You could use the next actions by area and context dashboard template in the way you describe but I would recommend a simpler approach (and minimize the risk of you falling into the rabbit hole of custom dashboard tweaking).

The workaround I would use for this is to follow the map central strategy I described earlier this year but go one step further and put the maps you care about in this area in 2010\AreaX.

Then create a map central that points only to that folder (or run dashboards on just that branch of a more general map central). That will enable you to use a vanilla daily action or review dashboard as is. The "Next Action Analysis" script run on daily action in this way will give you several breakdown lists (tasks by priority, time available, projects by priority, etc) that can be used instead of generating a separate custom dashboard to get them. The m2t (map2table) tag/macro run on these branches can give a nice tabular view of things.

Make sure you move any relevant items from your general daily capture map to a map in this folder first.

Related posts:

1. Building a Custom ResultsManager Dashboard
2. Committed Projects and Next Actions
3. Creating a ResultsManager Dashboard Template

When you sit down to get too work, the last thing you want to do is to tie up MindManager with a several minute dashboard refresh as this is a perfect recipe for going off on some web distraction.

One way to get around this is to make use of your computer's task scheduler to automatically refresh your dashboards on a regular basis. This approach was first described 3 years ago in in the "Put it in front of the door" post.

I recently got this running again on my new Windows 7 computer and did some work to clean up the script and make it easier for others to implement. The script is now installed as part of the MindReader Setup program and can be run by running the "rfd.bat" file in the "My Maps\AO" directory. MindReader and Mark Task Complete have also been updated to work better with multi-computer synchronization.

The script also does several other things now such as running next action analysis and a recently added capability of saving the dashboard in html format. If you are a hard core ResultsManager user, this script is for you.

For more information, see the "Put it in front of the door" page on the wiki..

Please comment below with questions/suggestions/problems.

Happy New Year,

AO

Related posts:

1. Put it in front of the door again
2. Put it in Front of the Door
3. You've got Mail…from ResultsManager?

Whether you are following Habit 2 of the Stephen Covey's 7 Habits of Highly Effective People or the "Next Action" mindset of Getting things done (GTD), is all about learning to identify and break down the sequence of individual steps to get from point A to point B.

I spend most of my time interfacing with capture tools (GyroQ or OutLinker), processing the input through MindReader, and then using Next Action Analysis to review and prioritize activities harvested from MindManager by ResultsManager. For better or worse, I actually spend relatively little time planning in the underlying project maps themselves.

This works fairly well with one exception. I typically only capture the "next action" associated with an idea or email. If it is not linked to a project or subsequent action and is subsequently marked complete from a dashboard, I sometimes forget to enter the subsequent step and risk having the project fall off my radar.

The latest version of MindReader can help address this issue with its new capability for it to recognize and process sequences of activities separated by << or >> delimiters. For example, you can now use the << delimiter to enter a sequence starting at the end:


which yields:

or you can use the >> delimiter to enter the sequence of actions starting with the next action and leading to the final action or project:

which yields:

MindReader processes each portion of the sequence separately based on keywords in each activity, so if you enter:

Report Complete isproject next month! << Review draft << Waiting for Bob to draft report << Ask Bob to write report tomorrow

you get:

You can use this functionality from the MindReader q or b tags or from OutLinker. I think it has a lot of potential uses that I haven't thought of yet. For example, you could conceive of having a library of "template" sequences that you queue in as needed for routine work flows.

You can download the new functionality by grabbing the ao_mindreader_common.mmbas macro from the macro library or running the setup program.

Related posts:

1. New MindReader features: the "m" tag and explicit context
2. OutLinker: A new tool for draining your Microsoft Outlook inbox
3. GTD and MindReader Q&A

OutLinker and OutLinker Lite now automatically detect conversation threads and allow you to navigate across them using the "nt" (next in thread) and "pt" (previous in thread) buttons. You can now also ThreadZoom(TM) your selection to focus on just the messages in the thread. You can "UnZoom" back to the full list as needed or wait for OutLinker to automatically "UnZoom" once you have whittled the thread down to one message.

Related posts:

1. Outlinker GUI
2. OutLinker Lite (OutLinker for "list" people)
3. How long is a typical email message?

Ironically, in developing and sharing a framework on how she might deal the fact that her greatest success may be behind her in the form of previous book "Eat, Pray, Love", she perhaps achieves a greater one. Procrastinate a bit and hear what she has to say…

My favorite quote – "I would please like the record to show today that I showed up today for my part of the job"

Related posts:

1. GTDT (Getting Things Done Together)
2. GTD Audio
3. Upcoming ResultsManager Webinar

Note that the contexts assigned with the buttons (or by just putting the @context in the next action) are now automatically set as the category if you choose to send the task to your Microsoft Outlook task list. This is particularly useful for OutLinker Lite users who are not yet working with MindManager or ResultsManager. OutLinker also recognizes some common "context verbs" and sets an associated context.

The text associated with the "context" buttons can be fully customized under the Options menu and can be re-purposed if desired to set different mindreader keywords (e.g. destination map keyword, alias).

Related posts:

1. OutLinker Lite (OutLinker for "list" people)
2. What are your next action verbs?
3. ThreadZoom

The program was recently enhanced with the option to create Outlook tasks with message attachments and/or links. It occurred to me that this tool might be useful to non-MindManager users. OutLinker Lite is a new version of OutLinker that removes dependencies and options related to MindManager and focuses on creating OutLook tasks. As time goes on, more "MindReader" functionality can be added to mark up those tasks in a manner similar to what is done in MindReader.

