The Power of Slow: 101 Ways to Save Time in Our 24/7 World [Hardcover]

Christine Louise Hohlbaum (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 27, 2009

Overwhelmed by electronic gadgets? Buried under an avalanche of e-mails? Juggling too many tasks and responsibilities? Desperately in need of a deep breath and a time-out? For all of us who answer yes to any of these questions, help is on the way. Getting to the heart of our hassled and over-scheduled existence, Christine Louise Hohlbaum cheerfully investigates 101 ways to increase our quality of life and productivity by reevaluating how we perceive and use time. Everyone has their own personal bank account of time, and while we cannot control time itself, we can manage the activities with which we fill the time we have available to us. The Power of Slow gives readers practical, concise directions to change the relationship they have with time and debunks the myths of multitasking, speed, and urgency as the only ways to efficiency.

Tips include:

· When working on a project on your computer, close all the windows, with the exception of the one you need to do your job.

· Learn to say no in a polite and constructive way to favors, invitations, and requests.

· Manage your own expectations, as well as those of others, by clearly stating what is possible in the time frame given.

· Declare gadget-free zones (both geographical and temporal) to really enjoy your leisure time.

· Know when your plate is full.

· Make commitments to difficult tasks in five-minute increments and gradually increase the increments.

· Save your most favorite or the easiest tasks for last to avoid procrastination.

The Power of Slow will help readers identify areas in need of improvement and show them how to become more efficient and less frazzled at work and at home---and live a better, more balanced life.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"The Power of Slow is a welcome riposte to our fast-forward culture. With wit and wisdom, Hohlbaum shows us how to reset our metronomes and reinvent our lives."

--Carl Honoré, author of In Praise of Slow and Under Pressure

"Thanks to The Power of Slow, I am now a recovering ‘speed addict.’ This book brilliantly showed me that my over-scheduled, multi-tasking, uber-busy lifestyle has not only made me less productive and less effective, it gently taught me ways to shift into a more flowing, creative and ultimately more successful life." --Arielle Ford, creator, www.everythingyoushouldknow.com and author of The Soulmate Secret

 

“The Power of Slow is a life-changing book. Far from stating the obvious, Christine Hohlbaum provides new insights and persuasive arguments for reshaping our time and changing our lives for the better. A must read in our over-scheduled world!”--Wendy Walker, author of Social Lives, Four Wives, and Chicken Soup for the Soul - Power Moms

“In the fast-paced world of Blackberrys, Iphones, and Twitter, it’s hard to find one’s footing. In an easy-to-read style, Ms. Hohlbaum has described a process of slowing down that is so very important to our wholeness, balance, and well being. She does so in a poetic and sometimes humorous way. She has captured a heavy topic with a light touch and yet we learn many lessons.  I highly recommend this book to help anyone who wants to stay healthy, sane, and enjoy life more fully.”--Bonnie Michaels, work-life balance expert and author of Solving the Work/Family Puzzle and A Journey of Work-Life Renewal

“This book presents a convincing case for slowing down in a multi-tasking world:  to reboot one’s natural rhythm for the sake of health and happiness. It’s time to take an adult time-out to achieve greater balance and improve life quality. Christine makes it practical and easy. What are you waiting for? Slow Down.…” --Debbie Mandel, author of Addicted to Stress

 

" [Hohlbaum] offers thought-provoking commentaries on efficiency and expectations while providing concrete tips for saying no with kindness, taking time out, and breaking habits." -- Library Journal

About the Author

Christine Louise Hohlbaum is a public relations professional, freelance writer, and the author of S.A.H.M. I Am and Diary of a Mother. She lives near Munich, Germany, with her husband and two children.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 288 pages
• Publisher: St. Martin's Press; First Edition edition (October 27, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0312570481
• ISBN-13: 978-0312570484
• Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 5.9 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #141,410 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

I have been living in Germany since 2003. Living in the countryside, with few distractions (aside from two 'vivid' children who keep me on my toes), I have found an organic balance between work and life. In fact, they mesh so nicely I can barely tell the difference. Well, sometimes.

I became a published author quite by accident. It happened one day while at the doctor's office. The short of it is I began to see humor in the uncontrollable, such as toddlers having to pee right as you're completely unclothed at the dermatologist's. It got me to thinking about how therapeutic writing is. The more I wrote, the more engaged I became as a participant-observer in life.

