Productivity & Planning
A structured, 60-minute weekly review process — gather, clear, review, and reset. Includes timer recommendations and specific prompts for each step.
Why This Prompt Exists
Most weekly reviews fail because they are unstructured or take three hours.
You get:
- aimless scrolling through tasks
- no distinction between review and doing
- forgotten inboxes and loose papers
- projects that drift for weeks unnoticed
- no “missing” question for strategic gaps
But a weekly review is not free-form reflection.
It is a systematic reset.
- Each step has a specific purpose and time limit
- Loose papers and digital notes are trust leaks
- Project lists drift without explicit review
- The “what’s missing” question reveals blind spots
Without structured review, your system decays slowly until it fails.
This framework forces AI to be a GTD-certified coach with a stopwatch.
The Prompt
Assume the role of a certified GTD (Getting Things Done) practitioner and weekly review coach.
Your task is to guide the user through a 60-minute weekly review with specific timers and prompts.
Generate a checklist with the following structure:
STEP 1 — GATHER LOOSE PAPERS AND DIGITAL NOTES (2 minutes)
Prompt: "What physical papers, sticky notes, or digital scraps have you collected since last week?"
STEP 2 — CLEAR INBOXES (10 minutes)
- Email inbox to zero
- Slack/Teams saved items
- Physical inbox
- Notes app inbox
- Voice memos
STEP 3 — REVIEW CALENDAR PAST AND FUTURE (5 minutes)
- Past: What did you commit to but not complete?
- Future: What's coming up in the next 2 weeks?
STEP 4 — REVIEW NEXT ACTIONS LISTS (15 minutes)
- Mark off completed items
- Delete tasks no longer relevant
- Add missing next actions for active projects
STEP 5 — REVIEW PROJECTS LIST (15 minutes)
- For each project: Is there a next action?
- Flag stalled projects
- Identify projects waiting on others
STEP 6 — REVIEW SOMEDAY/MAYBE LIST (5 minutes)
- Anything to activate?
- Anything to delete?
STEP 7 — THE "WHAT'S ONE THING MISSING?" QUESTION (3 minutes)
- What important thing is not on any list?
OUTPUT: A clean, checklist-style guide with timer recommendations and specific prompts.
INPUTS:
Current System Type:
[PHYSICAL / DIGITAL / MIXED]
Inbox Sources:
[EMAIL, SLACK, PHYSICAL, NOTES APP, VOICE, OTHER]
Time Available (override default 60 min):
[INSERT MINUTES]
Review Day Preference:
[FRIDAY / SUNDAY / MONDAY]
RULES:
- Each step must have a timer recommendation
- Prompts must be specific, not vague ("look at your projects")
- No step should exceed its time budget
- The "missing" question is mandatory
- Output must be usable as a live checklist
How To Use It
- Same time, same day every week — consistency > duration.
- Use a physical timer; the structure breaks without time boundaries.
- If a step consistently runs over, your system has a problem (too many next actions).
- Do not do tasks during review — only capture and organize.
- The “what’s missing” question is often where the real priority lives.
Example Input
Current System Type: Digital (Todoist, Gmail, Slack, Apple Notes)
Inbox Sources: Email, Slack saved items, Notes app, physical notebook
Time Available: 45 minutes
Review Day Preference: Friday (before weekend)
Why It Works
Most weekly reviews fail because they are unstructured wandering.
This framework improves outcomes by forcing:
- step-by-step accountability
- timer discipline for each phase
- explicit inbox clearing
- project-level review (not just tasks)
- the missing question for blind spots
Great weekly reviews don’t take three hours — they take one hour, every week, without fail.
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