If you are an OutLinker power user, you might have a friend give "OutLinker Lite" a try. If you are not a MindManager user, but are suffering from a full inbox and struggling to avoid exceeding your Exchange quota, this could be a useful tool for you.

Related posts:

1. ThreadZoom
2. OutLinker Unlinked
3. Synchronizing MindManager and OutLook

If you are a MindManager user and have wanted to give these tools a try in the past, but prefer your software installations to be "two-minute actions" instead of "projects", now might the time to give things a go. If you have used the tools, but haven't kept up with the incremental improvements over time, this also provides an opportunity to get caught up and keep up to date.

A big thanks goes to Hans, who developed the installation program using Inno Setup, and to Reenie, Marco, Stefan, Ron, Mike and others for testing out the early versions. The installer has performed well, with most of the glitches related to my overhaul of the tools themselves in preparation for use with the installer.

As part of this effort the wiki documentation for using and customizing the tools has been cleaned up with the help of Reenie. I'd recommend browsing the pages for MindReader, Mark Task Complete, and Next Action Analysis. In particular you might want to have a look at using the MindReader m tag in order to familiarize yourself with the full capabilities of MindReader.

For detailed instructions on downloading and installing the software, visit the Setup page on the wiki. Note that OutLinker still needs to be installed manually and should be updated as part of this upgrade if you are a legacy user.

If you do run into any issues, post comments below so they can be addressed.

Related posts:

1. 2008 GTD Challenge Results
2. Mark Task Complete Update
3. Put it in front of the door in 2010

One other way to speed things up if you are a long time user is to clean up your completedlog.mmap file by moving all the branches to a separate mindmanager map. Frequently used maps may also have a lot of tasks accumulated in the floating completed topics, although speed issues associated with that are addressed with the move to project-based storage.

Gyronix has made great progress in their early beta versions getting GyroQ and ResultsManager adapted to MindManager version 8 and I imagine they will be broadly available (at least in beta form) soon.

I've been keeping notes on how to migrate use of tools from this site on the wiki Migrating to MindManager Version 8 page.

Related posts:

1. Mark Task Complete Updated
2. Mark Task Complete Update
3. SpeedReader — Faster Version of MindReader Available

The system and tools have been pretty stable from a development point of view, but I recently noticed an opportunity to slightly improve the default ResultsManager daily action dashboard template that I thought I would share.

A key concept of GTD is translating your projects into next actions and organizing them by context. Often the value of context assignment is the journey rather than the end. If you think about the specific "how", "where", and "when" of the next action, you will force yourself to translate it into a more "physical" action than it otherwise might be.

One area I am trying to improve is better defining contexts that match my personal situation and style. In practice there have been only a few lists that I proactively seek out from a context point of view:

• "phone" (short for "weekday 9-5")
• "errands" (particularly important in this era of high gas prices)
• "contact X about" (very useful in combination with the the "relationship central" "I owe" and "waiting for"

The problem comes when a "contact about" next action also involves a context. For example…

• Take ActivityDaughter to store to shop for camp supplies (@errands, ActivityDaughter@)
• Call TravelAgent about summer vacation (@phone, TravelAgent@)
• Call mom for mothers day! (@phone, mom@)

The default ResultsManager Daily Action dashboard filters are set up to avoid you getting a long list of "No Context" next actions that are really "Contact X about" items, by filtering out next actions that involve "partners" from the "@" lists and channeling all these to the "contact…" branch. The result is an errand or call that has a partner doesn't show up on the errand or calls list.

This can be addressed by breaking the context-list branch into two such that one captures specific contexts (regardless of partner) and another captures "no partner/no context" items. I thought I would share the procedure for those interested in learning more about customizing dashboards.

Assuming you already have a daily action dashboard generated, you can quickly open the underlying template by clicking on "open template" on the ResultsManager menu:

If you expand the "Next Actions" branch you can see there are parallel "partner" filters, with the first excluding any "contact about" partners from the next action lists and the 2nd to enumerate them:

What we have done here is leverage a lightly documented filter parameter of "_undefined" and "NOT _undefined" to channel defined contexts to the first branch and then "No Context" items to the 2nd, which are further filtered by the original "Partner=N" filter.

Once you have adjusted your dashboard template, you can save it and start using it. If you would prefer to keep the original, you can change the dashboard name (under application/prepare/properties):

and then save it in the "My Dashboards" folder (or elsewhere if you choose):

If you have chosen to save the template as new, you need to "install template" from the ResultsManager menu while it is active to add it to your list of available dashboards:

If you have questions, just comment below. If you want to learn more about how to build a dashboard template from scratch, see the 7 steps on the wiki. If you don't want to go through the "do-it-yourself" exercise above, you can just download the template from the ResultsManager Dashboard Library.

Related posts:

1. Map2Table — Export your map branches to a linked web page table
2. Focusing in on One Area of your Life
3. Putting Things in Context

After three years of exploring and tinkering (I bought ResultsManager in May 2005) and collaborating with many of you, I feel I've finally developed a balanced "trusted system" approach that works for me utilizing OutLinker, MindReader, Next Action Analysis, and Mark Task Complete. These macros have finally allowed me to fully leverage the MindManager, ResultsManager, and GyroQ applications.

