Getting Things Done

3.3 Go for quick wins (#litres_trial_promo)

3.4 Use your body clock (#litres_trial_promo)

3.5 Schedule your tasks (#litres_trial_promo)

3.6 Schedule for task dependency (#litres_trial_promo)

3.7 Schedule for resource dependency (#litres_trial_promo)

3.8 Schedule for concurrent activity (#litres_trial_promo)

3.9 Use your waiting time (#litres_trial_promo)

Working to your plan (#litres_trial_promo)

4.1 Deal with people distractions (#litres_trial_promo)

4.2 Deal with other distractions (#litres_trial_promo)

4.3 Use technology (#litres_trial_promo)

4.4 Beware the Seven Wastes of Time (#litres_trial_promo)

4.5 Manage your meetings (#litres_trial_promo)

4.6 Fight fatigue (#litres_trial_promo)

4.7 Practise ‘good housekeeping’ (#litres_trial_promo)

4.8 Avoid procrastination (#litres_trial_promo)

4.9 ‘Sharpen the saw’ (#litres_trial_promo)

Saying “no” (#litres_trial_promo)

5.1 Don’t say “yes” to every request (#litres_trial_promo)

5.2 Just say “no” (#litres_trial_promo)

5.3 Use 5Y questioning (#litres_trial_promo)

Dealing with problems (#litres_trial_promo)

6.1 Assess risks sensibly (#litres_trial_promo)

6.2 Manage risks well (#litres_trial_promo)

6.3 Define problems (#litres_trial_promo)

6.4 ‘Appreciate’ problems (#litres_trial_promo)

6.5 Choose a quick fix, then a long fix (#litres_trial_promo)

6.6 Find the root cause (#litres_trial_promo)

6.7 Learn how to improvise (#litres_trial_promo)

Asking others to do things (#litres_trial_promo)

7.1 Work to YOUR strengths (#litres_trial_promo)

7.2 Influence others (#litres_trial_promo)

7.3 Give good instructions (#litres_trial_promo)

7.4 Learn the art of delegating (#litres_trial_promo)

7.5 Use WIIFYs (#litres_trial_promo)

7.6 Say “thank you” (#litres_trial_promo)

7.7 Learn from doing (#litres_trial_promo)

Jargon buster (#litres_trial_promo)

Further reading (#litres_trial_promo)

About the Author (#litres_trial_promo)

About the Publisher (#litres_trial_promo)

Author’s note (#ulink_865e0f17-878f-5308-acee-6ad0351bc5a2)

This book is dedicated to Margaret Ellen Slater

(1922–2009)

Getting things done is the way to get on in life (#ulink_8b235b51-254f-5d92-ba63-8a309df7181d)

If you want to get on in your career or your home life you will need to get things done. In the modern world, however, there are lots of different people wanting lots of different things to be done, and you can’t do everything for everyone unless you get much better at a number of different things.

I’ve been working for over 15 years with individuals and organizations to help them to find ways of getting more done. This ranges from teams with enormous workloads and tight deadlines to individuals simply looking to improve their productivity. I’ve learned many secrets and tricks over the years. Some I’ve discovered myself, but many I’ve learned from others; humans are wonderfully inventive.

This book aims to help you to get better at managing your life to allow you to get more of the things done that you need to get done. It contains 50 secrets, grouped into seven themed chapters. If you follow the secrets you will find that you amaze yourself at how much you can actually achieve!

“If we did all the things we are capable of doing we would truly astound ourselves”

Thomas Edison (1847–1931), American inventor