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How to do a great job... AND go home on time
Forget work life balance - discover how to be great at your job AND have a life. By the author of best selling Simply Brilliant.
192 pages, Paperback
First published November 1, 2005
11 people want to read
About the author
Fergus O'Connell
71 books38 followersMy mum read Treasure Island to me when I was four and I think that was when I decided to become a writer.
I used to think I’d like to spend all my time writing, but spending all day alone in a room with your imaginary friends isn’t necessarily the healthiest way to pass the time. (It’s easy to see why so many great writers’ best friend has been the whisky bottle!) So I also write books and teach and speak on project management. I’ve written sixteen non-fiction books and had seven novels published. My most recent, The Paradise Ghetto is now in development based on my own screenplay.
I’ve been shortlisted for prizes – the Kerry Ingredients Irish Fiction Prize for my first novel, Call The Swallow; in non-fiction, for my book on common sense, Simply Brilliant which was runner-up in the W H Smith Book Awards. My books have been translated into twenty-five languages.
So far, all my novels have been set during wartime but I don’t think of myself as a war novelist. I write about people caught up in great events and how they try to find love in the most difficult of circumstances.
I’m widowed, have two grown-up children and have lived in lots of places. Currently I’m living in England but that could be about to change.
I used to think I’d like to spend all my time writing, but spending all day alone in a room with your imaginary friends isn’t necessarily the healthiest way to pass the time. (It’s easy to see why so many great writers’ best friend has been the whisky bottle!) So I also write books and teach and speak on project management. I’ve written sixteen non-fiction books and had seven novels published. My most recent, The Paradise Ghetto is now in development based on my own screenplay.
I’ve been shortlisted for prizes – the Kerry Ingredients Irish Fiction Prize for my first novel, Call The Swallow; in non-fiction, for my book on common sense, Simply Brilliant which was runner-up in the W H Smith Book Awards. My books have been translated into twenty-five languages.
So far, all my novels have been set during wartime but I don’t think of myself as a war novelist. I write about people caught up in great events and how they try to find love in the most difficult of circumstances.
I’m widowed, have two grown-up children and have lived in lots of places. Currently I’m living in England but that could be about to change.
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Displaying 1 of 1 review
March 16, 2014
This is one of my favourite business books, because it deals with a fairly simple topic in an engaging (and often amusing) way. Now, while I can say that the book won't necessarily make your hours shorter or necessarily get you on home on time, it does take a great look at some of the factors which turn us into workaholics.
Do you overpromise things because you're a people pleaser? Do you feel guilty to say "no" to things? Are you afraid to negotiate over priorities?
In a simple and structured way, Fergus O'Connell leads you through the steps you need to be able to manage your workload in a way that doesn't overstretch you. As O'Connell describes it - you don't want to be a magician, constantly delivering miracles day after day until one day you can't deliver something. Instead, you want to be the Duke of Wellington. Promising something, and delivering it in a dependable manner.
Highly recommended.
Do you overpromise things because you're a people pleaser? Do you feel guilty to say "no" to things? Are you afraid to negotiate over priorities?
In a simple and structured way, Fergus O'Connell leads you through the steps you need to be able to manage your workload in a way that doesn't overstretch you. As O'Connell describes it - you don't want to be a magician, constantly delivering miracles day after day until one day you can't deliver something. Instead, you want to be the Duke of Wellington. Promising something, and delivering it in a dependable manner.
Highly recommended.
Displaying 1 of 1 review