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Getting Things Done: The Art Of Stress-Free Productivity
Getting Things Done: The Art Of Stress-Free Productivity
Getting Things Done: The Art Of Stress-Free Productivity
Audiobook7 hours

Getting Things Done: The Art Of Stress-Free Productivity

Written by David Allen

Narrated by David Allen

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

4/5

()

About this audiobook

THE NEW YORK TIMES BEST SELLER NOW AVAILABLE IN AN ALL-NEW UNABRIDGED RECORDING!

In today's world of exponentially increased communication and responsibility, yesterday's methods for staying on top just don't work.

Veteran management consultant and trainer David Allen recognizes that "time management" is useless the minute your schedule is interrupted; "setting priorities" isn't relevant when your e-mail is down; "procrastination solutions" won't help if your goals aren't clear.

Allen's premise is simple: our ability to be productive is directly proportional to our ability to relax. Only when our minds are clear and our thoughts are organized can we achieve stress-free productivity and unleash our creative potential. He teaches us how to:

Apply the "do it, delegate it, defer it, drop it" rule to get your in-box empty
Reassess goals and stay focused in changing situations
Overcome feelings of confusion, anxiety, and being overwhelmed
Feel fine about what you're not doing

From core principles to proven tricks, Getting Things Done has the potential to transform the way you work -- and the way you experience work. At any level of implementation, David Allen's entertaining and thought-provoking advice shows you how to pick up the pace without wearing yourself down.
LanguageEnglish
Release dateJan 8, 2008
ISBN9780743571661
Getting Things Done: The Art Of Stress-Free Productivity

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Reviews for Getting Things Done

