Completing the trifecta of recommended reading on productivity, also known as time management, is David Allen’s detailed book on just how to get things done. I recommend three books when it comes to prioritizing and taking action in your life. Stephen Covey’s “First Things First” which begins with the end in mind (read my book review here). That is, his book helps you determine the truly important things to you, your life and where you want to be; the 50,000 foot level if you will and terminology also used in David Allen’s book. Covey’s book also addresses how to manage your life at the 10,000 foot level, the level where most of us operate on a day-to-day basis.
The second book in the trifecta is “The 4-Hour Workweek” by Tim Ferriss. Tim’s book furthers the 50,000 foot view and offers innovative and often surprising solutions to handling the detail and the mundane of the 10,000 foot level. Here’s a link to the book review.
“Getting Things Done” focuses primarily on the 10,000 foot level, acknowledging that the real movements forward come with having the time and space for the 50,000 foot reviews. David’s premise is that you have got to invest time, energy and planning at the 10,000 foot level in order to climb above the chaos and view your world from 50,000 feet. His book helps you do exactly that.
In the introduction to the book, David shares the following:
“…I can attest that there is no single, once-and-for-all solution. No software, seminar, cool personal planner, or personal mission statement that will simplify your workday or make your choices for you as you move through your day, week and life.“
I share that passage with you as there is no better way to communicate that getting more out of your day and life is a methodology and practice that can only be developed and lived by you. That said, David’s book details very practical steps that will get those stacks of papers, crowded inbox and overwhelming “to do” list under control. Implementing these steps and adopting them as habits will accelerate your ability to craft the productivity and time management system that will serve and grow with you.
As David shares in his book, just as we master one level of productivity in our lives, that mastery provides the freedom to think strategically and move to the next level requiring yet another refinement to our productivity practice. Yet isn’t that the essence of growth and development and the driver behind all that we do?
If you are stuck at 10,000 feet with no visibility to climb higher, get a copy of David’s book “Getting Things Done” and get it done!