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Ready for Anything: 52 Productivity Principles for Getting Things Done
by
David Allen
In his bestselling first book, Getting Things Done, veteran coach and management consultant David Allen presented his breakthrough methods to increase efficiency. Now "the personal productivity guru" (Fast Company) shows readers how to increase their ability to work better, not harder every day. Based on Allen's highly popular e-newsletter, Ready for Anything offers reader...more
Paperback, 165 pages
Published
December 28th 2004
by Penguin Books
(first published 2003)
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I received ‘Ready for Anything’ (RfA) as a belated birthday present from my sister. She saw it on my Amazon wish list. This came as a surprise. I don’t remember putting it on the list. Earlier, I dismissed this book in a conversation with Jennifer George, who thoroughly analyzed the text. I’ve been wondering several points about this slim book. I want to make comparisons to it as investigations into the organization philosophy. This book was born after ‘Getting Things Done’. In the order of thin...more
Dec 26, 2007
Chris
is currently reading it
David Allen is my super nerdy organizing your life boyfriend. This book is hot. It should be combined with his celebrated (I'm still raising a glass) Getting Things Done, better know in left/anarchist circles as the GTD Revolution.
I found this book a nice review of the Getting Things Done system, and while a lot of what the essays are saying is general, I think anyone reading would be better off already familiar with GTD.
These essays were a nice length, easily digested in a quick sitting with some interesting relevant quotes for each one. Some of them fire you up, some make you muse on your work and systems, but all succintly focus on an aspect of productivity, organisation, goals or structures.
These essays were a nice length, easily digested in a quick sitting with some interesting relevant quotes for each one. Some of them fire you up, some make you muse on your work and systems, but all succintly focus on an aspect of productivity, organisation, goals or structures.
I like David Allen's take, even when I don't agree with him. Like Chapter 7 about Prioritization. But I'm nitpicking.
This is a nice follow on to Getting Things Done where David offers 52 short chapters each dealing with a different topic. Having spent some time working on GTD methodology I re-read this one and definitely took more from it than the first time!
This is a nice follow on to Getting Things Done where David offers 52 short chapters each dealing with a different topic. Having spent some time working on GTD methodology I re-read this one and definitely took more from it than the first time!
1 like · like · see review
Создатель теории GTD написал очень простую в восприятии книгу, аккуратно нарезанную на крохотные разделы, размер которых чуть ли не с линейкой замерялся (на самом деле да: bookmate показал 50% книги на 26 разделе из 52). Но это скорее плюс для "чтения в метро", чем минус. И, конечно, книга очень порадует любителей крылатых фраз. Даже хочется пожурить Дэвида, что 30% мудрости его книги - слова других людей. Но журить Аллена не будем : )
Из лучшего:
Наиболее одарённые представители человеческой рас...more
Из лучшего:
Наиболее одарённые представители человеческой рас...more
Ready For Anything (2003), David Allen
Ready for Anything is the second book by David Allen that I found unengaging in majority. Allen does present some practical ideas for clearing the mind, organization and planning which can be summed up with these four parts found on the back jacket of the book:
-Clear your head for creativity
-Focus your attention
-Create structures that work
-Take action to get things moving
To begin to make sense of the whopping 52 subtopics (mysteriously an equal 13 subtopics...more
Ready for Anything is the second book by David Allen that I found unengaging in majority. Allen does present some practical ideas for clearing the mind, organization and planning which can be summed up with these four parts found on the back jacket of the book:
-Clear your head for creativity
-Focus your attention
-Create structures that work
-Take action to get things moving
To begin to make sense of the whopping 52 subtopics (mysteriously an equal 13 subtopics...more
I see what many of the other reviewers are saying when they say this is really nothing new -- this is just philosophical discussions of how to plan and therefore live better. I find that these kinds of books can provide topics for further reflection and can, if you happen to read it while thinking of a related topic, have a big impact on your thoughts and actions, and I found it valuable for that. It also serves as a reminder on the GTD system, which I personally needed six months after first re...more
I made a really big push with the GTD system this year. I listened to the GTD Live audio sessions and then I read Ready for Anything. More than ever I'm relying on GTD to manage my life.
What I learned this time around is how connected organization and creativity are. We're either being creative and making new stuff, or else trying to organize all the stuff that we have created so that we have more space (psychological or physical or otherwise) which will then allow us to be creative again.
The f...more
What I learned this time around is how connected organization and creativity are. We're either being creative and making new stuff, or else trying to organize all the stuff that we have created so that we have more space (psychological or physical or otherwise) which will then allow us to be creative again.
