Most productivity advice pushes you to do more, faster. The real breakthroughs, however, come from giving yourself leeway by adjusting your systems and expectations to fit your workflow and life.
In this week’s conversations, top GTD® practitioners share how small, intentional tweaks transformed focus, presence, relationships, and consistency.
The “Art” of Your Work
John Chase has spent a career navigating high-stakes deals in private equity, but even he reached the limits of traditional productivity methods (1:53). In this conversation with GTD Coach Mary O’Malley, he explains how customizing GTD to match his cognitive preferences (shoutout to the Kairos Assessment) and workflow helped him overcome his productivity plateau (3:10).
Small adjustments, like batching emails, modifying task rules, and using strategic follow-ups, created mental space for focus, creativity, and stronger relationships. By giving himself leeway, John turned structured flexibility into consistent, high-impact results while protecting what matters most: time with family (22:03).
Consistency Through Leeway
Jason Hiroshima was juggling multiple businesses, running a nonprofit, and managing family life while trying to do everything perfectly (2:15). He realized that forcing a rigid system was not working. Instead, he customized GTD to fit his workflow, priorities, and life circumstances.
Small but deliberate changes made a huge difference. He set boundaries with text messages (17:34), restructured his routines to match his preferred workflow, and refined his system to focus on what truly mattered (6:49). These adjustments reduced his anxiety, created more mental space, and allowed him to consistently make high-impact decisions.
Jason gained more time for meaningful conversations with his daughter, coaching youth athletes, and enjoying long, uninterrupted rounds of golf without feeling behind.
The Secret to Turning Busy into Productive
Luis Rivera works with first responders in high-stakes environments and has learned that being busy doesn’t equal being productive (7:00). The real breakthrough came when he gave himself permission to step back, manage his energy, and intentionally shape his workflow.
In this conversation with GTD Coach Julie Ireland, Luis explains how small, deliberate changes such as taking two-minute resets (13:11), leveraging one-on-one coaching (15:30), and understanding his cognitive preferences (9:10) transformed the constant pressure he faced into focused, high-impact action.
Quote of the Week
“Drive thy business, or it will drive thee.” – Benjamin Franklin
Know someone who’s juggling too much and could use a smarter, gentler approach to getting things done? Share this newsletter with them.
Cheers,
GTD Focus
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