{"id":5698,"date":"2012-02-01T15:08:00","date_gmt":"2012-02-01T23:08:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.gtdtimes.com\/2012\/02\/01\/"},"modified":"2014-02-03T14:39:00","modified_gmt":"2014-02-03T22:39:00","slug":"gtd-and-goal-setting","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/gettingthingsdone.com\/2012\/02\/gtd-and-goal-setting\/","title":{"rendered":"GTD and Goal Setting"},"content":{"rendered":"

Have you wondered whether goal setting works? The February issue of Productive Living has David Allen’s answer to that question.<\/p>\n

“Yes, but not the way most people seem to understand goal setting. In my experience, the real value of defining desired futures is not so much in the world they describe, but the change in perception the process of setting goals fosters.”<\/p>\n

\n

DAVID’S FOOD FOR THOUGHT<\/h2>\n

THE VALUE OF GOALS<\/h3>\n

What we focus on changes what we notice. Our brain filters information, seeing one thing in a situation instead of something else, based on what we identify with, what we have our attention on, what we’re looking for\u2014more or less consciously.<\/p>\n

The reason for long-term goals is the permission they give us to identify with the greatest value we can so it changes our filtered perceptions. The future never shows up (have you noticed?\u2014it’s always today!). But playing with it as a working blueprint can be a remarkably useful tool to see things (and how to do and have them) that you never saw before.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Subscribe to Productive Living.<\/a> It’s free and sent about every 4 weeks. You’ll find essays from David Allen, thought-provoking quotes, and productivity tips you can use every day.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The reason for long-term goals is the permission they give us to identify with the greatest value we can so it changes our filtered perceptions.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[699,27,32],"tags":[22,745,29,69,46,28,94,739,109,122,123],"class_list":["post-5698","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-all","category-david-allen","category-productivity-tips","tag-getting-things-done","tag-david-allen","tag-gtd","tag-implementing-gtd","tag-implementation","tag-getting-started","tag-project-planning","tag-inspiration","tag-gtd-best-practices","tag-productivity","tag-projects","entry"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nGTD and Goal Setting<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"The reason for long-term goals is the permission they give us to identify with the greatest value we can so it changes our filtered perceptions.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/gettingthingsdone.com\/2012\/02\/gtd-and-goal-setting\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"GTD and Goal Setting\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"The reason for long-term goals is the permission they give us to identify with the greatest value we can so it changes our filtered perceptions.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/gettingthingsdone.com\/2012\/02\/gtd-and-goal-setting\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Getting Things Done\u00ae\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/gettingthingsdone\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2012-02-01T23:08:00+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2014-02-03T22:39:00+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"GTD Times Staff\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@gtdtimes\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@gtdtimes\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"GTD Times Staff\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"1 minute\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/gettingthingsdone.com\/2012\/02\/gtd-and-goal-setting\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/gettingthingsdone.com\/2012\/02\/gtd-and-goal-setting\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"GTD Times Staff\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/gettingthingsdone.com\/#\/schema\/person\/52d8dfa5db8d4e8792586794625c12a4\"},\"headline\":\"GTD and Goal Setting\",\"datePublished\":\"2012-02-01T23:08:00+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2014-02-03T22:39:00+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/gettingthingsdone.com\/2012\/02\/gtd-and-goal-setting\/\"},\"wordCount\":214,\"commentCount\":2,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/gettingthingsdone.com\/#organization\"},\"keywords\":[\"Getting Things Done\",\"David Allen\",\"GTD\",\"Implementing GTD\",\"Implementation\",\"Getting Started\",\"project planning\",\"Inspiration\",\"GTD Best Practices\",\"Productivity\",\"projects\"],\"articleSection\":[\"All\",\"David Allen\",\"Productivity Tips\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/gettingthingsdone.com\/2012\/02\/gtd-and-goal-setting\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/gettingthingsdone.com\/2012\/02\/gtd-and-goal-setting\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/gettingthingsdone.com\/2012\/02\/gtd-and-goal-setting\/\",\"name\":\"GTD and Goal Setting\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/gettingthingsdone.com\/#website\"},\"datePublished\":\"2012-02-01T23:08:00+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2014-02-03T22:39:00+00:00\",\"description\":\"The reason for long-term goals is the permission they give us to identify with the greatest value we can so it changes our filtered perceptions.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/gettingthingsdone.com\/2012\/02\/gtd-and-goal-setting\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/gettingthingsdone.com\/2012\/02\/gtd-and-goal-setting\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/gettingthingsdone.com\/2012\/02\/gtd-and-goal-setting\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/gettingthingsdone.com\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"GTD and Goal Setting\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/gettingthingsdone.com\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/gettingthingsdone.com\/\",\"name\":\"Getting Things Done\u00ae\",\"description\":\"David Allen's GTD\u00ae Methodology\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/gettingthingsdone.com\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/gettingthingsdone.com\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/gettingthingsdone.com\/#organization\",\"name\":\"Getting Things Done\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/gettingthingsdone.com\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/gettingthingsdone.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/gettingthingsdone.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/gtd-logo.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/gettingthingsdone.