Weekly notes review checklist

1. Minutes 0 to 2. CollectBring every scrap into the one inbox: phone photos, paper notes, voice memos, saved links.Aim: one list, not many.
2. Minutes 2 to 6. SortGive each item one fate: act, keep or delete.Do not rewrite. If you hesitate twice, delete it.
3. Sort, actMove every act item into your task list or calendar with a date.
4. Sort, keepFile kept items in a folder you can name from memory.Fewer than five folders is plenty at first.
5. Minutes 6 to 8. Pick threeChoose up to three notes you will use this week and put them where you will see them.
6. Minutes 8 to 10. PruneArchive finished projects. Delete what you carried over twice.
7. CloseSet next week's reminder before you close the inbox.

How to use it

1. Pick a fixed day and time, and attach it to something you already do.
2. Run the list top to bottom. Do not skip the pick-three step; it is what turns filing into action.
3. If you are behind, sort the newest items first and delete the oldest unread. The weekly review guide has a catch-up plan.

Why these steps

Collect comes first because mixing collection with decisions slows both, a point David Allen's weekly review makes by separating gathering from reviewing. Sort is limited to three fates so that no item needs a debate. Pick three forces at least one thing out of the pile and into your week. Prune keeps next week's review short, which is what keeps you coming back.

Make it yours

Add a line for any recurring chore, such as "photograph the whiteboard" or "empty the voice memo folder". Keep the whole list under ten lines. If it grows, it will stop being done. Not sure which system you are reviewing? Try the system quiz.

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