The Next Action Analysis approach has been pivotal in proving a look at things in a more balanced and comprehensive way. The "game" of trying to empty Outlook inboxes and raise my NAA score has provided just enough incentive to get me to plug my GTD leaks and attack those lingering "high cringe factor" items clogging up my dashboard.

Previously I would spend all my dashboard and review time at the top of the Daily Action Plus Dashboard trying to empty in-trays and deal with items past their deadlines or targets, and neglecting other aspects. Now I feel like my focus shifts appropriately to the 5F that needs the most attention.

After using this set of tools for four months, this week I finally hit a perfect 10.0 on my personal maps and also got my work maps up over 9. If only I had got here during the contest :-).

A trend of my score over time is included at the bottom of the post based on the data collected in the NAALog.mmap. I tend to work with my personal maps on the weekend while doing chores and errands and paying bills :-(. Along the way I spent a lot of time fighting back the tide on each of the 5F's in turn. Once the macro gave me my "perfect score", the question became "what is the next action"?

To celebrate I took a break this evening to create the diagram above, which captures the NAA framework concisely and graphically. This may be helpful to you whatever GTD system or tools you actually use. What makes the next action analysis macro useful is that it generates quantitative metrics for these components and links out to the items that impact each of them (e.g. overdue or aging tasks) rather than requiring separate dashboards for these purposes.

The figure adds a 6th component to the five covered by the NAA tool, which is asking whether you are capturing the "Full Picture" of your work. You can't automate that, although GyroQ can be used to run a full "MindSweep". The other aspect captured in this component is the need for a regular review of "someday/maybe" lists to see what deferred projects merit activating. You might implement this by using a weekly repeating task reminder and then ensure that it stays fresh!

Of course for me what really remains now is finally giving more attention to "non squeaky wheel" projects and actions not currently in the penalty box. I won't be at 10.0 for long if I don't attack the 60 next actions on my home list and 80 on my work list. Unfortunately blogging isn't on either of them :-).

All the best,

AO

Related posts:

1. 2008 GTD Challenge Results
2. Next Action Analysis 2008 GTD Challenge
3. Logging Next Action Analysis Results

Note that the scoring has been adjusted to encourage more context assignment. For background on the tool see previous posts or its wiki page.

Related posts:

1. Next Action Analysis Updated
2. Next Action Analysis: 5 Metrics for Assessing your GTD System
3. Six Components of a GTD Review

The macro now defaults to routing transfers to MindManager through GyroQ, which is much faster. I didn't want to publicize this until I'd tested it out on a few thousand messages. It is working well now that issues with escaping quote characters have been resolved. If you choose, you can avoid use of GyroQ by setting the "usegyroq" setting to 0 and just have items transfer in real-time. You can also avoid use of MindReader by setting "usemindreader" to 0. All you really need is Outlook and MindManager.

The script now uses session variables and a cache to hold information in memory between uses, which has improved speed quite a bit — thanks for the tips Mike! The menu of commands has been expanded as shown below:

I use the macro by selecting anywhere from 1 to 250 messages at a time and then dispatching them quickly by either deleting (d), archiving (a), or by typing in an action item to send to MindManager. Non-action reference items can be sent over by adding a "isinfo" keyword.

It can be mentally challenging to transfer "urgent" items over to MindManager, but if you resolve to get all the way to "zero" and add short term target dates to urgent items, you can move over to MindManager and use your ResultsManager "Daily Action" dashboard and the
"Next Action Analysis" macro to guide your day.

All settings and counters for the scripts are kept in a "OutLinker Settings" Notes folder:

If you are currently using the script, I'd recommend pasting the latest version of OutLinker.bas into your macro file. If you have tried it in the past but ran into bugs or glitches, give this version a go. If you haven't tried it yet, have a look at the installation instructions on the wiki and post below if you have any questions.

Related posts:

1. Outlinker Update
2. OutLinker Setup Gets Easier and New Attachment Feature
3. OutLinker Unlinked

… I understand that GTD is not a set of absolute rules, but tools to use to your benefit, but am not comfortable with something key in the Next Step, concept. We're told that if something will take more than say, two minutes, stick it in the system. I assume this leads to documenting every step that will take more than two minutes? But it can't, or we would document going to the grocery store as 200 steps, obviously making the process more laborious than is beneficial. So how do you know how to break projects down?

Is it entirely arbitrary? The system is very keen on next steps, but what about all of the 'other' steps? So, I'm going to build a house myself, and the Next Step is to draw blueprints. But I know that to draw blueprints I need to buy big paper, and when I have them I'll need to go to the copy store and make copies, and I'll need to look in the yellow pages for contractors, and I'll need to make a list of contractors to call, and I'll need to call each one, and, and, and… By breaking this into discrete components (especially if I'm going to take the time to enter them into an electronic system), I would seem to exponentially increase the time it will take to get the project actually done. Maybe I'm missing the bigger picture, and I admit, I'm on the very outside edge crawling towards the center of all of this…

David Allen has a knack for ironic phrases like "the center is the edge", "being complete with your incompletions", etc. Perhaps the analogous phrase he might use to answer your question would be "Getting things done is about getting things done".

Barriers to getting things done

What barriers get in the way of getting things done? Not capturing the "things" in the first barrier. "Things" can sit in your inbox, on your desk, workbench, garage floor, or mind. GTD stresses capturing all your "stuff" in a trusted system of some type. This is where tools like GyroQ and OutLinker come in. The "2 minute" rule relates to the trade-off of the time needed to process something into your projects and next action lists versus just doing it. I think with advent of fluid tools like those covered on this site, that guideline might need some revising, but that's for another post.

