Getting Things Done: The Art of Stress-free Productivity
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- Create Date：2021-04-09 13:58:55
- Update Date：2025-09-06
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- Author：David Allen
- ISBN：0349423148
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Summary
With first-chapter allusions to martial arts， "flow，" "mind like water，" and other concepts borrowed from the East （and usually mangled）， you'd almost think this self-helper from David Allen should have been called Zen and the Art of Schedule Maintenance。
Not quite。 Yes， Getting Things Done offers a complete system for downloading all those free-floating gotta-do's clogging your brain into a sophisticated framework of files and action lists--all purportedly to free your mind to focus on whatever you're working on。 However， it still operates from the decidedly Western notion that if we could just get really， really organized， we could turn ourselves into 24/7 productivity machines。 （To wit， Allen， whom the New Economy bible Fast Company has dubbed "the personal productivity guru，" suggests that instead of meditating on crouching tigers and hidden dragons while you wait for a plane， you should unsheathe that high-tech saber known as the cell phone and attack that list of calls you need to return。）
As whole-life-organizing systems go， Allen's is pretty good， even fun and therapeutic。 It starts with the exhortation to take every unaccounted-for scrap of paper in your workstation that you can't junk， The next step is to write down every unaccounted-for gotta-do cramming your head onto its own scrap of paper。 Finally， throw the whole stew into a giant "in-basket"
That's where the processing and prioritizing begin; in Allen's system， it get a little convoluted at times， rife as it is with fancy terms， subterms， and sub-subterms for even the simplest concepts。 Thank goodness the spine of his system is captured on a straightforward， one-page flowchart that you can pin over your desk and repeatedly consult without having to refer back to the book。 That alone is worth the purchase price。 Also of value is Allen's ingenious Two-Minute Rule: if there's anything you absolutely must do that you can do right now in two minutes or less， then do it now， thus freeing up your time and mind tenfold over the long term。 It's commonsense advice so obvious that most of us completely overlook it， much to our detriment; Allen excels at dispensing such wisdom in this useful， if somewhat belabored， self-improver aimed at everyone from CEOs to soccer moms （who we all know are more organized than most CEOs to start with）。 --Timothy Murphy
Reviews
Özgen
，
With first-chapter allusions to martial arts， "flow，" "mind like water，" and other concepts borrowed from the East （and usually mangled）， you'd almost think this self-helper from David Allen should have been called Zen and the Art of Schedule Maintenance。Not quite。 Yes， Getting Things Done offers a complete system for downloading all those free-floating gotta-do's clogging your brain into a sophisticated framework of files and action lists--all purportedly to free your mind to focus on whatever With first-chapter allusions to martial arts， "flow，" "mind like water，" and other concepts borrowed from the East （and usually mangled）， you'd almost think this self-helper from David Allen should have been called Zen and the Art of Schedule Maintenance。Not quite。 Yes， Getting Things Done offers a complete system for downloading all those free-floating gotta-do's clogging your brain into a sophisticated framework of files and action lists--all purportedly to free your mind to focus on whatever you're working on。 However， it still operates from the decidedly Western notion that if we could just get really， really organized， we could turn ourselves into 24/7 productivity machines。 （To wit， Allen， whom the New Economy bible Fast Company has dubbed "the personal productivity guru，" suggests that instead of meditating on crouching tigers and hidden dragons while you wait for a plane， you should unsheathe that high-tech saber known as the cell phone and attack that list of calls you need to return。）As whole-life-organizing systems go， Allen's is pretty good， even fun and therapeutic。 It starts with the exhortation to take every unaccounted-for scrap of paper in your workstation that you can't junk， The next step is to write down every unaccounted-for gotta-do cramming your head onto its own scrap of paper。 Finally， throw the whole stew into a giant "in-basket" That's where the processing and prioritizing begin; in Allen's system， it get a little convoluted at times， rife as it is with fancy terms， subterms， and sub-subterms for even the simplest concepts。 