ONENOTE

FOR WINDOWS

Setup Guide

David Allen Company

GTD & ONENOTE FOR WINDOWS l SETUP GUIDE

TABLE OF CONTENTS

FOCUS OF THIS GUIDE

WHAT YOU CAN EXPECT FROM THIS GUIDE
1

FOCUS OF THIS GUIDE

UNDERSTANDING THE GTD BEST PRACTICES

AN OVERVIEW OF THE KEY BEST PRACTICES OF THE GTD METHODOLOGY

2

WHAT IS GTD?

GTDS FIVE PHASES OF MASTERING WORKFLOW

THREE STAGES TO INTEGRATING GTD

THE GTD WORKFLOW MAP

THE GTD WEEKLY REVIEW

APPLYING GTD TO ONENOTE

SETTING UP ONENOTE FOR GTD

PROJECTS AND NEXT ACTIONS

5

USING ONENOTE TO MANAGE PROJECTS AND NEXT ACTIONS LISTS

THE MOST COMMON GTD LISTS

SETTING UP LISTS

12

EXPLANATION OF THE COMMON GTD LISTS

18 LINKING PROJECTS TO THEIR RELATED ACTIONS

20 LINKING ONENOTE TO OUTLOOK
24 MOVING ITEMS BETWEEN LISTS
25 THE WEEKLY REVIEW TIES IT ALL TOGETHER
25 CUSTOMIZING YOUR CONTEXTS
25 USING QUICK NOTES

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TABLE OF CONTENTS (CONTINUED)

APPLYING GTD TO ONENOTE (CONTINUED)

28 REVIEWING YOUR LISTS
28 USING DUE DATES
30 MARKING ITEMS COMPLETE
31 USING SHORTCUT KEYS
31

SHARING FROM ONENOTE

EMAIL
35 INTEGRATING ACTIONABLE EMAIL WITH ONENOTE
35 TWO OPTIONS FOR MANAGING ACTIONABLE EMAIL
36 GETTING YOUR INBOX TO ZERO
37 EMAILING TO ONENOTE
39 SENDING AND CLIPPING TO ONENOTE

CALENDAR
40 WHAT BELONGS ON YOUR CALENDAR
41 REVIEWING YOUR CALENDAR

REFERENCE
42 USING ONENOTE TO STORE REFERENCE INFORMATION

SYNCING
45 SYNCING ONENOTE

CONCLUSION
46 ADDITIONAL RESOURCES

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GTD & ONENOTE FOR WINDOWS l SETUP GUIDE

FOCUS OF THIS GUIDE

Our focus with this Guide is to show you how to use OneNote for Windows for your GTD workflow. Many people
think of OneNote as a tool for storing your non-actionable reference information, but we have found it to also be
useful for managing the actionable things as well. This Guide will focus on configuring and populating OneNote
for your Project lists and plans, Next Actions lists, and Reference.
The instructions and screenshots show examples for the OneNote 2016 for Windows, but should apply to most
recent versions of OneNote. The interface is different enough from the Mac version of OneNote that we chose
to do a separate Guide for that platform.
If you are new to OneNote, this Guide should be an excellent starting point for you to build a solid GTD foundation
for optimizing your productivity using the built-in features. If you already have an established system in OneNote,
use this Guide as an opportunity to fine-tune or simplify, if you have found youve underused or overbuilt your setup.
We are aware that there are many features and ways to configure your GTD system in OneNote. This is not
a technical Guide, nor will it cover all the instructions for how to use OneNote. Well leave that to the folks at
Microsoft to share with you through their excellent support material.
This Guide focuses on the methods we have found work well for GTD for a wide range of people. Its also
important to note that no one tool will handle all of your needs for GTD, including OneNote. Even with your lists
managed in OneNote, youll still have your Calendar and Email in other programs.
Whatever configuration you choose in tools like OneNote, be careful not to overcomplicate it to the point where
you can only maintain it when you are at your peak of mental clarity. Its too easy to be out of that mindset and
have the whole system fall apart. Your GTD tools should be complex enough to manage your workflow,
but simple enough that if you were sick in bed with the flu, you could still easily maintain them.
Dont worry about using every feature in OneNote. There is likely far more built in than you will ever need.
Focus on what makes a difference for you.
OKlets get started!
Be careful not to overcomplicate your
systems to the point where you can
only maintain them when you are
at your peak of mental clarity.