Once something is "captured", the next "not getting done" barrier can be lack of clarity on what is the first baby step to get it moving. This is where "next physical actions" come in. Although it has evolved to do quite a bit more, MindReader was initially conceived as a way to try to automatically assign "contexts" based on action verbs in phrases going into GyroQ or in MindManager topics. Sometimes the thought process of identifying the "next physical action" involves a backward sequencing process (replace tires – schedule visit – call store – lookup phone number) that generates a string of next actions. Once you have gone through that thought process, you might as well capture it in a map so that checking off the 1st step automatically queues up the next, but its not essential. Often just getting that 1st physical next action identified early catalyzes the rest of the process to move ahead quickly and naturally.

The third barrier to getting things done can be lack of having all those unrelated baby steps organized by "context" so that you can advance them efficiently. Among its other capabilities, ResultsManager excels at harvesting all your next actions from a network of project maps and laying them out for you in a single dashboard of next actions by contexts. Having a convenient "context" list can make you more productive in the little snippets of time that might otherwise be used inefficiently or go to waste. With gas prices being what they are, an "errands" list is all the more important.

The Chess Analogy
So how you do you break projects down? When I envision GTD, I think of what it could be like to be one of those grandmaster chess players who can run around a room and play 30 games (projects) at once. Now perhaps they do that by instantly recognizing the pattern on the board each time and the best next move. If I was going to do it, I'd have a project map for each game with some working notes and reference links on it, and a task reminder that the other player had the next move and to make sure I came back to it. I might also have a "next move" lined up based on the previous "review" of the situation for that game (project).

Thinking about this in another way, "Getting things done is not about what you are getting done". You don't need to document each completed action, or plan each next action for a project you are actively working on. You just want make sure you set projects up (or set them aside with) at least one next step to keep things moving.

Next question: Just want to make sure I understand something about the technology. I understand that MindReader requires MindManager/MindJet and Gyroq, but does it REQUIRE ResultsManager? (I have all of these tools, just trying to wrap my head around what does what). If I understand correctly, RM is really just a reporting tool (maybe an important one, but still a reporting tool). Is this correct?

No, technically MindReader doesn't require ResultsManager or even GyroQ (it has some limited functionality running directly on topics as a standalone macro), but there is a lot of synergy amongst the tools. MindReader enables GyroQ to capture and set the context, due date, priority, etc of a large quantity of tasks and spread them across many maps in one step. This is most useful if you have the ability to pull all that information back together into a dashboard with ResultsManager.

Other readers can provide additional insights below.

Related posts:

1. Six Components of a GTD Review
2. GTD Phone Home
3. 2008 GTD Challenge Results

The Next Action Analysis macro calculates and sorts these metrics for ResultsManager users by harvesting information from the Daily Action Dashboard. It also creates lists of actions and projects associated with the various components (e.g. aging tasks) as well as provides targeted advice on how to attack and improve your situation.

To have some fun with this, and provide readers with a framework for "climbing back on the GTD horse" in the new year, we initiated the "Next Action Analysis 2008 GTD Challenge". The goal was to get an initial assessment in the 1st half of January and then work to improve it by the end of the month.

Thanks to everyone who entered. It isn't easy to share the state of your "system". I think it was helpful to everyone to see that others are in the same boat. The entries and results are summarized below (Courtesy of Map2Table):

	Initial Score	Final Score	Improvement	Current Score
Juan	2.00	6.07	4.07
AO	6.40	7.50	1.10	9.59
Arkadiy	6.77
Bill S.	7.60
DW	7.95
Jose-Miguel	8.20	9.82	1.62	9.41
Mal	7.00
Renaldostheold	7.40	9.22	1.82	9.96

And the winners of the 2008 GTD challenge….

• Highest Final Score: Jose-Miguel
• Biggest Improvement: Juan
• Random Drawing: Renaldostheold

I think a few of these folks may have already claimed their prizes :-).

Here are some random thoughts and advice on use of the tool…

Context is King
In general it felt like the revised scoring was well balanced, and put me on the areas needing focus, but the one area that probably merits more weighting is the penalty for actions lacking context. The "no context" list is always with ripe with "blobs" that need more thought and review. Eliminating items from this list tends to help several others scores. For example sending them to someday/maybe, defining a new/younger physical next action, marking already complete items done, can be impactful on several dimensions. I am looking at raising the weighting here but need to decide where to steal the points from. Thoughts? My guess is "project proritization" or "Target Dates".

My Favorite?
If I personally had to give up using all but one tool from this site, this would be the one that I would keep. I have found it has kept me focused on all aspects of my system and forced me to address the stale tasks that were bogging it down. The delay in getting this contest entry posted is a testament to that as the "game" of improving your score can keep you focused on your important projects (rather than your blog :-).

How Many Next Actions are Too Many?
In order to get 10.0 on the "feasibility" scale, you need to knock your next actions down to 80. You'll only get a 5.0 on that dimension if you have 150 actions. That's a pretty stiff penalty, but the purpose is to reinforce the concept of actually doing the items on your list rather than carrying them around for weeks or months at a time. The scoring make your next action list expensive real estate that you want to populate with things you are committed to doing in the near term.

