przypomniałam sobie ostatnio o tej książce xdd ZACZĘŁAM JĄ CZYTAĆ ROK TEMU XD (to niezły nawyk samodyscypliny)
spoko książka, mnie interesował temat psychologii prokrastynacji i znalazłam dużo odpowiedzi w tym zakresie

this was written 28 yrs ago. I picked it up at a free book exchange . I can see why now.

I think the advice in here is sound, and could be very helpful to some people. It's basically cognitive behavioral therapy focused on procrastination. This was too narrow a focus for me to find the whole book very interesting to read though, so for me personally it was 2* but for the subset of procrastinators who can get themselves to read a big book and do all the exercises it would be a 4*.

This is a very fine book on the dissection of procrastination and tools for obviating it.

I've never felt so seen. This book nails the psychology of procrastination and helps me understand and identify and handle the emotions that contribute to my counterproductive procrastinatory behaviors. It's full of actionable advice.

Procastinators: don't put off reading this!

Now Habit  

If you have a choice between listening to the audio version of this or reading the text version?  Go for the text.  This is definitely an instance where the author should not have read his own work.  Think equal parts William Shatner, B-movie hypnotist, and narrator of a 1950s filmstrip designed to be watched by eighth graders when they have a substitute for science class.  I was tempted to quit this book as soon as it started because of the narration--but the topic inspired me to stick with it.  I did check my library's catalog for a text version.  No ebook, and the one print copy they have was due back in April.  So apparently, the patron who checked out this book on overcoming procrastination had been procrastinating on returning it for almost four months.
 
I think the techniques Fiore describes for transforming from a procrastinator to a "producer" are solid.  Since I've only just completed the book, I haven't been able to implement them extensively, but I've already begun to apply some approaches, such as doing 30-minute chunks of focused work.  I really wish I had this book before I undertook my doctoral dissertation.  I would have used his "unschedule" to build in recreational and restorative activities and realistic blocks of work time, instead of living under the thrall of "I should be working on my dissertation" at all times.
 
Although there are useful approaches to be gleaned from the book, at times I felt the author was being overly repetitious.  And as an example of the disadvantage of listening to this in audio format, there was a section where he went through a few different guided relaxations, one right after another.  They were all very similar (read REPETITION) to one another--and one featured a SOLID TWO MINUTES OF SILENCE.  I even checked my player to make sure the battery hadn't died.  At the conclusion of the two minutes, he came back with, "Did that feel like two minutes?"  Nope, it felt like an eternity.  I really think for the purposes of the audiobook, that part should have been moved to the end as an appendix.

It's a surprisingly decent book. Nothing extraordinarily new, but it's put in very easy to understand ways. It has advice. It cuts to the point, and it has a good point, too. Fear of failure is the ultimate cause of procrastination, and just like any habits, procrastination can also be unlearned through the right methods. Couldn't agree more.

As a lifelong procrastinator a lot of these points hit home. There were some great insights into the reasons why we procrastinate and some tips on how to do better. I will certainly be taking some lessons from this.

Mediocre.

I found The Now Habit on the library shelf at work. Was skeptical but interested. Borrowed it. Loved it. Told people. Endured their jokes about how long I would take to finish reading it, if ever.

Started using some of its exercises and remedies. Ran out of renewals. Returned it to work. Wanted a hardcover but couldn't find one. Bought it from the Kindle store instead.

Just finished reading it. Am beginning to read it again so I can apply the bits that I haven't yet.

One more thing, given this book you should consider to avoid losing your focus by spending endless time with additional productivity literature, but for my part I use a couple of simple things with it: Mark Forster "Final Version" lists (http://markforster.squarespace.com) and Pomodoro Technique (http://www.pomodorotechnique.com). Final Version leads me to select the task for which I feel the most resistance and tension as the task that I will address (not necessarily complete!) next. The Pomodoro Technique helps me to do what The Now Habit calls "persistent starting": get started, and no matter how many times I get into a slump or come back from a break, just get started again.

This should be the book of choice for procrastinators!

But what is a procrastinator?

We might be accused of being lazy, irresolute or timid. We admit to having those "character defects." But on the other hand, we also feel guilty of being underachieved or unproductive and we aspire like anyone else does to be successful. What's the problem here?

