Dear Crucial Skills,

I struggle to use GTD® consistently. When I do, it’s helpful, but then I’ll lose lists or I forget to capture and clarify. I feel like maybe it’s just not a fit for me. Any tips for making this stuff stick?

Signed,
Floundering

Dear Floundering,

Let me try something a little different. I want you to imagine I’m sitting next to you, not writing an article, just having a conversation.

And I’ll start with what might sound like an odd inquiry: Tell me about your personality. And what I mean is: tell me what really makes you tick. I know, it might feel a little off topic. Just play along with me for a minute.

Here is a list of seven different statements. I don’t want you to pick the one you aspire to; I want you to pick the one that best describes you—what makes you feel like what you’re doing, at work or at home, actually matters.

1. “I’m motivated by helping and looking out for other people. I want the people around me to be okay know they are valued.”
2. “I’m motivated by getting things done. I like action, momentum, and moving things forward.”
3. “I’m motivated by thinking things through. I like to stay objective and thing the right way.”
4. “I’m motivated by being flexible and working things out together. I like talking things through before we decide.”
5. “I’m motivated by helping people become more capable. I like finding out what people need and helping them learn how to do it on their own.”
6. “I’m motivated by helping people grow. I like standing up for others and accomplishing something as a team.”
7. “I’m motivated by setting ambitious goals that can actually be achieved. I want to focus on the strategy while also challenging others.”

Take a second and identify which one feels most like you. I ask this because once you understand what makes you tick—your personality—you start to see why some productivity approaches feel natural, and why others feel like a constant fight.

This matters because productivity habits become much easier to adopt when you use them—and adapt them—based on your personality. I’ve seen this play out in my own life. I’m someone who loves to move quickly, take action, and make progress. That’s a big part of how I’m wired. Sometimes that shows up in helpful ways. For example, I really take to the next action idea in Getting Things Done. I don’t like sitting on things—I like knowing the very next move so I can get going.

Sometimes my personality works against me. For example, if you’re like me, you might start “helping” around the house by jumping straight into action—without ever checking what your spouse wanted done. In your head, you’re being efficient. In reality, you just stepped in it.

On paper, a lot of productivity practices seem better suited for someone who loves structure for its own sake—detailed lists, weekly reviews, organizing tasks. (For some of you, that list just perked your interest). That kind of structure can feel slow or restrictive if you’re like me. And yet, I love productivity methodologies like GTD. Not because I enjoy organizing for hours or playing with spreadsheets on my weekends—but because of what the habits give me.

When I’m clear and organized, I move faster. I finish more of the right things. I follow through better. In other words, I’ve found a way to make the GTD practices work with my personality, because I know what drives me. Understanding what drives you can help you do the same.

It can also help you identify barriers, or traps. Here are some common personality-to-productivity traps I see:

1. If you’re motivated by helping others, your trap is saying yes too often, hindering your ability to help anyone.
2. If you’re motivated by action and results, your trap is staying busy all day without stepping back to ask, “Is this the right thing to work on?”
3. If you’re motivated by thinking things through, your trap is analysis paralysis.
4. If you’re motivated by flexibility and collaboration, your trap is changing directions too easily.
5. If you’re motivated by helping others become self-sufficient, your trap is getting frustrated when your plan to help does not work out.
6. If you’re motivated by achieving results with other people, your trap is advocating too much that you lose sight of what others need.
7. If you’re motivated by strategy and smart assertiveness, your trap is being so focused on the winning strategy that you don’t ask for different perspectives.

When you become more aware what makes you tick, you can adapt productivity practices so they work with your personality instead of against it.

So as you look at the GTD skills—capture, clarify, organize, reflect, and engage—pause for a minute and be thoughtful about how you approach them. Ask yourself: knowing what I know about my personality, how can I best use these skills? And how can I use the tools I have to suit my personality, so the practices become an asset instead of a barrier?

Justin

Pairing the SDI with Getting Things Done helps people personalize how they build and maintain their GTD system. GTD provides a clear, reliable workflow for managing commitments, while the SDI helps people better understand themselves so they can adapt GTD to work with their motives and strengths.