Effortless: Make It Easy to Get the Right Things Done
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- Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
- Create Date：2021-04-27 10:51:05
- Update Date：2025-09-07
- Status：finish
- Author：Greg McKeown
- ISBN：0753558378
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Summary
FROM THE INTERNATIONALLY BESTSELLING AUTHOR OF ESSENTIALISM COMES A GUIDE TO MAKING THE MOST IMPORTANT TASKS EFFORTLESS
The intricacy of modern life has created a false dichotomy between things that are 'hard and important，' and those that are 'easy and trivial。' Everything has become so much harder than it ought to be。 But， Greg McKeown， bestselling author of Essentialism， says， there is a third alternative。 In Effortless， he offers practical strategies for making the most vital tasks the easiest ones。 Honed over the better part of a decade， these strategies include:
· Asking 'What Step Can I Remove？' （accomplish more， in fewer steps）
· Having the Courage to Be Rubbish （prioritize progress over perfection）
· Deciding What 'Done' Looks Like （don't keep running after you pass the finish line）
McKeown's philosophy of essentialism has helped thousands to eliminate nonessential activities and focus on the few that really matter。 Working out what is essential is the first step - making these tasks effortless is the next。 Effortless will show you how。
The intricacy of modern life has created a false dichotomy between things that are 'hard and important，' and those that are 'easy and trivial。' Everything has become so much harder than it ought to be。 But， Greg McKeown， bestselling author of Essentialism， says， there is a third alternative。 In Effortless， he offers practical strategies for making the most vital tasks the easiest ones。 Honed over the better part of a decade， these strategies include:
· Asking 'What Step Can I Remove？' （accomplish more， in fewer steps）
· Having the Courage to Be Rubbish （prioritize progress over perfection）
· Deciding What 'Done' Looks Like （don't keep running after you pass the finish line）
McKeown's philosophy of essentialism has helped thousands to eliminate nonessential activities and focus on the few that really matter。 Working out what is essential is the first step - making these tasks effortless is the next。 Effortless will show you how。
Reviews
Jo Jakeman
，
Absolutely brilliant book and so timely。 This is exactly what I needed to hear and I now have a note above my desk saying 'what if this could be easy？'Clearly written and laid out with so much wisdom。 In some ways it's nothing new， but it highlights how we labour under the misconception that， to achieve something， we have to struggle and sacrifice to get it when， in fact， the opposite is true。Now excuse me while I go and read it again！ Absolutely brilliant book and so timely。 This is exactly what I needed to hear and I now have a note above my desk saying 'what if this could be easy？'Clearly written and laid out with so much wisdom。 In some ways it's nothing new， but it highlights how we labour under the misconception that， to achieve something， we have to struggle and sacrifice to get it when， in fact， the opposite is true。Now excuse me while I go and read it again！ 。。。more
Anna Gamble
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Wow。 This is an absolutely inspiring read full of hope and possibility。 Imagine what life would feel like if everything we did – all our essential endeavours – were effortless。Well Greg McKeown shows us how this is absolutely possible in his new book， Effortless。 In it we learn how to choose the lighter road – the road （sadly， for us） lesser travelled。 We are too quick to believe that work and progress requires the hard slog， that anything worthwhile will inevitably be difficult – we even wear o Wow。 This is an absolutely inspiring read full of hope and possibility。 Imagine what life would feel like if everything we did – all our essential endeavours – were effortless。Well Greg McKeown shows us how this is absolutely possible in his new book， Effortless。 In it we learn how to choose the lighter road – the road （sadly， for us） lesser travelled。 We are too quick to believe that work and progress requires the hard slog， that anything worthwhile will inevitably be difficult – we even wear our struggles as a badge of honour。McKeown proposes a way to escape this and in doing so live a more enjoyable， productive and rewarding life。I haven’t read Mckeown’s previous work on Essentialism， but I plan to skip my lighter path right to his website after I’ve written this review， so I can find out more about that too。 Effortless is an extension of his thinking about ’Essential Living’ but it works perfectly well alone too。 This book really spoke to me and utterly makes sense。Even reading it felt effortless – I was totally engaged in Mckeown’s conversational style and really fascinated by its content。 It takes lots of ideas， some that I have heard of， know well or seem familiar， and pulls them together with new clarity。For example， the effortless state he writes about reminds me of the idea of ‘flow’ in play theory - the sense of getting into the zone where anything is possible， everything feels easy。 It’s not necessarily new thinking but what I like about this book is that it applies this thinking in new ways， giving hands-on insight into how this ‘state’ might be translated beyond sport or play or talent （where we see it often） and into the day to day。 