6 Amazing Productivity Books To Help You Smash Your Goals!
This is the year you are going to lose the weight! Start the side hustle! Go back to school! Declutter your house! Learn Spanish! Get out of debt! This is the year that’s going to be different. This year you will achieve all your goals and start living your dream!
Well…wouldn’t it be nice?
But more likely you would just be happy to get on top of all the things you are already doing every day and every week and every month. You would really like to not forget dentist appointments or get behind on laundry.
I totally get that.
What can help? What has helped me is great advice from some of my favorite productivity books. I sometimes have to stop and remember what I learned from them and when I get back in the habit of applying the advice I read in those books on productivity I get more done and feel less stressed out.
If that sounds good to you stick around! I’m gonna tell you what my top five favorite productivity books are and the main point I learned from each of them. That doesn’t mean you don’t need to read the books for yourself though! They all have so much good advice that I won’t have time to cover in just one little blog post.
Productivity Books Are Worth Reading
Why would you read productivity books if you are already behind on everything? That might seem more like procrastination or avoidance than getting things done but I promise you, reading productivity books will always pay you back in time. How is that possible?
Well, to be honest the reason you are behind usually has something to do with your mental roadblocks, the way you organize your time, or how you approach the tasks themselves. What you have been doing up until now just hasn’t been working for you.
On the other hand when you read books on productivity you learn all sort of sneaky ways around your brain. Often times the experts who have written these books have tested their methods in real life, had lots of other people try them, and even based their methods on scientific studies and phychology. Why wouldn’t you tap in that?
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My Favorite Productivity Books
What will waste your time is reading productivity books that aren’t helpful. That’s where this post comes in. I’ve read a lot of books on productivity and personal developement but I’m sharing these because they shine above and beyond the others in the way they have TRULY changed my life for the better!
And without further ado, here are the best books on productivity I have read!
1: Eat That Frog by Brian Tracey
This is an oldy but a goody. In Eat that Frog by Brian Tracy we learn that we should always do the hardest things first. The idea is based on a famous quote from Mark Twain.
“If it’s your job to eat a frog, it’s best to do it first thing in the morning. And if it’s your job to eat two frogs, it’s best to eat the biggest one first.” -Mark Twain
Basically, a lot of us procrastinate but if you focus on getting the hardest thing you have to do each day done first then everything else will fall seamlessly around it. You will avoid having a weight hanging over you and you will get more done over all.
But that’s not all that this book has to offer. In Eat That Frog Brian Tracy shares a lot of other simple but effective strategies to fight procrastination, work more effectively and feel more pride in your work. It’s definitely worth reading. Grab Eat That Frog now!
2: A Complaint Free World by Will Bowen
Another great book on productivity doesn’t even sound like a book about being productive. It sounds more like a personal development book but guess what? When you stop complaining you get more done!
In A Complaint Free World by Will Bowen we learn that the average person complains 15-30 times a day, often without even realizing they are doing it. In his book he challenges you to move a purple rubber bracelet from one wrist to the other until you can go 21 full days without complaining and it’s harder than it sounds. Apparently it takes most people 4-8 months to achieve 21 consecutive days without complaining.
But why is it productive to stop complaining? Simply put, when you stop complaining you become grateful. You start to notice all the opportunities you have in life and because you appreciate them you can embrace them. Then you open even more doors by attracting positive people who will give you even more opportunities. When you stop complaining you stop wallowing and start doing the best you can!
A Complaint Free World by Will Bowen will surprise you with lots of cool statistics about how much we complain and how we can be more positive so it’s definitely worth reading!
3: The Joy of Missing Out by Tanya Dalton
The next of the books on productivity I’m going to recommend is The Joy of Missing Out by Tanya Dalton. Written by a powerhouse mama this book explains how we can juggle all the balls in our life by finding balance in what we say yes to, how we prioritize, and how we can actually automate our boring chores with something she calls systems.
The key to making a system that automates any chore is thinking about what needs to be done, choosing a good time to do it regularly, and making a step-by-step action plan to do it that way every time.
