The 10 Best Productivity Books of 2023

Today, staying on top of everything in such a fast-paced world is hard today. It can be challenging to concentrate on our work when we are constantly bombarded with information and distractions 24/7. That’s where 2023 comes in.

You can learn the skills and habits you need to accomplish more in less time with productivity books. And, while you can never go wrong with the classics like Getting Things Done and The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, here are the ten best productivity books released in 2023.

1. Feel-Good Productivity: How to Do More of What Matters to You by Dr. Ali Abdaal

Feel-Good Productivity provides a science-backed path to success from one of the world’s most influential productivity experts, Dr Ali Abdaal. His message is that feeling good makes you more productive than hustling. In addition, he shares how to make your projects feel so enjoyable that productivity will follow naturally.

In particular, Dr. Abdaal discusses:

• The three ‘energizers’ that make productivity enjoyable.
• To beat procrastination, we must overcome three specific ‘blockers.’
• To attain lasting fulfillment, we need three ‘sustainers.’

In his book, he tells you how founders, Olympians, and Nobel-winning scientists embody the Feel-Good Productivity philosophy. In addition, he gives you some simple, actionable ways to live a better life.

2. The Ultimate Productivity Book: Manage Your Time, Increase Your Efficiency, Get Things Doneby Martin Manser

In case you don’t know, the ULTIMATE books are for business leaders, managers, and executives who want to succeed. Every title covers the essential business skills you need to succeed, from marketing and sales to finance and management.

In particular, this book includes tools, techniques, and strategies, including:

• Effective time management
• Efficient speed reading
• Managing yourself
• Stopping stress from slowing you down

3. The Six Pillars of Productivity: Strategies to Organize the Time of Your Life by Cindy B. Sullivan

The Six Pillars of Productivity was written by Cindy B. Sullivan, a productivity coach and Certified Professional Organizer®. In this book, you’ll learn what affects a person’s time management. There are also real-life scenarios, prompts, and tips included.

The following tips are included for time management:

• Instead of multitasking, try focusing on one task at a time.
• Learning how to delegate tasks.
• Creating an easy-to-follow daily plan and workflow.
• How to reduce stress.

You can also increase your productivity by following these tips:

• Taking regular breaks
• Prioritizing your biggest tasks
• Aiming for small goals
• Time blocking your schedule
• Enhancing meeting productivity
• Keeping distractions at bay
• Task batching
• Making your workspace more efficient

4. The Get Things Done Book: 41 Tools to Start, Stick With, and Finish Things by Mikael Krogerus and Roman Tschäppeler

This book has just 176 pages, so you should be able to get through it quickly. Despite this, you won’t walk without learning anything valuable.

The book discusses, in particular, how to:

• Begin a project
• Stop procrastinating
• Engage yourself in your work
• Restart after a break
• See something through until the end
• Achieve deep work
• Compartmentalize tasks
• Identify your priorities
• Boost your confidence

In addition, it contains 41 productivity models that are proven to work. Among them are world-famous techniques and professionals’ best-kept secrets.

5. The Procrastinator’s Guide to Productivity: 15 Effective Strategies & Practical Techniques to Overcome Procrastination, Boost Efficiency & Achieve Results by Stanley Sheppard

This book offers strategies for helping procrastinators overcome their procrastination issues. Rather than providing tips, Sheppard delivers a roadmap for lasting change.

Listed below are some strategies for overcoming procrastination:

• Acknowledge procrastination. In addition to missing opportunities, procrastination can increase stress and decrease performance.
• Avoid distractions. You should keep internet browsers to a minimum, find a quiet environment, and put your phone away while working.
• Reward yourself. After you finish an important task, reward yourself with a treat.
• Change your environment. Examine your desk and workspace to see if they encourage you to work.
• Use time management techniques. You need time management tools, techniques, and strategies to overcome procrastination.
• Practice mindfulness. Emotional management can be a significant player when it comes to procrastination.

6. 5-Minute Productivity Workbook: Stop Procrastinating in Just 5 Minutes a Day by Susan Reynolds

With over 130 writing prompts and exercises, readers will be able to overcome procrastination, as well as become more productive. Psychological, mindfulness, and neuroscience techniques are used in these exercises. Even more appealing is that this book was intended to be completed in 5-minute increments.

What’s more, you can overcome procrastination by following the 5-minute rule. The goal is to commit to working on tasks for just 5 minutes at a time, breaking them down into smaller, more manageable chunks.

