How to Be Organized in Spite of Yourself

Honestly, the best, most useful chapter of this book, I felt, was the final one. The rest of the book was mostly just a bunch of fairly common-sense advice which, if you've done even the barest research into personal productivity, you've probably heard at least once before. The majority of the book is devoted to personal anecdotes about clients she's worked with who are illustrative of the “styles” she divides everyone into. Breaking the book into separate sections for personal styles also functions to make only a small subset of the pages even potentially relevant to the reader. Add these two things together, and you've got the majority of the book devoted to personal anecdotes that will be irrelevant to your life leaving only the smallest minority of it actually containing advice which you've probably already read somewhere else.

All this is not to say that the book is worthless. Sometimes, even if information should be common sense, it's good to hear or see it written to drive home the point–as if, it couldn't possibly be true unless someone else has said it. Also, the bits of the book that aren't personally relevant could still function admirably as an introduction to the personal styles of others with whom you might work or live. This could give you insights into dealing or at least identifying with those whose styles differ from your own. In fact, there was at least a sub-section, if not a whole chapter devoted to working with other styles.

And back to that final chapter. This is where the whole of the book is really tied together, in learning to work within your style to bring your life into balance and focus, to make you happier and more fulfilled. This last chapter is almost like a Buddhist sutra of personal revelation, understanding, and acceptance... like seeking out the optimal you.

So, is the book worth the read? If you've done any research into personal productivity, I'd say probably not. If you're new to the idea of figuring out how and why you work a certain way, perhaps this book could be a revelation. If you're a sucker for productivity discussions or for delving into the human psyche, this might be an interesting diversion. If you're interested in becoming the best you you can be, you'd probably be better off picking up some Buddhist literature on mindfulness, and possibly getting involved in meditation.