Getting Things Done for Teens is a teen-centered adaptation of David Allen’s wildly popular Getting Things Done, which has won legions of fans for its straightforward approach to personal organization and work-life management. Now Allen, along with co-authors Mike Williams and Mark Wallace, tackles the problems teens face with all of the “stuff” they have to manage in their over-scheduled, over-connected lives.
Divided into three sections, the book introduces the Getting Things Done methodology and explains how to apply the principles to everyday situations. With a goal of stress-free productivity, the authors do a good job of connecting with their younger audience. Here, life is framed as a game, and the GTD principles are the game pieces that teens can use to win.
The authors simplify the tried-and-true GTD methods into bite-sized lessons that a teenager can apply to their own busy lives and schedules. Parents will want to read along with their kids in order to provide additional support and reinforce the book’s practical advice. This is a good resource for any parent who feels like their teen is weighed down by stress and trying to do too much—which, let’s be honest, is most of us, these days.
Some kids may balk at being given yet another book to read, or they may roll their eyes at the fun little cartoons used to illustrate points throughout the book. But those are rather minor issues for this resourceful guide full of lessons that are relatable, memorable, and, best of all, actionable. Plus, if reading is your teenager’s main point of contention, you can always suggest the audio book version. Getting Things Done for Teens: Take Control Of Your Life In A Distracting World is a terrific introduction to Allen’s GTD system—and parents will find a lot of useful tools here, too.
