Getting It Done

All I wanted when I started to read Get-It-Done-Guy's 9 Steps to Work Less and Do More was to understand and immediately apply universal principles of organization to my home, job, and entire life, transforming them completely.

So naturally I procrastinated finishing the book for as long as possible, clung desperately to my inefficient and messy habits, and let unimportant tasks take precedence over reading and reviewing as I'd promised.

I mean, who wants to leave work and then read a book about getting more work done on the commute home?

But the tone is light and humorous throughout, so even a stressed or fatigued brain can process the material--which, incidentally, is about changing your habits so that your brain feels less stressed and fatigued at the end of the day. A variety of strategies and tips are offered, rather than ordered, and the reader is often encouraged to reexamine chores (plowing through an overstuffed inbox, plodding along on a long project) from a fresh perspective.

For example, (and this is one of my favorites), when you have a million new e-mails to sort through, rather than working from your inbox and trying to move things out, dump the entire stack of unread items into your trash folder and only rescue the ones that are actually important. Voila!

Another thing I was reminded of: there are no "universal" principles of organization. Not every bit of advice in this book will work for every individual, but Stever (love that weird name!) insists on this point throughout. Every section is essentially geared towards empowering the individual. At every turn he helps you realize that your technology and relationships ought to be making your life easier, not harder, and that you have the right to change any and everything you can, rather than just 'dealing with it.'

So he offers various techniques for reorienting your thoughts and actions so that you're making things happen, rather than reacting to what happens. Although it's a straightforward, both-feet-firmly-on-the-ground book, the underlying message is really the same as many other 'self help' or 'life coaching' reads: decide what you want to have happen, believe that you have the power to accomplish it, and then do something: don't wait for it to "just happen" on its own.

This book happens to focus on 'work,' but it's really the same idea for any project: it's about trying different approaches until you figure out what works best for you, and staying far away from any sort of victim mentality (poor me, I have so much to do). If you feel stressed and unproductive, you have the right, the resources, and the ability to change things for the better. This book is one of many out there that offers such help, and it's an enjoyable, fast read to boot.

Remember: as required, I'm declaring that I've received a promotional copy of this book in exchange for reviewing it here.

Link it up:

Get-It-Done Guy's 9 Steps to Work Less and Do More

Stever Robbins's website