Get Everything Done

Suppose the root item is something which you do not foresee to do in the next say 6 months. Do you propose to add it to a someday/maybe list or re-enter it at the bottom of list.

The problem with re-entering is that you will have task that is not currently relevant cluttering your system.

Any thoughts about this?

This is indeed an aspect that (for me) was taken care of by the dismissal process of AF/SF. I'm trying to understand/imagine how this works out in FV.

In fact, I've not yet switched to FV because the very first root item in my list is exactly such a beast: an item I don't want to address right now and that under AF will probably soon be dismissed, to be picked up at the appropriate time via a "review dismissed items" action.

Marc: I have made the switch, but after two days of testing I have found that the system does have somedrawbacks for me vs SF. I liked the idea of SF that you can easily see what is urgent now on the right hand column as well as the dismissal process. Thinking of switching back.

I would put items for things months out, like "decide on summer vacation" in my tickler file for that later time. Or you could have a "Someday Maybe" list or file and a recurring item on your FV list to "check Someday/Maybe list" every once in a while.

If they'll be due around the time the "start of list" reaches that page, you can write them on the current last page, and they'll sit there happily. You'll never want to do them before the current benchmark -- until it's time to start them. However, if you have too many of them, you'll spend a lot of time reading, comparing and rejecting the same items over and over. I'm using a week as the cutoff for now. I'll refine it as I use the system to see what works for me.

You could keep everything (active & inactive) in one list, highlight someday/maybe items and ignore them during regular passes through your list.

Pre-FV I started adding tickler dates for future items in the left margin. These are ignored until the date comes. At that point, I re-enter at end of list. I do something similar for someday/maybe's (? In margin). It keeps EVERYTHING on one list without interfering with the AF/SF/FV mechanics.

It's easy to see when any item has been completed, tickled or dotted. Future/someday items are easily ignored while current items stand out.

I think any sort of external reminder would deal well with this issue, just as per the advice in the AF incarnations

Perhaps in FV/AF systems "someday/maybe" is a project called "dreams" or "future"

<<I would put items for things months out, like "decide on summer vacation" in my tickler file for that later time. Or you could have a "Someday Maybe" list or file and a recurring item on your FV list to "check Someday/Maybe list" every once in a while. >>

Indeed, I think the following could fit into the rules: if the first item is something I don't want to start now, then I still take some action on it. This action consists of adding it to my someday/maybe list. Then I cross it off. And I'd have a recurring action in the list: "check someday/maybe list", which would allow to reactivate the item in due time. This could be seen as a dismissal on item level.

These approaches may work fine, but you could also just follow the rules as written, without involving any other lists:

Enter such items on the list like anything else.

At some point, one of those items may percolate to the top of the list -- the very first item.

As the rules indicate, if you CAN'T take any action right now on that item, then cross it off and add it to the end of the list.

But if you CAN take action, but just don't WANT to yet, that's different. If the item is "no longer relevant" you can just delete it. But it sounds like these are items that we probably do WANT to do, at least sometime. FV is forcing us to ask ourselves, "Why not start now?" "What could I do NOW to work towards completing this?"

Perhaps it's enough just to give the item a few minutes of thought -- "Do I really want to do this? Should I offload this item into the tickler for a few months?"

Or maybe we can take five minutes to actually move the task forward.

There are many reasons why I find this approach very appealing:

It keeps these items on the main list, so they are frequently seen and filtered.

Items that I REALLY want to do, will actually see some action, early and often, which means I might actually accomplish the thing sometime. If I bury it on a someday/maybe, where I rarely even see the item, it doesn't get any visibility or filtering.

By keeping the item always in my mind's eye, it allows my subconscious to process the item.

It forces me to stay real, and not offload things to the imaginary future where I have infinite time to do everything I want.

It keeps the system simple and straightforward.

This is the approach I am trying right now, and will try to follow for the first couple weeks at least.

<<As the rules indicate, if you CAN'T take any action right now on that item, then cross it off and add it to the end of the list.>>

I reconsidered what I wrote in the light of this. My original interpretation of this rule was that it applies when I can't do something because of wrong location, missing input, unavailability of contributors etc.

In my case, I don't want to do the first item because I'm required to spend most of my time on other priorities and don't have any time to spare for this (for now). But thinking again, this could also be seen as a valid reason why I "can't" do it.

Is this an acceptable/intended interpretation of this rule?

Marc,

From Seraphim's response, I would say that if you have other, more urgent, priorities, the "pure" way to play this would be to select the task and, when you get to it, simply move it to a tickler to remind you when you have more time.

That's how I'm playing these, and it seems to work well.

Seraphim: What is the difference between a tickler file and a someday/maybe list? For me a tickler file/list is the same as a someday/maybe list except that it has a specific date/time when you need to review this?

To a certain extent you are right Nico.

Someday / Maybe: here you do record just thoughts and ideas that you might do in the (near) future, whenever you are in the mood or ready for them, if they do make sense. Even if you did attach a date of action to it - which I would not suggest to do. Otherwise you are putting yourself even more under pressure ;)

Tickler: is more hard facts, things that you have scheduled to do and at the end of the day you can not avoid.

After I have been following my own tweak of AF (PING-PONG-Af, described elsewhere in the forum), I hesitated to switch to FV. But I did today, and right the first item on my list was one that would belong on a "someday/maybe" list. I couldn't bring me to simply strike it out; I've put a cross (x) before it instead of a dot. My thought was: "As soon as the page is finished, I'll mark the page finished anyway (which I do with a big cross over it), and then I will mark the x-ed items with yellow text marker just as I usually did."

In doing so, a "someday/maybe list" is building itself. Being a lazy person, I always prefer processes that accomplish things by themselves.

Besides that, I follow FV to the letter, so far with the impression that it is, in fact, a great improvement and the best system ever.