Best time/self management book (other than Dave's) you read

N

neuroist

Guest
Hello all,

I was just wondering, other than GTD, which was the best time management, self management, goal management book you have ever read.

I personally have found that GTD has been by far the most helpful to me, largely because it provides the nuts and bolts of organization/time management. I need it spelled out for me in detail, not lofty ideas with no real direction on how to apply them.

I am searching for similar types of books on other topics, like goal setting and self management, etc.

I readily admit to being a time management junky. However, of all of my habits I do not consider this a bad one. In my chosen profession, research science, I am totally self managed, and understanding how to inflict order on my world, and how to manage myself, is a necessity. Otherwise I would fall behind and eventually fall out. I hate to say it, but wasting time and energy is common in science. I am sure there are many of you out there in the same situation (responsible for your own management and motivation).

Since I have started this thread, I guess I ought to contribute. I can't say its the best, but one that ranks high is Time Managment Inside Out by Julie Morgenstern. The ideas of grouping and organization have been very helpful to me. Also, Organization from the Inside Out, by the same author, is good. I will cogitate on this and post again when I go through my cache of books ( I have a few).

Thanks for the advice,

Valerie
 
G

greyf1

Registered
As a follow-up on GTD book, I'm currently re-reading The Procrastinator's Handbook by Rita Emmett. You see, I have a problem with "Doing." :lol:
 
J

Jason Womack

Guest
Re: Best time/self management book (other than Dave's) you r

neuroist said:
Hello all,

I was just wondering, other than GTD, which was the best time management, self management, goal management book you have ever read.
Click to expand...

"The Effective Executive." This is by far, the best one I've read. In fact, David references some of Peter's stuff in his books.

My big ah-ha from Peter Drucker is that productivity is the ability to "get the right things done."

My favorite chapter in THIS book is the first one. It gave me hope as it promises, "Effectiveness Can Be Learned."

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/t...apart-20/002-4139417-4940006?v=glance&s=books
 
A

Anonymous

Guest
Habit Busting

Available in various ebook formats, including Palm Reader: Habit Busting. Really helped me to ingrain new productive habits while killing negative ones. Forget where I purchased it, but I found various sources by entering the words>> habit busting << and selecting my preferred ebook format, at http://ebooklocator.com/

PamG
 
A

Anonymous

Guest
I second the books by Julie Morgenstern (Organizing, Time Management from the Inside Out). Making a time map is a very illustrative exercise, even if (as I did) you realize that your life is not as orderly as a time map - which is why I love the GTD system. Still, it is helpful to clearly see on paper how much time one *really* has for all of the ideas rolling around in one's head.
 
M

mochant

Guest
Bill Jensen's books are a must for GTDers

Check out Bill Jensen. The Simplicity Survival Handbook should be on every GTDer's must read list. Profound, yet simple advice with a lot of humor in a very attractive format.

Find it here:

http://www.simplerwork.com/handbook.htm

You can download sample chapters:

  • Chapter 2
    How to Delete 75% of Your Emails
    --------------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Chapter3
    How to Quickly Prepare to Communicate
    with Anyone, About Anything
    --------------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Chapter 10
    How to Say "No" to Anyone in Any Situation
 
P

pd_workman

Guest
To Do, Doing, Done

and

Your Best Year Yet (Jenny Ditzler)
 
F

felixc

Registered
The Effective Executive by Peter Drucker

I highly recommend the Effective Executive by Peter Drucker.

It is a classic.
 
A

Anonymous

Guest
Time mgt book

I would have to say that the "father" of time mgt books and I think the best is "How to Get Control of your Life" by Alan Larken. Many an idea has been lifted from this book.
Mike the Accountant
 
A

Anonymous

Guest
Time Mgt Books

The thing I remember from Mr. Drucker's book is that working in blocks of 1 1/2 hours is effective. We need uninterrupted blocks of time. So 1.5 hr "on" and say .5 hr to return calls, doing other defined work or as it comes in.
Mike the Accountant
 
M

moises

Registered
Re: Time mgt book

Mike the Accountant said:
I would have to say that the "father" of time mgt books and I think the best is "How to Get Control of your Life" by Alan Larken. Many an idea has been lifted from this book.
Mike the Accountant
Click to expand...

Excellent book if you are referring to the one by Alan Lakein with the title How to Get Control of Your Time and Your Life.
 
B

Busydave

Registered
I love reading Brian Tracy’s “Eat that Frog” and Mackenzie’s “The Time Trap”. They get me all fired up, but I still haven’t figured out how to apply them to my day.

Dave
 
D

dserr

Guest
The Power of Full Engagement - Managing Energy, Not Time, Is the Key to High Performance and Personal Renewal.

Jim Loehr and Tony Schwartz provide a different approach. No tips on how to file or process your inbox. They suggest that we should seek out stress, but follow it with the appropriate amount of recovery...that we should be sprinters, not marathoners. Be aware of your energy level and you'll make better use of your time.
 
B

Busydave

Registered
It’s true: instead of Time Management we should be saying Action Management or Energy Management or Context Management.

Time Management implies insularity – all our own stuff listed and getting done according to our own schedules. Harry Larsen’s signature on this board says: “A planned day is an ice ballet but my real world is a hockey game”. You don’t score a goal in ice hockey through good time-management.

You don’t make progress in the hustle and bustle of the world though good time-management either. You make progress by coming up with the right answer to the question “What should I do next?” (I think Brian Tracy said that time management is managing your next actions, although he might have been quoting someone else ...).

It’s a kind of a running re-prioritization process. And as David Allen says, the perfect way to handle it is to have all your current projects visible in font of you.

The choice of next action is fraught with personal doubts, misconceptions, and facilitated by intelligence, foresight, intuition, energy etc. Good judgment plus self esteem plus assertiveness will produce great results.

The more I try to analyze what makes a good day in work, the more I see that these personal qualities have to be developed.

Dave
 
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