In 18 Minutes, Peter Bregman layouts strategies and tactics to help anyone break through menal barriers and blocks and increase their productivity. I really loved many of the strategies and espoused by Peter and will definitely see me incorporate more of them into my own personal working behaviors. A useful book for anyone who wants to be more productive

The Breakdown:

Peter structures the book into three basic parts that addresses the following questions:

- What is This Year About?
- What is This Day About?
- What is This Moment About?

The idea is that if you can manage your moments, your day will work itself out and if your days work themselves out, the year will work itself out. But, that starts with knowing the heck you want your year to be about to begin with so that is where the book starts. With your year defined as far as what you want to accomplish, now the reader is able to effectively focus their energies on what matters most during the day. And everyone's day is made up of one moment followed by another moment, so then the reader needs to know how to manage each moment effectively and not let, for instance, distractions to impede their effort for that moment.

Each chapter is focused a specific tactic or skill and Peter uses ancedotal stories to introduce the tactic and communicate its importance. Each chapter ends with a quick takeaway message with a sentence or two to recommunicate the central tactic.

Peter generally pulls from psychology to reinforce the importance of each tactic.


The Emotional Punch:

This book kind of crept up on me. The first part which is focused on "What is This Year About?" and it moves a bit "slow" for me and the ideas presented are not easily transfer to concrete action steps; they are more contemplative in nature like, "pursue your passion." So starting from at this point which at times seemed very nebulous, as I continued reading, I was surprised when I came across the more concrete, easily actionable. Most importantly, the actionable stuff was meaningful and I can easily see how it could translate into increased productivity.

Some of the tactics had a very strong emotional pull on me and will definitely start to implement into my daily routine in the next few days. I kind of felt like kickin' myself for not thinking of it!

Most of the ideas were also really "small" so it made it easier to digest, swallow, and imagine yourself implementing it into your daily routine. For instance, Peter suggests taking a 5-minute break every hour to refocus. Am I focusing on the right things? Am I behaving or acting in a way that represents who I am? It was a small idea (taking a 5-minute break at the beginning of every hour), but I can easily see the impact it can make it my own life.


What did I Learn?:

I did learn a few tactics that I can immediately start to incorporate into my life for higher productivity gains. What I learned (in no particular order):

- I need to utilize a calendar in my daily planning activities.
- My daily planning will be a process. I'll start by identifying the pool of tasks to accomplish for tomorrow. Then I would transfer those tasks onto my calendar with time blocked off for each task.
- I will create areas of focus for my life. Each area doesn't necessarily need a goal associated with it but does need to attention and I can monitor the tasks I put into each area daily.
- Schedule time to plan my day out.
- Schedule time to review what happened earlier today.

(There were definitely other things I learned but for the sake of time I'll stop here.)

Last Round Up:

If you are looking for some good tidbits on how to increase your productivity I will definitely recommend this book. There is some "fluff" to get around, but most of the tactics and skills Peter provides will increase your productivity probably 2 X or more. The best stuff Peter presents is readily understandable and easy to implement into your daily routine and I am confident you will get a whole lot of it.

Favorite Quotes:

If you want to get something done, decide when and where you are going to do it.

The rule is simple: When you want to do something focus. When you don't want to do something distract.

Pretend. Act as if...Will you be living in a fantasy world? Maybe. But you might already be living in one. Why not choose the fantasy that works for you instead of against you?

Pros:
- Most of the relevant ideas I pulled away from this are concrete and I don't have to guess at how to implement in my life.
- The book is an easy read

Cons:

- Some of the antecdotal stories Peter uses to communicate his tactics and principles will probably not resonate with readers (at least with all readers)
- Some of the tactics he espouses are great ideas, but he doesn't really tackle the hard part of how to get those ideas implemented them into your regular routine. This is particularly true with some of the "soft" tactics that the reader is somewhat left guessing on how best to incorporate into their life. For instance, Peter exhorts the reader to remain flexible which obviously is easier said than done. How do I remain flexible?