“The 21 Day Mind Hack System to Double Your Productivity and Finish what you Start” by Michael Mackintosh.
With so many distractions vying for your attention, “Get It Done” is quick, refreshing, and easy to read. I thoroughly enjoyed each chapter and began implementing the strategies right away.
Written in a down-to-earth, call it like it is style, with soul searching “flavor” sprinkled in… each chapter provides a description of a well documented principle. The chapters are not overly extensive, but provide enough food for thought to consider if you’d like to dig deeper into that topic, elsewhere.
3 Easy to Read Sections
The book is laid out in three sections –
Part I – 11 Essential Mind Hacks to Become a Super-Charged Action Taker
The first 11 chapters review specific topics and strategies such as –
- The 80/20 Rule
- Good is Good Enough
- The Delusion of Time Management
- Fears and Hallucinations
- Focus
- Do it Now
- Do Less Work to Get More Done
Part II – The Get It Done 21 Day Challenge
This section goes into details about the what and why of the 21 Day Challenge.
Part III – Start Your 21 Day Challenge
Take action and complete the 21 Day Challenge. Exactly what to do to accomplish your goals during this challenge. Creating lists, taking action, removing distractions. This is where the rubber meets the road.
What I Liked
Chapter 3 talks about the “80/20 Rule”. You and I both have heard time and time again about the importance of this principle. Michael provides a quick overview with simple and practical applications for applying it. I found myself thinking about it throughout my day and looking for specific opportunities to apply it in my business.
In chapter 5 “The Delusion of Time Management”, his take on the subject was particularly satisfying. I underlined sentence after sentence, scribbled in the margins, circled and highlighted phrases all throughout that chapter. For example…
“The propagators of this theory have created complex systems designed to help you slice your time up like a cake into neat little pieces where you cram in as many things as possible in the hope that if you can just put it in the calendar, you’ll get everything done (and supposedly end up successful and happy). This may sound pretty good in theory, but in practice, it’s total BS and doesn’t work. Those complex systems will never work for normal people for a few reasons…”
Ha! I loved that! If you, like me, have tried time and again to manage your time better… but seem to fail at it more often than not, and still with too much to do… I appreciated his thoughts on the matter.
Another section I liked is chapter 6 – “The Resistance”
“You can’t do something new, significant and meaningful without resistance from your ego scaring the life out of you. I wish you could, but once you’re on your game, the impostors, the destructive parts of your psyche that were nicely settled in your life, suddenly take up arms and come to attack you with intent to kill. Once you start to get big things done, a revolt happens inside your mind and body that can take you down and destroy you. You’re at war, and the Resistance is out to decapitate you.”
I’ve been seriously considering something big, new and scary for about a year now, and can completely identify with that section! The parts of me that are warm, cozy and comfortable have been fighting me tooth and nail, despite the fact that I may not be happy with that particular part of my life.
A few concepts in the book that hit home for me are –
- Stop chasing easy.
- Be WILLING to be a little uncomfortable.
- Enjoy life. Work less. Make a bigger impact.
- Effective vs perfect.
- Stop trying to manage time. Manage yourself instead.
- Bust the Resistance when it appears.
In conclusion, what I particularly liked about the book is –
- Easy to read and digest – Chapters were broken down into short, easy to digest concepts. I could read a chapter a night.
- Pages were laid out with the reader in mind – eye catching headlines, bold headers, and witty phrases that kept me reading and engaged.
- Interactive – Lots of diagrams and charts to fill in, places I could take notes in the book.
- See yourself in the story – Principles were illustrated with stories and examples you can easily identify with and imagine yourself doing.
- Easy to apply – Provided simple, straightforward ways to implement the new strategy, mindset, concept, etc.
- Subtle spiritual influence – Nothing overt, but good reminders to “Take good care of yourself and others. Be a good person. How can you use your gifts to give back to society in a way that’s fulfilling to you and others.”
All in all, I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book and highly recommend it when going after something big in your life and or business.. or even if you feel stuck and know you need to get out of a rut. Go out and get this book. It will change the way you think, easily and enjoyably.
