Four Seconds: All the Time You Need to Replace Counter-Productive Habits with Ones That Really Work – Simple Pause Techniques for Focus and Better Performance

by Peter Bregman

Peter Bregman, author of the Wall Street Journal bestseller 18 Minutes, offers strategies to replace energy-wasting, counter-productive habits that commonly derail us with truly effective ones.

The things we want most—peace of mind, fulfilling relationships, to do well at work—are surprisingly straightforward to realize. But too often our best efforts to attain them are built on destructive habits that sabotage us. In Four Seconds, Peter Bregman shows us how to replace negative patterns with energy boosting and productive behaviors. To thrive in our fast-paced world all it takes is to pause for as few as four seconds—the length of a deep breath—allowing us to make intentional and tactical choices that lead to better outcomes. Four Seconds

Why listening—not arguing—is the best strategy for changing someone’s mind Why setting goals can actually harm performance How to use strategic disengagement to recover focus and willpower How taking responsibility for someone else’s failure can actually help your teamPractical and insightful, Four Seconds provides simple solutions to create the results you want without the stress.

Genres: Self Help, Nonfiction, Business, Productivity, Psychology, Personal Development, Audiobook

258 pages, Kindle Edition

First published February 24, 2015

About the author

Peter Bregman is the CEO of Bregman Partners, Inc., a global management consulting firm which advises CEOs and their leadership teams. He speaks, writes, and consults about how to lead and how to live.

He is the author, most recently, of 18 Minutes: Find Your Focus, Master Distraction, and Get the Right Things Done, winner of the Gold Medal from the Axiom Business Book awards, named the best business book of the year on NPR, and selected by Publisher’s Weekly and the New York Post as a top 10 business book of the year. He is also the author of Point B: A Short Guide to Leading a Big Change and co-author of five other books. Featured on PBS, ABC and CNN, Peter is a regular contributor to Harvard Business Review, Fast Company, Forbes, National Public Radio (NPR), Psychology Today, and CNN.

Peter began his career teaching leadership on wilderness and mountaineering expeditions and then moved into the consulting field with the Hay Group and Accenture, before starting Bregman Partners in 1998. Peter has advised CEO and senior leaders in many of the world’s premier organizations, including Allianz, American Express, Brunswick Group, Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, Deutsche Bank, JPMorgan Chase, FEI, GE Capital, Merck, Clear Channel, Nike, UNICEF, and many others.

Peter bases his work on the notion that an organization, at its core, is a platform for talent. By unleashing that talent, focusing it on business results, and aligning it with a compelling vision, both the individual and the organization thrive. Since 1989, Peter has trained and coached all levels of management and individuals to recognize their leadership, exhibit leadership behaviors, model and stimulate change, and foster their own development and growth as well as that of their teams and colleagues.

Peter earned his B.A. from Princeton University and his M.B.A. from Columbia University. He can be reached at pbregman@bregmanpartners.com.

He lives in New York City with his wife and three children.

Reviews

[Jon · Rating 2 out of 5]

I feel bad writing this, but this book was useless to me. Bregman comes across as a nice guy who is trying to give good advice to help people out, but after a while, he starts to sound like an older brother or unwanted mentor who constantly winds you through long personal stories to illustrate points that end up being obvious.

I don't think that I'm particularly astute when it comes to humans, but there wasn't a single point that wasn't common knowledge. These are blog posts in book form, as can be noted in the 2 pages a chapters. And blog to book can be okay, but the title makes it seem like a time management book. It's really not. There is no system within. Just an analog blog.

And like most blogs, it's packed with personal stories and mundane advice in short, forgettable bites. It's definitely not a scientific work. In 300 pages this has 13 footnotes, which seems pretty low, even before you consider that 1 is a blog, 1 is a preliminary scientific paper, 1 is a press release, 5 are newspaper articles, and 1 is an interview on friggin YouTube.

That leaves 3 citations, one of which is the overused marshmallow experiment. Make that 2, one of which is Fast Company's top 100 most creative people in business. Ok, one then: a citation from a 35 year old child development study.

So it's not scientific, but that's fine. Just know it's a blog. It's just touchy feely rambling for people who might have just landed on the planet and want to interface with humans in the best way possible. It should absolutely be good for that. The rest of us have just been on the planet too long for this to be worthwhile.

