GTD Horizons of Focus: Align Tasks with Goals (2026)

You’re running on a hamster wheel.

Every day you check off 15 tasks. You’re productive. You’re busy. Your GTD system is pristine—inbox at zero, Weekly Review done every Friday, projects organized by context.

And yet… you feel empty.

You’re completing tasks but not building anything meaningful. You’re responding to life instead of directing it. You’re a highly efficient robot executing someone else’s priorities.

This is the productivity trap: You have a speedometer showing how fast you’re going, but no GPS showing where you’re headed.

David Allen’s “Horizons of Focus” is the GPS. It’s a framework for connecting your daily tasks (“Buy milk”) to your ultimate life purpose (“Be a good parent”). It ensures you’re not just productive—you’re productive at the right things.

Most people only operate at Ground Level (current tasks). They never zoom out to see if those tasks are building toward anything meaningful.

The result? Exhaustion without progress. Motion without direction. A perfectly organized life that’s heading nowhere.

Let me show you the six levels of perspective—and how to align them so your daily grind actually builds the life you want.

The 6 Horizons at a Glance

Most people spend 95% of their time at Ground Level and Horizon 1. The magic happens when you align all six.

The Airplane Analogy (Why This Matters)

David Allen uses airplane altitude to explain perspective:

On the runway (Ground Level): You see individual tasks. “Email Sarah.” “Buy groceries.” “Fix printer.”

From here, you can only see what’s directly in front of you. No perspective on direction or purpose.

At 10,000 feet (Horizon 1): You see projects—collections of related tasks building toward outcomes. “Plan vacation.” “Launch website.” “Organize garage.”

You can see clusters of work, but not why they matter.

At 20,000 feet (Horizon 2): You see areas of responsibility—the ongoing roles you maintain. “Health.” “Finance.” “Career.” “Family.” “Personal Growth.”

This is where you start asking: “Am I neglecting anything important?”

At 30,000 feet (Horizon 3): You see 1-2 year goals. “Get promoted to Director.” “Run a marathon.” “Save $50k for house down payment.”

You’re looking at intentional change, not just maintenance.

At 40,000 feet (Horizon 4): You see your 3-5 year vision. “Be a VP running a team of 20.” “Own a home in the mountains.” “Be financially independent.”

This is lifestyle design territory.

At 50,000 feet (Horizon 5): You see your life purpose. “Help people solve hard problems.” “Create beautiful things.” “Build a family legacy.”

This is the North Star. It doesn’t change often, but it guides everything below it.

The key insight: The higher you go, the further you can see. The further you can see, the better decisions you make about what to do today.

Without higher horizons, you’re just checking boxes. With them, you’re building a life.

The 6 Horizons Explained

Let’s break down each level in detail.

Ground Level: Current Actions (The Runway)

The question: What do I do right now?

What it is: Your Next Actions list—the single, specific physical tasks you can do immediately.

Examples:

• Email client proposal
• Call dentist to schedule appointment
• Buy milk at Trader Joe’s
• Review draft blog post

Review frequency: Constantly throughout the day

Common mistake: Living only at this level

If you never zoom out, you become a reactive robot. You execute tasks efficiently but never ask if they’re the right tasks.

The fix: Ground Level should pull from Horizon 1 (Projects). Every action should roll up to a project. If it doesn’t, why are you doing it?

Horizon 1: Projects (1-Year Outcomes)

The question: What outcomes am I committed to completing?

What it is: Multi-step outcomes you want to achieve within the next year. Each project requires more than one action.

Examples:

• Plan family vacation to Japan
• Launch new product feature
• Organize home office
• Complete annual performance review
• Hire new team member

Review frequency: Weekly (during Weekly Review)

GTD definition: A project is any outcome requiring more than one action step.

This seems simple but it’s crucial. “Buy milk” is an action. “Restock kitchen” is a project (requires multiple shopping trips, organizing, etc.).

Common mistake: Treating projects as tasks

“Plan wedding” on your task list creates paralysis. It’s too big. Break it into projects (“Book venue,” “Hire photographer,” “Send invitations”), each with clear next actions.

The fix: Every project needs a defined outcome (“Website redesign is live with new branding”) and a clear next action (“Email designer to schedule kickoff call”).

During your Weekly Review, scan your Projects list and ask:

• Is there a clear next action for each project?
• Are any projects complete? (Archive them and celebrate)
• Are any projects stale? (Either activate or move to Someday/Maybe)

Horizon 2: Areas of Focus (Ongoing Maintenance)

The question: What roles and responsibilities do I need to maintain?

