Chapter 12

This chapter revolved around a very simple question that we probably ask ourselves unconsciously numerous times throughout the day, "What's the next action?" In the chapter, Allen coins this into a term, and the entire chapter almost felt like a pitch to the reader on why Next Action is so effective and useful. I personally felt the chapter to be a little repetitive however, made very good points in terms of how Next Action could help you personally overcome feelings of anxiety when you procrastinate. I liked his views on why smart people procrastinate, and I found it to be true, that indeed it seems that the people who dread doing things due to a bad emotion attached to that particular task, tend to procrastinate and cause a vicious cycle of nonproductive activity. I particularly enjoyed his take on intelligent dumbing down using next action. How in utilizing next actions, we can minimize the stress of the work by taking control and thus lowering the anxiety that comes with procrastinating, or overthinking. He also then went on to argue and convince on why Next Action could lead to productivity, accountability, clarity, and empowerment. Overall the chapter was short, simple, and to the point about why next action is an effective tool.

Response to Ch. 12

It's interesting how Allen mentions the power of psychological motivation in his GTD methodology. Once you are able to break down a project into small subtasks, you get the satisfaction of a small goal being completed every time you check off a subtask. It helps make monstrous projects, like writing a graduation thesis, actually approachable.

I can't say Allen's assumptions about "bright people" are necessarily valid though. HIs reasoning seems logical, but he probably should have left this part out. Bright or not, breaking down projects into subtasks helps anyone tremendously. When I began breaking down projects into subtasks, I was actually able to approach them without being afraid of how many steps were required to complete the project. Finishing a project is much akin to climbing a mountain; the goal is to get to the peak, but if you keep focusing on the peak you'll be mentally overcome by the numerous valleys and cliffs to overcome . However, if you go at it one rock at a time, before you know it, you're at the summit.

Chapter 12

Allen finally discusses the topic of procrastination, and I can relate because I naturally am a pessimistic person so my mind does a lot of thinking down the line that tends to end in the worst outcomes.  This is probably linked with the fact that I worry so much, but it hinders me from moving forward!  For example, I know that I have a paper but I let the days pass and let the deadline creep closer and closer.  It is not that I forget about it for those days (it is actually at the back of my mind as something I have to do and hold onto ideas that come up), but I don’t start since I feel that I won’t be able to put my ideas together successfully.  Oftentimes, I wait till the deadline is very close because I feel the result would be the best I could have done with the time given, and I am forced to turn in what I have.  However, the smart thing to do for possibly getting the best result would be getting it done early to get feedback on it for improvement.  Being ahead is generally better than falling behind, but actually sitting down and starting tends to be one of the harder parts of a project.  As it says in the chapter, “those projects with distant goal lines are still to be done as soon as possible; ‘long-term’ simply means, ‘more action steps until it’s done.’ not ‘no need to decide next actions because the day of reckoning is so far away’“ (247).  Maybe thinking of the consequences of procrastination will scare me into starting projects sooner, because I know how bad it will be when a blow up does happen. 

I think Allen’s way of viewing “what’s truly impolite is allowing people to walk away from discussions unclear” is really effective when working with more individuals on a project (246).  If there are undecided actions, the progress toward completion becomes less efficient.  People won’t have a clear vision of how to complete their portion.  This helped me in a recent project, because each person really had to know their own part in order to form something that was cohesive.  We addressed almost every issue that we could think of that might come up once we went to do our own parts.  That way we each knew what to do and focus on our own task rather than having to manage confusion across multiple people. 

Chapter 12 Post

I loved the simplicity with which Allen writes this chapter. He talks about how much more productive we and our companies would be if we just always asked the question, "What is the next step?" I feel that this chapter didn't really state any new material but rather rehashed what has already been said in previous chapters. Allen has clearly demonstrated in the duration of his book how essential it is for us as we live our lives to consider the next "actionable action" when we approach our everyday tasks and also our occasional huge projects.

It was interesting to read how he explained that it is often the most intelligent people who procrastinate or have piles of "stuff" laying around in their lives. It's funny because, often, when I imagine a CEO or someone who's in a high position, I think of an immaculate table covered with clearly marked folders and stacks of paper ready to go out to their designated locations. However, after reading Allen's chapter and thinking about my actual real life experiences, I realized that, in many/most cases, those that I've met that are great leaders and really smart people are often messy or somewhat disorganized when it comes to having their entire life in a system. MOST often, it may not be that they're disorganized, but that they lack balance in their life and it usually ends up affecting their personal family life because they can't figure out how to manage otherwise.

Chapter 11

            I really enjoyed chapter 11 from David Allen because it got really personal.  I completely relate to the agreements discussion.  I have a really hard time saying no and when I don't say no, I set myself up for an agreement that I can't fulfill, which very often leads to very negative feelings.  I've come to call and label myself as a flaker, which doesn't necessarily make it okay for me to flake, but it does bring negative feelings to myself.  I not only bring myself down because I couldn't complete the agreement I made with myself, but I also jeopardize my relationship with my friends who I failed to complete an agreement I made. 

            Allen states: "I suggest that you use your mind to think about things, rather than think of them.  You want to be adding value as you think about projects and people, not simply reminding yourself that they exist."  This quote basically summarizing the whole book to me.  Allen has repeatedly emphasized the importance of having a system and trusting the system, and this quote summarizes what the system can do for someone.  I love the system and I have integrated many of Allen's tools into my daily life, but the one thing I need to work on most is the "Weekly Review" (ironically, the most important).  But, I have seen how having a system allows my RAM not to be filled with thinking of trying to complete a task, but thinking about how completing that task is beneficial to me and people around me. 

Chapter 11

This chapter marks the beginning of Part 3, and from the beginning definitely seemed different from all the other Parts that we've read so far. From the read it actually almost felt like a therapy session/ pep talk to justify and solidify his techniques and guidelines to setting agreements with yourself and with others. David tried to focus on the more personable side, and went over concepts such as negative feelings, agreement management, time management, and collections. I particularly enjoyed his section on agreements as I found his suggestions humorous and true. I definitely agree that sometimes its not possible to make an agreement, so his suggestions of either complete, renegotiate, or don't do it at all approach to be true.

I thought his section on relationships and organizations to collection habits was an interesting insight as well. It was an interesting take on trust, and how different people operate on different systems to operate efficiently. 

Chapter 11 Response by Larry

Allen in this chapter is trying to explain why his method works. He talks about that everything in the inbox category is an agreement we made with ourselves. Not processing these agreements means that we violated the agreements and we naturally feel worried about them and cannot stop thinking about them. The way to solve the problem is that, first don't overbook ourselves; second, try to negotiate the agreements; third, complete the agreements.

It makes a lot of sense to me, that I have always wanted to do a lot of things and in the end don't have enough time to do them all. And when I cannot complete the agreements, or fulfill my promises, I feel bad, but I would never forget them, no matter how long they have been. They are just there.