We are PROCRASTINATORS. It comes from our overdue perfectionism, fear of failure and of our worth being judged upon our imperfect performance. This happens when we write our dissertation in our graduate studies, annual report for our company or prepare a gathering or any substantial task that really time and thoughts to complete. We know we have the capacity of doing good jobs. However, We put off doing anything meaningful so that while not making any progress, we are also not making any mistakes. As a result, we will become increasingly fretful and guilty as the clock ticks on and that will even make it harder for us to get started. Eventually, we miss the deadline by far and our job is nonetheless unsuccessful.

This book teaches you how to conquer this insidious psychological issue. Among many, a key to overcoming procrastination is to accept that while we may not be perfect, we can be "perfectly human." Everyone makes mistakes no matter how capable or prepared he or she is. Here I'd like to quote Alexander Pope, who said "to err is human, to forgive, divine." We need to forgive us for not be perfect but enjoy doing imperfect work.

It is not uncommon for us to impose a sense of victimhood when confronting a demanding task. Thus, our inner voice often goes "I have to do this!" ("the push method") followed oftentimes by "But I don't want to" even if we are in situations where we have fully committed ourselves to the things we are doing but our passion gradually dwindles away due to the sizes or lengths of the tasks. We need to replace this sense of victimhood with a more initiative mentality.
Dr. Neil Fiore recommends this way of shifting from a procrastinators' self talk to one of producers:

1. "I have to." -- "I choose to."
2. "I must finish." -- "When can I start?" ("the catchphrase for producer")
3. "The project is big and important." -- "I can take one small step."
4. "I must be perfect." -- "I can be perfectly human."
5. "I don't have time to play." -- "I must take time to play."

The second shift is about where to put our emphasis when doing a task. Stressing on the finish, we may well find ourselves overwhelmed by how far away it still is. But always engaging ourselves in the starting stage of the small steps (the third shift) that we have divided the large task into will make us maintain our passion needed in doing a successful job. Being overwhelmed will do nothing but force you into a messy finish.

The fifth shift tells us to be okay with our desire for play. Contrary to popular belief, Dr. Fiore treats workaholism as "the flip side of procrastination." It often is accompanied by low efficiency,anxiety and burnouts. Puritans work ceaselessly for religious reasons. Workaholics work ceaselessly for not being able to juggle work and fun. The failure to juggle work and fun leads to no fun at all. Instead of working arduously without being either pleased or productive, we should give play its due credit. The Unschedule teaches us to put guilty-free play into our schedule and then fill the intervals between "plays" with highly focused, but short (say 30 minutes) quality work periods. That way, our guilty-free play, instead of delaying us, can lift us into an high efficiency level. Filled with play as rewards for our high quality work, the unschedule employs "the push method." In other words, it views life as mainly composed of play, as supplemented by work, instead of mainly work as supplemented by play.

Of course it takes tactics to focus and into a "flow state" where we are highly productive without feeling our work as a burden or source of fear. Dr. Fiore introduces us to a couple of meditation methods that can quickly help us overcome our tendency (for different reasons) to procrastinate and enter the flow state.

If you are observant, you will find many of our friends, classmates, family members are procrastinators. Be especially careful in deal with their procrastination. Top of the list of "don'ts" in dealing with them is don't judge their value upon their tendency to procrastinate or their failure to meet the deadlines. Do not vent anger or disappointment. Instead, gently make them voluntarily commit to the things they do. Avoid "you should..." or "you must...". This is especially true in dealing with your subordinates in a corporate setting.

Again, it's a great manual for people who are aware of their great potentialities but have yet to fully unlock them.

I listened to this book on Audio CD throughout the month of March. It's a practical approach to identifying and understanding the habits of procrastination.

Early in the book the author shattered one of my previously held myths. I believed that procrastination was the problem, now I have come to understand that procrastination is not the problem, its the symptom.

This audiobook (not lengthy) offers a solid viewpoint into why we procrastinate. This makes it useful for individuals who struggle with procrastination and managers or colleagues of constant procrastinators.
Prior to reading this book, I didn't view procrastination as one of my major challenges- but much of this book resonated with me and I will take it as an opportunity for personal improvement.

A quick note: in this audiobook there are a number of unexpected silent gaps for you to meditate along with the reader. -- I'm not sure why the producer took this approach as it's unlikely you are listening to this audiobook at a convenient time or place to close your eyes and meditate for ten minutes.

I will purchase this book in ebook format as well.