Do you Trust your Trusted System?
I've found the key to using tools like GyroQ, MindReader, and OutLinker to capture commitments into MindManager, is knowing that you maps are not black holes. If you don't trust it, you'll tend to keep "important" items piled up on your desk or in your OutLook Inbox. Keeping your NAA score up, and reviewing the flags it raises regularly, can help you build that trust into your system such that it become closer to 100%.

Are your Projects Projects?
It is very easy to fall into the trap of throwing all your tasks under "area" buckets (e.g. "Home Repair") that last forever rather than defining specific projects. The project priority and target date metrics are there not so much to yield benefits to your dashboard, but to help you decide whether a project should go to the someday/maybe list or be broken out as a smaller/more specific project.

Are your Targets Targets?
As mentioned above, the purpose of the target date assignment metric is not so much for the value of setting targets, but for forcing as many items as possible into defined/do-able projects. One thing you want to avoid is perpetually setting unrealistic targets such that you spend your time discouraged by them or postponing them.

If you use "Mark Task Complete" to set up routine "good habit" reminders, try setting just the start date rather than both the start and due date. For example, if you have a daily reminder called "empty in-tray", set it as a "daily" with just a start date. That way it will show up on your next action lists, and you'll take satisfaction in checking it off, but it won't clutter your "overdue" lists.

How to Deal with In-trays?
Based on my experiences with this tool, I've begun setting up my in-tray's with a "project" icon, particularly on "map central" maps. The key advantage of this approach is that it ensures that its parent "project" flags as needing next actions if it becomes empty. It also helps you avoid letting random "bits and pieces" actions find there way in under a map central map. I'll blog more about this later. You can also remove a central topic from the project list by giving it a category of "mc*", but this option should be used with care.

Have you tried it?
The script has improved quite a bit over the last month, so if you haven't done so recently I would recommend downloading the latest copy. Recent versions provide the option of opening a wiki page dedicated to providing advice on improving the weakest aspect of your score. If you are a routine dashboard user, or have ResultsManager, but have "fallen of the GTD horse", give this a try. It doesn't require that you have any other "AO" tools. All you need is ResultsManager for generating Daily Action Dashboards.

Next Steps?
Any interest in further contests? Are there any other aspects of the DA dashboard that could be assessed? I'd write more, but I need to get going on some procrastinated "next actions" so I can improve my "Freshness" score :-).

Related posts:

1. Next Action Analysis 2008 GTD Challenge
2. Six Components of a GTD Review
3. Next Action Analysis Updated

Related posts:

1. Mark Tasks Complete Faster
2. Mark Task Complete Update
3. GyroTimer 2.0

Here are four options for getting items into your maps from a mobile device.

1. Use bitbucket.org to mail yourself task from the PDA and then pull
   the tasks in via an RSS map part (see A MindManager-Based RSS News Reader.

2. Take that approach one step farther, and call in your tasks verbally
   to Jott with the phone rather than typing them in. This is handy for
   use when driving (see GTD Phone Home. ActivityDaughter also uses it to remind Dad of things like the need to get started on her upcoming Volcano project.

3. If the phone's task list is Outlook synced, you can pull the Outlook tasks into MindManager using OutLinker.
4. If you capture the tasks in a note, you can paste the list into the
   MindReader GyroQ "q" tag, and it will process and parse each line separately into
   separate tasks. You don't need to paste them 1 by 1. See Feed your todo list into MindReader.

   I personally tend to just carry two thin Moleskine notebooks (one work/one personal) in my pocket and log things there for later manual transfer with GyroQ.

   Related posts:

   1. Feed your to-do list into MindReader
   2. GTD Phone Home
   3. Synchronizing MindManager and OutLook
   ]]> http://www.activityowner.com/2008/02/15/four-ways-to-add-tasks-to-your-maps-from-your-phone/feed/ 1 http://www.activityowner.com/2008/01/24/mindreader-turns-1-gets-its-braces-taken-off/ http://www.activityowner.com/2008/01/24/mindreader-turns-1-gets-its-braces-taken-off/#comments Fri, 25 Jan 2008 02:47:45 +0000 ActivityOwner http://www.activityowner.com/2008/01/24/mindreader-turns-1-gets-its-braces-taken-off/
5. Alias
6. New MindReader features: the "m" tag and explicit context
7. Delay or Extend an Activity with MindReader

While your inbox contains a mixture of spam, bulk mail, info-only cc's, and perhaps 10% actionable information, your "Sent Items" will tend to have a much more concentrated set of …

• commitments you have made to others
• things you are now waiting for
• things you need to contact others about
• things you need to inform others about
• things you want to retain for ready reference

These are open loops you want to capture in whatever GTD system you are using at the end of each day. If you are using MindManager with ResultsManager and have Outlinker installed, open your sent-items, select the messages you sent, and run OutLinker. At the prompt you can type …

• d – to delete the message
• a – to archive the message
• ra – to reply all to supplement the message (rad will reply and delete)
• f – to forward the message

..or you can type in your "next action" to send it to MindManager. If you precede the text with "info:" or "info only:" it will not be marked with a action icon.

If you lead the string with "olwf", "olio", or "olca", MindReader will markup the task as being something you are waiting for, owe to, or need to contact about the person you sent it to. [Note: its not working right for multiple recipients at the moment]. Gmail is more persistent in its desire to keep things in the Sent Folder, so you need to implement a filter that labels all your outgoing mail and then act on that label folder as if it was your sent items.

