Getting Things Done: A Valuable Tool For Real Estate Investors

Any investor who hasn't looked into David Allen's Getting Things Done needs to give it a try. The book is great and I think the seminar is even better. Basically, what David Allen learned is that the human mind is great for coming up with ideas, but not great for storing them. So you need a trusted system.

David Allen then lays out a fantastic yet flexible system to first sort through all the various inputs and come up with a plan to do them. He splits things into 'action items', 'waiting for', 'reference', 'projects', 'project support' and 'someday/maybe'.

For one thing, I now separate all my new emails into either action items, waiting for items, items to incubate or I file them in some reference category. The waiting for email list has been game changing as I no longer have to remember what I'm waiting for. No space in my mind has been taken up for it, I can just go down the list and see what still needs to be given to me. It's been a life saver.

The Someday/Maybe list is also great. One thing you figure out very quickly is that you have likely spread yourself to thin. There is simply no way to do all the projects you want to do right now, and this means that they all suffer. The best thing to do is to pick the most essential and urgent and do those first. But since we don't want to simply forget about those other projects, the Someday/Maybe list is a great place to store them for later reference.

I should also note the system can be used with a paper binder or on a plethora of online platforms such as Outlook or Evernote. It's very flexible and can fit just about anyone's preference or style.

I should also note that in Roy Baumester and John Tierney's book , they explain that people who can spend their time doing instead of trying to remember have more willpower and are more productive. They specifically reference David Allen's system as something that increases willpower. That alone should make it worth a try.