ioana_cis's review against another edition
2.0
It's really the smartest people who have the highest number of undecided things in their lives and on their lists. Why is that? Think of how our bodies respond to the images we hold in our minds. It appears that the nervous system can't tell the difference between a well-imagined thought and reality
(...)
Because their sensitivity gives them the capability of producing in their
minds lurid nightmare scenarios about what might be involved in doing the project, and all the negative consequences that might occur if it weren't done perfectly!
(...)
They just freak out in an instant and quit! Who doesn't procrastinate? Often it's the insensitive oafs who just take something and start plodding forward, unaware of all the things that could go wrong. Everyone else tends to get hung up about all kinds of things
Pro: For those at the beginning of their carrier, students, youngsters and children.
Con: Kind of old in advice with the contemporary technology
(...)
Because their sensitivity gives them the capability of producing in their
minds lurid nightmare scenarios about what might be involved in doing the project, and all the negative consequences that might occur if it weren't done perfectly!
(...)
They just freak out in an instant and quit! Who doesn't procrastinate? Often it's the insensitive oafs who just take something and start plodding forward, unaware of all the things that could go wrong. Everyone else tends to get hung up about all kinds of things
Pro: For those at the beginning of their carrier, students, youngsters and children.
Con: Kind of old in advice with the contemporary technology
coreymhelton's review against another edition
4.0
Some strong points but common knowledge to anyone in the productivity and personal knowledge management space at this point.
andromeus's review against another edition
I read a summarized GTD outline and that saved me a lot of time.
rebeccazh's review against another edition
2.0
i never thought i was disorganized or forgetful but, 1) i have lost my wallet over five times and i'm not even twenty five, 2) i frequently misplace my things and i honestly have no idea where my things are at any given moment, 3) i frequently forget to do something or forget to bring an important thing, 4) i frequently late to things because i have no idea where all my stuff is so i rush around like mad trying to find and stuff everything in my bag when i'm supposed to leave five minutes ago, 5) i discover stuff from ages ago that i forgot to deal with in pockets and bags when i have to use said pocket or bag months or years later.
it all culminated when i lost my wallet, again, jesus christ, for what must be at least the seventh or eighth time in my entire life, and the worst thing is, it hasn't even been two years since i last lost something (lost my wallet and $90 about a year and a couple of months ago overseas). this wallet had $70, a credit card, an atm card, two trinkets that had huge personal significance to me, and various other cards. it was on top of a lot of other stress and i really had it with myself. i thought to myself, 'i can't do this anymore'. i have to get organized.
cue this book. the next few days were spent reorganizing my entire room and my life and now one week later, i actually know where all my stuff is and i've never seen so much of my table surface. today, my sister asked me if i took her card and i could quite confidently say, 'no i didn't'. the me one week ago would've said, 'no?' and then desperately searched my pockets and room hoping and praying that i hadn't actually taken it and dumped it somewhere and forgot about it so now it's lost somewhere in the debris of my stuff.
so the actual review of the book: this book is useful for people who have absolutely zero idea how to organize their stuff. it's repetitive and there's many steps, which is a bit hard to understand. i took the stuff this book said as a guideline and experimented with my own system. what i liked most was that it talks about the psychology of being organized and how that relates to a more relaxed state of mind -- what i learned:
1) when you're not organized, you don't trust how you're using your time -- you don't know if you're doing what needs to be doing or if there's something important you're not doing now that will blow up in your face later. it's hard to be present because your brain is busy trying to rmb all the stuff you haven't done or that needs to be done (and our brains are bad at this) so you feel frazzled all the time. when you're organized, you can relax and feel good about what you're doing -- and not doing -- right now
2) two minute rule. if something takes less than 2min, do it now
3) planning is: making a decision and figuring out the next action (and keeping a note-taking system to track that)
4) review it frequently so you know what's your structure/system and trust it
5) a few seconds/min a day saves hours of stress
overall, useful! and i liked the focus on why organization is beneficial
it all culminated when i lost my wallet, again, jesus christ, for what must be at least the seventh or eighth time in my entire life, and the worst thing is, it hasn't even been two years since i last lost something (lost my wallet and $90 about a year and a couple of months ago overseas). this wallet had $70, a credit card, an atm card, two trinkets that had huge personal significance to me, and various other cards. it was on top of a lot of other stress and i really had it with myself. i thought to myself, 'i can't do this anymore'. i have to get organized.
cue this book. the next few days were spent reorganizing my entire room and my life and now one week later, i actually know where all my stuff is and i've never seen so much of my table surface. today, my sister asked me if i took her card and i could quite confidently say, 'no i didn't'. the me one week ago would've said, 'no?' and then desperately searched my pockets and room hoping and praying that i hadn't actually taken it and dumped it somewhere and forgot about it so now it's lost somewhere in the debris of my stuff.
so the actual review of the book: this book is useful for people who have absolutely zero idea how to organize their stuff. it's repetitive and there's many steps, which is a bit hard to understand. i took the stuff this book said as a guideline and experimented with my own system. what i liked most was that it talks about the psychology of being organized and how that relates to a more relaxed state of mind -- what i learned:
1) when you're not organized, you don't trust how you're using your time -- you don't know if you're doing what needs to be doing or if there's something important you're not doing now that will blow up in your face later. it's hard to be present because your brain is busy trying to rmb all the stuff you haven't done or that needs to be done (and our brains are bad at this) so you feel frazzled all the time. when you're organized, you can relax and feel good about what you're doing -- and not doing -- right now
2) two minute rule. if something takes less than 2min, do it now
3) planning is: making a decision and figuring out the next action (and keeping a note-taking system to track that)
4) review it frequently so you know what's your structure/system and trust it
5) a few seconds/min a day saves hours of stress
overall, useful! and i liked the focus on why organization is beneficial
slelswick's review against another edition
3.0
This is a classic read, mentioned a lot on You Tube among the planner community. This is full of helpful tips for not just tackling your to-do list but managing your projects. This is well worth the time investment to read and incorporate David Allen's strategy into your life.
lrc52's review against another edition
5.0
normally, i wouldn't give this type of book 5 stars as that ranking is reserved for those fabulous books that change you forever. but this book inspired me to organize and start thinking in a different way. it's not just a change in the way you deal with stuff (and yes, he calls it "stuff") in the office, but the way you deal with all the stuff in your personal life as well. stuff=things you need/want/might someday do. i think it just might work for me.
kurtliske's review against another edition
Too many "psychology" books in a row, I think. Couldn't get into it.
felipaodeanda's review against another edition
5.0
Lo mejor de este libro es que no intenta descubrir el hilo negro.
A través de consejos muy básicos y muy fáciles de seguir ayuda a organizar tu vida personal y profesional para lograr ser lo más productivo posible. Todo lo explica de manera muy detallada de tal manera que es bastante entendible este método de alta productividad.
Altamente recomendable para todo aquel que sienta que su trabajo y/o larga lista de actividades diarias lo están sofocando. No tiene desperdicio. Se puede poner en práctica de manera inmediata.
A través de consejos muy básicos y muy fáciles de seguir ayuda a organizar tu vida personal y profesional para lograr ser lo más productivo posible. Todo lo explica de manera muy detallada de tal manera que es bastante entendible este método de alta productividad.
Altamente recomendable para todo aquel que sienta que su trabajo y/o larga lista de actividades diarias lo están sofocando. No tiene desperdicio. Se puede poner en práctica de manera inmediata.