How can it help us get around to the household tasks we put off， add enjoyment to the mundane or increase productivity in our working lives？ And， most importantly， how do we achieve it？ How can we make these things feel more effortless？ It suggests ways to successfully find the reward in the task - or add one - like listening to your favourite podcast as you exercise and much， much more。 It’s an extensive exploration that I don’t want to oversimplify。 It is in fact， three stages full of anecdotes and suggestions。It was invigorating to start thinking how I could apply this and I began to implement some of the learning in my day to day。 Again， it doesn’t feel like it’s entirely new to me - but it has clarity in its purpose and lots of practical suggestions。What is probably most helpful in the book – and in keeping with the effortless journey – is how McKeown summarises the key learning at the end of each section pulling all the anecdotes， actions and good advice into a clear understanding that you can easily begin to implement in your life。I powered through the book for the purposes of the ARC review， but I will go back and spend a little more time with it now。 It’s one of those texts where you can read a section and then actively begin to implement the learning in your life before moving on to the next section。 Section three could even be saved for a point where you have tried out all the learning and had chance to start feeling the change。I’ve definitely felt the shift in my mindset and how I approach my work and play and I’m eager to try more！I – 100% – recommend this fantastic book。 It feels like there are lots of take away opportunities for everyone， from mothers/parents just taking steps back to working life （like me）， to those at the top of their game。 Anyone who needs to find a positive work/ play balance and who wants to enrich their life a little。 。。。more
Sarah
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Really liked the message here， and the writing style。 One I'll read again which is a mark of a good non-fiction for me: I really want to absorb this information！ Feels like really really useful life advice。Full review is up on my blog。 Really liked the message here， and the writing style。 One I'll read again which is a mark of a good non-fiction for me: I really want to absorb this information！ Feels like really really useful life advice。Full review is up on my blog。 。。。more
Alissa
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I was intrigued by this but it's basically a rehash of other productivity advice and I thought it was short on actual productive action steps。 Also the format of summary review at the end of each chapter reminded me of Atomic Habits。 I was intrigued by this but it's basically a rehash of other productivity advice and I thought it was short on actual productive action steps。 Also the format of summary review at the end of each chapter reminded me of Atomic Habits。 。。。more
Meg
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3。5 stars Disclaimer before I start， this is my first book by Greg McKeown， I have not read Essentialism。 Although it is heavily referenced at the start of this book， this is a standalone and I don't think it was （pardon the pun） essential to have read that first。 Effortless follows on from Essentialism by wondering what to do when you have too many essential items。 I was rather moved by McKeown's personal reasons for wondering this and did enjoy how his own narrative flowed between the chapter 3。5 stars Disclaimer before I start， this is my first book by Greg McKeown， I have not read Essentialism。 Although it is heavily referenced at the start of this book， this is a standalone and I don't think it was （pardon the pun） essential to have read that first。 Effortless follows on from Essentialism by wondering what to do when you have too many essential items。 I was rather moved by McKeown's personal reasons for wondering this and did enjoy how his own narrative flowed between the chapters。 Through different case studies he was able to effectively convey， firstly the reasons why you should work smarter not harder， and then ideas on how to effectively implement the 'Effortless state' into your life。 I appreciated the mini breakdown of hustle culture and the faux satisfaction we seem to get from proclaiming to have worked the hardest or the longest， when that may have been a very ineffective method of achieving our goal。 In terms of implementation， a lot of the ideas are not new to people who have read books on productivity before。 For example， automating habits or just the prioritisation of systems and habits in general as a way to move in the 'Effortless state。' I would definitely not claim to have read an extensive number of books on productivity and I was still already familiar with a number of ideas shared in this book。 If you are unfamiliar with this genre of non-fiction then it does nicely compile a few different common ideas in this field， however if you are familiar with this genre I don't think this is a necessary next book for you。**Thank you to NetGalley & Penguin Random House Audio for providing this arc in exchange for an honest and unbiased review。 All thoughts and opinions are subjective but my own。** 。。。more
Tamara