Matches: from:(yourname@gmail.com)
Do This: Apply label "_Sent"

Related posts:

1. Getting to Zero
2. OutLinker: A new tool for draining your Microsoft Outlook inbox
3. Synchronizing MindManager and OutLook

Here is a summary of the changes:

1. Added more targeted recommendations for the specific metrics with the most room for improvement along with wiki links that provide GTD advice and ways to use MindReader to address problem. Please add your advice.
2. Metric subtopics now list the projects or actions that need to be addressed (e.g. activities needing context, projects needing actions, etc). I particularly like the "You have the most work to do in the X context". On those days where you have your choice of "contexts", this can tell you where to go. Having these lists close at hand can be a catalyst for review and action.
3. The scoring was changed so that absolute metrics (e.g. #tasks, #overdue, etc) are scored on an exponentially declining scale rather than with a minimum cutoff. For example, you get 10.0 if you have no overdue tasks, 5.0 if you have 2, 2.5 if you have 4, 1.25 if you have 6, etc. That means if you have 300 next actions and pair that down to 200, you will see your score improve a bit rather than stay flat at 0.0.
4. The 5F's reported is now sorted so the worst dimension is listed first.
5. A new metric measuring the percentage of the projects that have had prioritized was added.
6. You can exclude "map central"-like central topics from the projects list by assigning a category of "mc*" to them (deactivate after adding the category). Use cautiously as you don't want stray action items living under one of these excluded projects. This category is intended for the central topic of a map where the project(s) are not in the central topic.
7. A status summary is shown during report generation so you know the macro is moving along.
8. Three random "activities of the day" are now included at the bottom of the report. For those days where you just don't know where to start.

Here is a sample output of the macro:

You can compare this to the old version.

Phase I of the 2008 GTD Next Action Analysis Challenge is complete with seven entrants vying for "Most Improved" over the next two weeks. There is still two weeks left to get your entry in for top score and/or the random drawing. I can think of several ResultsManager Power Users who have yet to submit an entry (that is unless they are one of the anonymous entries :-).

If you are a ResultsManager dashboard user, I recommend you download the macro and give it a try whether you want to enter or not. It includes several snippets of code that were previously shared separately including Next Action Roulette, Fire the oldest 10% of your tasks, Are your Next Actions eligible for Retirement, and "percent complete". No other a software is required. I recommend assigning it to your topic context menu to make it easy to run on your Daily Action Dashboard.

Note that I use the wiki to transfer programs from my home to work PC. This helps me avoid lagging too much in getting updates on the site. The downside is that sometimes undiscovered bugs creep in for a few hours. This particular script has has more than its share and probably a few remain. If you run into a problem let me know or just circle back in a day or so for the corrected version.

READER SURVEY
From a scoring point of view, I've found the "Feasibility: Number of Next Actions" metric to be the most difficult to evaluate. I initially assigned "70" as a 10.0 score but I'm wondering if that is unrealistically low. How many actions should a 10.0 dashboard have? How many is too many as to constitute a red-flag 6.5? Ditto for projects — Please comment below.

The blog will be quiet for the next 2 weeks as I hunker down and vie for the top score prize!

Related posts:

1. Logging Next Action Analysis Results
2. Next Action Analysis: 5 Metrics for Assessing your GTD System
3. 2008 GTD Challenge Results

Until I learned about ResultsManager, I had never heard about David Allen or his famous "Getting Things Done" ("Organízate con Eficacia" in its Spanish version), so I bought the software before reading the book.

I must admit that I felt a bit disillusioned initially, since adding a large number of activities was somewhat cumbersome. As I results I stopped using ResultsManager a few weeks later.

That is pity because, conceptually speaking, ResultsManager is really a brilliant idea though its current version's usability can be improved, especially regarding data entry, e.g. adding activities.

Nevertheless, after reading David Allen's book, I was so convinced about how powerful GTD was that I decided to try ResultsManager once more. At that time GyroQ had been released so I was able to gather all my thoughts, reminders, etc. as they came and send them to a single Central Map.

The problem was that converting all those ideas, reminders, etc. into activities remained cumbersome so my Central Map eventually become a substitute for dashboards. Over time my Central Map had so many activities, and they were so different in terms of importance and priority, that it became useless. When my hard disk died it was the straw that broke the camel's back so I decided, for second time, to stop using ResultsManager.

But I was lucky and found MindReader, which is the philosopher's stone that converts ResultsManager into the gold nugget of Productivity.

However it was not an immediate process. At the beginning it took me a while to try it, since I had the feeling that it was too complex and also requiring a high level of technical knowledge. But during the last Summer holidays I decided to invest a couple of days "in depth" to really understand what MindReader could do for me.

As soon as I started using it I became addicted to it. Adding activities to ResultsManager changed from being a cumbersome process to something natural and enjoyable. MindReader is like a powerful vitalizer that converts a slightly limping ResultsManager into a champion race horse.

Even though I use almost all the features of MindReader, I personally use some of them such as "q", "o", are "s" than the others. The ones I use more often are, in this order, "c", "m", "b", "p" and "a", not to mention "Mark Task Complete & Log". I have the "c" tag assigned to the contextual topic menu as "Process with MindReader", same as I have for "Mark Task Complete & Log".

Normally I add the project or subproject as plain text and then I add (always in plain text) the remaining activities. Once I have added all the activities I select them with the mouse, right click and then click on "Process with MindReader", which converts all those plain text topics into tasks with all the necessary information. If I see that something is missing in an activity I modify it using the "m" tag. If what is missing is an activity I add it using "b", "p" or "a".