The f...more
I'm a big fan of David Allen, but this book was a big disappointment. Its a series of 52 essays that are reprints from Allen's newsletters and website, and they tend to be short, pithy, and reasonably readable pieces that riff on the core principles of Allen's Getting Things Done book. However, the problem with it is that after 2-3 of these things, they bleed together, and you're reminded that all the good ideas were in the original book. Others might like it more than me -- Allen spends lots of...more
As a big fan of David Allen's Getting Things Done, I figured that I would pick up 52 Productivity Principles for Getting Things Done to see what I could work on to better the system. Unfortunately, I didn't find what I expected.
This book takes the form of 52 short essays, each of which Allen covers some brief topic I assume he finds important in getting things done. Out of all these essays, there were 10 ideas I wrote down as being both new and interesting (coming from less than 10 of the essays...more
This book takes the form of 52 short essays, each of which Allen covers some brief topic I assume he finds important in getting things done. Out of all these essays, there were 10 ideas I wrote down as being both new and interesting (coming from less than 10 of the essays...more
As a dedicated yet pragmatic GTDer, I found this book to be an enjoyable read, but light on concrete action items. It's a breezy, meditative rumination on applying GTD in the field. That's an unexpected shift in tone from the first book, which reads like an instructional manual.
My most challenging and difficult-to-time-manage project is long-term basic research, and I've never been able to fit that into the GTD paradigm. GTD works great for everything else I have going on, but I've never been a...more
My most challenging and difficult-to-time-manage project is long-term basic research, and I've never been able to fit that into the GTD paradigm. GTD works great for everything else I have going on, but I've never been a...more
David Allen's approaches to Getting Things Done are often revolutionary, to say the least. This book successfully frames his approach in a set of guiding principles that can serve to make the soft edges of GTD a more intrinsic part of your reality.
To read a book about getting, being and staying organized that reflects a deep understanding and appreciation for Eastern philosophies is a find. To hear say someone say that being relaxed is a key part of success is a bit annoying as it's so obvious....more
To read a book about getting, being and staying organized that reflects a deep understanding and appreciation for Eastern philosophies is a find. To hear say someone say that being relaxed is a key part of success is a bit annoying as it's so obvious....more
This book is basically shovelware collection of David Allen's e-newsletters about the Getting Things Done system. As such, it's pretty uneven; some chapters are engaging and useful, some are vague and meandering. I read the book as a booster shot for my application of Getting Things Done, and to that end it was quite effective; I was reminded of a few aspects of the system that I haven't implemented properly, and I was inspired anew to implement GTD properly.
This isn't necessarily the kind of bo...more
This isn't necessarily the kind of bo...more
I've listened to the Audible audiobook versions of Getting Things Done and Making It All Work twice and plan on listening to them again 4-6 months from now.
That being said the audio version of Ready for Anything escaped me on the initial listen. I plan on listening to it again, but if I had to rate David Allen's books in terms of usefulness I'd rate:
#1 Making It All Work
#2 Getting Things Done
#3 Ready for Anything
If you're a GTD convert then I recommend the David Allen Company podcast, following...more
That being said the audio version of Ready for Anything escaped me on the initial listen. I plan on listening to it again, but if I had to rate David Allen's books in terms of usefulness I'd rate:
#1 Making It All Work
#2 Getting Things Done
#3 Ready for Anything
If you're a GTD convert then I recommend the David Allen Company podcast, following...more
I read a book in February, and only now am I getting around to writing the review. Yeah, I know. I'm a bum. At least I am working to conquer that natural man instinct.
And this is a book quite up that alley. It is a follow-up to the excellent Getting Things Done, which lays out a very practical plan for personal productivity. I've always had an interest in this subject since entering the so-called real world. I remember when I read Getting Things Done for the first time how I was impressed by som...more
And this is a book quite up that alley. It is a follow-up to the excellent Getting Things Done, which lays out a very practical plan for personal productivity. I've always had an interest in this subject since entering the so-called real world. I remember when I read Getting Things Done for the first time how I was impressed by som...more
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it,
click here.
This is a great book that challenges people to stop and really think about their lives. While the context of this discussion starts with a simple conversation regarding the "to-do" items, David Allen artfully shows how the decision about what you're doing right now needs to be based on a conscious decision about where you want to end up in the future.
Overall, this collection of essays is a great "why" compliment to the "how" that was spelled out in Allen's more famous "Getting Things Done"
Overall, this collection of essays is a great "why" compliment to the "how" that was spelled out in Allen's more famous "Getting Things Done"
Эта книга, в отличие от другой известной книги Аллена «Getting Things Done», является не «инструментальной», а «стратегической»: объясняется не КАК, а ЗАЧЕМ это всё, и ПОЧЕМУ это работает. Состоит из 52 небольших «статей».
Рекомендую книгу читать неспеша, маленькими порциями.
