Walter Logeman: Journal
Here is how I am doing it right now, and loving it. Getting it all working took a while as I had to change everything with the advent of the iPhone. Everything I dreamed I could do on the Palm, in Mindmanager and on paper I now can do on the iPhone.
Details follow.
A Beginner's Guide to Effective Email
This is a link to Kaitlin Duck Sherwood's classic and once rather useful guide. Effective Email is not a bad title. It is, in hindsight an idealistic paper, honourable because of that but also impractical & frustrating. There is an ideology about email embedded in the work that we now know will remain an ideal. In 2006 this 2000 document is dated. It is dated not just because it is from the last century or because of new technology (it is somewhat technology neutral, but technology has surpassed these older ideas) but mainly because something completely new is needed
* to relate to the reality of actual practice
* to grapple with ineffective practices and fallacies that have gained more popularity
For example there is a link to a page by Kaitlin Duck Sherwood on Email Overload. Which has a range of tips, some better than others but which is flawed in its attitude to the question. Even in its title.
There is no such thing as email overload, any more than that there is a library overload, or an art gallery overload, information overload or a shortage of time, or difficult problems… you get the idea, own the challenge, don’t be a victim to abundance in the world; be wise to the flow of stuff.
I am planning some posts here around Email Intelligence. I want to find the central principles of wise email practices.
This is not a trivial thing, a good practitioner would be a back belt in communication, there would be personal fitness combined with a thorough tradition, and like judo would use the energy in the "enemy" as a source of strength, as a friend. There may be a bigger topic here – the art of communication in the digital era. I will however focus (slowly I'm afraid) on principles and practices related to email. And in case you have not spotted, I am already indebted to David Allen's GTD tradition in my thinking here. They are good on email practice, and I also see limitations.
I recall some earlier posts on this theme. I will go back & tag some old posts.
Mnemologistics (abbreviations)
I use a whole swag of abbreviations with Activewords. This site may help me rationalize & add more. I have my own system that bas evolved for years. First in Word’s “Autocorrect” then 9 med “Shortkeys”. By far the best is ActiveWords .
The 5 reasons why The Weekly Review is difficult – What's the next action
I can't concentrate either!
What is the solution?
Mozilla Update :: Extensions — More Info:Message Notes – User Comments
Ah!! Message Notes does work with Thunderbird 1.5 It is a great thing to have as it enable me to add the Next Action GTD style. I like the idea of an Icon that others mention in this forum, that would help me know which emails have the NA!
How to make it work for 1.5
by CyberAnth, Tuesday, January 17 2006
–Download the .xpi file. –Change the .xpi extension to .zip and unzip it. (NOTE: an .xpi is basically a .zip file!). There will be a chrome folder and one file called install.rdf. –Open install.rdf in Notepad and make the change that the poster below says. –Make a zip file of the chrome folder and the install.rdf file you just edited, and then change the extension to .xpi –Install using the Extensions interface in Thunderbird. –You are done.
Thanks! to all who contributed to this and for the edit tip!!
I think I am a bit of a Ninja at email and many of the things here:Recap: Becoming an Email Ninja | 43 FoldersSound ok, but there is an underlying idea that email = waste of time.
Wrong.
Some email is a waste of time and some is valuable.
The art is to sort it, not postpone it, avoid it or to have email free hours or days.
I use Thunderbird and use many of the features: filters, flags, and customised Labels and "Search folders". I used to have an extension called "Message Notes" but it does not work with Thunderbird 1.5. Still hoping looking for an equivalent. The sorting happens vertically into folders and what I think of as "horozontally" by multiple tags in a variety of ways.
I apply the six GTD workflow steps. Collecting; (that is easy they just arrive). Processing; most of that is automatic using the software. Organising; doing if it is under 2 min, deleting delegating, organising includes includes linking to Address books, Mind-Maps and the Calendar and thinking about the the associated NAs and alerts reminders needed. Then there is the Reviewing Doing.
As I write this I realise there is philosophy needed to do this well, GDT is part of it, "email like water" also a notion that online communication is deeply revlolutionary for the psyche. This stuff matters.
My physical file GTD setup on flickr
Discussion in GTD on Yahoogroups about the use of piles. The seemed a silly idea till I realised that my three trays are a Pile. Why not have that stuff in a File? It needs to be in your face until it is is filed so no other reminder system is need for the day to day stuff.
Why notice all this stuff… the David Allen Getting things Done craze has got me.
It is quite profound, at the basis of such practical stuff on the surface is a major impact on the psyche, for me anyway.
I am up here at Mt. Lyford – working through my To Do Lists – and getting more & more to the writing phase! Not many days left though.
The bandwidth is bad here right now, around 21 kbps – so editing stuff online is out, and I am doing these last few posts via email and not looking up links. I’ll go back and tidy up. I know I will as it is in my GTD system!!
The weather has been good and I have enjoyed a few walks. More of that! Also have been very enthused & stimulated by listening to Dave Winer, Adam Curry, and many IT conversations. So will keep up the comments.
And maybe send up some audio.