Michael informs us over at Blackbelt Productivity about the new membership program from David Co. called GTD Connect. It talks about the steep price of 48 dollars a month to get all the benefits of this program like a library with audio, video and print, Weekly Review emails, store promotions and The Dave as your personal coach. The comments at the article are twofold but most of them think the price is too high. Mostly because, well, you can get virtually anything on the web for free. So why pay for it?
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I can relate to that, but on the other hand, I can understand the price range and the people David Co wants to reach. I don’t think they want “us” (the GTD afficionado’s) as their member as primary targetgroup. Not that “they” hate “us”. I hope. But we can find our way online, subscribe to newsgroups, read and write blogs, share konwledge. I think David Co. wants to reach a broader audience who simply don’t have the time, energy, focus or knowledge to engage in this online conversation and want everything in one place. Most CEO’s and high-end managers could really benefit from this program. The price of 48 dollars a month (tax deductable in a corporate environment I think) is not that much for that targetgroup. But on the other hand, it would be nice to see some sort of review of this program by GTD-bloggers to see what it really is and if it really is better/more interesting than what’s to find on the Web for free. I see Marc Orchant is a writer for the program, so perhaps he can talk about it?
Just to be clear – I have no official connection to the David Allen Company. I am just another passionate GTD practitioner who blogs about the approach from time to time (nowhere near as much as you and others do) and occasionally has the opportunity to interact with David and some of his coaches, staff, and associates. I am all for DavidCo finding ways to reach more people and I think you’ve correctly grasped the intent behinf GTD Connect.
This is not a “private club” in any exclusionary sense. This is another channel for people who have the desire to make GTD a part of their lives and who do not live online have meaningful, engaging content pushed to them on a regular basis. That costs money to do. And it’s completely fair that DavidCo profit from making the channel available.
If you are comfortable participating in the online GTD community and have the time to do it, there’s an incredible wealth of ideas, practices, and advice available to you. If you’re a busy professional whose life does not revolve around sitting in front of a PC and prefer to engage with subjects of interest in a more passive way where content is delivered to you, GTD Connect is a nice alternative.
$48 a month?! Wow, what a shameless cash grab. By putting the price so high, Dave Co. does exclude the “Us” as you note, and targets the executives who have mountains of cash to throw around. Why not make it $12/mo, scale down the services just a bit and sell twice as many subscriptions (if not more)? Dissing the bloggers who so passionately promote the system seems kind of like biting the hand that blogs.
Perhaps I’m overreacting, but to me this makes Dave and Co. look like Tony Robbins and all those other shisters who are just in it for the dough. I’m disappointed.
Dave – I think you’re missing an essential point. DavidCo is not some huge monolithic money-grubbing corporation. It is a relatively small, high-octane company of people who get this stuff and have walked away from their respective realities as educators and businesspeople because of their passion for the work and their desire to share it with others.
Look at Jason Womack, one of David’s coaches, who logs more than 200 days a year away from home working with individuals and companies to help them implement and embrace GTD workflows. While I’m sure he is handsomely compensated for this work, read his blog and tell me he’s in it for the money. As the old street challenge goes: I double-dog dare you! ;^)
If you think David Allen is a shyster, you lose me completely. Have you attended a GTD seminar or listened to GTD Fast? Have you read the interviews he has given or listened to the podcasts he has participated in? Have you benefited from what he teaches and espouses? Do you honestly think a shyster can generate the kind of community that has grown up around what this man has developed and made available in so many ways (some admittedly more expensive than others).
To your question about making a “light” and less expensive version of GTD Connect. That might work. But it is an entirely different undertaking aimed at an almost completely different constituency with vastly different needs. Don’t trivialize the amount of work that has gone into GTD Connect or that would be required to create a new variant by speaking off the top of your head. I know for a fact that Connect has been years in the making and significant research and testing has gone into creating a on offer with appeal to a demographic segment that does not live in front of a PC like many of us do.
The very fact that the blogosphere, discussion forums, wikis, and other online manifestations of communities of interest have grown so profusely obviates the need for a GTD Connect Lite – it already exists – it’s freely available – and everyone is welcome to participate at zero cost above and beyond the means to connect to the net. RSS aggregators are free. Web-based e-mail is free. A blog can be set up in a number of places for free. Even DavidCo’s hosted discussion forums are free. There are free tools of the analog and digital variety available to help you implement GTD in any number of ways.
I guess we’ll just have to agree to disagree about this. There’s a sense of entitlement at work here that I simply do not understand. I’m not trying to be mean-spirited in saying that – I really just don’t understand where it comes from. For you to close by saying you’re disappointed – as though a business decision made by a man and his company dedicated to teaching something we all agree is incredibly valuable and potentially life-changing is something you have authority to judge – seems completely off base to me.
