Failed experiment with Todoist
This week I decided I had some time and headspace available to experiment with Todoist for my GTD (Getting Things Done) system. Why??
Back in 2019-2020, I had used Todoist and enjoyed it. But then there was a big update that altered some features and screwed up my existing setup. As a result, I explored other tools, eventually discovering NirvanaHQ (which is my current tool of choice).
I’ve tried Todoist before throughout the years, and I could never get it quite right. I know Todoist development is continually active, and I thought I could give it a go again because… well, maybe this time they’ve changed things that could work for me now? 🤷♀️ Also because I felt I could spend some time tinkering with the tool, which I usually enjoy.
So, I tried setting it up again. I took a look at the GTD Official Guide, sat down with my pen and paper and started to think:
- Do I want to link projects to next actions? => Yes!
- Ok, so I will use projects as projects and labels as contexts.
- I want to have projects separated between Work and Personal. Ok.
- I will have Someday-Maybe folders separate for Work and Personal. Ok.
- I will use labels as contexts to organize my next actions. Ok.
- I want to make sure that I don’t see actions that are in Someday-Maybe showing up in my next action lists. Ok, so I will use filters to be able to exclude items that are inactive in Someday-Maybe.
- This is something crucial to me, because sometimes I have a project started, with labeled next actions, which then is postponed or put on hold. I want to be able to move the project to Someday-Maybe so that all of it is removed from next actions. I know I could un-label the actions, but I don’t like doing that (then when it’s active again I would have to re-label everything... not my jam).
- I will have a “Routines” project for all recurring actions (daily. monthly checklists and reviews). Ok.
So, I set up the basic folders. I added initial labels (the typical @computer, @home, @errands, @agendas, @calls). Now it was time to set up the filters. That's when I got frustrated. I know I could set it up the way I wanted it, but the process was not as fun as I've initially imagined 😐.
I had to tweak the filters to exclude incompletable tasks and exclude subtasks from showing by themselves without their parent task (because subtasks can have their own labels in Todoist), to separate work and personal, and on and on.
I had initially thought I would incorporate the priority flags with the context’s filters (something like, P1 is priority, P2 is next, P3 is later, etc...) but THAT was me overcomplicating things! I scratched that idea.
And then I thought about a moment in the future when I wanted to add a new context, and create a filter for it, and all the hassle to have it done. Too complicated! I imagined future me wondering why the hell did I complicate things this much?
Long story short…
…the energy and disposition I thought I had to set up Todoist wasn't there anymore. I'd rather spend that time reading a book.
And when I went back to my normal day, using Nirvana as usual, I just felt this peace and calm, seeing everything organized in its place. I recognized I already have a system that JUST WORKS as it is. Is it perfect? Hell, no! But it works for me! 😊
I was also altering a previous Todoist setup I had in my account, so maybe that was the wrong approach. I should have deleted everything and started 100% from scratch. But now I don’t really want to try Todoist anymore. I am happy with what I currently have.
So that's the story of my failed experiment. I could have pushed through and had all the context filter issues sorted out? Yes, I'm sure I could have. It's not Todoist's fault. It's a great app. But just not for me at this moment in my life.
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Post 07/100 of 100DaysToOffload challenge (Round 2)!
#100DaysToOffload #100Days #Productivity #apps #GTD #Todoist
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By Noisy Deadlines
Minimalist in progress, nerdy, introvert, skeptic. I don't leave without my e-reader.