18 Minutes: Find Your Focus, Master Distraction, and Get the Right Things Done [Hardcover]

Peter Bregman (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 28, 2011

Based upon his weekly Harvard Business Review columns (which is one of the most popular columns on HBR.com, receiving hundreds of thousands of unique page views a month), 18 MINUTES clearly shows how busy people can cut through all the daily clutter and distractions and find a way to focus on those key items which are truly the top priorities in our lives.

Bregman works from the premise that the best way to combat constant and distracting interruptions is to create productive distractions of one's own. Based upon a series of short bite-sized chapters, his approach allows us to safely navigate through the constant chatter of emails, text messages, phone calls, and endless meetings that prevent us from focusing our time on those things that are truly important to us.

Mixing first-person insights along with unique case studies, Bregman sprinkles his charming book with pathways which help guide us -- pathways that can get us on the right trail in 18 minutes or less.

Editorial Reviews

Review

18 MINUTES is an intensely smart, insanely readable, and eminently practical guide to boosting our effectiveness and deepening our satisfaction. I've already benefited from the ideas in is book in my own work. So will you.

-- Daniel H. Pink, bestselling author of Drive and A Whole New Mind (
)

Pick this book up and read it. Bregman's wisdom, humility, and ability to tell a great story run through every page of this gem. 18 Minutes is the best blend of a business book and a self-help book I have ever read.

--Robert Sutton, Stanford University Professor and bestselling author of Good Boss, Bad Boss (
)

Feeling in control of your time is a key element of happiness. In the thoughtful, practical, and often funny 18 MINUTES, Peter Bregman explains how to make sure we have plenty of time to do the things that matter most to us -- so that our lives reflect our true values and priorities.

--Gretchen Rubin, bestselling author of The Happiness Project (
)

Bregman has taken the advice from his popular Harvard Business Review columns and turned it into a book for people who feel that they don't have enough hours in the day to do what they need to do. He offers straightforward advice: focus your priorities at the annual, daily, and moment-to-moment level; determine your goals; eliminate distractions that don't let you achieve those goals; and be firm regarding your boundaries. While the reader has no doubt heard this advice from other self-help books, Bregman's anecdotes are helpful and funny, his advice is sound, and his points are easy to grasp. Hopefully readers will find what he has to say useful and not just a retread of things they already know--multitasking is a myth, take time to refocus throughout the day, motivate your employees with fun--from other sources.

--Publishers Weekly (
)

About the Author

Peter Bregman is the CEO of Bregman Partners, a global management consultancy where he is the advisor to CEOs as well as to their top management teams on leadership and workplace issues. He is based in New York City.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 288 pages
• Publisher: Business Plus; 1 edition (September 28, 2011)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0446583413
• ISBN-13: 978-0446583411
• Product Dimensions: 6 x 1 x 8.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (136 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #52,788 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

117 of 124 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars An Inspirational Handbook for Improving Performance in Just 18 Minutes a Day September 24, 2011

By Todd Cherches - BigBlueGumball

Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase

Having just finished reading Peter Bregman's new book, "18 Minutes," I am simultaneously invigorated and exhausted.

(Actually, "read" is not the right word - "devoured" is more like it.)

I am INVIGORATED in that this combination business book and self-help book has inspired me to start looking at, thinking about, and doing some things differently...starting with the simple reminder that we need to regularly stop -- to pause, reflect, recharge, recalibrate, and refocus - for just 18 minutes a day (5 minutes at the beginning; eight 1-minute check-ins during the day; and 5 minutes at the end).

Leveraging his engaging, entertaining, and thought-provoking talent for storytelling (as exhibited regularly in his HBR blog posts), Bregman provides readers with a variety of tools, tips, and techniques intended to help us enhance our productivity and maximize our potential.

And why am I "EXHAUSTED"? Because, in addition to my head spinning from the numerous impactful and memorable stories that I want to remember, the refreshing new insights I gained, and a short list of simple-but-meaningful actions I now plan to take, I started reading the book around midnight last night and couldn't put it down until I finished the entire thing, in one sitting, at four a.m. this morning (luckily it's a Saturday).

Seriously, reading this book is like having a personal and professional life coach standing right beside you -- providing success tips, keeping you focused, and cheering you on along the way.

UPDATE: I just re-read this book in greater detail (as mentioned above, the first time I read it I whipped through it in four hours because I couldn't put it down due to the great storytelling). But this time I focused not just on the INSIGHTS I gained, but on the ACTIONS I want, and need, and plan to take -- both personally and professionally, including the creation of my own personalized/customized version of the Bregman "Six Box Planning Tool" (page 118). If you take nothing else from this book (and I doubt that would happen), this tool alone will help you organize your to-do list, focus, and get things (the right things!) done. But like any tool, it's all about the using. Good intentions and proper planning will get you started; dedication, execution, follow-through, resilience, and a commitment to excellence is what gets results. I just upgraded my rating from 4-stars to 5-stars for this terrific book.

53 of 55 people found the following review helpful

2.0 out of 5 stars Good ideas but not a coherent plan March 8, 2012

By Milarepa VINE™ VOICE

Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase

I bought this book believing it would provide a cohesive method for implementing an 18 Minute model for mastering distraction and focusing on "the right things." What I found instead is a collection of articles from the author's column instead. While the articles are interesting and informative, there isn't much here in terms of a method. In an odd sort of way, the layout of this book is counterproductive because the presentation of a somewhat random collection of articles, rather than a cohesive method and plan, promotes a lack of focus rather that the book is supposed to solve. Thus, as a collection of short chapters that are loosely associated, this book is an example of the problem!

60 of 63 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Check in with yourself to make sure you're on the right path September 14, 2011

By Tina

Format:Hardcover

Drawing from his Harvard Business Review columns, Peter Bregman offers advice to those of us who have too much to do. He points out that paying attention to every single thing we come across takes time away from focusing on the things in our lives that truly matter. Many of his tips - such as not responding to things immediately - seem to be common sense, but how many of us truly apply this when we're caught up in our daily activity?

To focus on the "right" things, Bregman encourages us to slow down. By delaying reactions to demands, we can make sure we're reacting the right way and taking on tasks that align with our goals. Think through things carefully and react to the desired outcome instead of the event. What's the ultimate result you want?

Later in the book, he explains his title, "18 Minutes". We need a discipline to stay focused on our day. His 18 minutes refers to five minutes planning at the beginning and end of the day, and one minute per hour (assuming an eight-hour work day) to stop and ask if you're on track. Reflect on the day. Did you do what you expected? What needs to change? If you're not monitoring your progress and checking in with yourself regularly, it's hard to stay focused.

Many time management books focus on how to get things done in less time. I agree with Bregman that maybe what we really need is to do less. As we find our focus, our days can be more manageable. And I definitely agree that working 24/7 keeps us from living a balanced life since we're obviously not leaving space for the other parts of our lives. Whatever your goals, don't forget to enjoy the ride. At the end, no one wishes they worked more.

Disclaimer: I received this book for free from the Hachette Book Group.