Reviews
Great at Work: How Top Performers Do Less, Work Better, and Achieve More by Morten T. Hansen
bak8382's review against another edition
4.0
Based on a five year study of 5000 people Hansen came up with 7 principles that help people to work better while also doing less. There are some really interesting cases studied, including a school, which doesn't happen that often. Each chapter ends with a summary of the key points, but I would have preferred more concrete exercises. Definitely got me thinking about how to improve things at work.
selcouthvixen's review against another edition
4.0
Informative and useful information, especially for individuals working in a *cough* less than productive workplace.
_mac_'s review against another edition
informative
slow-paced
3.75
Two things going for this book that I liked.
For one it is about being part of the workforce instead than being a manager. The book content is equally applicable to somebody in position of leadership, but the book itself is about leading oneself, rather than leading others.
Secondly, it's a research-based book, and the research methodology is explained extensively in an appendix. If you care about having a data-informed (instead of anecdotal) approach to performance improvements, this is the book for you.
The core of the book is the presentation of 7 practices that will help you becoming great at work:
- Do less, then obsess
- Redesign your work
- Don't just learn, loop
- P squared (Passion & Purpose)
- Forceful champion
- Fight & Unite
- The two sins of collaboration
With all that said (and without having tried to apply its content to my professional practice yet - I just finished the book minutes ago), the book is also kind of slow and wordy. Some of the real-life stories are interesting and memorable, but most are... kind of common and could have been summarised or skip entirely in the name of brevity.
However again: this is a research-based book, so the stories are there to exemplify the findings of the study, and not as a source of inspiration, so, while the book will probably never win an award as a literary composition, the delivery of the concepts is solid.
For one it is about being part of the workforce instead than being a manager. The book content is equally applicable to somebody in position of leadership, but the book itself is about leading oneself, rather than leading others.
Secondly, it's a research-based book, and the research methodology is explained extensively in an appendix. If you care about having a data-informed (instead of anecdotal) approach to performance improvements, this is the book for you.
The core of the book is the presentation of 7 practices that will help you becoming great at work:
- Do less, then obsess
- Redesign your work
- Don't just learn, loop
- P squared (Passion & Purpose)
- Forceful champion
- Fight & Unite
- The two sins of collaboration
With all that said (and without having tried to apply its content to my professional practice yet - I just finished the book minutes ago), the book is also kind of slow and wordy. Some of the real-life stories are interesting and memorable, but most are... kind of common and could have been summarised or skip entirely in the name of brevity.
However again: this is a research-based book, so the stories are there to exemplify the findings of the study, and not as a source of inspiration, so, while the book will probably never win an award as a literary composition, the delivery of the concepts is solid.
red_reads27's review against another edition
4.0
A little repetitive when listening to it as an audiobook, but applicable info.
nicki_j's review against another edition
4.0
I was pleasantly surprised by this book - i.e., it wasn't all the exact same thing I've read before. Many times, I have read this type of advice book for companies in general, on the macro level. This book drilled own to the micro level and discussed what individual contributors could do. I loved most of the case studies (I could have done without the guy in India trying to make maxi pads) and the wide range of careers and industries represented. It wasn't all consultants and tech companies. It remains to be seen whether I implement any of the strategies into my life.
bookish_babe's review against another edition
4.0
Well researched! Great fundamental tips to integrate into your life. I would highly recommend this to anyone looking to increase their performance habits. A great way to see how to be at your best in both home life and work life.
duckoffimreading's review against another edition
4.0
Lots of good, practical advice about how to work smarter, not harder. I found that as far as professional advice goes, I already practice a lot of the recommendations in this book - so nothing incrementally new for me to put into practice. I recommend this for others as far as developmental/professional reading goes. Neatly organized and real life examples throughout.
candicodeit's review against another edition
4.0
This was interesting book. I've read quite a bit of productivity books but this was still helpful. A lot of books I've read mostly focused on mindset. This one focused more on practices. The most notable advice I took from it is, work less then obsess. You minimize the amount of things you work on and then obsess over the one task or topic. I've learned from work experiences that it's better to work on one item at a time vs multiple. They had a studies proving that working longer hours didn't result in more work done. If only all managers in this world knew this.
Redesigning your workflow can also help you be more productive. The example of flipped learning in schools was intriguing. Having students learn their lessons at home by watching videos and then doing the work in class where teachers could help. Makes me wonder how many schools actually practice this method and how successful are they with it.
If you are looking to have that work/life balance, that's the last topic they cover. Too often have I thought about work while at home rather than spending it with my family. We all need that balance regardless if you have kids or significant other or just yourself.
Redesigning your workflow can also help you be more productive. The example of flipped learning in schools was intriguing. Having students learn their lessons at home by watching videos and then doing the work in class where teachers could help. Makes me wonder how many schools actually practice this method and how successful are they with it.
If you are looking to have that work/life balance, that's the last topic they cover. Too often have I thought about work while at home rather than spending it with my family. We all need that balance regardless if you have kids or significant other or just yourself.