iGTD and Mail.app

In order to make the most out of my iGTD system, I’ve been learning to use its email integration features as my only organization system for emails/todos. I was previously using a combination of Mailtags and smart folders to create an email sorting system based on a GTD workflow. Now I use iGTD to categorize and tag all of my emails and more effectively integrate them into my action list…

Mailtags

If you’re not using Mailtags with Mail.app, you should probably take a look at it. I consider it to be a must-have in my life. And now that iGTD integrates fully with it’s feature set, you can make the most of your emails in both programs.

My Empty (email) Inbox

I retained the use of my Inbox smart folder from my previous setup. It’s basically a Mail.app smart folder that only shows unread messages from non-mailing-list folders. I’ve removed the tickler file function as it’s been replaced by iGTD. It compiles all of my accounts, including my VOIP voicemail and gives me one central place to read my messages. Once a message is read and acted on, it disappears into the archives. So what I’m left with is a nice clean inbox that remains uncluttered (or empty) and shows me only what needs to be sorted and dealt with. I had to take some time to sort through the mess that was my previous inbox before I felt comfortable not seeing the pile every day, but it was more than worth it in the end to feel like I was on top of the mess. I can always head to the archives or run a search in my mail database to find anything that comes up missing.

Function 5(6)

I think it’s changed to F6 if you’re a new user of iGTD, but for us old-timers who haven’t updated our preferences, it’s F5. The one I’m speaking of is the one that creates a new task from the current email (or web page, or file, etc.). Here’s how I use it:

When a new email comes in that requires attention I make a judgement call. If I can act on it immediately and get it out of the way in less than two minutes, I do it. I respond to the email with the minimum number of necessary words or take whatever action is necessary to satisfy the request.

If it’s an email that requires an action of any kind, I use any or all of the following steps with Mailtags:

• Tag the message with Mailtags keywords
• Mark the message as flagged (requiring special attention)
• Set a due date (only when there are hard due dates)
• Set a priority

Then it’s F5 (or 6) and off to iGTD with it. The tags, due dates, flag and priority will all translate into a new task. The new task shows up with the subject of the email and name of sender (depending on your preferences) and is highlighted for editing.

I use keyboard shortcuts and the quicksilver style choosers to quickly assign a context and project to the task. Some tasks immediately require promotion to projects, which is easily done with ⌥-⌘-P. Most tasks at this point are finished and part of my workflow. They have the body of the original email in the notes section, as well as a link back to the email in the links section. When I complete the task, I can easily load the original email and send a reply to the sender. Any additional emails that come in on the subject can be added to the links and notes can be easily added to the notes pane. If an email conversation evolves on a project and the whole thing is quoted, I’ll usually delete the link to the original email and replace it with a link to the latest email, copying the pertinent text into the notes. In case you didn’t already know it, if you have Mailtags you can right click on a message in the list and choose “Copy message Url” and paste that into the links section of an iGTD task. There is, of course, the ability to “Edit in TextMate” from the Notes section ;).

If it’s an email that just requires a reply, I give it a “replyto” tag and have a smart folder in my “To Complete” section that shows me emails that require a reply but took more time than I had at the moment. They’re prioritized and have due dates as necessary. You could just as easily create a context for this and review it in the same way.

Archiving

I’m learning to use the Archive feature of iGTD to save important emails and email links. I previously used a combination of Mailtags, MailActOn, Yojimbo, IMAP Folders and Smart Folders. Archiving with iGTD makes life a little easier.

Sometimes an email is purely informational but requires tagging and saving. In the past I would have done this with Mailtags, MailActOn and an IMAP folder, but in my effort to consolidate my system into one app, I now create a task with F5 and immediately archive it with tags and place it into an appropriate group.

Then there are emails for completed projects that contain information that will be relevant again. Tasks containing links to those emails get archived rather than marked as complete.

Receipts and other important documents get archived and tagged as well.

For Safety’s Sake

Because of the importance of email in my workflow, I back up my IMAP database often and in two ways. My server runs an automated backup every 24 hours, and I back up my local copies about once a week. I use MailStewardLite to create a database that I can burn off to disc and then proceed to sleep restfully.

Geekery» GTD» iGTD» mail» tagging»