It is one thing to feel a sense of membership or belonging to a community of interest. It is another entirely to assume a sense of ownership or entitlement because of that affinity.
Marc: Thanks for the reply. I expressed my “disappointment” because I have been, in fact, so motivated and effected by the GTD system. In fact, I spent this week setting up my office at work and going from “in to empty.” I plan on setting up an identical home office this weekend. I know that Dave isn’t a shyster, as evidenced by my own experience with the system. My only hesitation is that DaveCo is positioning itself to cater only to high-profile and high-income business types. While I don’t begrudge DaveCo or any individual/organization for providing services to this lucrative demographic, yet I’d like to see some of the official services that extend beyond the book (which I read) made available to individuals and self-employed folks, like me.
I apologize for the term “shyster.” I know it was inappropriate, and I know that Dave’s motivations are respectable. No, I do not believe that Dave or his company “owe” me anything. I hope you understand.
Marc & Dave: Thanks for the conversation. I do have to go along with Marc on this one on how DaveCo has set up GTD Connect. But I understand the need for some sort of lite version for others who just don’t have the 48 dollars a month. Or perhaps who don’t feel it worth that amount *because* they live in front of a PC (or Mac!) with an internetconnection. I know I would love to visit a seminar by Dave or anyone, telling me more about GTD. getting some one-on-one time with a consultant, talking about these issues. Sometimes that works so much better that trying to type your thoughts, questions and doubts into a webforum. So yeah, I too would like some extension of the book _beyond_ webforums that are already there. But not for 48 dollars a month…
Dave – of course I do. I know your work at TUAW and on your own blog and appreciate the passiona and energy you bring to it. And I don’t disagree with your essential point that there may very well be a need for a less expensive version of Connect for those who have smaller budgets and greater access to online resources (as Frank suggests in his comment). Perhaps DavidCo will hear that and act on it as time and resources allow. If not, and if the need is pervasive enough, perhaps someone else will see the opportunity and find a way to make it happen.
The reason we all blog and read others’ blogs is to have these conversations. I’m a pretty passionate guy and it’s quite obvious you are as well. I’m also a big boy and have a pretty thick skin. I don’t take offense easily and try not to offend others while making whatever point I’m trying to get across.
I sincerely believe that it is in these conversations that we all have a real opportunity to shape and reshape our opinions and ideas.
So… no harm, no foul. No offense intended and none taken.
Marc:
Wow, an actual civil conversation on the ‘net! Thanks for taking the time. Cheers, mate.
Dave: Yeah. Can you imagine that? ;^)
Dave & Mark – I’ve enjoyed following your civil conversation here (refreshing!). I just wanted to pop in and add my 2 cents if I may, less as a member of the DavidCo and Connect team, which I am also, and more wearing my hat of GTD fangirl, self-proclaimed.
When I look at the Connect program I see something that can only encourage more discussion and more community amongst us bloggers, forums posters, and the like. I am sure it can only spawn new ideas for all of us, as I have already seen happening as I read some members’ blogs.
And one thing I really want to clear up is that Connect is much more than just a hub of old information. True, it draws on David’s 20 years of experience coaching people, and some of the resources have accumulated over that time. But more than that, it offers features and tools that are valuable and relevant now- an ever changing tool box for sincere GTDers.
Let’s face it, David’s a bright guy. And he’s found a space to offer new content to people who want to implement and stay on track with GTD. How cool is that?
There are fantastic conversations going on about GTD all over the Web and I am loving getting into them as much as my spare time will allow me. To me, GTD Connect seems like a very important segment of that bigger worldwide conversation. It is designed to be more exclusive than a public forum, certainly, but the advantage of that is a space where people can engage directly with David and his network.
So here’s to a good start and a cool conversation about the role of Connect in the GTD community.
Lisa
Thanks for chiming in. I guess my first response (upon first reading about Connect) was: How many different ways can the GTD process be described or explained? I’ve read the the book, I’m visiting the sites and I’m implementing the system. “I get it,” I thought. $48/mo. to tell me what I already understand seems, odd.
However, after reading the comments from you and Marc (especially what you just said), I’m coming to think of Connect as an ongoing conversation, a conversation about GTD specifically and productivity at large. Now that has value: The sharing of ideas and knowledge between like-minded individuals with similar goals.
Please forgive my initial ignorance.
I think all service based companies face this type of dilemma – there’s very little tangible to hold on to and say “this is what I spent my money on.”
Plus because people feel that they “should” be able to organize themselves, paying for it seems to hurt more than buying other services. I think the GTD system looks great and am glad David Allen has created a tool that helps so many people.