Writing serves not only to communicate, but also to transform. If I can change one person's mood, thoughts or feelings with my words, I have done my job. Writing to me is the singularly most gratifying work in the world.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

17 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Fresh, Modern Look at Slowing Down and Befriending Time, November 16, 2009

By 

O. Brown "Ms. O. Khannah-Brown" (Twopeas, WA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Power of Slow: 101 Ways to Save Time in Our 24/7 World (Hardcover)

*****
Is it possible to create time abundance? To cultivate an attitude of experiencing time as slow, time as a friend...as there being more than enough time to accomplish everything that the day should hold? I think that it is possible, and this is what I'm doing, thanks to this wonderful book that takes a fresh and practical look at befriending time and slowing down your life.

Unlike many of the books I've read on this subject, this book goes beyond the philosophy of time abundance and the whole Slow Movement and into practical and concrete ways of implementing mindfulness and the philosophy of slow with a special emphasis on different ways of dealing with technology and information overload. The book covers useful, modern issues such as cell phone multi-tasking, creative ways of handling call-waiting, dealing with time suckers and addictive behaviors, delegating, managing expectations, and so much more. This book is not so much about time management as it is about life management so that each of us can best use the limited and uncertain amount of time that we each have. Since I have viewed time as something to race against, and have felt like time's victim, this appealed enormously to me.

I began to read The Power of Slow with my journal next to me, keeping a list of everything that struck me that I'd want to do differently or think about differently. I came up with a time abundance plan that I've been implementing and tweaking, one that is truly changing my life. If you have been looking for a practical tool that addresses your real-life concerns, look no further. You'll get far more than just a list of 101 things, however. The author shares important ideas about how to think about time differently, perhaps the most important part of the book; without thinking about time in a new way--as a friend--the changes you make won't have the impact they could.

To give you some examples of my personal time makeover: I now limit the number of television shows I keep up with. I have a list of programs I'm willing to give up my time for, and that's it. I hold myself to it. And although I work at home, I have a defined schedule, so that when people ask me for a time commitment, I check my schedule and can say, "I can't do that, I'm working, but I'll be available after 4 p.m." For the last few weeks I've been saying, "No" constantly (but kindly). I keep only ONE browser window open when I'm focusing on something intently. I've delegated work to people who work for me and stopped micro-managing thanks to the idea that if I delegate, the work will never be done the way I would do it, but that's okay, considering what I've exchanged it for--the opportunity for me to complete other work myself that is far more important to me. I've found that, as the author says, small changes can open up enormous energy.

I am learning to view time as my friend and as an opportunity. It is not an overstatement to say that this has changed my life and will continue to change my life. The author writes that our relationship with time determines all other relationships in our life. I now agree with this, and encourage you to find out why this is so by starting your own adventure into "The Power of Slow".

Highly recommended.
*****

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Must for Multi-Taskers!, March 1, 2010

By 

Lissa Coffey, Host of coffeytalk.com "DoshaDiva" (Los Angeles, CA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Power of Slow: 101 Ways to Save Time in Our 24/7 World (Hardcover)

I admit it, I'm a multi-tasker. And although I can get a lot done, it does stress me out. Christine Louise Hohlbaum has a new book out that has me reevaluating my habits. It's called "The Power of Slow: 101 Ways to Save Time in our 24/7 World." Christine claims that everyone has their own personal bank account of time. While we cannot control time itself, we can manage our activities within the time we do have. Regarding multi-tasking, she says that we cannot do two comparably difficult things at once, and yet we still try. That must be where my stress comes in! Christine says: "Technological gadgetry has alleviated and introduced a lot of challenges in our lives. We can now find someone in a crowd with a quick text message, but we also interrupt conversations with real-life people to answer our mobile phones. We need a new standard of etiquette to teach our kids how to behave. Simply because you can doesn't mean you should." Putting the power of slow into action actually makes us more productive! It frees us up from purposeless things and allows us time to pursue what we truly love. We can be wired, but we can choose to unplug for awhile, too. Slowing down helps us to consider the impact we have on ourselves and our surroundings. This is a more mindful way of living, and it makes sense!

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars TIME OUT, November 28, 2009

By 

Beverly Solomon "Creative Director" (Lampasas, TX USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Power of Slow: 101 Ways to Save Time in Our 24/7 World (Hardcover)

This is the book that the world has been waiting for! Christine Hohlbaum teaches us how to bring it down a notch in our insanely fast paced lives. She explains what time really means to us in ten chapters and then breaks it down into 101 principals. I suggest reading one principal daily in the morning and then consciously work on that principal for the day. By the time you finish this book, you will be living a happier life on your own time.