It is the end of another work week; we are bursting with so much excitement as we look forward to the weekend, even the last weekend in the month of August.  Here’s our recommended read to help us relax and unwind even as we reflect on the month that was, and look forward to the next month. 

Charles Duhigg’s personal development book, Smarter Faster Better: The Secrets of Being Productive in Life and Business, explores the science of productivity and how we can influence ourselves to get more done each day.

Duhigg wrote Smarter Faster Better after feeling overwhelmed by his schedule and his endless to-do list. He wondered how some people juggle countless responsibilities and others struggle to get anything done. After spending many years researching the science of productivity, he realized that productive people adopt eight key philosophies for living and getting things done: motivation, teamwork, setting goals, making decisions, getting creative, staying focused, and taking every opportunity to learn something new.

Smarter Faster Better explores these eight key concepts, observing that we can all improve our productivity levels if we want to. Thus, the thesis of the book is that productivity is about making certain choices for certain reasons; it is not about spending hours slaving at a desk—the most productive people, Duhigg explains, have a work-life balance. We don’t need to work every day of the year. We simply need to use our time better.

Duhigg’s first concept, motivation, stems from a basic neurological finding—people are more productive when they feel in control of their environment and the choices they are making. For example, managers get more done because they are in control of the tasks they do each day. They also know that each mundane task serves a greater purpose. We can all be more productive by remembering what motivates us. Perhaps we want to learn a new skill, but the lessons are mundane. We can choose to see these lessons as exciting stepping-stones to our personal development instead of resenting them. That is how productive people progress while others fall behind. 

Duhigg says, set concrete goals. By breaking our tasks into smaller, manageable chunks, we can get through our to-do list much quicker. Sometimes, we drag our heels and struggle to get work done simply because we don’t know where to start. Every productive person Duhigg meets is a goal-setter.

Getting things done means giving a task our undivided attention. This is a skill that many of us struggle with, Duhigg explains. It is up to us to choose a task to focus on and give it our full concentration. The harder we focus, the quicker we will complete the task, or the more progress we will make. For example, a study session is productive if we focus on a learning outcome. It is less productive if we spend half the session browsing social media.

Having focus is a choice. We can choose, for example, whether to refresh our inbox constantly or close our emails for an hour to finish a task. Making decisions makes us feel in control. This idea of control ties back to Duhigg’s earlier proposal that productive people generally feel in control of their environment.

Smarter Faster Better will teach you how to become a better version of yourself. Duhigg and his co-authors distill expert opinions and scientific research to offer tips on how you can become better at what you do.

We encourage you to get the complete book and read more about it. This book is sure to leave no stone unturned regarding the questions you might have on personal and business development. 

Happy reading!