To read my complete journey to GTD Mastery see the main post.

Step 13 to GTD Mastery is: I have a folder marked “inbox” on my computer for downloaded files.

I named my folder “downloads” instead because I don’t use it as an inbox. Any files I manually download get placed in the appropriate folder immediately (i.e. a sub-folder of “documents,” “music,” “pictures,” etc.). This follows the 2-minute rule.

My “downloads” folder holds files that are automatically downloaded (e.g. µTorrent RSS) or may need to be resumed later due to large file size (e.g. FTP and IRC).

To read my complete journey to GTD Mastery see the main post.

Step 12 to GTD Mastery is: I have lists for tracking “loaned out stuff” and “stuff I’m borrowing.”

I use ThinkingRock to track these two types of items.

To create a list of my “loaned out stuff,” I go to my Waiting For list and search for “return” as seen below.

To create a list of “stuff I’m borrowing,” I go to my NAs list and search for “borrowing” as seen below.

I use ThinkingRock’s “due” field to store when I have to return the item (e.g. library books) as seen below.

To read my complete journey to GTD Mastery see the main post.

Step 11 to GTD Mastery is: I have a list for tracking “Waiting For” items.

In my implementation, I use ThinkingRock to manage my Waiting For (WF) list.

When you create an action in Thinking Rock, you have the option of setting its status to delegated (i.e. WF).

The “Delegated To” field stores who I’m waiting for. The “follow-up” field stores when I have to contact the other party for an update.

GTD treats WF as a context itself (i.e. @WF). However, ThinkingRock creates a list of all your delegated actions. Therefore, I don’t need a @WF context. I use the context field to store where I expect the action to be completed. In the example above, Kim Tang will return my DVDs at school.

ThinkingRock lets you view all your WFs in a delegated tab as seen below. I sort them by action date (i.e. the follow-up date) to see upcoming WFs that I have to follow-up on.

To read my complete journey to GTD Mastery see the main post.

Step 10 to GTD Mastery is: I have listened to GTD on audiobook.

With my family out for the Boxing Day madness (the Canadian Black Friday for our US readers), I took some time to listen to the GTD audiobook.

It was interesting to listen to David speak to me, but there isn’t any content that can’t be acquired by just reading the book. For anyone just getting started in GTD, I recommend buying the book because I found some of the concepts of GTD are better explained visually (e.g. a tickler file).

The abridged version that I listened to clocks in at under 3 hours. The big picture is there, but I couldn’t help but feel that finer details were missing (TBD upon a re-reading of the book). However, there’s a newly released unabridged version of the audiobook. According to the DavidCo site, this one clocks in at 8 hours and contains all the material from GTD.

To read my complete journey to GTD Mastery see the main post.

Step 9 to GTD Mastery is: I have a Master Projects List.

My HipRock serves as my projects list.

It’s created using the Current Project Outline report from Thinking Rock.

This report lists all my projects and sub-projects in bold. The project’s next action is in normal text. Inactive/future project actions are in grey text. You can see this below.

Leo over at Zen Habits wrote a great series on his simplified GTD system, ZTD (Zen to Done). ZTD focuses on simplicity and your goals. Needless to say, when Leo expanded ZTD into a full eBook, I purchased a copy. In the book, he expands upon his ten habits to ZTD Mastery (sounds familiar). The 8th habit is to eliminate all but the absolute essential tasks. With this in mind, I’ve cut down significantly on my projects, either moving them to Someday/Maybe or simply deleting them.

Like my next actions list, ThinkingRock’s projects report creates a PDF file. My projects’ PDF is always less than 2 pages. I’m able to print all my projects and all their actions on the other side of my next actions list.

To read my complete journey to GTD Mastery see the main post.

Step 8 to GTD Mastery is: I have a place or places to keep Next Actions lists, accessible in the right context.

My HipRock serves as my Next Actions list.

It’s created using the Next Actions report from Thinking Rock which automatically orders my NAs alphabetically by context.

By using my weekly review to prune my NAs list, I’m able to build a smart to-do list.

Having a smart to-do list keeps the number of items on my list to a minimum. ThinkingRock’s NAs report creates a PDF file. My PDF is always less than 4 pages and I’m able to print all my NAs on one single-sided piece of paper.

To read my complete journey to GTD Mastery see the main post.

Step 7 to GTD Mastery is: I always have a way to capture ideas and get them out of my head, in all contexts.

My HipRock serves as my ubiquitous capture tool (UCT).

It’s created using the PocketMod report from Thinking Rock.

You can then customize the layout of where you want the new thoughts section for the printout seen below.

The HipRock is printed on a standard sheet of 8.5×11. It’s folded in half width-wise and into quarters length-wise for structured viewing of my NAs, project list, and new thoughts. The folding makes it easily pocketable. Add your writing instrument of choice and it’s ready to go.

To read my complete journey to GTD Mastery see the main post.

Step 6 to GTD Mastery is: I have voice mail, set up the way I want it.

During class, my cell phone is on vibrate. Usually, anyone on campus who needs to reach me will use text messaging, but others who may not know my class schedule will actually call. They are greeted with my voice mail message which asks the person to simply state what they want and the ideal method of reaching them. This lets me easily follow-up with the other party or perform the appropriate next action.

After class, I can check my voice mail by holding down the “1″ key for a couple of seconds. I listen to my voice mail and capture any important details along with the contact using my HipRock. Any triggered next actions are also placed on the HipRock. I delete the voice mail immediately after listening to it.