A weekly review checklist is an essential tool to making sure you touch on all three of the pillars mentioned above. Here’s what a basic review checklist looks like, courtesy of GTD Times: Photo by Karuka (Shutterstock).
Get Clear
- Collect loose papers and materials
- Get Inbox to zero
- Empty your head
Get Current
- Review Action Lists
- Review past calendar data
- Review upcoming calendar
- Review Waiting For list
- Review Project (and larger outcome) lists
- Review any relevant checklists
Get Creative
- Review Someday/Maybe
- Be creative and courageous
If you need more detail, David Allen offers a template checklist (free, but requires registration) on his site to get you started, and this one (scroll down to weekly review) is another good example. On the GTD forums, some users have shared their own checklists for inspiration. Whether you use a template or build yours from scratch (and it doesn’t have to be long—just those things you want to make sure you do every week), make sure you populate it with things you want to review and not do. Remember, you’re not supposed to spend time working during your weekly review—just reviewing.