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/gtd-logo.png\",\"width\":370,\"height\":338,\"caption\":\"Getting Things Done\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/gettingthingsdone.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/gettingthingsdone\/\",\"https:\/\/x.com\/gtdtimes\",\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/gtdtimes\/\",\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/groups\/2328651\/\"]},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/gettingthingsdone.com\/#\/schema\/person\/52d8dfa5db8d4e8792586794625c12a4\",\"name\":\"GTD Times Staff\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/gettingthingsdone.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/4df22f74cebc078fff6e9f4d8e6e74a980295dec0849d6ab2d6b303ee0c92030?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/4df22f74cebc078fff6e9f4d8e6e74a980295dec0849d6ab2d6b303ee0c92030?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"GTD Times Staff\"},\"url\":\"https:\/\/gettingthingsdone.com\/author\/webadmin\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"GTD and Goal Setting","description":"The reason for long-term goals is the permission they give us to identify with the greatest value we can so it changes our filtered perceptions.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/gettingthingsdone.com\/2012\/02\/gtd-and-goal-setting\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"GTD and Goal Setting","og_description":"The reason for long-term goals is the permission they give us to identify with the greatest value we can so it changes our filtered perceptions.","og_url":"https:\/\/gettingthingsdone.com\/2012\/02\/gtd-and-goal-setting\/","og_site_name":"Getting Things Done\u00ae","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/gettingthingsdone\/","article_published_time":"2012-02-01T23:08:00+00:00","article_modified_time":"2014-02-03T22:39:00+00:00","author":"GTD Times Staff","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_creator":"@gtdtimes","twitter_site":"@gtdtimes","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"GTD Times Staff","Est. reading time":"1 minute"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/gettingthingsdone.com\/2012\/02\/gtd-and-goal-setting\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/gettingthingsdone.com\/2012\/02\/gtd-and-goal-setting\/"},"author":{"name":"GTD Times Staff","@id":"https:\/\/gettingthingsdone.com\/#\/schema\/person\/52d8dfa5db8d4e8792586794625c12a4"},"headline":"GTD and Goal Setting","datePublished":"2012-02-01T23:08:00+00:00","dateModified":"2014-02-03T22:39:00+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/gettingthingsdone.com\/2012\/02\/gtd-and-goal-setting\/"},"wordCount":214,"commentCount":2,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/gettingthingsdone.com\/#organization"},"keywords":["Getting Things Done","David Allen","GTD","Implementing GTD","Implementation","Getting Started","project planning","Inspiration","GTD Best Practices","Productivity","projects"],"articleSection":["All","David Allen","Productivity Tips"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/gettingthingsdone.com\/2012\/02\/gtd-and-goal-setting\/#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/gettingthingsdone.com\/2012\/02\/gtd-and-goal-setting\/","url":"https:\/\/gettingthingsdone.com\/2012\/02\/gtd-and-goal-setting\/","name":"GTD and Goal Setting","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/gettingthingsdone.com\/#website"},"datePublished":"2012-02-01T23:08:00+00:00","dateModified":"2014-02-03T22:39:00+00:00","description":"The reason for long-term goals is the permission they give us to identify with the greatest value we can so it changes our filtered perceptions.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/gettingthingsdone.com\/2012\/02\/gtd-and-goal-setting\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/gettingthingsdone.com\/2012\/02\/gtd-and-goal-setting\/"]}]},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/gettingthingsdone.com\/2012\/02\/gtd-and-goal-setting\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/gettingthingsdone.com\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"GTD and Goal Setting"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/gettingthingsdone.com\/#website","url":"https:\/\/gettingthingsdone.com\/","name":"Getting Things Done\u00ae","description":"David Allen's GTD\u00ae Methodology","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/gettingthingsdone.com\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/gettingthingsdone.com\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/gettingthingsdone.com\/#organization","name":"Getting Things Done","url":"https:\/\/gettingthingsdone.com\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/gettingthingsdone.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/gettingthingsdone.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/gtd-logo.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/gettingthingsdone.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/gtd-logo.png","width":370,"height":338,"caption":"Getting Things Done"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/gettingthingsdone.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/gettingthingsdone\/","https:\/\/x.com\/gtdtimes","https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/gtdtimes\/","https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/groups\/2328651\/"]},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/gettingthingsdone.com\/#\/schema\/person\/52d8dfa5db8d4e8792586794625c12a4","name":"GTD Times Staff","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/gettingthingsdone.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/4df22f74cebc078fff6e9f4d8e6e74a980295dec0849d6ab2d6b303ee0c92030?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/4df22f74cebc078fff6e9f4d8e6e74a980295dec0849d6ab2d6b303ee0c92030?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"GTD Times Staff"},"url":"https:\/\/gettingthingsdone.com\/author\/webadmin\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/gettingthingsdone.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5698","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/gettingthingsdone.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/gettingthingsdone.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gettingthingsdone.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gettingthingsdone.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5698"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/gettingthingsdone.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5698\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/gettingthingsdone.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5698"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gettingthingsdone.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5698"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gettingthingsdone.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5698"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}