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Long Before 43 Folders

Written by: Philip A. Foster

Article Overview: A review of David Allen's Book Getting things Done and the whole 43 Folders Phenomenon. Using a Tickler File System.

Long Before 43 Folders

Long before the craze of 43 folders and the whole GTD (Getting things done) idea was made popular by David Allen I was using this idea. We called it a "Tickler File" System 10 years ago when I started using it. Now don't get me wrong... David has a fantastic idea and I encourage my readers to check out his book... I saw it on Amazon. While I've not read it, I have visited his website and the 43 Folders website.

Here is how I built my 43 folders system.

Step 1: Get 43 file folders
Step 2: Number folders the first 31 folders 1 through 31
Step 3: Label the remaining folders January through December.
Step 4: I also an additional folder which is label the following year. For example, if this is 2008 I would have a 2009 folder.

The way I used this system. On the corresponding day... I would put the things that I needed to accomplish in the corresponding numbered file. For example - if I needed to pay a bill on a certain date, I would place that bill in the corresponding numbered file. If I had a letter that I needed to respond to tomorrow, I would put it in tomorrows numbered folder.

Each morning, I would pull the corresponding numbered file for that day and I would review the contents for action and build my to do list and action plan for the day based on the contents on the days folder. If the day falls on a weekend, I would make a decision as to whether the action items need to be placed on the Friday before the weekend or the Monday after all depending on the importance of getting the items done. If it happens to be the first of the month, I would pull the corresponding month folder and see if there is anything in the folder that needs attention that month. For example... If I needed to pay my taxes in that month - that information would appear in there. Likewise, if a contract needs to be renewed, etc I would put it in that folder.

Feel free to adjust the system to meet your needs. It is a great system to keep the important things in front of you.

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Article Tags: 10 years, 43 folders, amazon, file folders, gtd, important things, january through december, step 1, step 2, step 3, tickler file system



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