Eric Mack On-Line

Having recently returned from the Enterprise 2.0 conference, where it seems everything was something 2.0, I've been thinking a lot about my own tool kit of methodologies and technologies that I use to stay productive accomplish results, personally and for my clients.



As I prepare for my upcoming presentation with Steve Barth at KM World: New Fundamentals of Knowledge Worker Productivity, I realize that while the current iteration of GTD has been a transformative tool for personal productivity for me, it doesn't go far enough for the way I work today...

The business world is a much different place from what it was just 15 years ago, when I was first introduced to GTD. The pace with which decisions are made and the information needed to make those decisions has increased to the point where we are expected to be connected at all times (omnipresent) and aware of all of the information (omniscient) that we need to know. Of course, that's not possible for us mere mortals. Nonetheless, the expectations remain.

Peter Drucker in his writing on knowledge work a half century ago could not possibly forecast how our hyper-connected world would further change the face of the new knowledge work that he predicted. (I certainly could not have imagined this even 10 years ago.) I think GTD is great, and I want to build on what I've learned, I want to take it to the next level.

So, here I am, on the fourth of July, thinking about what GTD 2.0 might look like for me personally and whether I need a GTD 2.0 to deal with the world today or just need to get better at what I already know. GTD has helped me greatly at the runway level and above in defining and acting on my projects and actions - the action side of work, but it doesn't address how I manage the information  and communication side of getting things done. (That's not a fault of GTD, just my own realization that, having made great strides using GTD in my personal and business life, I need to focus more attention on the information, communication, and knowledge aspects of getting things done.) As the internet continues to provide new and interesting ways of connecting people, I need to be more deliberate in the way I look at these tools to help me achieve productive results.

OK, so if there's to be a GTD 2.0, what might that look like?

Well, I think that personal information and knowledge management will play a big part of GTD 2.0. In fact, I believe so strongly that the practice of Personal Knowledge Management (PKM) will become such a big part of whatever one might call GTD 2.0 that I'm taking some big steps personally and professionally, to enhance my understanding and skills in this area.  In addition to PKM, however, I think there are other skills that probably ought to be considered for a GTD 2.0 tool to take personal productivity to the next level. These include: collaborative tools & skills, social networking, group action management, and information management skills, to name a few.

I think GTD 2.0 represents the next big opportunity in personal and workgroup productivity. Some might argue that I've said nothing new in this post, and perhaps that is true. But I think we are at a point where it's time to draw a line representing what we have done to date and define what knowledge work on the other side of the line might look like. I'm ready for a new adventure

I'm ready to learn more about 21st century knowledge work and the new fundamentals of knowledge worker productivity.  Are you?

What would do you think the key issues are facing the 21st century knowledge worker? Do we need a GTD 2.0 to deal with it?

I'd like to hear from you!



Disclaimer: GTD is a registered trademark of The David Allen Company and Lotus Notes is a registered  trademark of IBM, The comments and opinions expressed in this post and on Eric Mack On-Line are entirely my own and do not necessarily represent the opinions of the companies I serve or reference on this blog.