I use the brackets quite often, for example "Call Juan to discuss project A [p2 Friday 3 days before]", which MindReader converts in a few seconds into the task ("Call Pepe to discuss project A"), with Context "Phone", Priority 2, StartDate "3 days before", DueDate "Friday" and Resources "Juan@".

As you can see, it is simply brilliant.

The more I used it, the more ideas for improvements I had but, as my MindManager/ResultsManager ObjectModel and programming knowledge were close to zero, I dared to propose them to ActivityOwner.

As you can imagine, his answer was excellent and speedy and that cooperation resulted in quite a few improvements that have been added to MindReader since its initial version.

Needless to say that collaborating with ActivityOwner to improve and develop all these tools is not only a honor and a pleasure but also a relaxing intellectual stimulus.

Happy 2008 to everyone.

Related posts:

1. David Allen on Huffington Post
2. Mapping the MindReader Configuration Map
3. GTDT (Getting Things Done Together)

Hasta que descubrí ResultsManager nunca había oído hablar de David Allen ni de su famoso "Getting Things Done" ("Organízate con Eficacia", en su versión en Español), así que me compré el software antes de leer el libro.

He de reconocer que al principio me desilusionó un poco, ya que añadir actividades era un proceso demasiado lento e ineficiente, por lo que unas semanas después dejé de usarlo.

Es una lástima porque, conceptualmente hablando, ResultsManager es una idea realmente brillante aunque la usabilidad de su versión actual es muy mejorable, sobre todo en lo que concierne a añadir actividades.

Sin embargo, después de leer el libro de David Allen, era tal mi convencimiento sobre la potencia del método GTD que decidí probar ResutsManager una vez más. Por aquel entonces ya había aparecido GyroQ así que al menos iba enviando a un Mapa Central todas las ideas, recordatorios, etc. según iban ocurriendo.

El problema es que convertir esas ideas, recordatorios, etc. en actividades seguía siendo un proceso lento e ineficiente por lo que al final el Mapa Central acabó sustituyendo a los dashboards. Con el tiempo el Mapa Central contenía demasiadas actividades y de distinta importancia y prioridad, con lo que dejó de ser útil.

Un fallo en mi disco duro fue la gota que faltaba para abandonar completamente, por segunda vez, al ResultsManager.

Pero tuve la suerte de encontrar www.activityowner.com y pude seguir día a día el desarrollo del fantástico MindReader, que es la piedra filosofal que convierte a ResultsManager en una pepita de oro de la productividad.

Sin embargo el proceso no fue inmediato. Al principio me costó mucho decidirme a probarlo, ya que me daba la impresión de ser muy complejo y de requerir un alto nivel de conocimientos técnicos para utilizarlo. Pero durante las pasadas vacaciones de verano decidí dedicarle un par de días "a fondo" para realmente entender qué podía MindReader hacer por mí.

Fue empezar a usarlo y convertirme en un adicto. Añadir actividades a ResultsManager dejó de ser un proceso lento e ineficiente para pasar a ser algo natural y divertido. MindReader es como un potentísimo revitalizante que convierte a un renqueante ResultsManager en un caballo de carreras.

Aunque uso casi todas las características de MindReader, algunas como las tags "q", "o", o "s" las utilizo menos. Las que más uso son, por este orden, "c", "m", "b", "p" y "a" y por supuesto Mark Task Complete & Log. La opción "c" la tengo asignada como opción de menú contextual ("Procesar con MindReader"), al igual que "Mark Task Complete & Log" (Marcar como Completada y Registrar).

Generalmente añado el proyecto o subproyecto como texto plano y a continuación voy añadiendo, siempre en texto plano, actividades adicionales. Una vez añadidas todas ellas las selecciono con el ratón, pulso botón derecho del ratón y pulso en "Procesar con MindReader", lo que convierte todos esos tópicos de texto plano en tareas con toda la información necesaria. Si veo que algo falta en alguna actividad la modifico usando "m" y si lo que ocurre es que falta alguna actividad la añado con "b", "p" o "a".

Utilizo mucho los corchetes, por ejemplo "Llamar a Juan para discutir el proyecto A [p2 desde el lunes durante dos semanas informar a Pepe]", que MindReader convierte en segundos es una tarea ("Llamar a Juan para discutir el proyecto A"), con Contexto "Teléfono", Prioridad 2, Fecha de Inicio "el próximo lunes", Fecha de Finalización "dos semanas a partir del próximo lunes" y en Recursos "Juan@;Pepe@". [Editor's Note: Jose Miguel has customized his parsing of date and resource keywords slightly]

Como podéis ver es simplemente genial.

Con el uso se me empezaron a ocurrir mejoras y como mis conocimientos de programación y del modelo de datos del MindManager/ResultsManager eran casi nulos me atreví a proponérselas a ActivityOwner.

Como podéis imaginar su respuesta fue inmediata y excelente y fruto de esta cooperación fueron un buen número de mejoras que se han ido añadiendo a la versión inicial de MindReader.

Ni que decir tiene que poder colaborar con ActivityOwner en mejorar y desarrollar todas estas herramientas es no sólo un honor y un placer sino también un estimulo intelectual de lo más relajante.

Feliz 2008 a todos

Related posts:

1. MindReader 2.0
2. Here's how I use MindReader in Practice
3. MindReader 7

The initial version required MindReader and GyroQ, which narrowed the potential user base quite to a small niche of power users. The new version does not require GyroQ (it will be added back in future versions) and asks you if you want to use MindReader. This enables any of the 1 million MindManager users who may also use OutLook to start using the program quickly. You can switch to using MindReader later if you like with the change of a configuration setting.