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FOCUS OF THIS GUIDE

GTD & ONENOTE FOR WINDOWS l SETUP GUIDE

UNDERSTANDING THE GTD BEST PRACTICES

To get the most out of OneNote as a tool for your GTD practice, lets review the fundamentals of the Getting
Things Done approach, so you understand how the methodology and tools will intersect.

WHAT IS GTD?
GTD is the shorthand brand for Getting Things Done, the ground breaking work-life management system and
bestselling book1 by David Allen, which provides concrete solutions for transforming overwhelm and uncertainty
into an integrated system of stress-free productivity.

GTDS FIVE PHASES OF MASTERING WORKFLOW

yy Capture Collect anything and everything thats grabbing your attention
yy Clarify Define actionable things into concrete next steps and successful outcomes
yy Organize Sort information in the most streamlined way, in appropriate categories, based on how and when
you need to access it
yy Reflect Step back to review and update your system regularly
yy Engage Make trusted choices about what to do in any given moment

THREE STAGES TO INTEGRATING GTD

1. UNDERSTANDING

You understand the distinct differences in the five phases of Mastering Workflow.
You understand a project versus a next action. You know how to transform what youve collected by asking
the key processing questions, clarifying what something is, and what you want to do about it.

2. IMPLEMENTATION

You have installed at least the basic gear to support a GTD system, including ubiquitous
collection tools, functioning reference systems for your non-actionable information, and seamless buckets with
clean edges for tracking your projects and next actions.

3. BEHAVIOR CHANGE

The five phases of Mastering Workflow are second nature to you. You have changed the
way you think and work and are achieving stress-free productivity on a regular basis. When you fall off you
know what to do to get back on.
This Guide will leap forward to the Implementation stage, by configuring OneNote as an organizing tool for your
projects, actions, and reference. Success at the implementation stage depends on your understanding of GTD.
If you are committed to GTD and experiencing stress-free productivity, dont shortchange yourself by skipping
the Understanding stage.

Getting Things Done: The Art of Stress-Free Productivity; Viking, New York; 2001, 2015 hardback or paperback. Available from booksellers or at
gettingthingsdone.com
1

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UNDERSTANDING THE GTD BEST PRACTICES

GTD & ONENOTE FOR WINDOWS l SETUP GUIDE

APPLYING GTD TO ONENOTE

PROJECTS AND NEXT ACTIONS

USING ONENOTE TO MANAGE PROJECTS AND NEXT ACTIONS LISTS
Many people think of OneNote as a reference tool, but with some adaptations, it can be an excellent option
for managing the projects and action lists in your GTD system. We recommend you create lists in OneNote
Notebooks, Sections, and/or Pages to match the set of lists recommended in the Getting Things Done book,
which we describe in more detail over the following pages.

THE MOST COMMON GTD LISTS

There are 10 lists recommended in the Getting Things Done book that are a good starter set for most people.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

Agendas
Anywhere
Calls
Computer
Errands

6. Home
7. Office
8. Waiting For
9. Someday/Maybe
10. Projects

Sorting your next actions by context (lists 17 above) is recommended, because when you are choosing what
to do, context will always be your first limitation. For example, if you are at work, you dont want to be seeing
(and having to take the time to skip over) actions that require you to be at home to do. Contexts should map
to the people, places, and tools you need to get work done.

SETTING UP LISTS
Lets set up the 10 suggested lists in OneNote now. You can always go back to customize these later, after youve
experimented, to discover works best for you. We encourage you to give these lists some time, especially if the
concept of sorting by contexts is new to you.

WE WILL BE USING 4 DIFFERENT TYPES OF ENTRIES IN ONENOTE:

yy Notebooks
yy Sections
yy Pages
yy Notes

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APPLYING GTD TO ONENOTE

LINKING PROJECTS TO THEIR RELATED ACTIONS

Sorting next actions by context, not by project, can initially seem awkward. Some people are used to having multiple
files, piles, notepads, documents, and spreadsheets related to a project, with next actions for the project buried
amongst all of that information. Next Actions lists dont replace project planswe would just call that data project
support, and in our experience, it rarely works to have current next actions buried among project support for
day-to-day action management. Think of the last time you had 20 minutes free and decided to work on a key
project. How easy was it to dig through your project support to find the immediate next actions based on the tools,
people, and places available to you in the moment? It was probably more repellent to you, especially if you knew
there was still thinking to do from the project support.
When your next actions are already defined and sorted by context, you can move more quickly, more easily,
and more in sync with how you are naturally choosing what to do firstby context. Then project support remains
the parking lot for actions that are incubated for future action. You can always add a keyword for the project in your
next action or waiting for description. That way, you can rely on the powerful OneNote search function (Ctrl + E)
to pull together related information.

