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Has anyone successfully color-coded a GTD-based system through use of colored paper in a Filofax, or similar paper-based planner? I'm thinking it might reduce the need for bulky dividers if the sections are visible at a glance.
ReplyDeleteI like the idea I saw (apologies for forgetting where) of using yellow for Inbox/Capture because it echoes yellow legal pads, and then using white, cream, pink, blue, and green for other aspects of a GTD setup. I'm not sure what functions of GTD these could be semi-intuitively tied into, though?
I'm probably going to start with yellow for Inbox at the front, then cotton cream for the year-planner I use as a calendar and also for Reference, as the slowest-cycling parts of the system, and also so it can incorporate a Filofax A-Z set on cream card, and go behind Inbox, on the left in terms of Diary placement.
Then the central section is white for Projects and Project Planning because it's the most economical for store-bought and DIY inserts, and I also use a white W2V diary from Filofax, usually 3 - 4 months in there at a time.
So it goes, yellow, cream, white...? Blue for Sometime/Maybe?
Desire for a better system which is intuitive and attractive is currently competing with "you're being too fanciful, creating needless work and potential for failure"!
So if anyone has any experience or suggestions, thoughts on color choices, or can spot a pitfall in this idea (or any other constructive criticism), thank you in advance.
I used small, circular stickers folded over the edge of the page in my notebook bullet journal. I had them on the top and side edges near the top outside corner n of the page. In my case used for future log, monthly, etc. Colour and location meant something but tbh I forgot what so I just know a colour showing from the side means a page I wanted to remember.
DeleteWith more discipline this could be your page colour solution since if a page changes category you can replace the colour as needed. My stickers are easy to peel off of needed.
Let’s wait to hear GTD expertise on this, but, stepping back from the specifics a bit, I guess a general rule would be that the more any system requires sheets to be reclassified, the less satisfactory a coloured paper approach is likely to be.
ReplyDeleteIf it doesn’t work out then maybe reusable sticky index tab markers would be an alternative way of getting rid of the dividers?
I bought a 3KL slimline in black from eBay. It has a 1996 ruler and was listed as 1996 but I suspect it’s a little earlier than that. It has the Made in England mark. When was it discontinued? Thanks in advance.
ReplyDeleteI think you’ve made a wise choice with this model. It’s in the catalogues up to 1990.
DeleteThank you so much
DeleteI’ve done this (I have always loved color-coding - my meeting categories in my work Outlook calendar, for example, I can see from the corner of my eye what’s coming up). What I found is that the FF colored paper is significantly thicker than just basic calendar pages, took up a lot of room. But depends how many pages you might have, and there are definitely other colored paper makers out there.
ReplyDeleteMy new company has strict rules with paperwork not leaving the site. Also all employees use outlook to book meetings and manage time. It allows you to book meetings as everyone is shown as busy or free. This makes me think that my newly bought A5 finsbury isn't suitable or practical. I'm not even sure I can use my notebook as I would need to tearn out pages to shred before leaving every day.
ReplyDeleteAnyone else experience this? What use is the filofax now?
Could it live at work? My A5 Malden only comes home with me because I work from home 3 days a week. If I had to go in everyday, it would stay there.
DeleteIt does make me wonder instantly What it is you do that notebook cannot leave the site!! Very intriguing!
DeleteFantastic, thank you to everyone for the responses on color-coding! I definitely think there's potential to begin this with 100% plain white paper for a trial period, using colored stickers or page flags as suggested, and then transition the non-Projects material (which should be smaller in terms of things to copy-over) to colored-paper inserts if I find it workable. This hadn't occured to me as a solution/interim step and will undoubtedly save a lot of wasted time if the system doesn't work. I make my own inserts a lot of the time, so the paper-thickness issue is already a problem, and is one of the reasons I want to avoid dividers where possible.
ReplyDeleteThank you!
Sounds like a very good plan - I’m sure you’ll soon see where the opportunities are for coloured paper to come into play, and avoid feeling frustrated where it can’t.
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