Books and Me: What to do when there’s too much to do

Book Title: What to do when there’s too much to do   

Author: Laura Stack

It’s been sometime since I read a book on time management or productivity. With more opportunities presenting themselves in front of me and challenging me, I decided it is time to have a quick reiteration of the fundamentals of personal effectiveness.  If you are a person who feels busy and hard pressed for time then you will find this book interesting. The subtitle of the book suggests that by following the prescribed system you can save upto 90 minutes a day; without compromising your sanity. As a writer teacher and consultant 90 minutes a day is a lot of extra time to feel more productive. But that is not only what I took away from the book.

To be honest, I have my own system for personal productivity. So when I looked up the book my intention was not to find a system but to validate my personal approach, improve it and rejuvenate myself to stay productive.  This does not undermine the  Productivity Workflow Formula (PWF)  system developed by the author in the book. If you do not have a personal system already – this could be a good starting point.Personally I took away strongly the subtler hints of the author with respect to identifying what really matters, avoiding multi-tasking, shutting out distractions, approach to managing new age information channels and reducing inefficiencies.

An interesting chapter titled Manage Your Capacity provided much needed inputs on an often ignored aspect of productivity enhancement namely personal well being. The importance of taking breaks, getting adequate sleep, watching your diet, importantly exercising your body – all of these when managed creates in us the much needed energy to be able to do all planned aspects of personal and professional life in an effective manner.

The book is a useful reminder on leading a balanced life  as against attempting to balance aspects of life!