Tell us your GTD story

Getting Things Done turns 25 this year. Since it was first published in 2001, the book has been translated into 28 languages and read by millions of people. When we sat down to work out how to mark the anniversary, we figured the best thing to do was to ask people who actually use it.

So that’s what we’re doing. If GTD has made a difference to how you work or how you live, we’d like to hear about it. It doesn’t need to be a dramatic before-and-after. Some of the best stories we’ve heard were about one ordinary week that went better than it otherwise would have.

We’ll share some of them over the next few months, here on the blog, in the newsletter, on Substack, social media and other GTD channels. We might even feature some on our podcast.

Who we’d like to hear from
Anyone who uses GTD, whether you’ve been at it for twenty years or picked up the book last spring. We’re especially curious about newer practitioners, and about anyone using it in work outside an office. Same goes if you gave up on it at some point and came back. And if you’ve figured out how GTD fits alongside AI tools, we’d like to hear that too. A lot of people are trying to work that out right now.

Coaches and trainers, please send us your own stories. And if a client comes to mind, pass this on to them.

Not sure where to start? These might help:

1. What sort of challenge were you experiencing? The more specific, the better.
2. Which GTD practice or principle did you start implementing?
3. What changed? If you can, give us a real example.
4. What would you tell a friend who is curious about GTD but not sure if it’s for them?

Send your story to [email protected]. A few paragraphs is plenty. Don’t worry about the writing. If we’d like to use your story, we’ll help tidy it up, and you’ll see the final version before it gets published.

Thanks. We’re looking forward to reading them.

What happens to your story
Send your story to [email protected] by December 6. Someone on the team will read each and every one.
We won’t be able to feature all of the stories we receive but, if yours is one of them, we’ll email you, show you the edited version, and ask your permission before anything is published. Nothing goes out without you saying so.
We may also want to publish exceptional stories in print – if one is chosen we will let you know about that separately.
We can’t pay for stories, and you keep ownership of yours.
If your story involves colleagues, clients or family, consider changing names. If your story involves something personal, or a difficult period, you are welcome to send it, but only include what you would be comfortable seeing published under your name.

Your details
When you email us, the David Allen Company receives your email address, your name, and whatever you tell us about yourself. We use it to read your story, reply to you, and contact you if we’d like to publish it. We won’t add you to any mailing list unless you ask, and we won’t share your details outside the David Allen Company.
You can ask us what we hold about you, correct it, or have it deleted, by emailing [email protected]