Thank goodness the spine of his system is captured on a straightforward， one-page flowchart that you can pin over your desk and repeatedly consult without having to refer back to the book。 That alone is worth the purchase price。 Also of value is Allen's ingenious Two-Minute Rule: if there's anything you absolutely must do that you can do right now in two minutes or less， then do it now， thus freeing up your time and mind tenfold over the long term。 It's commonsense advice so obvious that most of us completely overlook it， much to our detriment; Allen excels at dispensing such wisdom in this useful， if somewhat belabored， self-improver aimed at everyone from CEOs to soccer moms （who we all know are more organized than most CEOs to start with）。 -- Timothy Murphy 。。。more
Cori
，
I read this book a long time ago， but could have sworn I had it on Goodreads。。。 I recommend this book all the time， and I remember really liking the ideas， but I wasn't sold on the paper based system。 I read this book a long time ago， but could have sworn I had it on Goodreads。。。 I recommend this book all the time， and I remember really liking the ideas， but I wasn't sold on the paper based system。 。。。more
Writer2267
，
Great framework。 Goes into detail for those who wish to explore the title more， but I would recommend skimming and stick to the first two parts， and only go for the third section， only if you struggle to set up your own system。
Glenn Velupillai
，
Very efficient and effective steps to get things done。 Very important in this day and age。
Allen Pike
，
The first time I tried to read this book， I bounced off of it。 It spends a lot of time talking about filing cabinets and sheets of paper， and the author acknowledges digital systems but doesn't think in terms of them。 There is a bunch of eyeroll-inducing stuff in here。 BUT。 But。There are some really useful ideas in this book。 If you feel like you have so many things to do that it's stressing you out， there are likely useful ideas described in here that you could put to use。My recommendation to p The first time I tried to read this book， I bounced off of it。 It spends a lot of time talking about filing cabinets and sheets of paper， and the author acknowledges digital systems but doesn't think in terms of them。 There is a bunch of eyeroll-inducing stuff in here。 BUT。 But。There are some really useful ideas in this book。 If you feel like you have so many things to do that it's stressing you out， there are likely useful ideas described in here that you could put to use。My recommendation to people is to first start by reading a summary article of the Getting Things Done system that gets you started。 Try an app like Things that lets you set up a system for tracking what you're going to get done。 Get some practice actually doing it first。Once you've experimented with some of these ideas – how you capture your tasks， how you phrase them， how you organize them – then come back to this book， maybe a year or two later， and then give it a read。 Gloss over the parts about filing cabinets and label makers， but give some thought to the proposed ways of thinking about how you spend your time and attention， and pull out some of them to try out。For me， at least， it was useful。 I feel like I have a calmer， more focused sense of how I spend my time than I did before reading it – filing cabinets aside。 。。。more
Nynke
，
Long winded， very repetitive and lots of blowing his own trumpet。 This book is aimed at those who struggle to create practical solutions and systems （Which， apparantly， if the author is to be believed， is most people）。 Yet the solutions presented are over explained， overcomplicated and way too often stating the obvious （seriously， who needs to be told to not embark on a time-consuming task 5 minutes before they have to attend a meeting？）。It offers no solution to other hurdles that might be jeopa Long winded， very repetitive and lots of blowing his own trumpet。 This book is aimed at those who struggle to create practical solutions and systems （Which， apparantly， if the author is to be believed， is most people）。 Yet the solutions presented are over explained， overcomplicated and way too often stating the obvious （seriously， who needs to be told to not embark on a time-consuming task 5 minutes before they have to attend a meeting？）。It offers no solution to other hurdles that might be jeopardizing productiveness， like， say， fatigue or an anxiety disorder。 The back of the book claims that from it i will learn how to overcome feelings of stress and anxiety， however i have not been able to find a chapter or even a paragraph on this。Also a little out of touch？ 'If i had to set up an emergency work station in just a few minutes， i would buy a door， 。。。。 filing cabinets'。 Uhm， not everyone lives next to a hardware store mate！ Also where are you going to put this huge and heavy contraption？ Why a door？ Surely the same store will sell mdf？ Or just buy a desk？ If you can buy a door and filing cabinet in just a few minutes you can also buy a desk in that time？Yet another book i got in more medicated times， hoping for a simple solution to symptoms of a complicated illness。 When will i learn to not rely on self help books written for healthy people？ I sort of knew this would be the case but （speed）read it to see if it might have some good tips for when i am better or if i could just get rid of it。 。。。more
