GTD Workflow

Getting Things Done (GTD) is a productivity method created by David Allen. The core insight: your brain is for having ideas, not holding them. When your mind is cluttered with things to remember, it's hard to focus on actual work.

GDT implements GTD through conversation, making it natural to practice.

The Five Steps

GTD has five core steps:

Capture — Get everything out of your head
Clarify — Decide what each thing means
Organize — Put things where they belong
Reflect — Review regularly
Engage — Take action

Capture

When something comes to mind, dump it into your inbox immediately:

You: Just thought of a few things: update resume, buy toothpaste,
     reply to Wang's email

GDT: Added to inbox:
     📥 Update resume (+inbox)
     📥 Buy toothpaste (+inbox)
     📥 Reply to Wang's email (+inbox)

     Inbox now has 5 items.
     Would you like to process them now?

Or add items one at a time:

You: Inbox: check server logs

GDT: Added to inbox: check server logs (+inbox)

The inbox is a holding area. Items here haven't been processed yet—that comes next.

Clarify

Processing the inbox means deciding what each item actually is:

You: Help me process the inbox

GDT: 📥 Inbox Processing (5 items)

     1/5: Update resume

     Questions:
     - Is this actionable? [Yes]
     - How long will it take? ~2 hours
     - Any deadline? None

     Suggestion:
     - Project: Job search
     - Context: @computer
     - Priority: Medium

     Accept? [Yes/No/Modify]

You: Yes

GDT: ✅ Processed: Update resume
     - Moved from inbox
     - Project: Job search
     - Context: @computer

     2/5: Buy toothpaste

     Questions:
     - Is this actionable? [Yes]
     - Can it be done in 2 minutes? [No]
     - What's the next action? Buy on the way home

     Suggestion:
     - Project: Errands
     - Context: @errands
     - Priority: Low

     Accept? [Yes/No/Modify]

The key question is whether something is actionable. If yes, it needs a next action. If no, it's either reference material, someday/maybe, or trash.

Organize

Processed items go into their proper places.

Projects:

You: Create project: Website Redesign

GDT: Created project: Website Redesign
     Would you like to add tasks to this project?

You: Add tasks 15, 16, 17 to this project

GDT: Updated:
     - Task 15 Design new homepage → project:Website Redesign
     - Task 16 Refactor navigation → project:Website Redesign
     - Task 17 Optimize load speed → project:Website Redesign

Context tags:

Context tags (@tags) mark where or how a task can be done:

You: Add @errands tag to "buy toothpaste"

GDT: Updated: buy toothpaste +@errands

     Common context tags:
     @computer   Needs a computer
     @phone      Can do on phone
     @errands    When out and about
     @office     At the office
     @home       At home
     @waiting    Waiting for someone

Reflect

Regular reviews keep your system trustworthy.

Daily review:

You: Daily review

GDT: 📋 Daily Review — January 17, 2026

     🌅 Today's Overview
     - Pending: 8 tasks
     - Completed: 3
     - Overdue: 1

     🔴 Overdue
     - [ID:8] Reply to client email (1 day overdue)
       → Handle immediately or reschedule

     📌 Today's Focus
     1. [ID:12] Finish project proposal (due: today)
     2. [ID:15] Team weekly meeting (14:00)
     3. [ID:18] Code review

     📥 Inbox Status
     - 3 items pending
       → Take 5 minutes to process

     💡 Suggestions
     - Focus on project proposal this morning
     - Handle code review after weekly meeting
     - Process inbox in the evening

     Would you like to adjust today's plan?

Weekly review:

You: Weekly review

GDT: 📋 Weekly Review — Week 3 (Jan 13-19)

     📊 This Week's Stats
     - Completed: 15 tasks
     - Added: 12 tasks
     - Daily average: 2.1 tasks

     ✅ Key Achievements
     - Completed website redesign design phase
     - Submitted 3 code PRs
     - Cleared inbox twice

     🔄 Active Projects
     1. Website Redesign (40% complete)
        Next week: Start development
     2. Q1 Report (20% complete)
        Next week: Data collection

     ⏳ Someday/Maybe
     - 5 projects waiting
       → Check if any should be activated

     🎯 Next Week Suggestions
     1. Complete homepage development
     2. Start Q1 report data collection
     3. Schedule team 1:1 meetings

     Would you like me to help plan next week?

Engage

When it's time to work, GDT helps you choose what to do.

Filter by context:

You: I'm at the office now, what can I do?

GDT: 🎯 @office Actionable Tasks

     By priority:

     1. [ID:12] Finish project proposal ⭐
        Estimated: 2 hours
        Due: Today
        → Start immediately

     2. [ID:25] Code review
        Estimated: 45 minutes
        No due date

     3. [ID:30] Organize meeting notes
        Estimated: 20 minutes
        No due date

     How much time do you have?

Time blocking:

You: I have 2 hours, help me plan

GDT: ⏰ 2-Hour Work Plan

     09:00 - 10:30 (90 min)
     └── Finish project proposal
         Focus time, turn off notifications

     10:30 - 10:35 (5 min)
     └── Break

     10:35 - 11:00 (25 min)
     └── Organize meeting notes + quick inbox check

     This puts the most important task during peak energy.
     Ready to start?

Building Habits with Recurring Tasks

GTD works best when routine tasks are automated. GDT supports recurring tasks that regenerate automatically after completion.

Create a recurring task:

You: Create a weekly review task for every Friday afternoon

GDT: Created recurring task: Weekly review
     Recurrence: Weekly (Friday)
     First due: This Friday 14:00

     A new instance will be created automatically each week.

Common recurring patterns:

Pattern	Example
Daily standup	"每天早上9点的站会"
Weekly review	"每周五下午的周回顾"
Monthly 1:1	"每月第一个周一和经理 1:1"
End of month report	"月底提交报告"
Weekday habits	"工作日每天读30分钟书"

Managing recurring tasks:

You: Show my recurring tasks

GDT: 🔄 Recurring Tasks

     1. Weekly review — every Friday
        Next due: Jan 24, 2026

     2. Daily standup — every weekday
        Next due: Tomorrow 09:00

     3. Monthly report — end of month
        Next due: Jan 31, 2026

You: Stop the daily standup recurring task

GDT: Stopped recurring task: Daily standup
     Existing instances will remain, but no new ones will be created.

Recurring tasks help you build habits without thinking about task management.

Next Steps

Privacy Controls — How GTD data is stored
Commands Reference — All GTD-related commands

GTD Workflow ​

The Five Steps ​

Capture ​

Clarify ​

Organize ​

Reflect ​

Engage ​

Building Habits with Recurring Tasks ​

Next Steps ​