5 Best Apps for Getting and Staying Organized. If you haven’t heard of productivity guru David Allen's Getting Things Done (or “GTD” to its many fans), you’ve probably been too busy. Microsoft To-Do. In a bid to accelerate its ‘Mobile First, Cloud First’ vision, Microsoft purchased the. In this list of the best apps for GTD, only two have a free offering: NirvanaHQ and Todo by Appigo. Most charge either a recurring subscription fee, anywhere from $20 to $120 per year, or charge somewhere in the ballpark of a $50-one-time fee for a desktop app. How We Choose the Best GTD Apps. The apps on this list all meet three basic. The curiously named “Things” app started as a Mac program by German startup Cultured Code in 2007 and was actually one of the first apps released for iPhone when the App Store launched in 2008. Things has remained loyal to Apple, helping to launch the iPad and Apple Watch with updated versions of the popular productivity app. The Best To-Do List Apps for 2020 Get organized and complete tasks more quickly and more reliably by using the right to-do app. These are the top performers in our tests.
Do you struggle with productivity? Do you feelas though you’re always drowning in mental clutter?
107 researched apps verified to support Getting Things Done as of today (07 Nov 2020) Watch for tools that have TRO training available. TRO is a more advanced GTD-like system and demands more powerful software tools.
If you or your team members (or both) need help in the productivity department, the GTD (Getting Things Done) approach might be the godsend you’re looking for.
If you’ve been interested in reaping thebenefits that the GTD method has to offer but need some help implementing itinto your routine, you may want to try some of the most popular GTD appoptions.
Read on to learn about 10 of the best GTD apps you and your team ought to start using in 2020.
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What Does GTD Mean?
GTD is short for Getting Things Done. It’s a time management framework that gives you the tools you need to clear mental clutter, prioritize your tasks, and get them checked off.
There are five key components of the GTDmethodology, and they are as follows:
- Capture: This aspect is all about capturing the thoughts floating around in your head and writing them down (on paper or on your computer or smartphone)
- Clarify: Next, you need to clarify your thoughts and determine which ones are actionable (meaning you can do something about them)
- Organize: After you’ve started clarifying thoughts, you need to put them in their proper places (this could be on your calendar, on a to-do list, in an email to a colleague, etc.)
- Reflect: Weekly reviews allow you (and your team) to reflect on what you’ve accomplished, what you still need to do, and what problems you’ve run into that you need to address
- Engage: This step is all about carrying out the other aspects of the GTD methodology on a consistent basis
The GTD methodology works well for individualslooking to accomplish more throughout the day, as well as teams that need toreign things in and be more productive.
GTD Apps for Team Use
When it comes to using the GTD method on a team-wide scale, these five apps can be very useful:
Weekdone
When it comes to using the GTD method withteams, Weekdone is one of the best apps around.
Weekdone allows for easy weekly planning, aswell as quarterly goal-setting. It allows managers and supervisors to conductone-on-one meetings with other employees, too, and provide them with feedbackand recognition to help them stay on track.
Weekdone makes the weekly review (or Reflect)aspect of the GTD method easier than ever. Teams can use the app to track theirprogress, stay in-sync, and get help addressing problems so that everything inthe office can continue running as smoothly and efficiently as possible.
Weekdone also uses Objectives and Key Results methodology to provide additional direction and help workers ensure they’re staying on track with their long-term company, team, and individual goals.
weekdone.com
nTask
With nTask, it’s easy to implement the GTDmethod and get all of your team members on board. It’s specifically designed tohelp teams and project managers keep track of various tasks and see whereeveryone is at in the process of completing them.
Using nTask, it’s easy to set priority levelsfor tasks, set reminders for them, and use filters to keep things sorted. Itallows users to provide reviews and feedback on a regular basis, too.
This helps to simplify the weekly review process and helps everyone get a clear view of what they’ve accomplished and where they need to continue placing their energy moving forward.
www.ntaskmanager.com
Todoist
For those who prefer a simple, straightforwardapproach to team GTD implementation, Todoist is a good app to consider. Todoistallows for easy “brain dumps” but also comes with plenty of features to helpusers organize their ideas and prioritize tasks based on their importance.
You can use Todoist to set due dates andrecurring reminders, and you can assign tasks to others. It creates usefulcharts and graphs for visual performance tracking, too.