Katy Jo Turner
，
DNF @23%。 Too out of date。 System is still good， I’m sure， but I’ll just rewatch a Skillshare class on this that includes technological tools。
Elise Edmonds
，
This is a good book。 The system is similar to that of The Productivity Ninja， a favourite productivity book of mine。 A lot of the concepts in this book resonated with me。 The bottom up approach actually made sense， which surprised me。 The middle section was detailed and rather repetitive - it could have been condensed。 And although digital methods were mentioned there was a heavy focus on paper based systems which felt a bit outdated。 Yes I have a filing cabinet but most of my organisation is el This is a good book。 The system is similar to that of The Productivity Ninja， a favourite productivity book of mine。 A lot of the concepts in this book resonated with me。 The bottom up approach actually made sense， which surprised me。 The middle section was detailed and rather repetitive - it could have been condensed。 And although digital methods were mentioned there was a heavy focus on paper based systems which felt a bit outdated。 Yes I have a filing cabinet but most of my organisation is electronic these days。 Still， a worthwhile read and I shall definitely be revisiting my organisation and taking some useful points from this book。 。。。more
Efraín Peraza
，
Great book。 Gives a series of useful tools to apply。
Danyel De Moraes
，
It was not a easy reading。 I think this book is outdated。 Currently we have our smartphones， devices with Machine Learning， voice assistent。。。 there are plenty of new and really technologicals way to get organized。 But I got some tips， like solving something asap if this will not take too long。 Anyway， I thought the reading was repeatitive and outdated。
Darik Anderson
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Very helpful。
Steve Page
，
Good！If you’re stuck in your productivity， this is the book。A simple， practical， effortless methodology to getting your to-do’s done！
Abhishek
，
Didn't read this completely， but the advice in the first part really helped me feel more organized and productive。I read some of part two， and got the feeling that the author only wrote those parts to fill the pages。 Didn't read this completely， but the advice in the first part really helped me feel more organized and productive。I read some of part two， and got the feeling that the author only wrote those parts to fill the pages。 。。。more
Samson Mwaza
，
Simple and well broken down
Edda Burheim
，
Interessante prinsipper。 Litt lang。 Kunne fått frem det samme med 100 sider mindre
Kevin
，
Here’s the thing: GTD is not for everyone。 There’s many systems out there， and no single book is for all people。GTD is very intense。 For Type A folks who like lists and checking things off of them， it may be exactly what you need。For people like me， the system feels overwhelming。DNF。 This is one of the most popular task/time management books and for good reason。 But if you are looking for help with time or task management， the best thing you can do is look at *multiple* systems and find the one Here’s the thing: GTD is not for everyone。 There’s many systems out there， and no single book is for all people。GTD is very intense。 For Type A folks who like lists and checking things off of them， it may be exactly what you need。For people like me， the system feels overwhelming。DNF。 This is one of the most popular task/time management books and for good reason。 But if you are looking for help with time or task management， the best thing you can do is look at *multiple* systems and find the one that works best for you。 。。。more
Ajita Gupta
，
The book basically tells you to maintain a tickler and compartmentalize your life into it。 That will help you to stay focused， in control and relaxed throughout。 Basically， you should lead your life like with neatly organized post-its。 Not worth reading。
Petr
，
