Forget About Trying to Remember

Among many obsessions of ours is David Allen's Getting Things Done . In this overly-regimented (yet highly functional) productivity program you will find a system folders called the tickler file. Build one of these filing systems (and use it) and you're on your way to never forgetting another important deadline again... practically.

The beauty of this filing system is that it allows you to PHYSICALLY "mail" yourself anything (bill, permission-slip, coupon, scribble) on any given day of the year. The key here is the physical. Unlike the common calendar which allows you to jot down anything on any given day of the year, the tickler file allows you to hold anything (usually paper-based) for any given day of the year.

For example: Suppose you receive a coupon in the mail good for $7 dollars off of your next oil change. Gold! You want to hang on to this and use it, but you're only a week into your last oil change. What could you possibly do to insure that in 3 months (like a responsible motorist) you happen upon this piece of paper- and use it?

Option One: Post it on a bulletin board. Boo! Do this and within 4 days, it is invisible. After 6 months have gone by, you'll re-discover this coupon along with it's passed expiration date.

Option Two: File it with a reminder in your calendar. Not a bad idea. But where will you be in relation to the coupon when you read in your calendar: oil change, use coupon? Suppose you read it at work, and you've filed it at home. Suppose you read it at home, but you've stashed it in the glove compartment. Or more likely, you read it and have no idea where you've put the coupon.

Option Three: The coupon shows up before your eyes on the day you need to use it. Sound like magic? Here's how it works:

The tickler file consists of 43 folders: 12 for each month, and 31 for each day. To set it up, let's suppose that today's date is December 14th. My tickler file will have (from front to back) folders 14-31, the January folder, days 1-13, then February-December. With me so far? So I wake up and look at the front-most folder which is today's date: the 14th. In it are the things that I need to have for today (forms, coupons etc). I empty it into my "inbox" (more on this later) and file folder 14 into the next month behind 13. Each day I empty and rotate the folders, keeping the correct number in sync with the date of that day. When I get to a month folder, I take it's contents and file them into a more specific day, or simply do what I need to with that form.

When I get some piece of paper that I will physically need on any future date, I file into the corresponding month, or if it is close enough in the future, into a date folder. By checking it everyday, I will have successfully "mailed" all sorts of important stuff to myself.

Why the Tickler File Rocks:
First, it's an infinite cycle. Unlike a calendar, the tickler never runs out. So if in November I come up with a great idea for next year's Halloween party, I've got the October file ready to receive.

Second, as long as I check it everyday, I can forget about it's contents. No more circular thinking: "bring my pay-stub on the forth, bring my pay-stub on the forth...". Give yourself permission to forget. On the 4th, you open the file, and there is your pay-stub.

Third, it's a system that excels at receiving the unexpected. The hardest thing to stay organized on are the things that you are not anticipating. The permission slip from your kid, the coupon in the mail. As detailed as your file system may be, some things just don't have a place. These things sit on a desktop, or counter, and fill our minds with stress.


Tickle it.
Take 20 minutes this week and set up your own tickler file. Give it a try and let us know what you think. Be sure to post questions or solutions.