Effortless

Disclaimer before I start, this is my first book by Greg McKeown, I have not read Essentialism. Although it is heavily referenced at the start of this book, this is a standalone and I don't think it was (pardon the pun) essential to have read that first.

Effortless follows on from Essentialism by wondering what to do when you have too many essential items. I was rather moved by McKeown's personal reasons for wondering this and did enjoy how his own narrative flowed between the chapters. Through different case studies he was able to effectively convey, firstly the reasons why you should work smarter not harder, and then ideas on how to effectively implement the 'Effortless state' into your life. I appreciated the mini breakdown of hustle culture and the faux satisfaction we seem to get from proclaiming to have worked the hardest or the longest, when that may have been a very ineffective method of achieving our goal.

In terms of implementation, a lot of the ideas are not new to people who have read books on productivity before. For example, automating habits or just the prioritisation of systems and habits in general as a way to move in the 'Effortless state.' I would definitely not claim to have read an extensive number of books on productivity and I was still already familiar with a number of ideas shared in this book. If you are unfamiliar with this genre of non-fiction then it does nicely compile a few different common ideas in this field, however if you are familiar with this genre I don't think this is a necessary next book for you.

**Thank you to NetGalley & Penguin Random House Audio for providing this arc in exchange for an honest and unbiased review. All thoughts and opinions are subjective but my own.**

I’ve had Essentialism on my to-read shelf for almost two years, and after reading Effortless, I’ll definitely be pushing it towards the front of the queue. The premise of Effortless can be summed up in two sayings, “Slow is smooth, smooth is fast”, and, “Work smart, not hard”. Most of the lessons would be taught on any introductory project management course (i.e. define what “Done” looks like), but the writing is smooth and there is a charm to his anecdotes that make it an easy read. I received copies of both the digital and audio versions, and I did find sometimes that his narration, when trying to convey sincerity, did come across in an irritating pleading tone. Because of the checklists and footnotes, I suspect I’ll be returning to the digital version more than the audio.

A good, fun read, a solid 4*.

A deeply wise and highly practical guide on how to make the best use of the limited mental and physical resources that we have as human beings. It is a book that almost everyone can benefit from listening to as it acknowledges the hardships that we all have in doing the things we find important. I found the part about letting go of grudges and forgiveness especially important. Highly recommended listening for everyone who wants to be better to themselves and to the people in their lives. Thank you to Netgalley for the ARC.

#Effortless Thank you to #NetGalley for allowing me to read this book early in exchange for an honest review!

Simplicity is key.

Effortless is filled with intriguing examples of people finding shortcuts or ways to make things easier. This is an inspiring book about not giving up and instead finding easier, “effortless” ways of doing things that once seemed difficult.

McKeown focuses on the theme of working smarter not harder, using interesting case studies and giving gems of advice along the way. This book has given me some useful habits to try out and opened me up to the idea that working harder and harder isn’t always the solution to our problems.

This book is full of practical advice on improving productivity and how to work on big projects to achieve “effortless results” with so many small changes to take on and include in our day to day lives.

Definitely an interesting read and the narration by Greg himself was great and it was enjoyable to listen to. This is a book to come back to every new and then when you’re in a bit of a rut and need a boost or reminder of habits that could help.

Solid 4.5/5