Rating: 4.2 out of 5 stars
4/5

135 ratings84 reviews

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  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    Excellent system for GTD, a game-changer for me. However, the paper-based system is dated as there is now lots of computer-based GTD-applications out there. I use "Things" for mac.
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    While still quite useful, this book seems over-rated. What I like most about it is the revolutionary concept of organizing tasks not by priority, but instead by the way our brain and behaviors actually function. It's not about A vs. B. It's about what we are waiting on and what we should do next. I read the book because I started using some of the concepts, implemented through the iPad's Things app. I'm finding the process useful, but reading 240 pages about how to set up a filing system and return phone messages was just too much detail - especially when I already follow a lot of the recommendations.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    Allen proposes a simple and holistic way of dealing with all of life's demand. The principle is common-sense but effective, easy to implement. The basis for brainstorming is also interesting and workable. Extremely useful for list-oriented people; not so much for more creative types. This book although not long could have been halved.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    GTD is a self-help book: a dash of fact, plenty of anecdotes, and a healthy amount of repetition. Part of me wants to be skeptical. But the other part is so grateful for this book and how it seems to crop up when I need it most, that the skepticism takes a back seat.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    It changed my life
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    I can only imagine what the results will be like when i start practicing the ideas of this book
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    This is definitely one of the most useful and practical books I have ever read. I've had little trouble adapting his paper-based system to a digital organization system that better suits me, and I'm already getting more done!
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    Me inscribí por qué había un texto que necesitaba y ya lo descargué
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    All I will say is this. I read this book and for the third week in a row I'm actually able to see the floor in my bedroom. It's quite disconcerting, after three decades of hopeless disorganisation. DA, I think you may be my hero.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    Sure, it's widely hyped, and there's lots of fad material in this space. For me, the truly important thing was that it wasn't about having lists of what you could maybe do any time you got around to it - but having lists of things you can't or won't do *right now* and can put them *out of sight* (and out of mind, thus reducing useless stress) because you've got someplace or some system that you *trust* not to lose them.Not that the rest of the book is a waste - good details about systems you can actually use, and workflows, and mechanical details. The "don't look until later" concept is a wonderful way to stop drowning in the wrong details.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    Very good, within 5 pages you'll be motivated to get your backside in order. Just be carful you dont spend more time implementing than actually doing ;-)
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    This book was set as homework - sort of. After CGP Grey and Brady Haran decided to discuss this book on their podcast Hello Internet, they urged the audience to read the book. Allen's book is a classic in self-organisation, and I can see why: the book has a very sensible message. In order to get things done, you need to organise your In-Tray(s) and write down things in an actionable way (not "Laundry" but "Put Laundry in Washing Machine"). However, the way in which this message is brought to the reader is less than stellar. It is a conglomerate of long, redundant paragraphs, and thus very tiresome to read. Also, a revised 2015 edition should contain more in the way of advice how to deal with the ubiquity of digital in-trays (Email inboxes, smartphone push notifications, etc) in order to be a truly relevant book on Getting Things Done.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    GTD is a self-help book: a dash of fact, plenty of anecdotes, and a healthy amount of repetition. Part of me wants to be skeptical. But the other part is so grateful for this book and how it seems to crop up when I need it most, that the skepticism takes a back seat.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    I was skeptical about this book when I picked it up but I ended up enjoying it quite a bit and pulling a few techniques for my own organization as well.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    I've just read this book and I'm inspired sufficiently to read it again and implement it. I'll reserve real judgement until I've tested it for real.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    We all live extremely busy lives and the demands placed on our time seem almost never ending. Thankfully David Allen has a guide to aid us all in getting things done.
  • Rating: 1 out of 5 stars
    1/5
    At best this book should be an essay or a blog post, but instead the author has taken a concept that takes a few pages to explain and painfully bloated it to a size that made it feasible to publish in paper.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    I was pleasantly surprised after reading Getting Things Done. Many of the Let-me-show-you-how-to-get-organized books I've read offer obvious, dated, silly suggestions i.e. store your daily work tools near you and less-used items further away. But Allen's book is very different. He doesn't propose that we get organized HIS way. What he puts forth is that we use whatever system we are most comfortable with CONSISTENTLY. Excellent book!
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    I have two separate ratings for this book. 4 stars for the content. 3 stars for the length. This book should be at least 100 pages shorter.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    This is a great book for anyone that wants to get their life organized, get all of the minutia out of their head, and just "get things done."
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    Practical, practicable, and therefore Useful.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    I love organization, I'm a firm believer to get things done one must be organized, but for those who know me organization is not my gift. I can't claim I'm now 100% organized after reading "GTD" but it did bring about a big improvement in keeping me knowledgable in knowing what needs to be done.

    I use "Toodledo" an online and app utility that allows me to put into place a lot of Allen's ideas.

    I would recommend if your overwhelmed with a task list from petty stuff like 'return library book' to major projects like developing a ministry, this book. If only you put part of his system to work you get a rein on your abundance of tasks.

    It takes some on hands time especially in implementation but for me it has been a great methodology in getting things done.

  • Rating: 2 out of 5 stars
    2/5
    David Allen's method for getting things done requires LOTS of lists. Lists of lists and more lists and very intricate systems of where to put your lists and what to put on your lists and a flowchart to decide what to do next. I know a lot of people swear by his method, but just reading about it caused my stress level to skyrocket.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    A really great self-help book, one of the best I've read.I read this because the is a lot of hype and a pretty large following to the GTD (Getting Things Done) methodoloy on the web. It was so good, I worked on implementing a system. I think I may need to buy the book and read it again, my system needs to be re-invigorated.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    Loved this book. Borrowed from library, consider gettting more recent edition
  • Rating: 1 out of 5 stars
    1/5
    Pedestrian
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    Great book to centralize your goals.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    Every once in a while a book truly changes my life. This is one of those books.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    This book urges the concept that a productive mind must first be a clear mind. David Allen gives great advice on how to clear the mental deck, so to speak, in order to free up you most creative and decisive energy for the task at hand. Highly recommended.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    Probably the only book of this nature that I actually liked. But like everything else in this genre, I wondered while reading it why it came in book form when all the information in it could be put into a pamphlet.