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As a chronic over-achiever this book immediately struck a chord with me。 Clearly articulated anecdotes and the erudite collation of a range of sources helped me to see that continually trying to work harder isn't the only， or indeed best， way to achieve my goals。 The explanations are clear， well researched， and include links to a number of reference publications。 The advice is practical and customisable， providing the skills needed to build an individual road map to achieve any goal in the most As a chronic over-achiever this book immediately struck a chord with me。 Clearly articulated anecdotes and the erudite collation of a range of sources helped me to see that continually trying to work harder isn't the only， or indeed best， way to achieve my goals。 The explanations are clear， well researched， and include links to a number of reference publications。 The advice is practical and customisable， providing the skills needed to build an individual road map to achieve any goal in the most efficient way。 This is my first book by this author but I would be interested to read more。 Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review。 。。。more
Colin Marks
，
I've had Essentialism on my to-read shelf for almost two years， and after reading Effortless， I'll definitely be pushing it towards the front of the queue。 The premise of Effortless can be summed up in two sayings， "Slow is smooth， smooth is fast"， and， "Work smart， not hard"。 Most of the lessons would be taught on any introductory project management course （i。e。 define what "Done" looks like）， but the writing is smooth and there is a charm to his anecdotes that make it an easy read。 I received I've had Essentialism on my to-read shelf for almost two years， and after reading Effortless， I'll definitely be pushing it towards the front of the queue。 The premise of Effortless can be summed up in two sayings， "Slow is smooth， smooth is fast"， and， "Work smart， not hard"。 Most of the lessons would be taught on any introductory project management course （i。e。 define what "Done" looks like）， but the writing is smooth and there is a charm to his anecdotes that make it an easy read。 I received copies of both the digital and audio versions， and I did find sometimes that his narration， when trying to convey sincerity， did come across in an irritating pleading tone。 Because of the checklists and footnotes， I suspect I'll be returning to the digital version more than the audio。A good， fun read， a solid 4*。Book supplied by Netgalley for an honest review。 。。。more
Oliver Webb
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#Effortless Thank you to #NetGalley for allowing me to read this book early in exchange for an honest review！ Simplicity is key。Effortless is filled with intriguing examples of people finding shortcuts or ways to make things easier。 This is an inspiring book about not giving up and instead finding easier， “effortless” ways of doing things that once seemed difficult。 McKeown focuses on the theme of working smarter not harder， using interesting case studies and giving gems of advice along the way。 #Effortless Thank you to #NetGalley for allowing me to read this book early in exchange for an honest review！ Simplicity is key。Effortless is filled with intriguing examples of people finding shortcuts or ways to make things easier。 This is an inspiring book about not giving up and instead finding easier， “effortless” ways of doing things that once seemed difficult。 McKeown focuses on the theme of working smarter not harder， using interesting case studies and giving gems of advice along the way。 This book has given me some useful habits to try out and opened me up to the idea that working harder and harder isn’t always the solution to our problems。This book is full of practical advice on improving productivity and how to work on big projects to achieve “effortless results” with so many small changes to take on and include in our day to day lives。 Definitely an interesting read and the narration by Greg himself was great and it was enjoyable to listen to。 This is a book to come back to every now and then when you’re in a bit of a rut and need a boost or reminder of habits that could help。 Solid 4。5/5 。。。more
Donna
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Effortless by Greg McKeownIn essence this book is about how to make the tasks that matter the most become effortless。 It's a very persuasive argument and backed up by lots of explanations and examples which really make the theory come to life。 I read it on my Kindle but would actually prefer the physical book so that I could keep flicking back and to between chapters and revisiting parts of it， bookmark pertinent bits etc。 Highly recommended！Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC of th Effortless by Greg McKeownIn essence this book is about how to make the tasks that matter the most become effortless。 It's a very persuasive argument and backed up by lots of explanations and examples which really make the theory come to life。 I read it on my Kindle but would actually prefer the physical book so that I could keep flicking back and to between chapters and revisiting parts of it， bookmark pertinent bits etc。 Highly recommended！Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC of this book。 。。。more
Lynn Brown
，