[TPK · Rating 3 out of 5]

Four Seconds is filled with short, blog-entry-sized chapters, each one focusing on a specific bullet point of behavioral change. Some of these are not a big surprise -- the title refers to taking a four-second break (just long enough to take a deep breath) before making a course correction from a poor decision to a better one, an idea with which anyone who has heard the expression "take a deep breath and count to ten" is already familiar. Others might be slightly counterintuitive -- if you want to become more productive in your business, learn to say no; don't respond to negativity with positivity; adjust your micromanagement expectations so that you can allow people to fail safely.

My favorite bit of advice, and one I'm likely to take away from the book more than any other: when people lash out at you unfairly or do something to betray you, and you've done everything you can to make it right without success, recognize that they are giving you valuable data about themselves. Do your best to accept them as they are, with faults and flaws just like you, and realize that the data they have given you can help keep you safe in future encounters with them.

I'm not as immersed in the world of business and commerce as author Peter Bregman is; I'm not part of the target audience, so not everything in this book applies to my situation. But it seems Bregman's OK with that; in his conclusion, he invites the reader to pick and choose from the various approaches he outlines, see what resonates, and put those into effect. I'm good with that.

[Jay · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thoughtful and Useful

Peter Bregman tells stories about his life to share ideas on productivity, performance, and life. The ideas are simple to understand though they may be challenging to implement. Each chapter focuses on one key idea. Some you may already do, some you may question. The others may be useful, at least for a while.

Some of the ideas are focused on productivity. For example, he recommends limiting the number of times you check email. The ones I found more valuable address the far more important issues of interacting with other people and managing our own actions and reactions. Better to avoid a fire than have to fight it.

Each story / lesson / chapter is only a few pages long, and each stands alone well enough that it can be read by itself.

Four Seconds is structured like his previous book 18 Minutes. Both are intended to dramatically improve your life by introducing rituals that can be done quickly.

The book is unlikely to make you laugh or cry, but that isn't its goal. It will make you smile, and think, for at least four seconds.

[Sergey Shishkin · Rating 2 out of 5]

Personal anecdotes from author's life with his wise advice in the end. I didn't disagree with most of the advice, but it's just not what I expected from the book's title. I would rather title the book "52 things Peter Bergman wants to teach you about life". "4 seconds" was only one chapter of the book, not connected to anything else. Excellent books "Power of Habit" and "Willpower" cover habit forming and transforming with much more structure, in my opinion.

[Chique Balaga · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love it! Not only that Ive finished it in just for few hours but personally I've managed to focus with a little distraction from here and there and I made it! (Proud moment)

[Rhodes Davis · Rating 3 out of 5]

The book centers on a good principle: we need to often take several seconds before speaking or replying to an email, especially in tense situations, or before we embark on a course of action. It is a simple principle, not earth-shattering, but would probably be extremely helpful for those just beginning their careers or who feel that things are out of control with their relationships and life. Taking a short time of reflection will often save a lot of frustration or wasted effort. A lot of the material can be found in other productivity books or blog articles but the collection of principles in the context of taking time before acting is useful.

[Melissa Hazelwood · Rating 3 out of 5]

Absolutely useful.

[Nicole Cushing · Rating 5 out of 5]

Yes. I agree with so much of this book. Take 4 seconds to orient yourself.

[Annie · Rating 2 out of 5]

Audio book, my housework companion last weekend.
There is only a brief mention about the 4 seconds in the title. Rest of it common-sense stuff which nonetheless is a good reminder now and then.

[Kim Ross · Rating 4 out of 5]

Some of the stories are a bit simplistic, and 'dont-we-all-know-this?', but I found it interesting and a good reminder

[Brendan · Rating 2 out of 5]

Like many self-help books, Four Seconds has a basic concept - think before acting - that seems padded to get to the 300 pages necessary to warrant it being a book as opposed to a pamphlet or article. The book itself is structured as 50 chapters that consist of anecdotes in which a different lesson can be applied. Most of them have little to do with the "[wait] four seconds," and are more about strategies for interpersonal relationships (or parenting - there's an irritating overload of stories about Bregman's children). While there are some good points here, the book is an agonizing series of mundanities (a restaurant got his bagel order wrong; a child is sad about a Hanukkah gift; a child is sad about getting disqualified in a swim meet; a woman doesn't get the promotion she wanted) that make it feel twice as long as its already padded length. Also, I listened to the book on an audio version with an annoying nasal-toned narrator that quickly became grating.

[Carmen Sisson · Rating 1 out of 5]

Not what I was looking for. I was hoping for concrete suggestions to change my personal life by replacing bad habits with better ones. It would have been wonderful to have some scientific studies or verifiable analysis.

