1. The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People: Powerful Lessons in Personal Change
Author: Stephen R. Covey
Everybody from Presidents to CEOs to college students use this book to organize themselves and stay on track doing what’s most important. Less a system for getting things done, this book provides a methodology for life and work. If you’re keen on becoming more productive, this is a library staple.
2. Atomic Habits
Author: James Clear
Atomic Habits offers a proven framework for improving every day. James Clear reveals practical strategies that will teach you exactly how to form good habits, break bad ones, and master the tiny behaviours that lead to remarkable results.
If you're having trouble changing your habits, the problem isn't you. The problem is your system. Bad habits repeat themselves again and again, not because you don’t want to change, but because you have the wrong system for change.
Atomic Habits will reshape the way you think about progress and success, and give you the tools and strategies you need to transform your habits—whether you are a team looking to win a championship, an organisation hoping to redefine an industry, or simply an individual who wishes to quit smoking, lose weight, reduce stress, or achieve any other goal.
3. The Power of Habit: Why We Do What We Do in Life and Business
Author: Charles Duhigg
A fascinating look into what habits are, how we form them and how to change them. The first 2-3 chapters are the strongest and hold the information most of us are looking for: How to change our habits.
This book is rife with strong examples of how people and businesses changed their habits and ultimately makes a case for how we can all change our habits to better support what we want most.
4. The 4-Hour Workweek: Escape 9-5, Live Anywhere, and Join the New Rich
Author: Tim Ferriss
In The 4-Hour Workweek, Tim Ferris gives the exact blueprint for creating a productivity and time management plan to create the lifestyle of your dreams and achieve financial freedom.
Tim famously gave up the 9-5, 80-hour work weeks for a 4 hour work week and a significant pay raise.
He outlines the principles and actionable tips on how to get there. You can apply these concepts and methods to your own work.
5. Getting Things Done: The Art of Stress-Free Productivity
Author: David Allen
This book is something like the modern Bible of productivity books – it appears on every single productivity list and is recommended by many.
Allen’s premise is simple (even if the book is not): “our productivity is directly proportional to our ability to relax.” He’s developed a framework that you can customize to your own needs and get all those pesky free-floating to-do’s into one organized system filled with files and action lists.
There are dedicated followers of this system (self-named GTDers), but know that this is a complex system requiring a level of self discipline and organization just to get through the book.
6. Think Like da Vinci: 7 Easy Steps to Boosting Your Everyday Genius
Author: Michael Gelb
Part historical commentary on the genius of da Vinci, part productivity book with excellent exercises to boot, this book has a little bit for everybody. You won’t necessarily find accurate or extensive information about da Vinci as a thinker, but you will come away with valuable information. It will also give you new ways to experience the world and think differently all in the name of liberating your “unique intelligence”.
7. Ready for Anything: 52 Productivity Principles for Getting Things Done
Author: David Allen
This is Allen’s follow up book to his legendary Getting Things Done. Unlike the other dense resource, this is a compilation of pearls of wisdom from his years of coaching and consulting. An easy read and a fun addition to the library, this book helps you understand the philosophy behind Getting Things Done.
8. What the Most Successful People Do Before Breakfast: A Short Guide to Making Over Your Mornings–and Life
Author: Laura Vanderkam
If you liked any of Vanderkam’s shorter works, you’re in luck. This book combines her three popular mini e-books into one comprehensive guide.
This is a very easy read, very enjoyable and filled with useful nuggets of information. As the title suggests, if you struggle with getting things done in the morning, this is a book for you.