A couple of folks here in our office are real devotees of GTD -- the acronym made famous online by David Allen and his productivity system. Being a bit of an iconoclast -- can you be a bit of one? -- I have long eschewed such official programs for Getting Things Done. But the truth is, when you live on Internet time, as I've done since about 1996, you've got to have a system or you'll drown in bits.

In my family, I'm famous for not being the organized one. Now, I'll tell you two things right off:

• Everything is relative. My mother and my sisters are borderline compulsive about lining up their ducks in a row.


• And second, since my natural state tends more toward entropy, I've become an expert at using a few tools to fence in my chaos.

Here are my favorite organization tools:

• Microsoft Excel. I know, I know. Say what you will about the Evil Empire, but if you've been using spreadsheets as long as I have, you start to think that way. Excel is often my first tool, though it's rarely the final one. I start here making lists and figuring out how to think about a project.


• Basecamp and related products. This is where many projects end up. I collaborate with all my coworkers on the Hammock Basecamp site, where we keep tabs on publications and web projects. I frequently use Backpack -- the 37signals offering that's sort of a step down from Basecamp. It's perfect for personal project management, like, planning my family's Thanksgiving dinner.


• Gootodo. I'm still playing with this one. Created by Mark Hurst of Creative Good, this also aims to fulfill your task-management needs. I don't have it fully worked into my brain the way I do the 37signals products, though.


• My Franklin planner. Yes, old school. Pencil, paper, calendar. For me, it's still part of the daily routine. It's faster to find most info here than even on a hand-held device. And when I write something down, I'm much more likely to remember it. Typing doesn't seem to have as strong an effect on my memory, though it's a step up from just hearing or saying something.

I'll be out of the office starting the afternoon of Friday, Dec. 21, 2007, and returning Wednesday morning, Jan. 2, 2008. While I'm gone, I'll be checking my email at least a couple of times a day, but I won't be checking my office voice mail at all.

If you need to reach me right away, please email me or call my cell phone [615.500.4131].

Best of the season to you!