Get Things Done

The 48 Laws of Power

Without a diary, productivity goes unnoticed and lessons unlearnt.

Covey states that it's easy to get caught in the ‘activity trap’, in which we work harder and harder to climb a ladder that's leaning against the wrong wall.

we can use our suffering – even our ineffectiveness – as fuel for achieving higher things, which gives our pain purpose.

with strong motivation – created from strong goals and good planning – you can develop the ‘flow’ and self-control required to make strong progress.

What magazines or websites grab your attention? You should consider such things when you look at what drives you, and set long-term goals on this basis.

Or we could ‘snatch defeat from the jaws of victory’ by sabotaging that final step – a common outcome for those with low self-esteem who may inwardly feel themselves unworthy of the benefits of attainment

Feeling overwhelmed. All those bills piling up, all those unanswered emails, all those commitments being pressed upon us – it feels like a tsunami of other people's requirements. Such pressures generate an emotional, even fearful, reaction that reinforces our feelings of inadequacy. Rather than take control, we do the opposite. We mentally (and sometimes physically) run away.

Because we feel we deserve no better, we cling to the things we have – including relationships. Or we inwardly convince ourselves that these things are irreplaceable.

‘You have a choice,’ conclude Burka and Yuen. ‘You can delay or you can act.’