Book Review: Getting Things Done

Getting Things Done is a book unlike any other I have ever read. It is just what it sounds like: a book about getting organized and doing things in an efficient way.

I am nowhere near as busy as some other people I know, and I still oftentimes find myself trying to “get ahead.” After reading David Allen’s book, hopefully, that won’t be the case for a long time to come.

I will not follow every suggestion in the book, simply because I’m not sure how it all would help with my line of work. However, just the motivation that the book provides makes it a must-read. I have already followed some of the suggestions and have found them to be helpful. If you have ever been in my office, you would be shocked to walk in now. There aren’t stacks of papers all over the place. Stacks are forbidden for more than one day under Mr. Allen’s system.

The hardest change that I am going to try to make to use his system is to write everything down. I rely on the “ol’ noggin” too much and, sometimes, it costs me. I am forgetful just like everyone else, but I like to think I can remember it all. Allen suggests that we live by lists, calendars and reminders. While I will have trouble doing this, I’m going to at least do better.

The major change so far as been to my filing system. I spent almost 10 hours last week redoing my filing system, and I love it! Now I have a list of all my file folders so I know what I have, and when I need to add a file.

This book is for anyone. While I have yet to implement the system at home, I plan on it when I find a good time to do that. Leah wants to do it as soon as we can, so I’m hoping for a chance to do it in the next couple of weeks.

If you don’t own a copy of Getting Things Done, it is a simple read with a lot of interesting quotes on the sides of the pages. The system takes a long time to implement, but, if you are like me and need a way to do things better, it is worth the investment of time.

To order a copy, click the link below.