USING PROJECT TAGS

You can also use tags for a specific project and search on that tag. For example, you could tag the project,
and all of the related next action and waiting for items. Then, when you search on that tag, you can see
everything related to the project in one quick view.
To create a project tag, go to the item you want to tag.
Under the Home tab > Tags in the ribbon, click on the more arrow next to the tags box and choose Customize
Tags.

Click the New Tag button. In the window that appears, give your
tag a name. You can also assign a symbol, and change the font if
you want. Click OK twice to return to the item you want to tag.

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APPLYING GTD TO ONENOTE

18

REVIEWING YOUR LISTS

On a daily basis, we recommend reviewing your Next Actions lists (the ones we set up as contexts, such as Calls,
Computer, etc.), whenever you get a chance. On a weekly basis, in your Weekly Review, we recommend reviewing
all of your actionable lists in OneNote, including Next Actions, Waiting For, Someday/Maybe, and Projects. This will
be valuable time spent to acknowledge what youve completed, capture any new next actions, and ensure each
project is moving forward.

USING DUE DATES

Since OneNote was not built as a traditional list manager, it does not currently include typical list manager functions,
like assigning a due by date. There are a few simple ways to work around this.
1. One of the easiest ways is to add the due date to the subject line. See example below:

2. Another option is to create a tag or (tags) that represent due dates. For example, due this week, due soon,
or before next tripif you travel frequently. See example below:

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APPLYING GTD TO ONENOTE

28

EMAILING TO ONENOTE
Another great feature in OneNote is the ability to email information into your OneNote Notebooks.
A few ways you might find this useful include:
yy Sending Mind Sweep items to your Quick Notes
yy Capturing a next action and sending it directly to a Next Actions list
yy Forwarding project support to one of your Project Notebooks
yy Creating a new project to add to your Projects list
yy Capturing reference for your Reference Notebook
1. To get started, go to www.onenote.com/EmailToOneNote and follow the simple instructions for configuring
this feature.
2. Select the email address to enable. Any emails you send from this address to me@onenote.com will be saved
to a Notebook you choose. Save that email address to your address book as a new contact now so its ready to
go when you want to start sending emails. Name the new contact something easy to remember and type, like
onenote, for speedy addressing in the future.
3. Select the default Notebook and Section for your emails. We recommend Quick Notes as the default. Your
destination Notebook must be shared on the web or your network. It wont work for Notebooks saved only locally
on your computer.

4. Click Save.
5. Go to your email program and send an email to me@onenote.com from the email account you enabled in step 2.
A new Page will be created from your email with the subject line of your email becoming the title of the Page.

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APPLYING GTD TO ONENOTE

37

Here are some possible new lists within your Reference Notebooks to try:
yy Checklists
yy Areas of focus
yy Fun
yy Ideas
yy Inspirations and affirmations
yy Great quotes
yy Lists
yy Might like to buy
yy Might like to read
yy Music to download
yy Next time in
yy Travel
yy Vacation ideas
You have a few options for how to set this up, depending on your preference. As we consistently suggest, be careful
to not overcomplicate your system to the point where it becomes unwieldy to find or maintain the information. Read
through the following options and be willing to experiment with the solution that will work best for you.

Example One

Create reference lists and notes within one new Reference Notebook.

Creating individual notes:

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43

GTD & ONENOTE FOR WINDOWS l SETUP GUIDE

CONCLUSION
We hope this instruction guide has been useful. It is intended as an adjunct to our core education of workflow
mastery developed over many yearsnot a substitute. The most successful implementation of this guide builds
on the understanding of the GTD best practices presented in our many learning tools, including the Getting
Things Done book, our public and on-site courses, individual coaching, and our online learning center GTD
Connect.
Please visit our website to take advantage of the many support tools and services available to assist you in getting
your GTD system up and running.

FOR TECHNICAL SUPPORT WITH ONENOTE, PLEASE VISIT:

microsoft.com

FOR MORE INFORMATION ABOUT GTD, PLEASE VISIT:

gettingthingsdone.com
gtdconnect.com

OR CONTACT US:
David Allen Company
+1-805-646-8432
customerservice@davidco.com

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CONCLUSION

46