Рекомендую книгу читать неспеша, маленькими порциями.
I bought this book because I found David Allen's first book, Getting Things Done, an invaluable resource. I even bought many copies and gave them to my good friends.
This book, however, was not worth the purchase price...let alone the time wasted reading it. It is merely a bunch of short notes interspersed with quotes every other paragraph...at least one of the quotes was even duplicated...that seems to be a good indication of how little effort was put into this book.
This book, however, was not worth the purchase price...let alone the time wasted reading it. It is merely a bunch of short notes interspersed with quotes every other paragraph...at least one of the quotes was even duplicated...that seems to be a good indication of how little effort was put into this book.
This book has some great tips in it and is a great addition to Getting Things Done. I "believe" this is basically a collection of articles he's written and posted on his web site compacted into book form. I found that since I've been to an actual DavidCo seminar as well has have an audio version of his seminar, there is nothing new in this book not talked about in the seminar. It's still a great review though if you want to up your GTD game.
Found it a great resource for provocation as I continue to run down the productivity lifestyle.
Encapsulated some of my thoughts. (blog article)
I can understand why some people might not enjoy this, or might end up putting it down. If you are already a GTD'r then it's just a great reinforcement with a ton of anecdotal references. Don't expect it to rock your world, but help in solidifying your resolve along the path.
Encapsulated some of my thoughts. (blog article)
I can understand why some people might not enjoy this, or might end up putting it down. If you are already a GTD'r then it's just a great reinforcement with a ton of anecdotal references. Don't expect it to rock your world, but help in solidifying your resolve along the path.
This is a broad, abstract, almost philosophical attempt to wrap up the work in the previous books into what it all means. Interestingly, this is real content, but content that was absolutely implicit and in some cases explicit in other materials. Maybe there is more here for people who aren't total converts, don't read all the books and listen to all the podcasts, etc., but for me, it was a stream of, "Yeah, I know."
OK, I'm through with the supplemental David Allen Material. Just like Making It All Work: Winning at the Game of Work and Business of Life, this book doesn't add a whole lot of new material to the GTD library. If you're already practicing GTD at a really high level, this book might add some refinements and encouragement that you could find useful. For me, though, the most useful pages of this book were the last five: the Appendix that summarizes Allen's GTD approach.
I'm resisting the urge to give this book an unfairly low rating because if I'd read it without having read Allen's previous book, I probably would've found it a lot more useful. However, having committed most of GTD to memory (and a little to practice) I found it to have more reminders of the GTD way than new material. A bit disappointing.
An exceptionally thought-provoking and motivating collection of articles by Allen. Simple to pick up and digest, it has really sparked me to make my work and personal life run a lot smoother.
I want every colleague to read it!
More of a review here: http://mattharwood.com/2013/05/ready-...
I want every colleague to read it!
More of a review here: http://mattharwood.com/2013/05/ready-...
Quick read, lots of great tips and reminders about helpful GTD principles. Probably more useful after reading Getting Things Done, but even if you haven't, I think checking out the appendix section at the back of this book would provide enough context to get a lot out of it.
"Small things, done consistently, create major impact" (Ch 49). Productivity guru, David Allen, gives 52 keys to mastering life and business. Read (and apply) one a week, and in a year you'll soon develop the "mind like water" Allen promotes.
Really this is just a rehashing of GTD, hammering the points home with more inspirational quotes and ideas. It is still a worthwhile read, however, if you have taken GTD to heart and have implemented the system without problems, this is just extra.
My recollection of this one five years later is there wasn't much worth recollecting. Time is better spent rereading Allen's brilliant Getting Things Done that reading this collection of asides. That said, I did give it 5 out of 5 stars on audible, so I should challenge my memory with another listen.
gets into some of the inner dialogue that happens in our daily decision making. Also some good alternative approaches to productivity that might not have been considered. Easy short chapters followed with thought provoking questions.
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David Allen is a productivity consultant who is best known as the creator of the Getting Things Done time management method.
He is the founder of the David Allen Company, which is focused on productivity, action management and executive coaching. His Getting Things Done method is part of his coaching efforts. He was also one of the founders of Actioneer, Inc., a company specializing in productivity...more
More about David Allen...
He is the founder of the David Allen Company, which is focused on productivity, action management and executive coaching. His Getting Things Done method is part of his coaching efforts. He was also one of the founders of Actioneer, Inc., a company specializing in productivity...more
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“Sometimes the biggest gain in productive energy will come from cleaning the cobwebs, dealing with old business, and clearing the desks—cutting loose debris that's impeding forward motion.”
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4 people liked it
“When we truly need to do is often what we most feel like avoiding.”
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Dec 27, 2007 07:56am