Journler: The Perfect Program for GTD on Mac OSX

Important Note
Since I wrote this post, Phil Dow has released an updated version of Journler and a new, dedicated Journler website. The basics of how to set the program up for GTD still apply as outlined here. When I have some free time, I will create a new, updated entry for Journler 2.0.

~Amy | December 9, 2006

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After reading Hawk Wings Ten Mac Tools for Getting Things Done, I kept thinking to myself that it would be really easy to set such a system up in the beautiful (and free) Journler. Journler is an excellent choice for GTD because of its robust use of Smart Folders (including smart families of nested folders). In addition, Journler allows you to link files to your entries, so you can have your digital action item right there. Another powerful feature of Journler is its ability to e-mail entries and/or export them to your iPod so, for example, you can schedule an entry in Google Calendar or carry a list with you on your iPod. Plus, every entry is automatically dated. Great stuff.

Here’s how to get started (note, I’m only including what to do, for how to do it refer to the guide that comes with Journler):

1. Review Entry Fields: The first step is to familiarize yourself with each of Journler’s entry fields available when creating a New Entry: Title, Category, Keyword, and Main. Each of these fields can be used to take advantage of Journler’s powerful smart folder capabilities. Here’s how I use them:

Title Field. Project name and/or action item.

Category Field. Type of action: Next Actions, Projects, Waiting, Deferred, Maybe, Reference, or Completed (I’ve added a smart folder for completed items so I can reference them later).

Keyword Field. Type of context: At Home, At Computer, At Library, and so on.

Main Field. Lists of "to dos" for projects, supporting data (e.g., call numbers of library items), links to digital files required for that entry, and so on.

2. Set-up Folders: Now that you know what goes in each field, it’s time to set up your smart folders. You may want to modify how your organize your GTD folders. Here’s how I do it:

In-basket. I created a top-level (not contained in a standard folder) smart folder to include entries whose category contains “In.” I also set the default category (in preferences) to be “In” so that every time I jot an item to be processed, it will default to my in-basket.

Active, Context, and Inactive. I created three standard folders in which to organize my smart folders. They are Active, Context, and Inactive.

Active. In this folder I created sub-level smart folders: Next Actions, Projects, Waiting, and Deferred. I have each of these folders referencing its associated category. [Note: Journler has built-in e-mail capabilities. I use Gmail and Google Calendar and I have my system set to use my Gmail account as its default mail program. When I click on Journler’s E-mail icon, I’m presented with Gmail’s compose page which has the option to add Event details. Here I add all the information for a Deferred item and voila, it’s scheduled in my Calendar for later review. Excellent.]

Context. In this folder, I’ve created a half dozen sub-level smart folders (e.g., At Computer, At School, etc.). Each of these folders references the appropriate keyword. It’s important to use the keyword field to set your context, then each item will appear in both its category and keyword smart folders (i.e., “pick up library book” will appear in my Next Actions active folder and At Library context folder).

Inactive. This folder contains my Maybe, Reference, and Completed smart folders. Each referencing the appropriate category. After I finish an item, I change the category to completed. In addition to having this repository for future reference, Journler has excellent search and filter capabilities so I can locate older tasks and projects should I need to refer to them after they have been completed.

3. Experiment. Advanced foldering can be achieved in Journler. Nested smart folders inherit the parent’s attributes, so you can create sub-folders for specific projects and organize them the way that makes sense to you.

There you have it! A complete GTD system. If this works well for you, consider making a donation to Journler’s coder.