reflective relaxing slow-paced

The execution of this book is closer to 3.5-stars, but the message is 10-stars, so nothing less than 5-stars is appropriate.

I want to say so much about this book, but I don't know where to begin. I suppose all that I can say and all that I should say is that I've already been recommending this book to everyone that I know. I think everyone should read it - ESPECIALLY decision-makers within organizations.

I think this book is a case of unfortunate timing. In February of 2020, when I preordered it, I was interested in the premise. But now that we’re in the thick of a global pandemic, Headlee’s advice about separating work from leisure seems impractical.

I appreciated the chapter about the role of technology in this culture of overworking. Most writers on this topic straight out vilify technology, while Headlee points out that US Americans were already headed in the direction of overwork before smart phones became prevalent.

I feel like this book spoke directly into my tired overworking soul. I liked that the majority of this book focused on the historical "whys" behind the N. American culture of overwork, but also offered some tips to change these unhealthy habits on a personal level.

Highly recommend for anyone who consistently feels overworked/overwhelmed but maybe can't quite pinpoint why.

I was hoping for more newness, but it was well written

Also, amusing to be reading at the same time as Deep Work. I expected them to disagree with each other more, but they are pulling from much the same idea space.

I definitely recommend this book to anyone who works hard or feels that their life is driven by always becoming more productive and more efficient. As with any self-help book, you might walk away with only one or two things to think about or do, and that's fine! But the author makes some excellent points about how twisted and dysfunctional our thoughts about time and leisure have become over the last couple hundred years. It is absolutely worth reading for that alone.

10/10 update: Bumping this from 3 to 4 stars because it stuck with me after I finished it and had more of an impact than I'd originally thought it would.
challenging informative inspiring reflective slow-paced

This book is for salaried employees of a higher economic class. Very little of her research and advice on digital boundaries and workplace scheduling can be used by anyone living paycheck-to-paycheck. I had assumed it would be a little more universal. I listened to the audiobook, which was narrated by the author and it was nice background noise while I did some house chores.
informative inspiring reflective slow-paced

This is a great book on hustle and work culture in our modern society. I very much enjoyed the diffent aspects that the author included explaining why we are so focused on productivity and efficiency and why that might not be the best way to lead or lives. The book focuses heavily on the tendencies to intertwine our privat life and work life and overwork ourselfes with the goal of being more productive.
The only thing I didn't like about this book is how much it focuses on the typical 9-5 office job, leaving out other fields of work almost entirely.