Using a Filofax for GTD: setting up the pages for tasks and calendars
(In part one of this series, I discussed my reasons for using a Filofax as my day-to-day tool. Here are some practical details on how I’m using it.)
I’ve been using my A5 Filofax GTD-style for nearly a year now, and in that time I’ve come up with few tricks to make the pre-designed Filofax pages work for me.
Next actions
(Image links to PDF of an example page)
Let’s start with the Filofax ‘To Do’ page. As I “mentioned in an earlier post,” I’m using tabs to divide these pages up into ‘next action’ contexts, like ‘Call’, ‘Email’, and ‘Office’.
Using the page for next actions is pretty straightforward, as you can see from the example PDF and image above.
In contexts that are action-specific, by which I mean things like Call or Email, the individual items can be very brief. In Call, for example, I might just put James Smith, 0549 309 328. Maybe, but not always, I’ll include a note on what the call’s about. In Email, I might list james.smith@example.com, artwork approval.
Others of my contexts are a bit more open-ended about what the task might be — Office, for example. In these contexts, I put the action verb at the start of the line. (And, when I remember, I capitalise it for emphasis, but I don’t always remember.)
An example in Office might be: SELECT three conference sessions from brochure.
One more quick note before we look at calendars: rather than use the Filofax tick box at the end of each line to denote a finished task, I draw a single line through it like this. The task is still readable but I don’t have to look along each line to see if I’ve done it or not. It’s a small thing, but it helps me scan my lists much more efficiently.
Calendar pages
(Image links to PDF of an example page)
This is Filofax’s ‘Business’ version of the day-to-a-page layout. The difference is that instead of an empty column on the right, Filofax has divided it up into ‘To Do/Notes’, ‘Phone/Correspondence’, and ‘Tasks to Delegate’.
Remember David Allen’s edict to keep the calendar only for those things that have to be done at a certain time? This layout allows a little bit of flexibility in this rule, which I’ve found invaluable.
On the left-hand side, I list my appointments for the day. I also try to update this at the end of the day to take account of meetings and appointments that have come up unexpectedly, so that the calendar provides at least a reasonably accurate record of my day.
On the right, though, I list ‘next actions’ that are specific to that day, without necessarily having a time attached. For example, I often have tasks that have to be delivered by COB. These get listed, as a next action with a proper action verb, in ‘To Do/Notes’. For example: Review media release and return to client.
Under ‘Phone/Correspondence’, I list phone calls and emails that have to happen that day.
I use ‘Tasks to Delegate’ a bit differently: rather than listing things to delegate, I use it as a day-by-day tracker of things that I am waiting for that should come back to me on a given day.
For example, if I have someone reviewing a document or writing a proposal and I’ve set them a deadline, I list it in that box as soon as I give them the deadline. Closed loops make me happy!
(Finally, I use the ‘Personal reminders’ as a place to track my working hours. Quicker than a spreadsheet!)
To sum up — and a teaser for next time
Of course, Filofax makes a whole lot more formats than these two, and there are probably as many ways to use them as there are people who buy them! But I hope you’ve found this a useful example of how a pretty standard format can be easily adapted to whatever system you want to use.
Next time, we’re going to take a look at how your Filofax can become an on-the-go tickler file, too.
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Older: Why a Filofax?
Newer: Filofax for GTD: your very own tickler file
very cool. I’ve also been using a paper system, but am using pages of my own design that I print on a laser printer. It’s customized — and cheap.
— Tom · Jan 3, 00:55 · #
Hi Tom, thanks for the comment. What sized pages are you using? A lot of people like the ‘personal’ Filofax size (approx A6), but I find it too small to write comfortably on. How extensively have you customised your system?
— David Mackay · Jan 3, 06:32 · #
David,
There are a bunch of free templates at http://www.diyplanner.com/ in various sizes including Filofax. There are a huge number, worth looking over
I am using the personal size which is harder to write on (tip, turn the book 90 degrees and write if possible). However A5 would be too big for me. I was keen to get something that was easy to carry — perhaps the solution is a better bag for when I am not carrying my laptop.
I am also investigating http://hiveminder.com/ which has some useful features for feeds, data export and off-line working. I am hoping that can print of task lists of the correct size
— Alec Clews · Jan 3, 09:39 · #
Hi Alec — nice tip on turning the personal size through 90 degrees! Talk about a simple Filofax hack …
Thanks for the tip to diyplanner.com, too; I’ll definitely see what they have to offer.
You’re right, the A5 size is a bit on the large size (hard to take to dinner without looking a bit weird), but I have a good shoulder bag (Manhattan Portage) that fits it perfectly.
— David Mackay · Jan 3, 09:55 · #
I use US letter-sized paper. I started out a year ago with hipster like notecards and a clip. But this was too small for all my lists, which include lots of agendas and projects for my team. I’ve made a monthly calendar, next-action, project, and waiting for pages, and use Cornell note taking-style pages for agendas and meeting notes. I’ve tabbed it all following the recommendations for a paper organizer on the davidco site.
I still carry the note cards for collection on the move. I have weekly reviews with each team member and also set aside a weekly review for myself. I did splurge on a nice binder to carry it all around in, so it looks pretty good, imho.
— Tom · Jan 3, 15:41 · #
Hi Tom,
Yeah, I liked the idea of the Hipster right up until I tried to fit everything I needed into it!
How do you structure the weekly review with your team? I’m heading into a big six-month project with a team of four people working for me, and it would be great to collect some ideas…
— David Mackay · Jan 3, 17:04 · #
Thanks David. Happy to.
We usually meet altogether as a team early in the day for no more than 15 mins, after everyone has had a chance to check their various inboxes for overnight developments. But this is just to review and adjust priorities and next actions for the day.
The actual “review” in the GTD sense is once a week, when each team member and I meet individually to review together their projects, discuss next actions, and brainstorm ideas for new projects. To facilitate this I ask each team member to maintain a running agenda/project list of the projects (as opposed to next actions) that he or she is working on. I’ve kept the agenda from the previous week and jotted down ideas and notes throughout the week. Together we reconcile the two to be sure we agree on projects and focuses. We come out of the meeting with a mutually agreed list.
Every quarter or so, we have similar sessions to review work and set goals from a higher altitude.
I’ve found that this approach minimizes “drive by” assignments and allows both of us to focus better during the week on what we need to be doing.
But this is the way my office works, yours is no doubt different. If you are working collectively on one big project, it might make more sense to meet weekly as a team rather than individually as we do in my office. The key as a team seems to be the process of reconciling project lists.
— Tom · Jan 5, 05:04 · #