Instead, we are left with predictable, blog-length entries that are long on anecdotes but short on substance.

The book begins OK but quickly becomes focused on leadership, management, and parenting strategies. I'm a freelance writer with no children. I don't care about navigating boardroom politics, and the trials and tribulations of his children provide little fodder to which I can relate.

There is the day his daughter doesn't get picked for the swim team, the day she is struggling to ride a bike without training wheels, the day she's trying to learn to ski, the day she gets a gift she doesn't like and is rejected by friends at a party. We have scintillating moments when he and his wife argue because he's late to dinner, the day he realizes he and she communicate differently, and the day he won't stop working long enough to pack shampoo for a vacation.

We hear about engaging CEO types like the one who always yelled at people before he learned the magic of noticing his anger and not giving in to it like a prehistoric caveman. We hear about the friend who has weight loss surgery but still hates his life and will probably regain the weight because he still hasn't learned to eat properly. We hear about the boss who couldn't figure out he was creating a bad corporate culture by making an employee work on her wedding day. We hear the fascinating story of a little old man at the gym who was bright and cheerful while exercising, which inspired the author so much that he asked to take the man's photo so he could post it on his refrigerator.

Are you kidding me?

Mid-way through the book, I was in major skim mode.

Here are the key takeaways:

*When you're about to have a knee-jerk response, take a deep breath and consider what you're about to do. Then do something else.

*People aren't always saying what you -- or they -- think they are saying. Clarify by asking questions and respond accordingly once you understand.

*Kids can be insufferable distractions, but if you write down every little thing they do, you can eventually turn those annoyances into a book.

*When your spouse gets shrill, shut up and pay attention or argue back and ruin the day. Your choice.

*Meditation is good. Walks are good. Taking breaks is good. Haircuts are good. Yelling at people is bad. Ignoring people is bad. Setting a bad example is bad. Sometimes being nice is bad. Being mean is bad, too.

*If you promise people a quick fix and price it attractively, they will buy it. Then you will have more money to take your kids places where they can be bratty, providing more lessons you can use in more books, making more money to spend on fancy dinners and vacations with your wife, all of which will give you great chances to get into trivial spats and learn more things you can share with others who apparently have a similar lack of interpersonal skills.

There. Saved you $1.99 and approximately 300 seconds of your time. Use both wisely by finding a book with more substance than this drivel.

[Jay]

Thoughtful and Useful

Peter Bregman tells stories about his life to share ideas on productivity, performance, and life. The ideas are simple to understand though they may be challenging to implement. Each chapter focuses on one key idea. Some you may already do, some you may question. The others may be useful, at least for a while.

Some of the ideas are focused on productivity. For example, he recommends limiting the number of times you check email. The ones I found more valuable address the far more important issues of interacting with other people and managing our own actions and reactions. Better to avoid a fire than have to fight it.

Each story / lesson / chapter is only a few pages long, and each stands alone well enough that it can be read by itself.

Four Seconds is structured like his previous book 18 Minutes. Both are intended to dramatically improve your life by introducing rituals that can be done quickly.

The book is unlikely to make you laugh or cry, but that isn't its goal. It will make you smile, and think, for at least four seconds.

[Med · Rating 2 out of 5]

El presente libro trata acerca de ensayos poco profundos, anécdotas de la vida del autor expuestas de manera rápida e infantil sin llegar a adentrarse en el por qué, diciendo mucho sin decir nada.

La mayoría de estas reflexiones son poco científicas, siendo un par de ellas interesantes, respaldadas por artículos, pero quedando ahogadas en un mar de absurdas anécdotas diarias. Acciones como; pedir ayuda con respeto, decir gracias, al estar en público estar calmado por si alguien nos está observando. Soluciones absurdas ante problemas que, en su mayoría, sólo tienen altos cargos ejecutivos.

¿Dónde está mi información sobre la toma de decisiones? El autor sólo abarca el tema en las primeras hojas viniendo a decir que antes de emitir un juicio, respire durante cuatro segundos. Durante el resto del libro no lo vuelve a nombrar.
En resumen, son ideas infladas, revestidas de azúcar glas creando un manual de sentido común al más puro estilo de autoayuda característico de los 2000.

[Sean Goh · Rating 3 out of 5]

Since this is a collection of blog posts the bite sized chapters are never more than 4-5 pages long. The points are illustrated through examples drawn from Bregman's personal and professional experiences, and do serve to underscore the ideas expounded. Easy to read, easy to forget too.

