GTD With The Bullet Journal: Using your favorite journaling tool with the world's best productivity method

by Derek Reinhard

When was the last time you enjoyed a to-do list? When's the last time you were working on something only to find there was a more important thing you should have been doing? How many "inboxes" do you have to keep (and lose) track of?This easy-to-read book is for people who love hands-on journaling but still want structure for their time and tasks. The author takes you step-by-step through setting up your journal and aligning it with the world's favorite productivity system. You will be up and running in minutes.The Bullet Journal Notebook provides a minimalist foundation for journaling that people love. David Allen's Getting Things Done system is a comprehensive method for planning and doing. Put them together and you have a smooth, beautiful paper-based method that gets both your day-to-day tasks and your long-term planning in order. Go from getting things lost to getting things done, always at hand in a paper-based journaling experience.

Genres: Productivity, Nonfiction, Self Help

42 pages, Paperback

Published August 24, 2020

Reviews

[Ridwan · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's a pretty straight forward book on how to implement GTD methodology in a Bullet Journal.

My biggest takeaway is the section on the three rules of GTD implementation:

1. Maintaining hard edges between categories & contexts.

2. Regular scanning of next-actions list to keep the flow.

3. Keep inboxes clear.

These rules alone will improve your productivity game tenfold.

My only issue is the lack of more photos and simplified setup guide. I find reading big paragraphs tedious.

In a nutshell, I recommend this book! Worth the money because you well want to review this book every now and than.

[Terry · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a good, quick read for people who are both familiar with the GTD system and have a fundamental understanding of what a bullet journal is intended to do. I wasn't expecting much being that books (and blog posts, etc) of this sort usually have nothing to do with GTD outside of the title but the author of this book obviously understands both systems in details and has figured out a way to integrate things which is easy enough to replicate and replete with common sense. The best way to read it would be to sit back and pretend that a friend is walking you through their system rather rather than work through it as an instructional manual of any sort.

The parts on 'essential GTD rules' framed the system nicely (and kept me reading being that it demonstrated the author really understood what he was writing about).

The only caveat is that if you are not yet familiar with GTD, this book probably won't do that much for you - the information will be overwhelming. If you know or use GTD but have no idea what a 'bullet journal' is, spend about 15-20 minutes skimming through and watching videos on the official Bullet Journal site before reading this to generate an overall idea of the direction that it's heading.

[Sue · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is a book that should have been a blog post or YouTube Video.

I was hoping to get some insight into how to use GTD principles in a bullet journal to manage large, complex projects. This is not the book for that. It's a basic, barebones instruction manual on setting up a basic bullet journal with GTD elements. But there's little in here that will help me with my project management. I've already developed a bastardized version of the two systems that works better than the basic version described here.

[Gene Z · Rating 4 out of 5]

Short and sweet guide for implementing GTD in Bujo. Overall the advice is sound and I picked up a few cool tricks. I'd give it 4 stars if the photos were clearer and if there were fewer typos.

[Emilia R · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very helpful

Finally a book that helped me to join both of the best worlds. I love using bullet journal but also GTD method was very appealing. I got really confused not sure which is best to go with. I tried to join the both systems and just made myself confused. I set up a digital bullet journal while reading this book and finally feel at peace. Thank you to the author for sharing his system.

[Sue · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was hoping this would help me integrate the principles of GTD with a bullet journal, but it didn't offer me any new insights. This should have been a short video, or a blog post, not a book.

I have a system set up that bastardizes both systems, but works well enough for me. I want it to be more pure to the methods, but I'm guessing my workflow just doesn't work like that for me.

[Darryl L. Rowe · Rating 5 out of 5]

Short and Sweet

I set up GTD in Outlook some time back and recently started writing in a daily log which I can carry around easily and use quietly without PC, tablet, or phone. Just having something to write a quick note or reminder is great, and I like the Bullet Journal approach.

[Laurie Sand · Rating 4 out of 5]

Short and sweet

This book (long essay?) is not for a productivity newbie, but I enjoyed the closeup look at how the author combines Bullet Journaling with Getting Things Done. Are you a productivity junkie who enjoys voyeuristic peaks at other people's systems? This is a great, quick read just for you. It also included concise summaries of both Bujo and GTD, which I liked.

[Lyle · Rating 5 out of 5]

Just what I was looking for

This is for people who have been trying to figure out a smooth way to combine these methods. The author has done it, and I’m looking forward to trying it out.

[Norm Tresadern · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good combination

Could have done with more illustrations. I'm very familiar with both systems but got a bit lost just reading this - will have to have the book by my side as I set my BuJo up.

[Kara Marie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Useful Information

If you’re a BuJo fan and also like the GTD method, I highly encourage to read this book. It’s not long at all but there are multiple places I highlighted so I can refer back to them. It’s also a great go to if you’re feeling burnt out with your BuJo!!

[Matt · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a quick read with a helpful set of explanations on merging these two productivity systems.

I wanted more images of the processes and set ups that the author explained.

I could see this resources serving as a nice companion to a self-directed course.

[Mic · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good quick guide on using GTD with BuJo

Not recommended for those with zero knowledge on both topics. Learn the basics of those two concepts first, then read this book to combine the ideas.

[Lee Murray Brazos Booksellers · Rating 4 out of 5]

Helpful

As a long time GTD user, this instructional book on combining GTD and the Bullet Journal is any excellent resource.

Highly recommended if you use both systems.

[Sara · Rating 3 out of 5]

Useful if one is already familiar with bullet journaling and GTD.

[Chris · Rating 3 out of 5]

Helpful. Exactly what it claimed to be: one person’s take on combining the practices of Getting Things Done and bullet journaling.

[Andrew Anderson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good if you already know GTD

If you already bujo and know GTD this book has some gems. If your not comfortable with either past on this for later.

[John Michlig · Rating 3 out of 5]

Believe me, I WANTED to like this book. However, in Kindle format, the all-important illustrations/examples were very unclear. It encouraged me to go back and re-read GETTING THINGS DONE, however.

[Jim · Rating 4 out of 5]

Short, concise how-to integrate GTF and BuJo. Yup!

[PD · Rating 4 out of 5]

A short, self-published kindle book. Author helpfully discusses how to incorporate GTD method with Bullet Journaling.

[Alexander · Rating 1 out of 5]

A book that could have been a short blog post.

[F · Rating 2 out of 5]

I’m a long-time GTDer and am intrigued with BuJo because it aligns with my note-taking techniques. Was looking for some new insights but quickly realized that there were none.

That’s not to say it wasn’t good. If I were just starting my journey into GTD/BuJo I would likely have a different view.