CZ:Celkem srozumitelně bude čtení této knihy v dnešní době místy minimálně nezvyklé kvůli tomu， že původně vznikla v době před elektronické， avšak emaily i další pořadače jsou již uvedeny a hlavně， základní principy GTD jsou ve své podstatě nezávislé na přesné implementaci。 Myslím， že by místo neuškodilo knize zkrácení， avšak mnoho textu je věnováno jasným příkladům nebo možnostem， jak systém upravit pro sebe a to jen pomůže tomu dostat GTD do praxe。 I když systém organizace práce， který používá CZ:Celkem srozumitelně bude čtení této knihy v dnešní době místy minimálně nezvyklé kvůli tomu， že původně vznikla v době před elektronické， avšak emaily i další pořadače jsou již uvedeny a hlavně， základní principy GTD jsou ve své podstatě nezávislé na přesné implementaci。 Myslím， že by místo neuškodilo knize zkrácení， avšak mnoho textu je věnováno jasným příkladům nebo možnostem， jak systém upravit pro sebe a to jen pomůže tomu dostat GTD do praxe。 I když systém organizace práce， který používám se v některých ohledech od GTD liší， mnoho nápadů z původního GTD vychází a GTD s jeho sběrným seznamem a pravidelnými kontrolami zapsaných úkolů je jádrem mnoha metodik dodnes。 Hlavní problém knihy však je ve výřečnosti， stačilo by mít třebas na začátku krátké uvedení do GTD s tím， že příklady a výjimky se diskutují dále。 。。。more
Bobby Phillipps
，
Dated in 2020， but still relevant for a focused productivity system。
Matthew Avasakdi
，
A productivity game changer
Katie Tran
，
The title and concept itself is quite self explanatory。 You can definitely get more things done than the time spent to reading this book。 There are some useful points in this book， however is structured in a highly verbose manner that ultimately， the main practical advice becomes lost in translation。 Avoid spending energy and time on this book as it can be highly convoluted and unnecessary details get in the way of truly being "productive"。 The title and concept itself is quite self explanatory。 You can definitely get more things done than the time spent to reading this book。 There are some useful points in this book， however is structured in a highly verbose manner that ultimately， the main practical advice becomes lost in translation。 Avoid spending energy and time on this book as it can be highly convoluted and unnecessary details get in the way of truly being "productive"。 。。。more
Lola
，
Did not like the book （it's like a very long written commercial， I mean， I'm already reading your book because I want to know about GTD， no need to convince me your system works）。 Trying the system， so far seems useful。 Did not like the book （it's like a very long written commercial， I mean， I'm already reading your book because I want to know about GTD， no need to convince me your system works）。 Trying the system， so far seems useful。 。。。more
Jared Woods
，
Very few authors transformed my life before I'd read any of their work。 Over a decade ago， David Allen reorganised my brain via a seminar audio clip， and he did so within five minutes。 How？ By comparing the human mind to a computer CPU， revving with random nags， forever reminding you to perform tasks even when you couldn't currently do anything about them。 And the longer this process whirred in the background， the more likely your mental resources would spin out into stress mode。His solution is Very few authors transformed my life before I'd read any of their work。 Over a decade ago， David Allen reorganised my brain via a seminar audio clip， and he did so within five minutes。 How？ By comparing the human mind to a computer CPU， revving with random nags， forever reminding you to perform tasks even when you couldn't currently do anything about them。 And the longer this process whirred in the background， the more likely your mental resources would spin out into stress mode。His solution is to get everything （like， EVERYTHING！） out of your brain immediately （like， IMMEDIATELY） by externally recording what you need to do， then setting up reminders to refocus upon them at the correct time。 This approach clears the subconscious because it knows you've sorted the business already。 It's such a brilliantly profound yet simple method that I quickly implemented it as a biblical staple to my artistic vomit and overall life philosophy alike to monumental success。 It's crazy， then， that it took me so many years to properly investigate his hypothesis as a whole， but we're here now。 Forgive me， David。Surprisingly， the practical， streamlined instructions behind Getting Things Done is not what primarily appeals to me， but rather it's where the text dabbles in borderline mystical undertones。 Visualisation techniques aside， there's an emotional burden to disorganisation; a stabbing guilt of distrust of oneself when failing to satisfy a to-do list。 It causes distress。 Hence， David sells his program as one that fixes this issue and results in a stress-free mind， maintaining a fruitful existence without sacrificing relaxation。 That sounded beneficial to me because I've never relaxed a day in my life。