All you need to do is Install the Macro in your OutLook macro editor and you are ready to go. If you are not using MindReader, it just places all the entries in "OutlinkerCapture.mmap" in your "My Maps" directory and then you can move topics from there to other maps.

This enhancement is hot of the press so post comments or send email if you run into problems.

Having used the program for a month now, I've found that its important to be able to avoid sending items to MindManager so the interface has been enhanced (see above) with several options for dealing with messages in place (e.g. reply, reply-all, reply and delete, reply all and delete, forward, etc). The is reducing the quantity of tasks I need to process in MindManager quite a bit and providing a general improvement in email handling efficiency.

The program now also accumulates statistics as to what you are doing with your messages:

The numbers in my example don't add up as the individual counters have been added over time.

If you are already using the program, make sure you download the latest version as it has improved rapidly based on feedback over the holidays. Make sure you answer "yes" when prompted on use of MindReader.

P.S. Only 7 days left to get your "Next Action Analysis" Contest entries in.

Related posts:

1. Outbox Zero
2. Getting to Zero
3. OutLinker Lite (OutLinker for "list" people)

1. Run the Next Action Analysis macro on your ResultsManager Daily Action dashboard sometime over the next 11 days.
2. Submit your NAA score in the comments below (anonymously if you choose) or by email to info at activityowner.com. The deadline is midnight your time Sunday January 13th.
3. Work on improving your dashboard's 5Fs as you do you weekly reviews and plan for 2008.
4. Submit a 2nd (hopefully improved) score before the end of the month.

To be eligible your dashboard must have at least 30 tasks in it.

The three contest winners will be the entries …

1. with the highest score
2. with the most improved score
3. chosen at random (only one reported score required)

As "prizes" I am offering to build each winner a (moderately-sized) custom ResultsManager dashboard, GyroQ tag, or MindManager macro to address a problem of their choosing. In the case of ties the winner will be chosen at random. Beware this commitment might linger on my someday/maybe list for a period of time :-).

If you are not a ResultsManager user, you are welcome calculate your submitted score manually based on the status of whatever paper or computer-based GTD system you are using. I will compile a statistical summary of the results. Along the way we can assess the applicability of scoring model.

Let the "transferring to someday/maybe lists" begin….

Related posts:

1. 2008 GTD Challenge Results
2. Next Action Analysis Updated
3. Next Action Analysis: 5 Metrics for Assessing your GTD System

I had my "schedule tire replacement" next action on my list for many weeks and had elevated to priority 1 and given it deadlines during my weekly review, but it hadn't happened. Why? Among other things it was drown out by the 140+ other action items call for attention on any given day. It also probably had to do with lack of a "scheduling" context to focus on things like "find a time to do this".

In any case, it caused me to reflect on how effective my weekly reviews were. One downside of computer-based GTD systems is that they lack the tactile "copy onto a fresh page" review that a paper system provides.

During my reviews I try to get my in-trays emptied and push less urgent/important projects into the future or onto someday/maybe lists. The projects I have on my "committed" list all seem worthwhile and needing to be done at some point. Most have been reduce to a key next step to advance them. The problem is that all those "key next steps" still add up to much more than can be done in a 1-week horizon. The result is a "Hot Daily Action Dashboard" that Nick Duffill describes in his "Migrating from doing to reviewing" essay and as discussed by Mike W. in "Mind on Fire" and "Fighting Fire with Fire"

I decided I needed to review my "trusted system" in a way that get the daily action dashboard de-cluttered and under control. I thought it would be useful to propose a scorecard and some quantitative metrics to assess different attributes of the state of a GTD system. I came up with 5 dimensions to assess (5 F's):

Next Action Analysis Dimensions (5Fs)

In order to assess these dimensions, I identified several metrics such as "average task age", "number of next actions", "number of projects", etc. that could be calculated and combined for each dimension. These five metrics can then be combined to calculate an overall "NAA Score" on a 10.0 scale, with each dimension contributing 20% according to the table below. 100% is given for metrics at the "goal" level and declining amounts down to the "0% level"

Next Action Analysis Scorecard

[NOTE: The scoring metrics have been updated -- see wiki for updated table]

This approach can be used on any automated GTD system. I have implemented a macro (ao_next_action_analysis.mmbas) for analyzing a ResultsManager daily action dashboard. Sample output of the Next Action Analysis macro is shown below:

Note that the macro calculates the "percent complete" for your dashboard. Although not included in the Scorecard, this metric provides some incentive to keep your dashboard in place over the course of the day as you complete items rather than refreshing it constantly. This metric includes repeating items that have been marked complete with a red check icon.

Note that in additional to calculating several metrics, the report also enumerates lists of your oldest and youngest actions along with projects that are dated/undated. It also provides a "Random Activity of the Day" for those times where you just don't know where to start.

As we enter this Olympic year and the season of New year's resolutions and annual goal setting, I'm hoping this can provide some fun and focus to the weekly review process. Treat the NAA score as an Olympic event and go for 10.0.

Let me know what you think of the assessment metrics and give the macro a try if you are a ResultsManager user. More information on the tool is available on the Next Action Analysis page on the wiki.

Related posts:

1. Next Action Analysis 2008 GTD Challenge
2. Next Action Analysis Updated
3. 2008 GTD Challenge Results