Find More Time: How to Get Things Done at Home, Organize Your Life, and Feel Great About It by Laura Stack

by Laura Stack

How to Get Things Done at Home, Organize Your Life, and Feel Great About It

Genres: Nonfiction, Self Help, Reference, Personal Growth, Home Economics

Paperback

First published June 13, 2006

About the author

Laura Stack, MBA, CSP, CPAE, is best known by her moniker “The Productivity Pro®.” Stack is an award-winning keynote speaker, bestselling author, and noted authority on sales, leadership, and team productivity. She is the President & CEO of The Productivity Pro, Inc., a boutique consulting firm helping leaders increase workplace performance in high-stress environments.

For over 30 years, Laura Stack’s keynote speeches and seminars have helped associations and Fortune 1000 corporations improve output, increase speed in execution, and save time in the office. She is a high-energy, high-content speaker, who educates, entertains, and motivates professionals to deliver bottom-line results. Stack is a member of the prestigious CPAE Speaker Hall of Fame, which has fewer than 200 members worldwide). She has earned the Certified Speaking Professional (CSP) designation from the National Speakers Association, of which she was its president in 2011-2012.

Laura Stack is the bestselling author of nine books published by Random House, Wiley, and Berrett-Koehler, including her newest, The Dangerous Truth About Today’s Marijuana: Johnny Stack’s Life and Death Story (Freiling, July 2021). Her books have been published in more than 20 foreign editions, and she is a featured columnist for the American Business Journal, LinkedIn, Time Management, and Productive magazines. Stack has produced more than 50 online productivity training programs.

Laura Stack has been featured nationally on the CBS Early Show, CNN, NPR, Bloomberg, the New York Times, USA Today, the Wall Street Journal, Entrepreneur, and Forbes magazine. Stack has been a spokesperson for Fellowes, Microsoft, 3M, Skillsoft, Office Depot, Day-Timer, and Xerox. Her client list includes top Fortune 500 companies, including Starbucks, Wal-Mart, Aramark, Bank of America, GM, Wells Fargo, and Time Warner, plus government agencies such as the Internal Revenue Service, the United States Air Force Academy, the Census Bureau, the U.S. Senate, and the Department of Defense.

Reviews

[Inder · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm about halfway done this book, and although I've liked many parts of it, my focus is starting to flag. The problem with many of Ms. Stack's suggestions is that only a very uptight, organized person would ever do them. I guess this is the basic problem with books on organization - they're written by organized people. These people can't imagine what a lazy weekend would even feel like, they are so busy scrubbing the floors. It's like they are look down from on-high on us morally inferior messy people, like missionaries trying to convert the slobby heathens. I think I'm really looking for a book about "How to be a highly functioning slob." I might have to write that book.

Another problem I have with the book is her focus on using disposable products to "save time." I'm a little more focused on using reusable products and "avoiding waste," personally. Talk about "throwaway advice," snort snort. Seriously, we need ways to be neat AND kind to the environment.

Also, I may never forgive her for listing "Playing with your pet" as a common time-waster. What, so now we're not allowed to surf the internet, watch TV, OR play with our pets? What kind of world does this woman live in???

I'm not giving up quite yet, but I don't know if I need to actually finish this one. There are lots of truly helpful suggestions, mind you, but I think I've got the gist. Obviously the problem for me is not the theory, but the application (see also, my reviews of dog-training books).

__________________________________________________

Watch out, this is a "Christian" book in disguise. I have no problem with Christian books (you know this if you read my reviews) but I don't really like surprises, especially of the prosyletizing variety. I suddenly discovered that this is a Christian book about ten pages in. You know, it should be called "find more time to serve the Lord." But, if you can look past that (or appreciate it), there might be some good tips here. I do like that the emphasis is not on being a cog in the giant corporate machine. That's cool, even if the emphasis is on serving Christ instead. Of course, beyond the Christian emphasis, this is really a "back to simplicity"-movement book, and I'm all for that.

[Deron · Rating 2 out of 5]

Somehow I find great comfort in that mine is not the only bitchy review of this book on Goodreads. So ... I like organization porn as much as any straight man I know but this book is overwritten, borrows heavily from the far superior Getting Things Done, and has whacked personal confessions like the fact that her family hires her mother-in-law to do her laundry. So it fails in its title objective but is a success in being an odd memoir of a born-again Christian and Republican living in Colorado. (There are plenty of blogs that will suit this genre, if you feel compelled to read it for this reason alone.)

