Getting Things Done: Step 1 - Collection

This column is part two of a seven part series on Getting Things Done® (GTD®) -- the time and productivity management system by David Allen.
Columns In Series:
GTD Post #1: Getting Things Done: Introduction
Getting Things Done: Step 1 - Collection
It's time to tap into your inner squirrel. The first step of GTD is Collection. For me, and for many, this is the most daunting step to start, but it doesn't have to be. Don't get so caught up in the full scope of Collection. Block out a couple of your other 8 hours. Start small and try to have fun with it.

If you want to have any sense of control over your ideas, workflow, and environment, you need to know exactly what you have and what you're dealing with. The Collection step is all about capturing anything and everything that has your attention. The "anything" can be mental or physical. Mental examples include such things as ideas for a new marketing campaign, a blog post you want to write, or milk you want to pick up from the store. Physical examples include emails, documents in your briefcase, and the research reports stacked up beside your desk.

The 5 GTD steps are ongoing. The first time you do the Collection step, it may take several hours, but once you do the initial "dump," the ongoing commitment is much more manageable.

Brain Dump - Initial Mental Collection
They physical collection can be a real pain, so let's get some momentum by starting Mental Collection. David calls this the "mind sweep," and it is an absolute blast. It may be one of the best investments of your other 8 hours.

Here's what you need before you start:

- Large stack of 3x5 index cards (if you want to get started and don't have these, just use paper)

- Pen

- At least an hour of free uninterrupted time

Here's the fun part . . . write down every thought, idea, or project you can think of on a separate index card or piece of paper. Yes, everything. Anything that comes to your mind that has your attention needs to be written down.

This might feel a little awkward because you are so used to trying to keep as much in your head as possible. No more. The genius behind GTD is that you keep NOTHING in your head. As soon as you think of it, you need to expel it as quickly as possible. Why? The more free your mind, the more free it will be to generate more thoughts and ideas. I experienced this first hand.

I've always been a list guy, but I was never disciplined. I kept many thoughts and ideas in my head for days, weeks, and even years. As soon as I flushed everything out in the mind-sweep, I found I was flooded with fresh ideas. It's like I released my creative floodgates. These new ideas were just hanging out waiting for room, and once I gave them the room, they came rushing in. Try it; you'll see what I'm talking about.

David encourages you to go for quantity over quality. When you start, it might take a bit for the ideas to start coming to you, but soon they will be popping in your head faster than you can write them down. Don't second-guess anything and don't judge. For example, here are some possible thoughts that you'd write down on separate index cards:

- change oil in car

- call Susan about a holiday party

- check in with Joe in accounting on project

- research a new digital camera

- think about speech topics for board meeting

- want to visit Rome

- plan company retreat

- buy bread

- start a non-profit to help kids

- rent that movie Mike told me about

- lose 10 pounds

- put air in bike tires

This is a mental purge at its best. As things come to you - whether they are business or personal - write them down. In one moment you might have a thought for a new invention that will end world hunger and then the next moment how you need to get a button fixed on your pants. That's great! No idea or thought is better than another. Just write each of them down and move on to the next one.

If you're stuck coming up with thoughts/ideas, David provides a GTD Trigger List to help you with your mind sweep. When you're done, you'll have a big stack of index cards. Leave them in a big pile for now - we'll get to them soon enough.

Stuff Dump - Initial Physical Collection
What you did with your thoughts and ideas you're going to do with your physical stuff. Search your physical environment for anything that doesn't belong where it is and put it in an in-basket or inbox. I'd recommend you get a big box (or several) for your in-basket or clear a large area of floor space where you'll put everything.

The question I get most often when I'm telling people about this step? "What goes into my in-basket?" Quite simply, everything that doesn't belong where it is. For example, you wouldn't throw your computer keyboard in your in-basket or artwork in your in-basket because presumably these things are where they need to be. But, if you had a broken keyboard in the corner of the room and a painting sitting in your closet, these are fair game and should be put into your in-basket because they don't belong where they are.

Do not organize and do not take action on anything you come across -- you'll use some of your other 8 hours for this. Your mission is to get everything into your in-basket; not to look at each item along the way and figure out where it needs to go. For example, if you pick up that painting, resist the urge to hang it during this step. Just get everything into your in-basket.

There is one exception . . . if you come across something you know for sure you don't need you can throw it out (e.g., the broken keyboard). So, basically you have two piles of stuff -- you have your in-basket and a big ol' garbage can. The more you can dump as you go the better off you'll be.

Ongoing Mental/Physical Collection
Maybe I'm a little slow, but when I first implemented GTD I didn't realize that the Collection step was ongoing. You do the initial mental and physical dump, which is great, but sooner than later you'll have new stuff (ideas and things) to collect. This means that whenever you get an idea/thought or physical document, you need to have clearly defined Collection Buckets in which to put these items.

David recommends having as few Collection Buckets as possible but as many as you need. Here's how to think about your collection buckets. Start with ideas/thoughts. How can you best capture these in different settings? For example, if you're watching TV and get a good idea, what should you do with it? If you're driving 65 miles per hour and you have a thought that needs to be captured, how will you do it? If you're at your computer and need to make a note, what will you do? No matter where you are or what you're doing, you need to be able to capture all of these mental thoughts.

Remember, you want everything out of your head as quickly as possible. Don't try to retain it until you have a chance to capture it later. The process is Thought --> Capture --> Move On.

Same holds true for your stuff. What should you do with receipts? What about a magazine you want to read? Business documents? You need a place to dump all of this stuff. (Coming Soon: Read what tools and tricks I use to GTD Capture my thoughts and things.)

Now that you've got a bunch of stuff, it's time to process and organize it...

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(Lightbulb image by aloshbennett, CC 2.0).

(Cardboard Boxes image by jamuraa, CC 2.0).

(Folders image by D'Arcy Norman, CC 2.0).