7. Calling Bullsh*t on Busy: A Practical Guide to Ditching the Time Management Myth and Quickly Achieving Your Goals by Andrew Mellen

Andrew Mellen’s book, “The Most Organized Man in America,” describes a method that can help people regain two or more hours each day.

Specifically, The book is about the idea that people can manage time like they manage other tangible things, such as money. The book is about a system that can help people regain two or more hours of lost time each day.

How? He combines cutting-edge neuroscience with common sense and compassionate, tough love to help you stop wearing “busy” as a badge of honor. To accomplish this, you’ll need to identify and thwart productivity thieves, as we all learn to:

• Take control of procrastination.
• Keep interruptions, distractions, and time wasters to a minimum.
• Streamline your inbox
• Run effective meetings instead of time-wasting ones.
• Treat “no” as a complete sentence.

8. Winning the Week: How To Plan A Successful Week, Every Week by Demir and Carey Bentley

Demir and Carey Bentley are husband and wife performance coaches and co-founders of the productivity consultancy Lifehack Method. In Winning the Week, their main message is to work smarter, not harder.

How?

Instead of wasting time on the things that don’t matter, plan your week to maximize your time on the things that do. To make it happen, they suggest holding a 30-minute planning session each week where you plan ahead for the upcoming week. If you plan and put forth effort, you can certainly have consistent winning weeks, even if you don’t win every day.

9. Work Less, Do More: Designing the 4-Day Week by Alex Soojung-Kim Pang

The Silicon Valley-based Pang has long been a leading voice on the topic of reduced working hours. He has written three books about balancing rest, creativity, and focus throughout his career.

However, this book provides a practical framework for businesses to implement four-day work weeks. The book provides readers with the following information:

• Determine which pattern is best suited to your business
• Put together your team
• Establish your own definition of success
• Consider possible difficulties and troubleshoot them
• Take action on your plan

Overall, this book offers a practical framework for implementing the 4-day week in your business, regardless of sector or size.

10. Lead Smart: How to Build and Lead Highly Productive Teams by Dermot Crowley

As a leader, you’ll learn how to prioritize productivity to maximize your and others’ productivity. Clear direction and good decisions are essential to being an effective leader.

In Lead Smart, Dermot Crowley, author, speaker, and founder and director of Adapt Productivity (a leading productivity training firm in Australia), shows you how to:

• Maximize your time management and personal productivity to reduce distractions.
• Improve your team interaction and delegation skills.
• To align priorities, manage urgency, foster accountability, and lead the team culture from the top down,
• Build confidence in your team, negotiate workloads and deadlines effectively, and protect them from outside distractions to enhance productivity.
• Engage your organization in a culture change around workload productivity through your commitment to elite productivity.

FAQs

What are some of the benefits of reading productivity books?

The following are some of the benefits of reading productivity books:

What should I look for in a productivity book?

Your own personal goals and needs should be considered when choosing a productivity book. You should also look for the following:

• Writing that is clear and concise.
• It’s easy to implement this advice.
• The tone should be positive and motivating.
• Case studies and examples from the real world.

How can I get the most out of a productivity book?

If you want to get the most out of a productivity book, you should:

• Set realistic expectations. You won’t suddenly become a super-productive machine by reading a productivity book. The process of implementing new habits and strategies requires time and effort.
• Read with a pen and paper. Highlight key points as you read and take notes.
• Put what you learn into practice. Ensure you don’t just read the book and forget about it. Apply what you’ve learned to your own life.
• Be patient. New productivity strategies take time to take effect. Don’t get discouraged if you don’t see results right away.

How can I choose the right productivity book for me?

You should consider your own goals and needs when choosing a productivity book. To find this out, you can ask the following questions:

• By reading a productivity book, what do you hope to accomplish?
• Do you need help organizing your tasks?
• What can I do to overcome procrastination?
• Are there more effective ways to work?

By knowing what you want, you can narrow down your options.

To help you choose a productivity book, here are some additional tips:

• Check out other readers’ reviews.
• Take a look at the author’s credentials.
• Ensure that the book is written in an easy-to-understand manner.
• See if you like the author’s approach by reading a short passage of the book or articles they’ve written.

Image Credit: Photo by Pixaaby; Pexels

The 10 Best Productivity Books of 2023 was originally published on Calendar on December 4, 2023 by John Rampton.