# Keeping a "suspense" file?

**URL:** <https://forum.johnnydecimal.com/t/keeping-a-suspense-file/2156>\
**Category:** The Johnny.Decimal system\
**Created:** [March 5, 2025, 12:28am UTC](https://forum.johnnydecimal.com/t/keeping-a-suspense-file/2156 "2025-03-05T00:28:08Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 5\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![scr](https://forum.johnnydecimal.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/s/58956e/32.png) [@scr](https://forum.johnnydecimal.com/u/scr)\
**Post date:** [March 5, 2025, 12:28am UTC](https://forum.johnnydecimal.com/t/keeping-a-suspense-file/2156/1 "2025-03-05T00:28:08Z")

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Just getting myself spun up with Johnny.Decimal. I’m still in the phase of building out my own Johnny.Decimal system. (I’m an academic, so I’ve been looking at patterns here.)

My question for now is whether people have figured out how one might keep a “suspense” file in the sense that Cory Doctorow gives it here: [Pluralistic: Keeping a suspense file gives you superpowers (26 Oct 2024) – Pluralistic: Daily links from Cory Doctorow](https://pluralistic.net/2024/10/26/one-weird-trick/) —a file of things you’re waiting for from others. My instinct is to add it to the zeros in the unused `06` or `07`, but I’m loath to innovate and I suspect this is a solved problem.

Thanks!

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**Author:** ![\_FJ](https://forum.johnnydecimal.com/user_avatar/forum.johnnydecimal.com/_fj/32/420_2.png) [@\_FJ](https://forum.johnnydecimal.com/u/_FJ)\
**Post date:** [March 5, 2025, 11:49am UTC](https://forum.johnnydecimal.com/t/keeping-a-suspense-file/2156/2 "2025-03-05T11:49:41Z")

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I personally have this in my To-Do app, which is only structures in the JD-categories (not by ID).

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**Author:** ![johnnydecimal](https://forum.johnnydecimal.com/user_avatar/forum.johnnydecimal.com/johnnydecimal/32/1759_2.png) [@johnnydecimal](https://forum.johnnydecimal.com/u/johnnydecimal)\
**Post date:** [March 6, 2025, 10:38pm UTC](https://forum.johnnydecimal.com/t/keeping-a-suspense-file/2156/3 "2025-03-06T22:38:03Z")

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> [@scr](#):
>
> My instinct is to add it to the zeros in the unused `06` or `07`, but I’m loath to innovate and I suspect this is a solved problem.

I say go for it. This is why I left them spare! Let us know if it works for you.

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**Author:** ![Jayde20](https://forum.johnnydecimal.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/j/8e8cbc/32.png) [@Jayde20](https://forum.johnnydecimal.com/u/Jayde20)\
**Post date:** [March 6, 2025, 11:04pm UTC](https://forum.johnnydecimal.com/t/keeping-a-suspense-file/2156/4 "2025-03-06T23:04:13Z")

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I have a waiting for list in my reminders app, could probably work as an ID though. Let us know how you get on.

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**Author:** ![LAdams](https://forum.johnnydecimal.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/l/f08c70/32.png) [@LAdams](https://forum.johnnydecimal.com/u/LAdams)\
**Post date:** [March 8, 2025, 12:08pm UTC](https://forum.johnnydecimal.com/t/keeping-a-suspense-file/2156/5 "2025-03-08T12:08:25Z")

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Though I don’t do GTD, I use the 00 files in my day job: 30.02 Work in progress. I found that on the site, so I used what was there. I date the folders within with the date the suspense is due, so 2025-03-08 Unsubmitted Vouchers. I save the email from the suspense in there and when I submit it (because sometimes the other office messes up). Then the folder moves into another JD folder called Suspenses. Because the WIP folder may not only contain suspenses, though it mostly does.