This helps workers stay organized, see where their teammates are at when it comes to certain projects, and ensure that everyone is in the loop about changes or important deadlines.
todoist.com
Notion
Notion is an effective note-taking app thatalso comes with lots of handy task management features, making it a good optionfor teams that want to start using the GTD method.
With Notion, team members can write downto-dos and then assign them to other team members or invite them to collaborateon specific aspects.
Notion allows for Kanban boards for easy progress tracking, too. It features a knowledge base for central storage as well, which makes it easier for team members to access shared documents and important resources.
Focuster
If you and your team members need helpfocusing, Focuster may be a good app to use. It helps users to visualizeeverything they need to accomplish. It also integrates with Google calendar foreasy organization and scheduling.
Whether you need to keep everyone informedabout when the next weekly review will take place or want to ensure your team membershit an important deadline, Focuster simplifies this process.
It also helps with appointment sorting, so you can keep everyone on the same page during your weekly reviews when it comes to talking about what needs to be planned or where potential problems may lie.
www.focuster.com
GTD Apps for Personal Use
If you want to use the GTD approach to get more done yourself, you can find free GTD templates online. But filling out reports by hand can take time and be less efficient than apps. These five GTD apps are all great ones to try out:
FacileThings
FacileThings is one of many apps designed withthe specific intent of helping those who abide by the GTD philosophy.
FacileThings makes it simple for you to notonly capture your thoughts and ideas but also for you to organize and managethem. It has an easy-to-use, aesthetically pleasing dashboard that keepseverything in view, so you never have to worry about anything slipping throughthe cracks.
It helps you break down tasks into more manageable steps, as well. That way, when the time for a weekly review rolls around, you’ll be able to see exactly where you are in the process and how much work you have left to do.
facilethings.com
Nirvana
Nirvana is a cloud-based task management app.It’s another one designed specifically with the GTD method in mind.
One of the great things about Nirvana thatseparates it from other apps is the fact that it comes with built-in featuresto help you gauge how much time and energy it’ll take to complete a task. This,in turn, makes it easier for you to set due dates and deadlines that arerealistic and attainable.
Nirvana also has pre-loaded lists with labels like “Next”, “Waiting”, and “Scheduled”. This especially helps with the implementation of the “Clarify” portion of the GTD method.
www.nirvanahq.com
OmniFocus
OmniFocus is the perfect GTD app for those whouse Mac and iOS devices. OmniFocus is one of the most beautifully designed GTDapps on the market, and it’s a favorite among GTD fans.
This app even allows you to use Siri to takenotes and capture your thoughts. That way, even when your hands are busy, youcan still utilize the GTD method and clear out mental clutter efficiently.
OmniFocus is very structured as well. It comes with lots of options for adding perspective and context to projects to help you understand what needs to be done, when it needs to be done, and where it falls on your list of priorities.
www.omnigroup.com
Evernote
Evernote is one of the most popularnote-taking apps on the market. It may not be specifically designed for thosewho follow the GTD approach, but it’s a useful app, nonetheless.
It comes with lots of built-in features thatmake it easy for you to capture your thoughts, as well as clarify theirimportance and organize them for easy access during weekly reviews.
Evernote also works with Siri and Google, so you can take notes and get things down using voice command rather than typing if that’s your personal preference.
evernote.com
2Do
2Do works for both Android and iOS users. Thisapp allows you to take notes and create task lists with just a couple of tapsor clicks.
It also makes it easy for you to add tags tocustomize these lists and simplify the process of finding them. You cancolor-code important items, for example, or even batch several tasks togetherand drag and drop them to your calendar.
These kinds of features come in very handy, especially when you’re trying to put together an effective work schedule for yourself or keeping things organized for your weekly review.
www.2doapp.com
Try These GTD Apps Today
As you can see, there are tons of great GTDapps you can start using to stay organized and be more productive.
If you need help with any aspect of the GTD framework, these apps are great ones to try. The Weekdone app is especially useful if you need help conducting your weekly reviews and getting as much out of them as possible.
15 days free. No credit card required.
Check out Weekdone today to learn more about it or to test it out. We offer a free, 15-day trial, no credit card needed.
If you’re in project management (or in any other leadership field), you’ve probably read David Allen’s masterpiece, Getting Things Done.
If not, the system that David Allen suggests is quite simple:
- Write down everything you need to do. Absolutely everything. No idea is bad.