Sadly， little changed in my chilling field， and what I gained from this book ended on early pages。 You see， productivity is the only thing I'm good at。 I've blasted off on a self-developed branch of high-speed creation that occasionally contradicts Allen's teachings， and naturally， I favour mine。 Consequently， this 259-page book fell into a slog around the quarter-way mark， grinding my enthusiasm to a halt just like you would expect from any detailed procedure about filing systems。 Getting "Getting Things Done" done was a joke I had with myself， and oh how we laughed while I fell asleep long before bedtime。 On the other hand， however， I am partially such a work boss because of what David had already taught me。 Make no mistake; if your unfinished manufacturings are burying your brain （or even if they're not）， this publication could be the jumper cables you're seeking to zip away into fertile pastures of immense gain。 Please don't allow my negativity to take that away from him。 Forgive me， David。Because on the third hand（？）， even I applied tiny beneficial tweaks to my process during this read， and that is enormous when you're talking about a daily routine！ Every bit helps！ My lists are neater， I cleared my Inbox without looking at it， and I even braved saying "no" to some project propositions from other people， which is something I never do！ Admittedly， after analysing my previous month， my output has skyrocketed， so what else can I say？ I'll tell you what I can say。 I was so bored， and that's my conclusion。 Forgive me， David。 。。。more
Florin Lazar
，
A very good framework to implement if you want to bring clarity and focus on what really matters both professionally and personally。 Unfortunately， the book is a little bit outdated。
Lino Verde
，
I started reading this book after I transitioned from being a grad student to being a full-time staff。 In the beginning of my new position， I struggled to get things done。 （I was probably too burnt out to focus。） I came across this book。 The GTD method seemed to help。Like many books have written， the first thing is to take your mind in control。
Joel Johnson
，
I’ll definitely implement some of the tools from the book but it’s more of a good reinforcement of already known ideas。 This is your textbook “productivity” book。 Nothing new。
Marko
，
I bought the book in 2018， but it did not quite flare up for me then。 Now I re-visited it again （in 2021）， once the topic suddenly became more relevant for me。I realized why I previously stopped reading。 The book is very holistic and captures "the system for managing your entire Universe of things， you are or will be doing"。 And it really is a lot to take in。I started to use what I learned， but also realized to the level of this craft where you actually get ride of significant amount of stress a I bought the book in 2018， but it did not quite flare up for me then。 Now I re-visited it again （in 2021）， once the topic suddenly became more relevant for me。I realized why I previously stopped reading。 The book is very holistic and captures "the system for managing your entire Universe of things， you are or will be doing"。 And it really is a lot to take in。I started to use what I learned， but also realized to the level of this craft where you actually get ride of significant amount of stress about responsibilities and things one otherwise would keep in your head - is a long journey。I think this system（gtd） can be really useful along the way on that journey。 。。。more
J。R。 Pomerantz
，
Sad to say: one more thing I didn't get done was to finish this book。 It couldn't communicate its system in either a short enough time period or a compelling enough method to hold my interest， while not being modular enough to implement piecemeal。 So there wasn't really any incentive to keep reading it， unless I could finish it。 But I didn't like the journey of it。Then it became part of my web of procrastination。 Which is the opposite of getting things done。 Which is why I was reading the book。 Sad to say: one more thing I didn't get done was to finish this book。 It couldn't communicate its system in either a short enough time period or a compelling enough method to hold my interest， while not being modular enough to implement piecemeal。 So there wasn't really any incentive to keep reading it， unless I could finish it。 But I didn't like the journey of it。Then it became part of my web of procrastination。 Which is the opposite of getting things done。 Which is why I was reading the book。 Not blaming the book for that， just noting it。 。。。more
Cathy
，
Might have been better to read than listen to。 Also seemed dated with so much being digital now。 All the talk of folders and inboxes as I am trying to eliminate paper and folders from my life。 Maybe I was not in the right state of kind while listening to this one。
Steve
，