After just over a month using FacileThings I can draw some conclusions. It is all about the idea of using a specific application to Get Things Done. After using several solutions with personal customizations, now I do not have to worry about designing my own framework. I only have to devote myself to do things and this has allowed me to step forward.
I have managed to focus on my work. It is helpful the fact of using an isolated environment where I can deal with my business without the distractions of my whole file and all the paraphernalia of controls, options and features that have nothing to do with what concerns me. It seems silly, but it has raised my efficiency in handling projects and tasks.
Another interesting effect is that it has changed the way I am involved with my GTD system. This is kind of a GTD on rails, where the way you work is guided by the rules of the method. You get to better understand the system at the expense of losing the freedom—sometimes harmful—that lets you do whatever you want.
I have also changed my perception of projects as a sequence of actions that are executed one after another. During the migration, I have had the opportunity to rethink my projects under the Natural Planning approach. Functionally, the result is that I have defined a multiplicity of less extensive projects instead of a few bigger ones, with a bunch of actions grouped under one heading. It allows me to run things in parallel and advance my business faster.
It is also nice the posibility of working with my projects in a framework separated from the actions lists. Dealing with projects this way let you fly over the 10000 feet and prevent you from managing them as if they were just actions.
I use priorities and favorites as a key to know what to do at all times. I have adopted these two concepts to clarify what issues should be done at any time. To do that I mark a specific number of projects as important during the Weekly Review, the ones I will carry out during the week, and I highlight my next high-priority actions.
All this, combined with the easy way to filter tasks by clicking tags, allows me to organize my contexts and B lists, and focus all my attention to what really matters to be productive: DOING and COMPLETING.
No comments