Reclaim Your Time Off: The 3-step Solution to Overworking

by Fab Giovanetti

Multi-hyphen careers and remote working have now become the norm in working culture. Does “flexible working” mean “always working”? What does work–life balance actually look like? This book offers practical steps to managing remote and flexible work coexisting in the same space as life.

Reclaim Your Time Off offers:
• Fab's unique 3-step solution: Simplify, Delegate, Automate.
• Regular "Action Steps" and coaching activities to help you see and understand current patterns and reasons for overwhelm, and turn them around.
• Practical strategies to learn how to rest and work smarter.

In the current working landscape, we work really hard. On average, over 60 hours per week. “Burnout” is a ubiquitous buzzword. Being overly busy is a badge of honour. This book uncovers how “busyness” can impact negatively on creativity. We need to relearn the art of being bored. Down time is an essential part of productivity and a vital component in good health and wellbeing. This book shows us how to protect it.

Genres: Self Help, Nonfiction

192 pages, Paperback

First published May 11, 2021

About the author

Fab Giovanetti is an award-winning entrepreneur, supporting people making a positive impact through their marketing. She is known as the founder of Creative Impact, a collective of hundreds of creatives making a positive impact on others and the planet.

Through her community and her online mentoring, she touched over 100,000 people from all over the world - she is a keen speaker, writer, and published author, as well as guest lecturer across the UK.

Reviews

[Tamara · Rating 5 out of 5]

Containing many valuable tips for every situation, this book has arrived at a perfect time as the working from home dream becomes a forced reality for many and we collectively adapt to the new normal of the coronavirus pandemic, with increasingly blurred boundaries between work and home life. This book helps us reframe our mindset, offering practical advice on achieving the most effective and efficient use of our time, whilst enabling us to switch off from work at the end of the day and make the most of our time off.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

[Alicia · Rating 3 out of 5]

I did not see a lot of value in this book. This book is mainly geared toward people who actually have an amount of control in their schedule, mostly entrepreneurs or freelancers. This isn’t applicable to a very large selection of the general public.

In summary, the book says to have boundaries then spends half of the book trying to convince you about how valuable and necessary it is to do so. If you’re already reading this book, it’s safe to say you probably don’t need to be convinced.

I think the book would have had more value if more time and energy was focused on applicable strategies for more people. I mean, offering advice to try only checking your email twice a day? Have you ever worked in any office where that was realistic?

I was able to read this book for free through NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.

[Bao Anh · Rating 3 out of 5]

Reading this book to find work-life balance: "work-life balance doesn't exist"
Okay book though.

[Stephanie Carr · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a book that popped up on the @NetGalley homepage and spoke to me straight away. I'd been trying to read more non-fiction for a while and the subject matter of this one - realising that being busy 24/7 isn't always the measure of a successful (or happy) life - appealed to me.

Reclaim Your Time Off explores our current working habits and the way we've come to normalise being constantly busy and stressed as 'just the way things are' - and suggest an alternative way of organising our lives so that they're not constantly revolving around work, encouraging us to slow down and really take the time to rest, recharge, and savour the present moment.

I loved this book and it resonated with me on many levels. A quote that stuck out for me was

"Our nervous systems are not built to handle being constantly in fight-or-flight mode, and while the rush of "achievement" or busyness can appear appealing at first, it's often peace and calmness that we really crave." This is very true for me as someone who feels easily overwhelmed and flappy if I've got too much on my plate. I enjoy days where I've got nothing to do except sit, read or watch a film, and potter around.

The book is more geared towards office based jobs as many of the tools can't really be implemented if you worked in retail, or were a nurse or doctor on a busy hospital ward. Some parts didn't really apply to me in terms of overworking, as I always take an hour for lunch away from my desk and don't have access to work emails outside of working hours, so do find it easy to "switch off" in that regard, but otherwise the advice and lessons detailed in this book can be useful for anyone. Even outside of work, we can all take something from the overall message of this book to not define our self worth by our achievements or whether we've had a productive day. Our worth is constant and while hustle culture has its merits (if you don't work for it you won't get it) the benefits of taking a step back and resetting should also be acknowledged.

[Tillymintball]

Reclaim Your Time Off is a structured guide to improving focus when working and establishing clear boundaries between work and homelife. Whilst there are references made to changes resulting from Covid, much of the content would be of interest to anyone working from home or finding work encroaching at home. Reflective exercises and journalling are encouraged and links to the author's website appear throughout. Although the tone veers towards self-congratulatory in places, I would still recommend this title to anyone at the end of their tether or experiencing burnout as there are some helpful tips and suggestions.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

[Chel · Rating 5 out of 5]

I found this book really helpful. I used to work every weekend and really only stopped my 'obligation' to work once COVID-19 hit, and I decided that if I was going to be working from home, I needed to somehow benchmark weekends. My work life balance totally changed, but I still have a way to go. I love this book because the strategies are ones which are able to be introduced in your life, and it's an inspirational read. For those struggling with work/ life balance, I highly recommend this. Thanks to NetGalley for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!

[Claire Reviews · Rating 3 out of 5]

Thanks to Watkins Publishing, Fab Giovanetti, and NetGalley for the ARC; this is my unbiased review.

