David Allen - Getting Things Done

Praise for Getting Things Done
"The Season's Best Reads for Work-Life Advice .. . my favorite
on organizing your life: Getting Things Done . . . offers help build-
ing the new mental skills needed in an age of multi tasking and
overload."
—Sue Shellenbarger, The Wall Street Journal
"I recently attended David's seminar on getting org anized, and after
seeing him in action I have hope . .. David Allen's seminar was an
eye-opener."
—Stewart Alsop, Fortune
"Allen drops down from high-level philosophizing to the fine details
of time management. Take a minute to check this one out."
—Mark Henricks, Entrepreneur
"David Allen's productivity principles are rooted i n big ideas ...
but they're also eminently practical."
—Keith H. Hammonds, Fast Company
"David Allen brings new clarity to the power of pur pose, the
essential nature of relaxation, and deceptively simple guidelines
for getting things done. He employs extensive exper ience, per-
sonal stories, and his own recipe for simplicity, speed, and fun."
—Frances Hesselbein, chairman, board of governors,
The Drucker Foundation
"Anyone who reads this book can apply this knowledg e and these
skills in their lives for immediate results."
—Stephen P. Magee, chaired professor of business and
economics, University of Texas at Austin

"A true skeptic of most management fixes, I have to say David's
program is a winner!"
—Joline Godfrey, CEO, Independent Means, Inc. and
author of Our Wildest Dreams
"Getting Things Done describes an incredibly practical process that
can help busy people regain control of their lives. It can help you
be more successful. Even more important, it can hel p you have a
happier life!"
—Marshall Goldsmith, coeditor, The Leader of the Future
and Coaching for Leadership
"WARNING: Reading Getting Things Done can be hazardous
to your old habits of procrastination. David Allen' s approach is
refreshingly simple and intuitive. He provides the systems, tools,
and tips to achieve profound results."
—Carola Endicott, director, Quality Resources, New
England Medical Center

PENGUIN BOOKS
GETTING THINGS DONE
David Allen has been called one of the world's most influential
thinkers on productivity and has been a keynote spe aker and
facilitator for such organizations as New York Life, the World
Bank, the Ford Foundation, L.L. Bean, and the U.S. Navy, and
he conducts workshops for individuals and organizations across
the country. He is the president of The David Allen Company
and has more than twenty years experience as a mana gement
consultant and executive coach. His work has been featured in
Fast Company, Fortune, the Los Angeles Times, The New York Times,
The Wall Street Journal, and many other publications. Getting
Things Done has been published in twelve foreign countries.
David Allen lives in Ojai, California.

Getting
Things
Done
The Art of
Stress-Free Productivity
David Allen

PENGUIN BOOKSPublished b y the Penguin GroupPenguin Group (USA) Inc., 375 Hudson Street, New York, New York 10014, U.S.A.Penguin Books Ltd, 80 Strand, London WC2R ORL, Engl andPenguin Books Australia Ltd, 250 Camberwell Road, Camberwell, Victoria 3124, AustraliaPenguin Books Canada Ltd, 10 Alcorn Avenue, Toronto , Ontario, Canada M4V 3B2Penguin Books India (P) Ltd, 11 Community Centre, Panchsheel Park, New Delhi - 110 017, IndiaPenguin Books (N.Z.) Ltd, Cnr Rosedale and Airborne Roads, Alban y, Auckland, New ZealandPenguin Books {South Africa) (Pty) Ltd, 24 Sturdee Avenue,Rosebank, Johannesburg 2196, South Africa
Penguin Books Ltd, Registered Offices: 80 Strand, L ondon WC2R ORL, England
First published in the United States of America by Viking Penguin,a member of Penguin Putnam Inc. 2001Published in Penguin Books 2003
5 7 9 10 8 6
Copyright © David Allen, 2001All rights reserved
THE LIBR ARY OF CONGRESS HAS CATALOGEDT H E H A R D C O V E R E D IT IO N A S F O L L O W S :Allen, David.Getting things done : the art of stress-free productivity / David Allen.p. cm.Includes index.ISBN 0-670-89924-0 (he.)ISBN 0 14 20.0028 0 (pbk.)1. Time management. 2. Self-management (Psycholog y). I. Title.BF637.T5 A45 2001646.7—dc21 00-043757
Printed in the United States of AmericaSet in Adobe CaslonDesigned by Sara E. Stemen
Except in the United States of America, this book is sold subject to thecondition that it shall not, by way of trade or otherwise, be lent, re-sold, hired out,or otherwise circulated without the publisher's prior consent in any form of bindingor cover other than that in which it is published a nd without a similar conditionincluding this condition being imposed on the