Noisy Deadlines

This year I tested lots of task list managers, project managers and to-do list apps. I was not happy with my current system which consisted of Evernote + Todoist + Google Calendar and Google Drive to store files.

You see, I've been using the GTD method for 5 years now. It all started in a moment in my life when I was feeling extremely overwhelmed. I had a full time job and taking courses for a masters degree in Civil Engineering. I felt disorganized. I didn't have a clear view of my life. And so I started looking for ways to get in control.

Phase 01: Evernote

I started having everything inside Evernote: contexts, references, projects lists, checklists, areas of focus and all the higher horizons of GTD. That worked for a while but soon I felt that I needed a dedicated app for task management. Evernote didn't give me the satisfaction to cross off a task, per se. It was all done with tagging, so not very practical. I spent a lot of time tagging and untagging notes.

Phase 02: Todoist+Evernote

Then I started using Todoist. I kept my projects in Evernote and created the tasks in Todoist. In GTD actions are the most important part of the system: we only complete project by executing actions. So the “contexts” idea of GTD is kinda the central pillar of the system. Actions are always inside a context. And so I had a huge list of actions inside contexts, as we all do. And even though GTD tells us to prioritize actions based on context, time available and resources, I could never do it without getting overwhelmed.

The other issue I had was having the actions separate from its projects. There is a recommendation in GTD that it is better to keep actions separated from projects so that you keep focused and engaged on doing, rather than planning. Since I had all my projects in Evernote and tasks in Todoist I felt like this always created a duplicated effort: list the next actions inside the Evernote's Master Project Note (MPN) and then copying them to Todoist. I've never thought this was a practical approach to project management.

So then I tried to use Todoist as a project management tool, with the tasks associated with each project. BUT, since the notes section in Todoist is quite simple, I still had the MPN's inside Evernote. And it was not working well. The final straw for me was the inability to install Evernote on my computer at work when I got a new job. Long story short, 2018 was the year I started to desperately search for other solutions for my productivity system.

Testing Tools and Apps

First of all I tried to customize Todoist to my system. I read dozens of articles on how to create queries for filters in Todoist. I tried the Eisenhower Matrix method, I tried creating custom filters, combination of tags, minimal tags, priority flags and nothing seemed to work right for me.

I then went out on a frenzied testing sprint:

• Nirvana HQ

  • Full GTD.
  • I like the minimalist look, simple and only focused on next action.
  • I like both the mobile app the web version.
  • I like that I can set up “Areas” and filter all tasks according to these areas. So I can have “PERSONAL” and “WORK” and “BLOG” or whatever. Seems nice! The advantage is that the filtering is already built into the software, so I don't need to create specific filters.
  • Doesn't have integration with Evernote or Google Drive. But I can add links to a task.
  • I like the schedule function (it's the implementation of the “INCUBATE” in GTD.
  • Parallel vs Sequential tasks in a project: love this! It's something I've always wanted to implement specially for sequential tasks. That way I don't have unwanted tasks out of order showing up on my lists (I know I could solve this with tagging and weekly reviews, buy sometimes I had these tasks coming up during the week). It's a very handy feature!
  • I like the “Zen” aspect of Nirvana. Really, I don't feel overwhelmed with it (like I always did with Todoist).
  • Features:
  • Filter by area (it hides the rest)
  • Easy to tag and filter for context (I really hate Doit.im's Context vision.)
  • project template
  • sequential/parallel options for projects
  • Reference Lists that can be turned into a project (eg. grocery list)
  • easy recurring task
  • the focus tab for actions with a deadline, or things you tag with a star (= things you will do today)
  • the Later tab, for things between Next and Someday

• Doit.im

  • Full GTD.
  • The mobile app is okay.
  • Says it has integration with Evernote. I tried and it didn't work.
  • Keeps saying I have to confirm my e-mail address but I never get their confirmation message.
  • Can't export data.
  • The company is hosted in China.
  • Seems like they are not very active in developing the app.

• Toodledo

  • List based.
  • Seems more complicated than it needs to be.
  • Lots of manual configuration/filters to be done to be a GTD system.

• TickTick

  • Looks like a simplified version of Todoist. Very similar, with date based tasks.
    

• Remember the Milk

  • So ugly!
  • I still had my account that I set up to try in 2012!
  • I hated the side bar menu.

• GTDNext

  • GTD focused.
  • It seems it doesn't have any mobile app yet.
  • Seems old fashioned.
  • Kinda ugly.
  • No new Twitter activity since April/2018.
  • Lots of “problems” in the community forums.

• Amazing Marvin

  • It's more like a daily planner that you can customize.
  • It's a different concept but I think that after years trying to get GTD right, I am going to go full GTD with the simplest and straightforward configuration possible.

• Any.do

  • Simple.
  • Has a nice feature to filter by time or area of focus.
  • But it doesn't have sub-tasks.

Phase 03: Nirvana HQ

I really liked this app! I used it for about 2 weeks but then the lack of a good notes field and no integration with Google Drive or Evernote let me down.

Phase 04: Enter Kanban and Trello

I have never used Kanban but I knew it was a thing. So I decided to test Trello. And I read articles and the book about it Personal Kanban.

I loved the approach!

Trello is easy to use and the visual aspect of it is great. I transferred my work and personal related projects to Trello. And I decided to stick with it.

Until today, when somehow I was curious to know how Asana, Meistertask and Zenkit worked. Just in case they were awesome and I was missing out. So I spent about 1 hour today testing those apps and reading articles about them. They aren't for me. They are more business/teams oriented. But I had to see!

And so that made me wonder why am I always searching for a new productivity app? Why can't I just be happy with the tools I have?

So I decided: I will stick with my latest Trello installment, which combines GTD principles with Kanban and be happy. I think 6 months is a reasonable amount of time to test my system and make it work for me.

We will see!

#productivity #GTD #trello #kanban

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By Noisy Deadlines Minimalist in progress, nerdy, introvert, skeptic. I don't leave without my e-reader.