Reclaim Your Time Off by Fab Giovanetti
Watkins Publishing, 11th May 2021
⭐️⭐️⭐️

Description:
In the current working landscape, we work really hard. On average, over 60 hours per week. "Burnout" is a ubiquitous buzzword. Being overly busy is a badge of honour. This book uncovers how "busyness" can impact negatively on creativity. We need to relearn the art of being bored. Down time is an essential part of productivity and a vital component in good health and wellbeing. This book shows us how to protect it.

Review:
I found this a really difficult book to review, as I don't think the principles can be applied to everyone in all job roles.

Everything in the book makes sense, and Fab Giovanetti's three-step approach is fantastic, but what if your occupation doesn't allow you to 'simplify, delegate, automate'? If you have deadlines to meet, are self-employed or lone work, need to follow a strict process, or have more than one job due to financial or other pressures, this book isn't going to offer up any solutions to avoiding burnout. Unless you're freelance or an entrepreneur who can afford to have downtime, I don't think the answers you seek will be found in these pages, unfortunately.

For the people who are able to follow the steps to reclaim their time off, I couldn't be happier. It would just be great if more people could take advantage of the advice given.

#BookReview #ReclaimYourTimeOff #FabGiovanetti #NetGalley #Bookstagram

[Shinta A · Rating 4 out of 5]

I interested buying this book for these two reasons:
👉 I have difficulty managing time
👉 I feel pressed for time

This book is the result of the author's contemplation. She was lived a life in a hurry and realized that she didn't enjoy it.

It turns out that after living this super busy life, she realized that the essence of life is not like that.

"Achieving a goal is not a bad or wrong thing, as long as we enjoy doing it and don't forget our loved ones." said Ms. Fab, the author of this book.

There are a lot of advice that the author give regarding time. For example, we need to spend time alone: walking in the park or walking in a place we like. At that moment, we will usually hear all our true desires that are stored in our hearts. Crowds often make us not hear our true desires.

This book is really good for those of you who want to know about the meaning of time in our lives.

Thank you very much, Ms. Fab.

Since reading this book, every time I wake up, I don't immediately hold my cell phone 🥲 But, I really try to do other things like: think, read a book, or just stay quiet and don't do anything. These things make me feel much better and ready to face the day 🌻

[Kelly Steed · Rating 4 out of 5]

Having recently been promoted at work this ARC from @netgalley and @watkinswisdom came at the perfect time!

I really liked the quotes and references from other books and research, it showed that this is an area that Fab has done some serious legwork and background reading into, taking the best bits along with her own experience and putting a modern spin on things.

There’s some great tips in here too. I was pleased to see that some of the changes I’ve made as I adjusted to working from home are things Fab recommended, and also tried some new things out, like the screen time function on my iPhone - this was genius and really stopped me from getting so easily distracted!

I really enjoyed Fab’s writing style, so much so I have ordered her other book ‘Make An Impact’; I felt as though she were a friend talking to me directly. Fab by name, fab by nature!

[Katie Oeschger · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thanks to NetGalley for early access to this book.

Do you struggle to keep your work and personal lives separate? Do you want to be more productive in less time at work? Has working remotely been a struggle for you - whether as an employee or manager? If you answered yes to any of these questions, then you need to read this book! There is something for everyone, even those who already focus a lot on self-improvement, routines, etc.

I really liked all the useful tips I can directly (and easily apply). The book was very straight-forward but was fun and engaging to read. For such a quick read, this book can make a HUGE impact on your life!

[Anne Churko · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was ok. There were a lot of great ideas, mostly quoting other good books that I'd either already read or heard of. I found the writing style to be a little frustrating, with phrases like "if you feel like you think you need to" that would have me going back and re-reading the sentence so I could simplify it in my mind. Not a lot of original ideas, and the last chapter was so vague I didn't know what she was talking about. All in all, would not recommend it, but would definitely tell you to read the books she references at the back.

[Mun Yee · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is mainly geared toward people who actually have an amount of control in their schedule, mostly entrepreneurs or freelancers. This isn’t applicable to a very large selection of the general public. In summary, the book says to have boundaries then spends half of the book trying to convince you about how valuable and necessary it is to do so. If you’re already reading this book, it’s safe to say you probably don’t need to be convinced. I think the book would have had more value if more time and energy was focused on applicable strategies for more people.

[Sinead · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is so relevant for those of us office workers now based at home. The temptation to be available and “on” all the time is high. Tips on how to address this and maintain a balance in your life are helpful and well considered. Not all suggestions will be relevant to all people but everyone can get something out of the book. .

[Mia Lyon · Rating 2 out of 5]

Giovanetti obviously has valuable insight to impart, and I came away from this with new ideas I want to implement to keep work from taking over my life. However, this book feels unfinished and really needed an editor. I often couldn’t follow the author’s train of thought and felt like points could benefit from clarifying what the author maybe felt went unsaid.

[Sofia Balderson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great book with lots of good stories and tips for R&R and how to avoid burnout. I found it a bit repetitive and hard to read at times, hence 4 stars, but generally very useful.

[MetLineReader · Rating 3 out of 5]

Constructive and helpful tips to structure your time and not procrastinate!
Insightful and informative

[Madison Krumins · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nice collection of quotes, tips, and reflection prompts on the topic of protecting free time in a busy schedule. Saved some excerpts in my highlights to return to when needed.