Urges hold useful information. If you're hungry, it may be a good indication you need to eat. But it also be an indication that you're bored or struggling with a difficult piece of work. Meditation gives you practice having power over your urges so you can make intentional choices about which to follow and which to let pass.

SMART goals often lead to either cheating or myopia. Instead of identifying goals, consider identifying areas of focus.

When you are stressed by unmet expectations, you can either try to change reality or your expectations. But you very rarely win fights with reality, and if you do they are often pyrrhic victories. If changing expectations is too hard, try getting some perspective instead (in the grand scheme of things how bad is this, really?)

Motivation is in the mind, follow through is in the practice. The mind is essential to motivation (wanting to do something), but gets in the way of actually doing it.

If you want to get something done, become a busy person. Don't empty your schedule, fill it. The busier you are, the less time you have to get in your own way.

"When many cures are offered for a disease, it means the disease is not curable. If past experience or data suggests that multiple solutions are possible but none are reliably successful, nothing may be the best strategy.

It's not a performance, it's an experience. Constantly complete the sentence: "This is what it feels like to..." #Arminvanbuuren
Experiment with an open mind, try and fail, willingly accept any outcome. The best performers are lifelong learners, and the definition of a lifelong learner is someone who is constantly trying new things.

Fight the urge to fill every empty moment in your day, especially if you need to be creative for a task. Best ideas often come to us when we are being unproductive. Seems contradictory to the one above about filling your calendar??

Arrogance is thinking you're better than everyone else, which is often a protective mechanism born from insecurity when you don't feel good about yourself. When you love yourself, you won't need to feel better than anyone else, you'll simply feel good about yourself.

Time management isn't primarily about using minutes well, it's about using yourself well. And that means spending time in your sweet spot, the intersection of your strengths, weaknesses, differences, and passions.

Have a plan for how to handle situations, a thought/decision making process, rather than a contingency for every possible permutation or development.

Don't let how something was communicated (e.g. text) distract from the content of the message, and the subtext.

What if we chose to not miss opportunities to be inspired by others, rather than fixate on ways people disappoint us?

"[on a two-faced friend] I'm too tired to be angry every time someone does something I don't like. And I don't want to be alienated from everyone. I enjoy him for his other attributes. But I know what to expect from him."

Blame is a bad idea because it prevents learning. If something isn't your fault, there's no reason for you to do anything differently.

When someone defies your expectations, don't get mad. Just adjust your mental models to more accurately align with reality.

When you find yourself frustrated with someone, ask yourself: "What can I do or say that will help them?" Start from where they are, not where you are.

The learning from failure (and avoidance of future failures) only comes once they feel okay about themselves after failing. And that feeling comes from empathy. Not coaching or pep talking or blaming. Just being with the person in their difficult place.

Always give appreciation with no demands. Or end up demotivating people.

Saying thank you doesn't just acknowledge someone's effort, thoughtfulness, intent, or actions. It acknowledges the other person. Acknowledging other people is the critical skill of a good manager, or even a good person.

People learn by taking risks, reaching outside their comfort zone, stepping into roles that are too big, making mistakes and correcting them. That means in the short term their performance will go down if they're learning. But rank people and you end up penalising them for taking more challenges. You're sending the message "If you want to get paid well, stop learning."

Learning anything requires doing it wrong then adjusting. And if you mollycoddle someone from doing things wrongly at all, they can't learn. Timing the save is the sweet spot between micromanagement and neglect.

Humility isn't just an attitude, it is a skill. The most effective people are highly confident (they know they add significant value) and manifestly humble (they recognise the immense value added by those around them). "I'm important. At least as important as everyone else.

If you want to turn someone's negativity around, validate their feelings first.

As long as what you say comes from your care and support for the other person - not your sympathy (which feels patronising) or your power (which feels humiliating) or your anger (which feels abusive) - choosing to offer a critical insight to another is a deeply considerate act.

Following the no powerpoint rule for meetings has the greatest impact because it keeps the energy where it should be: solving problems together. Well run meetings are unpredictable, and that's ok.

See every solution as temporary and every tool as potentially valuable and potentially fleeting. This makes it easier to commit to, easier to implement, and easier to let go when appropriate.

[Pete · Rating 4 out of 5]

Definitely opened some new thoughts. I liked the start with a discussion on the importance of meditation to build up resistance for other urges.

[Kathryn Welch · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wonderful and insightful book. I learned so much about business, relationships and life. I'll be buying it to lend to others. Great read.

[K · Rating 5 out of 5]

great book! way better than I thought it would be.

