In his book entitled, "Getting Things Done," David Allen offers an interesting and helpful way of managing future to-do items. The system, which includes a set of 43 folders, is a sophisticated and elegant way of setting up a "tickler" file. This system is an ideal organizational tool to set up for yourself and/or your boss. You can also use it at home!

What Tasks are Included?

Basically, this system is a way to collect non-actionable tasks: the items you don't need to do today, but need to remember to do in the future. This system allows you to organize physical reminders of the tasks (or specific paperwork that will be needed in order to do the task in the future). Below, I've listed some samples of the types of things this works well for:

• When your boss hands you an agenda and asks you to give it to him on the morning of the meeting
• When you have paperwork that needs to be filled out and mailed on a specific date in the future
• When you have a task that is not immediate in nature, but should be reviewed by a specific date in the future

How to Set it Up

First off, you need 43 folders - thirty one labeled "1" through "31" and twelve more labeled with the names of the months of the year.

• Keep the daily files in front, beginning with the file for tomorrow's date. For example, if today is the 10th, the first folder will be labeled "11". The files that follow all represent the rest of the days of the month in correct order (12 through 31).
• Behind the "31" file is the folder for the next month. For example, if the current month is October, the next file is November.
• Behind that are the rest of the daily files (1 through 10).
• Behind that are the rest of the monthly files (December through October)

How it Works

Imagine you have an item that needs to be used to "tickle" an action in the future - say, that agenda your boss wants you to give to him on the day of the meeting two weeks from now. You take that agenda and put it in the file that has the date of the meeting on it. So, if the meeting is on the 21st of this month, put the agenda in the folder labeled 21. If the meeting is happening in another month, put it in the folder labeled with the name of that month.

Now, each morning you need to pull the file folder for the day and take care of the tasks. So, if today is the 21st, you will pull the file labeled 21 and see that agenda you need to give your boss for his meeting. Every morning, you'll process your system like this. When the folder is empty, you'll put it in the back of the numerical system, allowing the next day's number to be at the front.

At the beginning of each month, the next month's file should reach the front of the pack. So, on October 31st, the November file will be in front, with the files labeled 1 through 31 behind it. Open the month file and disperse the materials to the appropriate day's folder if needed. The November file would then be refilled in the back of the monthly folders to represent November a year from now.

So, as you can see, this is a perpetual system - at any given point, it represents the next 31 days and the next twelve months. It is incredibly helpful but you have to really work the system every day. Use it and don't forget to pull the contents from each day's file.

My mother uses this system to track household chores and to-do items. She uses an index card box and writes all of her tasks on cards. I remember seeing her use it when I was a kid and thinking it was so complicated. While it may seem complicated just reading it, once you start doing it, the process is actually quite simple. And it really simplifies your life and work! Give it a try and let me know if you have questions!