Customer Reviews

Time Tactics of Very Successful People

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This fine book stands alone as a real "nuts & bolts" guide to time management. Refreshingly, Griessman does not ask the reader to buy into an integrated or even singular "System" of managing your time. There are no self tests, no "12 Step" program, no gimmicks.
Quite simply, this book is about survival. If your boat were sinking or you were lost in the wilderness, the last thing you would want (or have time to read) would be a lengthy treatise on the theory of bouyancy or how people get lost. Rather, Griessman instructs from the outset that you "Learn survival techniques from the survivors."
In this vein, Griessman's approach is decidedly simple: 1)These are successful people; 2) Here are specific tactics that they use to save time and survive; 3) You fill in the blank. This format is woven into 15 short chapters with an accompanying commentary which is almost editorial in nature. This provides just enough cohesion in the book to give it structure, without detracting from its readability.
If you're looking for a lengthy treatise on time management, riddled with charts, self tests and lengthy explanations about why you don't have enough time, then leave this book on the shelf. "Time Tactics" is really a field manual - the same kind of lean, to the point writing you'd hope to find in a life raft.

Unlike most time management books going from chapter to chapter that lead readers to plan, set and prioritize their personal goals, treating time management problems essentially as life management problems, this book consists of 15 chapters of 96 short essays or tactics that you can easily apply to our daily lives. What a pity that Amazon does not post sample pages as it usually does which includes the Content pages so you can easily understand what kind of book this is, I take the pleasure to do it for you and hope it will help you grasp what the book tells.

Ch 1 Get a Handle on Your Time
The Myth of Free time
Give yourself a raise
Bill Yourself: A tactic that professionals use to become more efficient

Ch 2 Get Organized
Set your priorities
Write down your goals
Apply the 80/20 rule
Create a to do list that works and work your list

Ch 3 Increase your efficiency
Ch 4 Shortcuts
Ch 5 Find hidden time
Ch 6 Learn to focus
Ch 7 Pace Yourself
Ch 8 Avoid Procrastination
Ch 9 Avoid time wasting activities
Ch 10 Dont let others waste your time
Ch 11 Enlist others to save your time
Ch 12 Invest time to save time
Ch 13 Plan ahead
Ch 14 Use Technology that works
Ch 15 Balancing Work, family and social life

In short, this is a very useful and well written book (with abundant interesting and productive advice/examples of famous people and gurus) that one should buy and read at least twice a month as a cool reminder of one's own time management. Highly recommended!

p.s. Below please find some of the quotes I like the most:-

You may not be able to control the situation but you can always control your reaction. pg 64
Dont be penny-wise and hours-foolish pg98
TIP: To Insure Promptness (in advance) pg128
If I had eight hours to chop down a tree, I'd spend six hours sharpening an axe. Abraham Lincoln pg150
Measure twice so you have to cut only once. pg157
A stitch in time saves nine. pg166

If B. Eugene Griessman wanted a good subtitle for this book of time-saving tactics, he could use, "Time waits for no one." He offers many common-sense pointers on how to avoid wasting your time - and how to keep others from wasting it, too. It's eye-opening to realize and calculate the value and importance of every hour, even your leisure time. People in all walks of life - students, stay-at-home parents, business leaders, teachers, self-employed workers - can glean ideas for using time effectively from this book. If you are a procrastinator, this book will encourage you to "do it now." While some of the suggestions here may seem too simplistic to those who already employ some time-management tactics, we [...] recommend this book for inveterate - if inadvertent - time-wasters. You know who you are.

I've had this book for many years, probably since 1995 or 96. When I first read it, I would have given it a decent, but not overwhelming review - it seemed obvious and basic. But having lived, suffered (like all humanity!), and thought for the last decade, after re-reading it, let me tell you - it is simply a book of genius. And its genius IS in its simplicity and its completeness. You cannot do better than this in this field. That's the good news. The bad news is you cannot appreciate how good it is until you've lived a little, thought a lot, and have some of the other tripe that's out there to compare it to. And to think I almost gave it away after that first reading! Save it, you who don't like it now, read it again in 5-10 years, if you're lucky enough to be around. Godspeed!

My perspective is colored by the fact that I have taken professional training in time management (both through work and privately), and work as a project manager in high tech.

I found this book very useful, in that it covered many useful techniques. However, most of the information is not focused on time management per se, rather on how to be successful in life.

Chapter 2 contains 5 pages of tactics on using "to-do" lists, the heart of time management. Elsewhere, the subject of avoiding wasting time is covered, although if you have a tendency in this direction, I doubt this book will change your life.

The rest of the book covers such (important) topics as managing staff (ch. 11), increasing personal efficiency (ch. 4), managing projects (ch. 13), etc. These subjects each deserve their own book. For that matter, so does the subject of tactics to better manage your time, which is what I mistakely presumed I was getting.

I listened to the audio tape version of this. I should say I am still listening to it. Whether you are a CEO of a company or a busy housewife, if you are conscious of your time and time is valuable to you, then this is definitely for you. See what you're doing? Stop procrastinating. Get your nose in this book and learn some Time Tactics.

If you are a manager,excutive or a business owner the techniques in book can save your life.It puts in perspective the cost of being time efficent and simply techniques on how to get there.Although Griessman takes a serious look at time management problems and the solutions,it is a quick and enjoyable read.Its well written with an excellant content page so you can get right work.This book will pay for its self-IMMEDIATELY.You may wish order two, one for the office and one for home.

This book is another in the line of self-help, self-motivational books. This one deals with time management, and unlike most books of this type, Griessman goes beyond just a recitation of the all the time techniques you have read about in other places. He offers these, but he also adds personal insights from many well known and successful people. Overall this is a good, if not inspiring, book on time strategies

I was so impressed with this book that I wrote the following letter to its author:

I just completed your book Time Tactics of Very Successful People. The book is truly a masterpiece, and I have found it immeasurably helpful in my ongoing pursuit to become the best person that I can be. Your book is full of wisdom and great ideas, the value of which is many times the price I paid for the book. I have read the works of personal development legends like Napoleon Hill, Brian Tracy, W. Clement Stone, Tony Robbins, Mark Victor Hansen and others and have benefited from all of them, but I really enjoyed reading your book because I found that you offered some fresh ideas that these other great men did not. I am sure that the extraordinary concepts your book provides will enrich my spirit, enlighten my mind, and serve as conduits for achieving my goals for the rest of my life. I really liked the way that you ended the book. The quote you gave from Earl Nightengale perfectly reflects my philosophy for successful living, but helped me crystallize my thinking in a way that has helped refines my philosophy further.

Thanks again for providing the world such a valuable resource, a guide which I am certain has helped and will continue to help many others to live happier, more productive, and more peaceful lives.

Not only is this book about time management, if you follow its suggestions, you'll find it makes your whole life easier. I plan on buying this even though it's available at the library. This is a book I will re-read often. The ideas about "being there" are useful, not only that, they are indispensible for achieving results.