[Anne · Rating 2 out of 5]

I listened to the audio version and found the narrator's voice to be really annoying. Also, it's geared more to workplace habits and relationships. Wasn't what I had expected so it didn't engage me.

[Greg · Rating 4 out of 5]

Four Seconds is a collection of short lessons oriented to helping people become more effective and efficient, whether at work, at home, or in other areas of their lives. The title comes from the first of these short lessons, urging the reader to create a four second time for reflection in what Covey called the gap between stimulus and response.

Each of these short lessons highlights something quick and (sometimes) easy to do that will make a difference. Some of them are things I already do, and I suspect that will be true for many people. Others seem useful to me, and yet others were either less useful, or to theoretical or at such a high level that I didn't see their immediate utility. Nonetheless, I suspect most people will find something of worth, and the earlier they are in their lives, the more they will find that is helpful. Some that I will remember (partly because they dovetail with my own thinking):

1. Listen - don't argue - to persuade.
2. Process goals good...outcome goals not so good (the dark side of goal setting).
3. Create a space between stimulus and response, and then use that space to briefly, but reflectively, consider how best to respond.

Other, less compelling, insights include things like:

1. Less email, more productive action (duh).
2. Ignore people when they offend you (rarely the best option...instead, talk with them).

Nonetheless, there is enough here (over forty independent chapters that need not be read in sequence) that I think most people who are reasonably open-minded and who think about what they read will find something useful. Because of the way it is structured, it would be easy and quick to skim through the chapters to find those nuggets that will be most helpful.

[Fanandi Ratriansyah · Rating 4 out of 5]

Penulis menikmati buku self-improvement ini, setidaknya di bagian awal karena Penulis merasa isinya sedikit berbeda dengan buku sejenis yang pernah dibaca. Di bagian tengah dan akhir, entah mengapa Penulis merasa biasa saja.

Peter Bregman hampir selalu menyelipkan pengalaman pribadinya ke semua subbab yang ada. Ia seolah ingin menunjukkan bahwa dirinya pun pernah berada di titik yang kurang baik dan bisa mengubah keadaan. Hal tersebut membuat buku ini terasa dekat dan tidak menggurui.

Setiap judul subbab yang ada membuat kita susah menebak apa yang akan dijelaskan oleh subbab tersebut. Bayangkan, apa yang akan dijelaskan dari subbab berjudul Tidak Ada yang Membantu Siku Tenis Saya?

Untungnya, ada semacam kalimat penjelas di bawah judul yang memudahkan kita untuk menangkap inti dari subbab tersebut. Selain itu, di bagian akhir subbab juga ada semacam kalimat utama dari subbab tersebut.

Selain formula Empat Detik, Penulis sangat menyukai bagian yang menjelaskan tentang kadang untuk menyelesaikan suatu masalah kita tidak perlu berbuat apa-apa. Ini menjadi semacam pengingat bagi Penulis yang selalu berusaha melakukan sesuatu untuk menghadapi masalah apapun.

Karena tiap subbab sangat pendek, kita bisa membacanya sedikit-sedikit setiap hari. Buku ini cocok sebagai teman perjalanan jika kita sering menggunakan transportasi umum.

Penulis merekomendasikan buku ini untuk siapapun yang membutuhkan suntikan energi positif untuk menjalani kehidupan sehari-hari.


Selengkapnya: https://whathefan.com/buku/setelah-me...

[Stefanie · Rating 1 out of 5]

Based on the title, I thought this book was going to be about personal productivity strategies, time management, something like that. Um, no. This reads like the personal journal of someone whose therapist is trying to help him get control of his emotional roller coaster. Everything upsets, frustrates, stresses, or angers him, from simple interactions with his family to coworkers, clients, even clerks in stores. He uses the words "feel" and "feelings" 213 times in this very short book, if that's any indicator of what it's really about.

He assumes simple, common interactions are major challenges for most people (like teaching your kid to ride a bike, or finding out that an employee is going to work for another company). The advice is inane and often contradicts what was said in the previous chapter (e.g., the chapter about allowing rude, angry strangers to verbally abuse you so you can practice listening or something is followed by one about the need to set boundaries).

All of it seems to boil down to don't let your emotions control everything you say and do and try to listen to people. I hope writing this book helped the author work out his issues but I don't know who else it would really help. (Side note, I guess I did learn that I need to resist those $1.99 book sales, so there was some value for me.)