- Decide whether or not a task is actionable. If it isn’t, throw it in the trash. If it is but you can’t do it right away, put it in a low-priority folder. If you just want the idea for reference, put it in a reference folder.
- If the task is actionable and takes less than two minutes to act on, do it immediately (like texting someone about dinner plans).
- If the task will take longer than that, plan out the steps needed to act on that idea.
- From there, organize where it falls on your priority list, schedule it, or delegate it.
David Allen has a list of software tools that he recommends on his website. While some of the options are good others are less useful.
After reading Getting Things Done, I distilled which project management software would be best for applying David Allen’s method. Best of all, all of these GTD software options are entirely free for one user! Read on to learn which of these six Getting Things Done software options is best for you.
1. hiTask
hiTask’s free personal task management software is among the best. The software offers plenty of features—calendar, grouping, tasks, and subtasks, to name a few—yet is able to organize all of it onto one screen, so you don’t need to jump around different folders looking for your next to-do. It’s organized, efficient, and they offer 100MB of free file storage. They also offer Android and iPhone apps that are fully SSL/HTTPS encrypted, and have an open API. If you’re looking for a super-easy GTD software option, definitely check hiTask out.
2. Nirvana
Those of you who are Mac enthusiasts will enjoy Nirvana’s straightforward approach to GTD. The software was created specifically for Getting Things Done, so it’s out-of-the-box fully functional, with no extra bells and whistles.
The app comes preloaded with features to designate how long a task will take (make sure it’s over two minutes!), how much energy you’ll need for it, and when it’s due, along with tags for organization. It also makes it easy to schedule a weekly review, so you’re never caught wondering “what’s next.”
Gtd Google Apps
3. Remember the Milk
When you first register for Remember the Milk, you might be immediately put off by their default folders, which are inbox, personal, study, work, and sent. It looks like a basic student planner.
Fortunately, there’s a whole lot more for GTD enthusiasts in this free task management software option.
I won’t rehash how Remember the Milk recommends how you use its software for Getting Things Done in totality, but I will give the basic points:
Best Free Gtd App Mac Os
- Easily create a weekly review
- Use tags to create contexts
- Flexible labels and folders for work, personal, and tasks on hold
- Unintrusive reminder system
The only hesitation about Remember the Milk is that the program, unlike the others on this list, has a bit of a learning curve; I wouldn’t recommend this program to people who are uncomfortable learning code that’s slightly easier than HTML (not that bad, right?).
4. Todoist
In complete contrast, Todoist is as straightforward as it gets for Getting Things Done software. It’s been a trusted standard in task management software for years now, and the company has taken great care to make it accessible to everyone.
The first thing you’ll notice when you start a new Todoist account is that you have project, labels, filters, a weekly overview, and tasks due today. Since most people using GTD software will be juggling hundreds of tasks at a time, the filter tool is particularly valuable.
The major drawback to Todoist is that the reminder system is only for premium (meaning paid) users. This means that free Todoist users must be diligent about checking their inbox for upcoming tasks due.
5. Wrike
Wrike, for GTD software, is amazing. I say this with full confidence because the above screenshot is from my own computer. That’s right. Wrike is my personal Getting Things Done software of choice.
Wrike, like Todoist, allows users to create folders and tasks. It also allows users to label their tasks, attach files, and schedule deadlines and recurrent tasks. Wrike also gives users the option to receive daily or weekly rundowns of all the things slated for the day–it’s a nice wake up email that I look forward to in the morning.
The only bummer about Wrike is that the premium version has so many added features that it’s hard not to want them; they include time tracking, reports, and workload assessments.
6. Zendone
Don’t just love Zendone’s for its unlimited actions. Don’t just love its unlimited projects, secure SSL connection, free mobile app, GTD tutorial, or even its template to follow the Getting Things Done funnel for all of your tasks.
Love it for its integrations.
Free users get Evernote and Google Calendar integrations (30 notes and events a month, respectively). This means if you’re in a lurch for finding a good and free Getting Things Done software option that’s particularly good for research, this is your product.
Ultimate Gtd App
More?
Finding the right Getting Things Done software can be a challenge. All of these options allow users to do a weekly review, filter through their tasks by priority and due date, and establish the groundwork for contexts and next steps.
Is there a solid free Getting Things Done software option that I missed? Have you had positive experiences with these? Let me know in the comments below!
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