GTD - The Art of Stress Free Productivity

GTD® is the popular shorthand for "Getting Things Done®", the groundbreaking work-life management system and book by David Allen that transforms personal overwhelm and overload into an integrated system of stress-free productivity.

Sophisticated without being confining, the subtle effectiveness of GTD lies in its radically common sense notion that with a complete and current inventory of all your commitments, organized and reviewed in a systematic way, you can focus clearly, view your world from optimal angles and make trusted choices about what to do (and not do) at any moment. GTD embodies an easy, step-by-step and highly efficient method for achieving this relaxed, productive state. It includes:
Capturing anything and everything that has your attention
Defining actionable things discretely into outcomes and concrete next steps
Organizing reminders and information in the most streamlined way, in appropriate categories, based on how and when you need to access them

Keeping current and "on your game" with appropriately frequent reviews of the six horizons of
your commitments (purpose, vision, goals, areas of focus, projects, and actions)

Implementing GTD alleviates the feeling of overwhelm, instills confidence, and releases a flood of creative energy. It provides structure without constraint, managing details with maximum flexibility. The system rigorously adheres to the core principles of productivity, while allowing tremendous freedom in the "how." The only "right" way to do GTD is getting meaningful things done with truly the least amount of invested attention and energy. Coaching thousands of people, where they work, about their work, has informed the GTD method with the best practices of how to work (and live), in that most efficient and productive way.

GTD's simplicity, flexibility, and immediacy are its attraction. Its ability to enliven,
enlighten, and empower is its magic. What, indeed, is GTD? More than meets the eye...

http://www.davidco.com/what_is_gtd.php

The Magician

taking action
doing what needs to be done
realizing your potential
making what's possible real
practicing what you preach
carrying out plans
producing magical results
using your talents

acting consciously
knowing what you are doing and why
acknowledging your motivations
understanding your intentions
examining the known situation

concentrating
having singleness of purpose
being totally committed
applying the force of your will
feeling centered
setting aside distractions
focusing on a goal

experiencing power
making a strong impact
having vitality
creating miracles
becoming energized
feeling vigorous
being creative


OPPOSING CARDS: Some Possibilities

* High Priestess - nonaction, intuition, accessing the unconscious
* Hanged Man - suspending action, not doing
* Seven of Cups - lacking focus and commitment
* Four of Swords - resting quietly, storing energy
* Eight of Swords - confused and uncertain, powerless


REINFORCING CARDS: Some Possibilities

* Chariot - focusing, concentrating, being forceful
* Two of Wands - personal power, wielding a strong force
* Eight of Wands - quick action, making your move
* Eight of Pentacles - focus and concentration


DESCRIPTION

The Magician is the archetype of the active, masculine principle - the ultimate achiever. He symbolizes the power to tap universal forces and use them for creative purposes. Note his stance in the picture. He acts as a lightening rod - one arm extended up into the Divine for inspiration, the other pointing toward Earth to ground this potent energy. [note] His abilities appear magical at times because his will helps him achieve what seem to be miracles.

What makes the Magician so powerful? First, he is not afraid to act. He believes in himself and is willing to put that belief on the line. He also knows what he intends to do and why. He doesn't hesitate because he understands his situation exactly. The Magician can focus with single-minded determination. As long as he remembers the divine source of his power, the Magician remains the perfect conduit for miracles.

In a reading, the Magician implies that the primal forces of creativity are yours if you can claim your power and act with awareness and concentration. This card is a signal to act and act now, provided you understand exactly what you want and are committed to getting it.

http://www.learntarot.com/maj01.htm

Tamas, Rajas and Satva

Sanskrit yogic terms which I interpret to have the meaning of *negation, affirmation and illumination*. These are nature's ingredients to organic/spiritual life which more concretely refer to laziness/inertia (tamas), drive/passion (rajas) and purity/peace (satva) of mind. During my stay at the Sivananda Ashram, although we looked upon the trinity of male deities, Brahma-Vishnu-Shiva, as rajasic, satvic and tamasic respectively, there was nonetheless a kind of unspoken hierarchy expressed in less philosophically mindful moments, with tamas at the bottom, rajas just above it, and satva above all.

Really it is a progression in evolution, yet the tamasic has a role, related to Shiva the destroyer, which is as vital as the more affirmative and positive aspects of the Divine. The tamasic time of day is said to be 6pm to 2am, when we relax, enjoy ourselves, have dinner, wind down for the day and goto sleep. From a spiritual perspective there is an inert dark side of consciousness which must be honored and embraced such that one becomes intimate with all that exists within that darkness. In short, the primary process of letting go of everything that weighs upon my soul, the heaviness of life's attachment that is the cause of inertia, is a function of tamas... the capacity for dissolution, decay and death, of all that obscures the Satva, or luminous true nature.

Rajas serves the purpose of lifting us up out of the shit... it says "yeah, life may be a big ball of horse manure and I am swimming in it, but I don't have to give in or resign to a life of meaningless dark inertia. I can take action, use my will, the inner general, yet knowing that this will only take me so far. It will get me out of the tamas and get my head above water so that I can bring myself to see what life is really about and what my potential and possibilities are. The tamas will balance out the rajas simply by following the natural laws of equilibrium and avoiding extremes. It is good to have the ability to "stop and go" alternatively, and to not become overly active and restless nor overly passive and stagnant.

Satva represents this balancing factor, the purity of illumination, which is the true nature behind the grosser natural elements of rajas and tamas. Although it is something we experience in our evolution as a late comer, a fruition of sorts, it is really (like freedom and self awareness) at the very beginning of the process we call life and living. Meditation, yoga, spiritual practices, purification rituals, selfless service (karma yoga) all serve this purpose of upliftment. The joy of being inwardly calm and present, outwardly focused, alive and well, embracing the moment fully in all its splendor, diversity and capacity for creation.

Inevitably the satvic is to be let go of, not by going back into a tamasic or rajasic state, but through the experience of non-grasping... even the higher mind state is seen ultimately as illusion, part of the passing show (albeit the best part), and only a reflection of the truth, joy and deep peace that is the very soul or essence of life and human experience itself. Non-grasping is recognizing the completeness from within, creating, expressing and experiencing in and through the phenomenal world of forms, clinging to none exclusively. The satva is our open gate, the pathway leading to the divine, and through which It is made manifest through me. This may be the most challenging part of all, to live fully and joyfully while anchored in deep peace which does not cling, want or need... the truest definition of FREEDOM and HAPPINESS..

JDZ