[Chris Haley · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read Four Seconds after listening to an HBR podcast featuring an interview with Peter Bregman. The podcast included enough thought-provoking suggestions to justify borrowing the audiobook for the daily commute. Going into the book, it wasn't clear what Bregman's expertise or credentials were - after finishing, it's still not clear (and no, I haven't taken the time to Google his name and find out). The beginning of the book highlighted the importance of pausing before responding, allowing your rationale mind to catch up to your physiological responses to events. This was sage advice. The rest of the book covered a wide range of topics. Most of them were entertaining enough to justify the listen on my commute, many of them were useful or insightful, and some of them seemed random, arbitrary, or unsupported by science. Many of them fall in the category of "life tips" generally, which were welcomed when backed by science but less so when they seemed like one man's opinion. Overall, it was a worthy listen and a well-written book, but it's hard to advocate for it in response to any specific need or area of interest.

[JoAnne · Rating 2 out of 5]

Let me try another self-help book to get me to brake my unproductive habits.

Peter gives 50 short stories (republished from his Blog ) to encourage me to reprogram my current reactionary habits. By using the theory that if I intentionally take 1 breath, which takes 4 seconds, BEFORE I say something stupid or hurtful, I may be able to change my 1) mental defaults, 2) my relationships, and 3) my work habits.

Most of the stories are quite humorous and all make good points, which are summarized at the end of each chapter. Examples that I will keep:
Stop aiming for perfection if it’s causing you stress.
Shut down your internal dialogue that talks you out of taking an action.
Make a decision and commit to it, even if it’s not The Best, it is AN action.
Ask yourself every morning “Am I prepared for this day?”
But ALSO Be prepared to respond to the unexpected.
Say NO graciously.
**here’s my big one** Don’t meet someone’s negativity with your positivity. They will tune you out. First you must listen and agree that they are upset.

All of these bits of coaching are to be grabbed in the 4 seconds that it takes me to breath.

[Ana · Rating 2 out of 5]

I didn't read the author's previous book, 18 Minutes, but this felt like a thin followup. Not a ton of new ideas here, kind of a mishmash of thoughts.

I did like and appreciate the story of the woman who wanted to be viewed as more senior, and what she needed to do. And I liked the part about when people are awful, to realize they are showing you who they actually are. But there wasn't much that felt actionable her and very little that was new to me.

As a side note, I listened to this as an audiobook and the author was especially nasal and smarmy sounding, which made this a less enjoyable listen.

[Mike · Rating 4 out of 5]

The conclusion of this book is what really saved it for me. At the beginning, the author talks about how setting goals is counter productive and recommends against doing it. in the VERY NEXT CHAPTER he gives examples of setting specific goals to help yourself accomplish things. But then, at the very end, he says something very important that most books like this do not acknowledge. The author says that most solutions are really only temporary and he encourages the reader to not try to apply everything in this book at the same time. Apply what is useful now and then, later, when you are facing different challenges, use different approaches.

[JP · Rating 2 out of 5]

I picked up some useful ideas along the way, but they were mostly reminders. Walk away from arguments. Focus on what gives you energy. These I already knew. The concept of agreeing with someone you disagree with, by finding common ground, in order to initiate some rapport - that was useful. I've developed a growing preference over time that books in the self-help genre should have plenty of stories where the author isn't the central figure. Maybe that bias is unfair, as many people have plenty of their own valuable life lessons.

[Ashley]

Did not love the reader on this audio... And didn't love the content either. Some of it was good, but he spent a lot longer than he needed too... Just saying.

I did really like the idea that often we think we have a problem with motivation, but really we have a problem with follow through. This makes a lot of sense, and because it changes your approach to a problem, it might actually be the most helpful piece of information I got out of this book ;)

I've read several self-help type books lately, and I just keep coming away thinking, these are not for me... :/

[Vaughan · Rating 4 out of 5]

The title is misleading as the book meanders across many other areas. Most of the advice makes sense and, if you take emotions out of it, are obvious. However, in the heat of the moment we react differntly and escalate things in the wrong direction... this is where "4 seconds" comes in - time to take a breath and give you a chance to realign. But, rvrn with that "4 seconds" many people wont calm down enough to get it right... so much of the advice is aspriational and would have benefitted from more concrete "how to" guidance.

[Bookstakeaway · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you're someone who's looking for strategies, ideas, or tactics on becoming more productive, then check out this book by Peter Bregman. He's got a plethora of ideas on how you can increase your productivity in both your personal and professional life. I actually had the chance to interview him. If you're interested in the review with him, here's a link to the review: https://youtu.be/vErd8tS-Gmc