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This is part three in a series in the essentials of Getting Things Done, the system designed by David Allen. If you are a first timer or you are returning to Getting Things Done I hope this series will be helpful for you.

Processing your in-tray

(Remember your in-tray can be a physical tray, an email list or a combination, just make sure if you have more than one that you process all of them as I describe below)

Once you have all your thoughts, projects and items into your in-tray, it’s time to process them. By this point you probably have a large amount of items in your capture tool of choice. Now comes the processing of these items.

Take the very first item from the top of the list and look at it. Resist the urge to look at the next item below that. We will get to that in time and ultimately all items will get processed. One of the key things is not to revisit an item more than once.

Ask yourself these questions in order.

Can this be done in less than two minutes?

If so then do it. Some people have raised that number to five minutes but in my own opinion this can take up far more time particularly if you have a large number of these short actions. In the end it’s a fine line. I have done tasks like this that end up taking five minutes but generally it’s the two minute tasks I end up doing right away.

If it can’t be done in under two minutes then is it actionable?

If not then decide what to do based on the following options:

Trash: If it is something you clearly have no use for then dispose of it. Example: Last years tool catalogue.

To do list: Simple items like “Get Milk” can be put in a to do list. Some people may prefer to group these by category. For example; grocery list, items to talk to accountant about.

Defer: Is this something that should be passed on to someone else? Example: Tax forms to go to your accountant. if that can take less then two minutes then do it.

Projects: If an item will need several steps to be completed then a project folder should be started. Later on we will go through the project stage in detail, for now a good description of the project will suffice. For example: Tax filing for this year.

Calendar: If it’s a time specific item then put it in your calendar with the appreciate reminder that works for you. Example: Dentist appointment Tuesday at 10am.

Reference: If an item is something that is not actionable but you feel may be of use later on then file it. We will talk about filing later on in the series. Example: Manual for new fridge.

 

Continue to process each item in your in basket one at a time until there is nothing left in your in-tray. At this point you should then have several lists, several folders and a paper bin that needs emptying!

Next time we will be talking about all those projects folders we have just created.