What it is: The different hats you wear in life. These don’t have completion dates—they’re ongoing areas requiring regular attention.

Examples:

• Health & Fitness
• Finance & Money Management
• Career Development
• Family & Relationships
• Home & Property Maintenance
• Personal Growth & Learning
• Spirituality or Purpose
• Creativity & Hobbies
• Community & Friendships

Review frequency: Monthly

The critical distinction: Projects finish. Areas of Focus never finish.

“Run a marathon” is a Project (Horizon 1). “Health & Fitness” is an Area of Focus (Horizon 2).

You finish the marathon. You never finish being healthy—it requires continuous maintenance.

Why this matters: Areas of Focus are where life falls apart slowly.

You get busy with projects (launching a product, planning a wedding, moving houses). During that sprint, you neglect maintenance areas:

• You skip the gym for three months
• You ignore your finances and overspend
• You don’t call your parents for weeks
• You stop learning and stagnate

Then suddenly you have a crisis:

• Health emergency from neglect
• Debt spiral from ignored finances
• Relationship strain from inattention
• Career stagnation from no development

Neglecting maintenance causes crises. This is the hardest level for ADHD brains who hyperfocus on shiny projects and ignore boring maintenance.

The fix: The Monthly Review

Once a month (I do it on the last Sunday), review your Areas of Focus:

1. List your areas (8-12 is typical)
2. For each area, ask:

• What’s the current state? (Grade A-F if that helps)
• Am I neglecting this? (Honest answer)
• What one project would improve this area?

1. Generate projects from neglected areas
2. Define next actions for those projects

Example:

Area: Health & Fitness
Current state: D (haven’t exercised in 2 months, eating poorly)
Neglecting? Yes
One project: “Build consistent exercise habit”
Next action: “Research 3 local gyms and schedule trial classes”

This prevents the slow drift that leads to crisis.

Horizon 3: Goals (1-2 Year Outcomes)

The question: What do I want to achieve in the next 1-2 years?

What it is: Intentional changes or achievements beyond normal project timeframes. These are aspirational, not maintenance.

Examples:

• Get promoted to Senior Director
• Save $30k for house down payment
• Run a sub-4-hour marathon
• Launch side business generating $2k/month
• Learn conversational Spanish
• Write and publish a book

Review frequency: Quarterly

The difference from Projects: Goals are bigger and take longer. They often generate multiple projects.

“Get promoted” is a goal. It generates projects like:

• Complete leadership training course
• Lead cross-functional initiative
• Build relationship with VP
• Document wins for performance review

Common mistake: Setting goals and forgetting them

You write “Run a marathon” on January 1st. You never create projects or actions to support it. Six months later, you haven’t started training. December 31st, you feel guilty about another failed goal.

The fix: Quarterly Review

Every 3 months, review your 1-2 year goals:

1. Review progress (Are you on track? Off track? Stalled?)
2. Generate projects (What projects would move this goal forward?)
3. Update or delete (Is this still relevant? Or has life changed?)

Your goals should generate active projects. If a goal isn’t generating projects, either activate it or delete it.

Horizon 4: Vision (3-5 Year Future)

The question: What does my ideal life look like 3-5 years from now?

What it is: Lifestyle design. Painting the picture of where you want to be in the medium-term future.

Examples:

• Living in a mountain town, working remotely
• Running my own consulting business with 10 clients
• Financially independent, working part-time on passion projects
• Raising two kids in a house with a yard
• VP of Product at a Series B startup
• Published author with a following

Review frequency: Annually (or when major life changes happen)

Why it matters: Vision provides direction for goals and projects.

If your vision is “Run my own business,” your goals should support that:

• Build consulting client base (Goal)
• Save 12 months emergency fund (Goal)
• Learn business operations (Goal)

If your current projects aren’t aligned with your vision, you’re climbing the wrong mountain.

Common mistake: Confusing vision with fantasy

Vision requires action. “Be a millionaire” isn’t vision—it’s a wish. “Build a business generating $300k/year profit” is vision because you can reverse-engineer projects and actions.

The fix: Annual Planning

Once a year (I do it between Christmas and New Year’s), spend 2-3 hours on this:

1. Write your 3-5 year vision for each Area of Focus

• What does Health look like? (“Running 3x/week, 15% body fat, injury-free”)
• What does Career look like? (“VP role, managing team of 15, $200k salary”)
• What does Family look like? (“Two kids, house in suburbs, weekly family dinners”)

1. Identify gaps (Where are you now vs. where you want to be?)
2. Set 1-2 year goals that close those gaps
3. Generate projects from those goals
4. Define next actions to start the projects

This cascade ensures your daily actions (Ground Level) ultimately build your desired life (Horizon 4).

