than I want to go through.

  2. Notes doesn't have any way to create an all day event and invite people to it. So people keep sending each other Group Todos for days off, so they'll appear on top of the calendar. So my Todo list is full of DOZENS of todos that are clutter my task list.

So, next I thought to use some online task list. I set up accounts on Vitalist and Remember the Milk. Problem was, I can't access Vitalist when in meetings. Remember the Milk now works with Google Gears, which gets around the offline problem, but Google Gears requires Firefox, which is forbidden at work. There is also now a big push at work to ban laptops from meetings, since they are considered "distractions". I also think our IT Security dept would flip out if they heard I was storing details of internal projects on external web sites

So, next I moved to ThinkingRock, which was great because it was written in Java. I use on Windows at work, and my Mac and Linux boxes at home. I could use it at meeting (at least unti they completely ban meetings from laptops). My problem is the data file. My work laptop is so locked down, it difficult to use. I would rather use my data file on a home PC when home. I though I might be able to use some method online synchronization to move my data file around. .Mac would be perfect, except the fine folk at work BLOCK ACCESS to .Mac and pretty much any other site that allows file synchronization.

We use Novell servers at work and iFolder would eliminate my pain, but we have no plan of any kind to roll the product out.

So now I am at the point of going to something I abandoned back in the 90s, the paper planner, something I dread.

Can others tell me what theyre doing with their GTD data between home and work?

amp68's picture

Here is what I did...

I decided to use rememberthemilk.com as much as possible. I paid for a pro membership and got MilkSync to sync my tasks with my Blackberry, which is very nice. Problem is, the Blackberry task application SUCKS. But at least I now have all my tasks organized and with me at all times.

Plus, I bought a Moleskine notebook, which I now take to all meetings and use as my In bucket. I did order a 2009 Moleskine day planner, so I may go all paper in 2009. I was going to order a 2008 planner, but when you buy them this late in the year, they're REALLY expensive, almost $80 in some places.

Thanks for all the thumb drive solutions. I'm going to look at them in a few minutes.

I was in a meeting at work today, going over next steps for a project I was working on, and delegating tasks, when my boss stopped me and told me I was getting way ahead of myself, and I need to sit down and put everything into MS Project and formulate some high level tasks and then regroup. I almost groaned out loud. One because I knew my next steps and wanted to keep moving along, and 2, because I despise MS Project. It's the most unintuitive piece of software I have ever worked with.

So, just to piss him off, I'm putting it all in Mind Manager. :-)

Implementing GTD in a culture where everyone thinks you're moving too fast is beyond frustrating. It's a classic case of wanting to be more productive and getting your hands tied behind your back when you try.

Ah well, I shall persevere.

 
EXPLORE 43Folders THE GOOD STUFF

Popular
Today

Popular
Classics

An Oblique Strategy:
Honor thy error as a hidden intention


STAY IN THE LOOP:

Subscribe with Google Reader

Subscribe on Netvibes

Add to Technorati Favorites

Subscribe on Pageflakes

Add RSS feed

The Podcast Feed

Cranking

Merlin used to crank. He’s not cranking any more.

This is an essay about family, priorities, and Shakey’s Pizza, and it’s probably the best thing he’s written. »

Scared Shitless

Merlin’s scared. You’re scared. Everybody is scared.

This is the video of Merlin’s keynote at Webstock 2011. The one where he cried. You should watch it. »