[Marjorie Elwood · Rating 3 out of 5]

I took a class from the author many years ago and owe my current filing system to her. However, I hadn't read any of her books and this one was much more opinionated than I expected. From her discussion of her Christian beliefs, to her bizarre insistence on "fixing" her husband's health 'problems' (some of which didn't seem very problematic, but rather preferences), to how she outsources a great deal of work and keeps telling us how this isn't expensive...there were organizational nuggets in amongst all of this, but her judgements kept me from enjoying this as much as I'd hoped.

[Andrea · Rating 1 out of 5]

There should have been a note about this being a "christian" book. Her main goal appeared to be micro managing from afar all people in her life so that she could spend more time with "god". In all my religious wanderings i haven't come across a non-devil worshiping religion where you belittled and degraded people to such an extent as the author recommends. Her lists reduce people to robots and remove all enjoyment and free thought from activity. The advice would remove all sense of self awareness and artistic style from day to day life.

Not for me.

[Heather]

If you've never read anything about productivity this may be good. If you have this is a rehash of other ideas.

[Rosie · Rating 3 out of 5]

For starters, I wouldn't recommend reading this cover to cover (unless you want to, of course). I think it's easier to start with a section or two that is most relatable/interesting to you and go from there. I would also say that some areas may not apply to everyone who reads this book (for example, I skipped over the sections about kids/household management since that doesn't apply to me just yet). That being said, there are some good takeaways that you can implement in your life or at least try out to see if they suit you. This book does cover a lot ground, so I would also suggest taking your time through it.

[Barbara Schulze · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great read

A well written book with relatable stories of times when life gets chaotic and tips for migitating those moments. Laura Stacks makes self-care and not packing every day with things to do a requirement. She offers sage advice on doing the tasks that are needed, outsourcing what you can and plannining things in advance rather than waiting until it's thrust upon you.

[Hakan zor · Rating 5 out of 5]

Perfect.

Laura will create another giant step toward productivity in your life. You’ll get down to earth tipps from her. I read over and over again. I certainly would like to meet her one day.

[Lesley · Rating 1 out of 5]

I never could get into this book, much of the advice was either something I already knew (make lists!) or something that wasn't really applicable to my life.

Maybe someday I'll find the right organizational book for me :(

****

Starting this over. In true Lesley form, I got sidetracked from it.

This arrived today from Amazon. My life is sorely in need of organization and I can't wait to delve into this book!

[Dora · Rating 2 out of 5]

I can't say that I read every word of this book because I was thrown by her suggestion to do 2 things at once, like sort mail while on the phone, and then to 'be fully present'. This is the age-old problem for women . . we feel guilty if we're not always busy, which usually means doing 2 things at once, then we feel guilty when we're 'scattered' and can't remember every detail of conversations (not to mention not giving our kids/spouses our full attention).

[Lisa · Rating 2 out of 5]

I found a few good ideas on getting organized and not wasting time at the beginning of the book. But then the book quickly devolves into "hire a housekeeper, hire a gardener, hire a personal assistant, hire your mother-in-law to do your laundry, send your kids to daycare". Not at all practical. This woman and I live on different planets.

[LemontreeLime · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was okay. Good ideas, some inspiration. However it didn't have for me that necessary Zing. In other words, how the hell am i going to have my crap that together that I do all the things she recommends to make more time in my life to do the things that she recommends to make more time in my life to do....

[Laura · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very good. It was kidda like a text book. Because after every chapter I would try and apply what I just learned. I am going to reread it because I know that there are things that I missed the 1st time though. I feel much more productive now.

[Clare · Rating 4 out of 5]

The author helped me find more time by making her book a very quick read. Each section is broken into clearly designated "to do" sections. You can quickly find the sections that are most relevant to your situation and start tackling those areas of your work/home/family immediately.

[Tiffany · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book had great ideas for organization. I was already a really organized person, but I still got some great new ideas that I can refer back to when I'm spring cleaning my techniques.

[Brynda Dickson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really a great help to organize your home and life so you have more time for the things that matter most!

[Tara]

Boy, do I EVER need this!

[Karasue · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good tips. I admit I didn't read the whole thing word for word. I did glean the necessary information. Now just need to implement.

[Gwen]

Trying to find the time to read this.
And implement some of the great ideas.

[Laura Skladzinski · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really excellent tips and ideas - highly recommended.

[Christy · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was like a self-guided tour on organizing my life. Clear-cut and simple ideas on addressing potential problem areas and how best to make things better.

[Amy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Basic info...

[Elizabeth Kelley · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's an organizing book - so I read it. It was very long-winded and could have been 1/2 in size.