The Now Habit: A Strategic Program for Overcoming Procrastination and Enjoying Guilt-Free Play [Paperback]

Neil Fiore (Author)

Book Description

Release date: November 1, 1988

A unique, comprehensive program designed to overcome the causes of procrastination. Dr. Fiore's powerful techniques will help the reader get work done and enjoy free time.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Neil Fiore, Ph.D., guides managers, executives, and their employees to new levels of peak performance. From his experience as a lieutenant with the 101st Airborne Division, a manager with Johnson & Johnson, a statistical analyst for Shell Oil, and a psychologist and career counselor at the University of California, Berkeley, Fiore brings practical tools for life and work to his seminar participants. He holds a doctorate in psychology and a B.S. degree in economics. --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

Product Details

• Paperback: 224 pages
• Publisher: Putnam-Tarcher; 1st edition (November 1, 1988)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0874775043
• ISBN-13: 978-0874775044
• Product Dimensions: 8 x 5.4 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (194 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #663,728 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Dr. Neil Fiore (CA) is the bestselling author of The Now Habit and The Road Back to Health. He was a paratrooper with the 101st Airborne, a manager for Johnson & Johnson, and has worked as a psychologist at the Counseling Center of the University of California, Berkeley. Neil now conducts seminars and lectures at major schools and businesses, including the Smithsonian Institute, the University of California, Berkeley Extension, and the New York Open Center. www.neilfiore.com

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1,410 of 1,419 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars The best book on the market for procrastinators December 4, 1999

By Jennifer Kerns

Format:Paperback

Last year I ordered four books on procrastination from Amazon.com. This one was the gem of the bunch. All the others told you to do what you're already doing: "Force yourself to do it, even if you don't want to." Well, if that worked, my mother would have cured me of the habit when I was twelve. What Fiore does is show you that it's exactly the attitude of self-punishment that makes you procrastinate. He shows you how to start working to achieve rewards, as opposed to working to avoid punishment or failure. We work when we expect to be rewarded in return, and can't muster the effort if we expect punishment whether we work or not.

This book *works*. I am one of those people who would procrastinate so badly on a term paper that it would never get turned in, and I would be wracked with guilt over it. My gpa sometimes dipped below 2.0., but for the past three semesters it has averaged 3.5.

One reviewer below recommends the book "Do It Now," because it has a more "mature" view of the problem. Folks, "Do It Now" will tell you that you're insecure and childish, and that all you need is to realize how silly you're being. At first, it sounds familiar, and for that reason you think it will help. But it doesn't. If you want to feel like procrastination is a hopeless problem that you'll always have, buy "Do It Now." Otherwise, "The Now Habit" is the one that will teach you how to overcome the problem *without* any guilt trips.

565 of 572 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars The Book That Got Me Into Medical School January 9, 2004

By Jennifer A. Rae

Format:Paperback

This book just might change your life. It changed mine. I had read every other book on procrastination before finding this book, including the others mentioned in these reviews. This is, quite simply, the BEST book; completely different from the rest. It is quite possibly the best self-help book I have ever read. It may also be one of the best books ever written on anxiety and on achieving one's goals in life - subjects which I have learned are all connected.

Five years ago, I worked at an office job I didn't like much. Since reading Neil Fiore's book, I have written and published two well-reviewed children's books and realized my life-long dream of studying medicine. At the age of 35, I started medical school with no science background or training and in 5 months, I will graduate as an MD. This book allowed me to follow my dreams (thirty minutes at a time) and to acheive them. It can help you do the same.

Do not be fooled by books with flashier covers; it's what's inside that counts. Anyone who procrastinates will recognize themselves in these pages; they will also recognize the feelings of being overwhelmed and paralyzed before even starting a project, and the disappointment in themselves that results from chronic procrastination.

This is a book that actually teaches you to understand yourself, to take care of yourself, and to help yourself develop simple habits that can change your life. This is truly an easy and non-scary program, proving that you don't have to turn your life upside down to turn it around! The words in this book have stayed with me for years, and I carry a little card with reminders from it in my wallet. This program works. Believe me - I learned medicine thirty minutes at a time! And, most importantly, I had lots of time left over for fun.

Stop berating yourself!... You don't need more willpower. You don't need a new daytimer. What you need is the NOW HABIT. So scrap that scary to-do list. If you do only one thing this week, make it this: order this excellent book. Read more ›

665 of 677 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars This book stands out from the crowd December 4, 1998

By Neil Gunton

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

I recently bought a total of seven books on procrastination, because I was so sick of constantly putting my life on 'hold'. One by one I started reading them, and one by one they went off on some path that did not seem to connect with me or the way I actually live. They all start off well enough, because it is quite easy to outline all the issues and situations that surround procrastination. However, getting down to business and coming up with real solutions that actually work is much harder. This book is unique as far as I can see in that it comes from a much more human and empathic viewpoint, with some really amazing insights into human nature. It is a supremely optimistic book that explains why we all do it, and what we can do about it. The most important thing is that it delves into what motivates us to procrastinate, revealing the fact that procrastination is actually rewarding; knowing how and why it happens is half the battle. If you've been thinking that this is "just the way you are", this book will save you from yourself. Neil Fiore takes us on a journey into our own minds, which is both fascinating and inspiring. I am a natural cynic and skeptic, and it's been a long time since a book made me sit up, slap my forehead and say "So THAT'S why I do that!". Actually there is a pretty good model for life in general in here. This book should be required reading for all schoolkids and college students, if I'd had this back then I might have enjoyed myself a lot more! Like I said, I tried the other books, and they didn't do anything for me. Save your money, and just get this one. You will not regret it.

135 of 137 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars If you procrastinate, don't...get this book NOW. June 10, 2000

By A Customer

Format:Paperback

I read this book several years ago, and it literally changed the way I work and play. I was never much interested in books written by psychologists, and I don't even remember where or why I bought the book. I do know that it identified my problems with procrastination so clearly I was amazed. An long list of the qualities of a "procrastinator" described early in the book described me with unusual accuracy, and that got my attention. I am an educator, I have a Ph.D. in the sciences, and I have used this book to help many students over the past five years. The ideas work, the "unschedule" works, it is actually possible to be as busy as can be, and have more fun and freedom from stress than you can immagine. I think of one example in the book of a Ph.D. student that was "working" on his thesis some 60 hours a week, with dirty laundry and dishes all over the house, in a state of mental stagnation and depression that he seemed unaware of (my description). The author worked with this individual and set out a schedule of playing golf several times a week, and only working on his thesis some 18 hours per week. In the first week of the "unschedule" the student reluctantly went along as ordered by the author. He was amazed. He got more done on his thesis than he had in years. "The Now Habit" book is worth more than 100 times the price to anyone who is "so busy that they can't seem to get things done."