But how do you FEEL about GTD?

Like many GTDers who have yet to achieve Black Belt status, I have trouble with my weekly review. This morning I had a revelation as to why. The truth is, it makes me anxious.

When I look at all my projects and next actions, I feel like I shouldn't be wasting time doing even more planning. I should be working! I berate myself for spending time on all this GTD stuff when I could be doing something constructive on all those projects I've been procrastinating about.

But that's the whole point of GTD -- taking time to plan and think. Somehow we have to convince ourselves that it's worth taking an hour or two on Monday morning to plan ahead and get beyond the day-to-day concerns. Otherwise we'll be treading water, doing what comes up rather than what's really going to get us where we want to go.

So this morning I took a deep breath and reassured myself over and over that I was doing the right thing. I went through my lists and thought through a few things, and felt a little bit better.

My anxiety stems from the fact that I procrastinate a lot and I fear that GTD is just another way to avoid doing real work. But the truth is that GTD helps me with my procrastination by helping me avoid feeling overwhelmed. GTD breaks things down into small, manageable chunks that I can deal with. Creating those chunks takes time and effort, but it's worth it.

Cranking widgets is my dream.