I've not read the author's first book "Essentialism"， but I felt that this book was a standalone work that can be read independently， although it is a follow on book。I thought the first part of the book was overly wordy and was trying too hard to sell the idea of "effortless"。 A little like an infomercial， it promised many times that I would be able to make things more "effortless" and gave examples of people who had。 However， I wanted the "how to" now and not be made to wait for it。 Once I got I've not read the author's first book "Essentialism"， but I felt that this book was a standalone work that can be read independently， although it is a follow on book。I thought the first part of the book was overly wordy and was trying too hard to sell the idea of "effortless"。 A little like an infomercial， it promised many times that I would be able to make things more "effortless" and gave examples of people who had。 However， I wanted the "how to" now and not be made to wait for it。 Once I got through the first part of the book it was fine， and the "how to's" rolled off the page and I was gratified at last。You may be familiar with the term “work smarter… not harder”， it originated in the 1930s from a man called Allen F。 Morgenstern。 In essence I felt that this is what this book was trying to say， but giving real world up to date examples。 The book is certainly current as one such example was making masks for Covid -19。 It was these parts of the book that I enjoyed the most， reading about how people had transformed processes or simplified their work。 In fact this is a technique of "telling stories" that the book itself recommends。The key concepts of effortless are recapped at points throughout the book so you can easily get a quick reminder without reading the whole book again。 Another chestnut of advice from my childhood of "less haste， more speed" is also expanded on in the book to provide evidence of why "Mother knew best" afterall！ 。。。more
Kurtis
，
Greg McKeown's Effortless is more or less the next level of the ideas introduced in his book Essentialism。The premise of the book is pretty simple: things don't have to be so hard。 In this book， Greg addresses how once we've gotten to the state of "essentials only" we sometimes still feel we have too much。 There are ways to get the results we want and need without putting so much effort out。 It is amazing looking around and seeing how often effort or time is associated with a good result。 We're Greg McKeown's Effortless is more or less the next level of the ideas introduced in his book Essentialism。The premise of the book is pretty simple: things don't have to be so hard。 In this book， Greg addresses how once we've gotten to the state of "essentials only" we sometimes still feel we have too much。 There are ways to get the results we want and need without putting so much effort out。 It is amazing looking around and seeing how often effort or time is associated with a good result。 We're finally starting to not view things so black and white in society， but there is still a long way to go。 Greg does a great job addressing this and suggesting practical ways to do more with less effort。 The book is broken down into 3 sections: Effortless State， Effortless Action， and Effortless Results。 The sections each offer practical advice that can be easily applied。I really enjoyed this book and can highly recommend that if you've read Essentialism you need to read this as well。 。。。more
Tonya Dalton
，
Greg McKeown set the bar high with his first book， Essentialism so when I got an opportunity to read an advance copy of Effortless， I jumped at the chance。 Effortless is a solid follow up to for anyone who loved reading Essentialism as it builds off the foundation McKeown built of living a life focusing on what's essential。 That said， this book also stands alone on its own merit--you don't have to have read his first book to be able to shift your thought patterns or take action on the many piece Greg McKeown set the bar high with his first book， Essentialism so when I got an opportunity to read an advance copy of Effortless， I jumped at the chance。 Effortless is a solid follow up to for anyone who loved reading Essentialism as it builds off the foundation McKeown built of living a life focusing on what's essential。 That said， this book also stands alone on its own merit--you don't have to have read his first book to be able to shift your thought patterns or take action on the many pieces of advice he shares in this new book。 I highly recommend Effortless。 。。。more
Rachael | Booklist Queen
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Not as effortlessly inspiring as EssentialismWhat if you could achieve more without overexerting and overthinking？ McKeown stresses the importance of simplifying processes to get effortless results。 McKeown focuses on how to get yourself in the right mindset， how to simplify your actions， and then how to automate them to reach even greater results。 When I read McKeown's Essentialism last year， its simplicity spoke to me in a way few books have。 Needless to say， my expectations for Effortless wer Not as effortlessly inspiring as EssentialismWhat if you could achieve more without overexerting and overthinking？ McKeown stresses the importance of simplifying processes to get effortless results。 McKeown focuses on how to get yourself in the right mindset， how to simplify your actions， and then how to automate them to reach even greater results。 When I read McKeown's Essentialism last year， its simplicity spoke to me in a way few books have。 Needless to say， my expectations for Effortless were rather high。 Unfortunately， McKeown's newest book just didn't have the same power that Essentialism had， and I struggled to stay engaged with the uninspired advice。I received a complimentary copy of this book from Crown Publishing through NetGalley。 Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own。 。。。more
Createpei
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