Horizon 5: Purpose (Life Meaning)

The question: Why am I here? What’s my contribution?

What it is: Your reason for existence. Your North Star. The thing that makes your life meaningful beyond achievement.

Examples:

• “Help people solve hard problems and grow”
• “Create beauty and inspire wonder”
• “Build a family legacy of service”
• “Reduce suffering in the world”
• “Advance human knowledge”
• “Make people laugh and feel less alone”

Review frequency: Rarely, but deeply

Your purpose doesn’t change often. But you should revisit it during major life transitions:

• Career change
• Major loss or grief
• Becoming a parent
• Milestone birthdays (30, 40, 50)
• Near-death experiences or health scares

Why it matters: Purpose is the ultimate filter for decisions.

When you’re deciding between opportunities, your purpose helps you choose:

• Job offer A pays more, but Job offer B aligns with purpose → Choose B
• Project X is trendy, but Project Y serves purpose → Choose Y
• Friendship A is convenient, but Friendship B shares purpose → Invest in B

Purpose prevents drift. It keeps you from waking up at 50 and asking, “What was this all for?”

Common mistake: Treating purpose as abstract philosophy

Purpose should be actionable. If your purpose is “Help people grow,” your vision should include teaching, mentoring, or coaching. Your goals should include building those skills. Your projects should create opportunities to serve.

If your purpose never generates actions, it’s not really your purpose—it’s a nice thought.

The fix: The Purpose Exercise

Set aside 2-3 hours in a quiet place. Answer these questions:

1. What did you love doing as a child? (Before anyone told you what to do)
2. What would you do if money wasn’t an issue?
3. What breaks your heart? (What problems in the world move you?)
4. What are you uniquely good at?
5. When do you feel most alive?
6. What do you want people to say at your funeral?

Look for patterns. Your purpose lives at the intersection of:

• What you love
• What you’re good at
• What the world needs
• What generates meaning for you

Write it down in one sentence. Put it somewhere you’ll see it regularly.

Then ask: “Does my current life reflect this purpose?”

If not, start making changes at the lower horizons.

How to Implement This in Your System

The Horizons framework is beautiful in theory. But if it stays in your head, it’s useless.

You need to systematize it in your GTD app or analog system.

In OmniFocus

OmniFocus is built for this hierarchy.

Structure:

• Folders = Areas of Focus (Health, Career, Family, Finance)
• Projects = Horizon 1 outcomes within each folder
• Actions = Ground Level tasks within each project
• Review intervals = Set different frequencies for each level

Example:

📁 Health & Fitness (Area of Focus)
  📋 Build consistent exercise habit (Project - Review Weekly)
    ☐ Research 3 local gyms
    ☐ Schedule trial classes
    ☐ Buy workout clothes

📁 Career (Area of Focus)
  📋 Get promoted to Director (Project - Review Weekly)
    ☐ Schedule 1:1 with manager about career path
    ☐ Identify 3 leadership development courses

Higher Horizons:

• Create a “Goals & Vision” folder
• Each Horizon 3 goal becomes a project with annual review frequency
• Each Horizon 4 vision statement becomes a project with bi-annual review
• Horizon 5 (Purpose) goes in your notes, not in OmniFocus

The beauty of OmniFocus: the Review mode forces you to regularly check each project. Set review intervals based on horizon.

In Todoist

Todoist doesn’t have built-in hierarchy, but you can create it:

Structure:

• Top-level projects = Areas of Focus
• Sub-projects = Horizon 1 projects within areas
• Tasks = Ground Level actions

Example:

🏋️ Health & Fitness (Area of Focus)
  └─ Build exercise habit (Project)
      • Research gyms @Computer
      • Schedule trials @Calls

💼 Career (Area of Focus)
  └─ Get promoted to Director (Project)
      • 1:1 with manager @Work
      • Research leadership courses @Computer

Higher Horizons:

• Create a project called “🎯 Goals (Horizon 3)” with annual review date
• Create a project called “🔭 Vision (Horizon 4)” with bi-annual review
• Keep Purpose statement in Todoist’s Notes feature or a separate doc

Pro tip: Use filters to see work across areas:

Filter: High Priority Work
Query: (priority 1) & !#Someday

This shows your most important work regardless of area.