That doesn’t sound like much but the point is that when you do something the same way every time it becomes a habit and when something becomes a habit you don’t even think about it. It just happens. No more dread or procrastination!
Make your system even better by adding a fun incentive to it. For example, I know that folding laundry means listening to my audio book!
Creating systems, learning how to prioritize and how to use a planner are all things you will learn in The Joy of Missing Out by Tanya Dalton so grab it right away!
4: The Gap and The Gain by Dan Sullivan and Dr. Benjamin Hardy
Now that you know how to get the hard and boring stuff done without complaining it’s time to really hack your brain to reach your goals and one of my favorite productivity books for that is The Gap and The Gain by Dan Sullivan and Dr. Benjamin Hardy.
What is the Gap? Well it’s where most of us like to hang out and it keeps us stuck. It’s the mindset of looking at how far we are away from our goals and since our goals keep changing and growing that gap never seems to get smaller. That can be very discouraging and we might even give up.
So what is the Gain? It’s when you shift your mindset to look at how far you have come. Instead of looking forward at your ever bigger farther goals you look back and say; “Wow! Look how far I’ve come!” In that way you see all the steps that brought you closer to your goal and you are motivated to continue to make steady progress with consistent action every day!
The Gap and The Gain is a must read for anyone whether their goals are professional, artistic, or personal.
5: The Four Tendencies by Gretchen Rubin
Like I said at the beginning, sometimes we aren’t productive because of how we view the problem or how we feel about doing the work. It can be hard to stop procrastinating and find motivation to do hard things. It can even be hard to find motivation to do things we really want to do. So how do we hack our brain and get that motivation?
Enter another one of my favorite productivity books! In The Four Tendencies by Gretchen Rubin you will learn what type of person you are and what motivates you. Different things motivate different people. Some people are very motivated by lists and internal expectations and some people are great at living up to the expectations of others. Some respond to both, some ask a lot of questions and some rebel against all expectation and only achieve when they are convinced that something will be fun or meaningful.
In The Four Tendencies, Gretchin Rubin explains how you can find the motivation you need depending on what type of person you are. She also explains how you can help those around you meet their goals as you team up with them in a family, work, or learning environment. If you want to understand yourself and others better grab The Four Tendencies by Gretchen Rubin! It’s easily one of the best books of productivity I have ever read.
6: Atomic Habits by James Clear
I saved the best for last! Definitely one of the best productivity books I have read so far is Atomic Habits by James Clear. In it he breaks down how you can break bad habits and create good habits to reach your goals!
James Clear is very inspiring, having overcome the odds after a traumatic brain injury and a complete change in his life trajectory. How did he succeed despite the odds? By being determined, yes. But also by researching what really works when you have a goal and you need to reach it.
I’m sure you are familiar with how hard it can be to stick to a goal like losing weight, quitting alcohol or saving money. What can you do to make those goals stick? You have to turn them into tiny habits that lead you in the right direction. Small changes can changes your life.
When you create a tiny (atomically small) habit that supports your goals you do it by making it obvious, attractive, easy and satisfying. James Clear explains how to do that in the book. You have to follow those steps to increase you desire to reach the goal and to reduce the friction that keeps you from actually doing it.
The magic sauce though, the biggest tip I’ve applied from this book is habit stacking. Habit stacking means you create your new tiny habit and you connect it to something you already do at the desired time. For example, I connected learning Spanish (and other languages) on Duolingo to my morning cup of coffee. You can connect working out to driving home from work, saving money to getting your paycheck, and so on. When you habit stack you use the power of your old habits to build your new habits and that helps you follow through!
You can’t go wrong reading Atomic Habits by James Clear so grab it now!
Will You Read One of These Productivity Books?
I hope that this post inspired you to read some books about productivity! I know they don’t sound like fun books (I love fiction too) but I can honestly say these productivity books are interesting, engaging and easy to read! And most of all they have helped me reach goals every single year!
Which one of these productivity books would you like to read? Do you have any productivity tips that contribute to your happy simple life? Are there any other books on productivity you recommend? Please comment below!
