Getting Things Done, or GTD as it is commonly referred to is a productivity workflow system design by David Allen and is detailed in his 2002 book Getting Things Done: The Art of Stress-Free Productivity. I totally recommend reading the book for a detailed understanding of the process.

GTD has a huge following mainly in the US, but the system is gaining in popularity over here in the UK.

It’s not just a system for Business Executives and Managers, it can and should be used by anyone who feels that they need a easy to follow system to manage their workflow, whether it  is in their work or personal life, with GTD all areas of you life can be managed.

The system can be adapted to fit your own needs, and many people have blogged about their own implementation of the system.

GTD focuses on emptying your head of things that need to be done or remembered and creating a list of next actions that need to be completed depending on where you are and what resources are at your disposal.

The basics of GTD comprises 5 main principles:

- collect
- process
- organise
- review
- do

It amazing how life becomes less stressful by having a personal workflow system and not having to rely on your brain to remember things that you need to do.

How you do these 5 things is detailed in David Allen’s book, and the tools to use are discussed regularly on the internet, some people like paper-based and other not surprisingly like electronic solutions, whether they be for Mac, PC, Linux or web hosted.

Which is best is down to personal preference.

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