The best Productivity Books: Top 5
Here are the Top 5 productivity books that have really changed my life.
The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People - Stephen R. Covey
This book probably needs no introduction. It was the first time management book that I read and it had a really big effect on me. I remember really enthusiastically jotting down ideas from this book and making changes to how I worked. It's an absolute classic! The book would probably look really different if written today but I think a lot of the ideas are just so evergreen.
Buy 7 Habits by Stephen R. Covey
Deep Work - Cal Newport
Such an annoyingly catchy title! I really wish I'd come up with that. The central premise is basically if we eliminate distractions and really make space to do real quality thinking, that's what makes us productive. I am totally on board with that. Also, Cal has been on my Beyond Busy podcast twice and he is such a lovely guy.
Cal on Beyond Busy:
Linchpin - Seth Godin
I'm sure this is not his best selling book but for me, it's the most impactful one. He talks a lot about procrastination, doing work where you are indispensable, being creative, and ultimately he just defines productivity in a way that has so much heart to it. I also think Seth, out of all the people whose books I read, is the most natural writer. I just love his writing.
Seth on Beyond Busy:
Making It All Work - David Allen
This might be a left-field one… Everybody knows David Allen’s book Getting Things Done. When I first read Getting Things Done, like for so many people, it totally changed my life and it still has a massive influence on everything I do. However, Making It All Work, I just think is a better book. It can be pretty hard to get hold of a copy but luckily you can get it on bookshop.org.
Buy Making It All Work by David Allen
How to be a Productivity Ninja - Graham Allcott
So I was going to list productivity books that have changed my life so the last one is…my book!
How to be a Productivity Ninjas has opened up so many doors for me, professionally and personally. I get so many emails from people who've read the book and really love it. For me, it’s just been such a privilege to put the philosophy of Think Productive, my company, into a book and have it go out to the world. I feel really lucky to have been able to do that and that it's still getting that kind of mad distribution and readership around the world.