In Paper/Bullet Journal

For analog GTD:

Structure:

• Dedicated pages for each Area of Focus
• Collections for each project within areas
• Daily/Weekly logs for Ground Level actions

Example:

[Index]
  Health & Fitness ............. p.12
  Career ...................... p.18
  Family ...................... p.24

[Page 12: Health & Fitness - Area of Focus]
  Vision: Running 3x/week, healthy weight, energy
  Current Projects:
    • Build exercise habit → p.13
    • Improve nutrition → p.14

[Page 13: Build Exercise Habit - Project]
  Next Actions:
    ☐ Research gyms
    ☐ Schedule trials

Review pages:

• Weekly spread includes Project review checklist
• Monthly spread includes Area of Focus review
• Yearly spread includes Goals/Vision review

The physical act of writing helps clarify thinking. The limitation is search and reorganization—you can’t easily filter across areas like digital tools.

The Review Rhythm

Each horizon requires different review frequencies. Here’s the complete rhythm:

Daily (Ground Level)

5-10 minutes

• Scan Next Actions for today
• Choose 3-5 priorities based on context, time, energy
• Check calendar for time-specific commitments

No review needed—you’re living at this level constantly.

Weekly (Horizon 1: Projects)

60 minutes every Friday afternoon

• Review all active projects
• Ensure each has a clear next action
• Archive completed projects
• Update stale projects or move to Someday/Maybe

Download our Weekly Review Checklist for the complete process.

Monthly (Horizon 2: Areas of Focus)

30-60 minutes on the last Sunday of the month

• Review each Area of Focus
• Grade current state (A-F)
• Identify neglected areas
• Generate new projects to address gaps
• Archive completed projects

Questions to ask:

• Am I maintaining health?
• Are my finances in order?
• Are my relationships healthy?
• Am I developing my career?
• Am I growing personally?

Quarterly (Horizon 3: Goals)

90-120 minutes every 3 months

• Review progress on 1-2 year goals
• Celebrate wins
• Update or delete goals that are no longer relevant
• Generate new projects to move goals forward
• Check alignment with higher horizons

Best timing: End of March, June, September, December

Annually (Horizon 4: Vision)

2-3 hours once per year

• Review 3-5 year vision for each Area of Focus
• Identify gaps between current state and vision
• Set 1-2 year goals that close gaps
• Generate projects from goals
• Check alignment with Purpose

Best timing: Between Christmas and New Year’s (fresh start energy)

Rarely (Horizon 5: Purpose)

No set schedule

Purpose review happens during major life transitions:

• Career changes
• Starting a family
• Loss or grief
• Major birthdays
• Health crises

When you revisit purpose, cascade the changes down:

• Update Vision (Horizon 4)
• Update Goals (Horizon 3)
• Audit Areas of Focus (Horizon 2)
• Generate new Projects (Horizon 1)

Frequently Asked Questions

Final Verdict: Without Horizons, GTD is Just Being a Highly Efficient Robot

You can master GTD at the lower levels—perfect capture, pristine project lists, flawless Weekly Reviews.

And still build a life you don’t want.

Because productivity without direction is just motion.

The Horizons of Focus framework ensures your motion has meaning. It connects:

• The email you’re writing (Ground) →
• To the project you’re completing (Horizon 1) →
• To the role you’re maintaining (Horizon 2) →
• To the goal you’re achieving (Horizon 3) →
• To the life you’re building (Horizon 4) →
• To the purpose you’re serving (Horizon 5)

When these align, work feels meaningful. You’re not just checking boxes—you’re building something.

When they don’t align, work feels hollow. You’re busy but not fulfilled.

Start with Horizon 2 today.

Right now, grab paper and write down your Areas of Focus. The roles and responsibilities you maintain:

• Health
• Finance
• Career
• Family
• Personal Growth
• (Add yours…)

For each area, ask: “Am I neglecting this?”

Generate one project from each neglected area.

That’s it. You’ve just aligned Ground Level (actions) with Horizon 2 (areas) with Horizon 3 (implied goals).

Next month, do a full Horizon 2 review.

Next quarter, review Horizon 3 (Goals).

Next year, review Horizon 4 (Vision).

Eventually, you’ll clarify Horizon 5 (Purpose).

The higher you climb, the further you see.

The further you see, the better your daily decisions become.

Your system is waiting for direction. Give it one.

Start with your roles. Build from there.

The hamster wheel is optional.