Celeste Headlee

I feel misled by the title of this book, Do Nothing: How to Break Away from Overworking, Overdoing, and Underlining. I thought I was going to read a book offering tools and ideas on HOW to make changes in my life regarding work. I found it disappointing, and at times boring, on WHY we overwork and under live. This audiobook is 7 hours and 41 minutes in length. The author Celeste Headlee didn’t get to the HOW until there were less than two hours remaining of the audiobook.

Celeste opens the book by thoroughly explaining the history of work beginning in the late 19th century. She talked about daily routines, how people define work, work ethic, and the development of our dedication to over working. My interest was not held well during this portion of the book. My expectations were quickly going down hill and disappointment began to settle in.

Once Celeste explored the various ways in which we misperceive the purpose of working, my interest in this book improved. Threaded throughout the chapters she consistently points out how and why we overwork ourselves and put work ahead of more important areas of our lives. She talked about our desire to work more, in order to earn more money, so we can spend more. We perceive idleness as being lazy, and hobbies as activities we don’t have time for. Since this was truly the bulk of the book; why we work so much and fail at enjoying our lives, Celeste covered A LOT of topics. She made some good points I found relevant to my work/life habits and some of her points were of the “I’ve heard that before” variety.

Celeste talked about our tendency to work extraordinarily long hours, continuing our work day at home by checking and responding to email 24/7. Our current work lifestyle has us always being available for work tasks or communications. She exposes gender differences to work. Men are usually done for the day when their work day ends. Most of their tasks are seasonal or occasional. For women the work is constant. A full day at work and then housework, kids, and more work when they get home. Celeste stresses the importance of...

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A Book And A Dog… (mere)

Our cult of ”busy” makes no sense on the surface. We have every convenience, microwaves, fast food, washing machines, and cell phones, but instead of having more time, consumerism increased in a parallel rise and so people worked longer hours just to pay for things they didn't need. We are in constant contact through social media, but we don't have time to meet friends for coffee, much less devote hours to a quilting circle or community club. It's a strange paradox and one that is leading to increased loneliness and suicide. The idea that multitasking is bad for you was so interesting. It's horrible for you brain because you're not giving anything your full attention. And women are taught that they should be "good" at it, so we work harder to constantly split our focus.

On tech creators like Steve Jobs not allowing his own children to use iPads, "Would you eat a meal that the chef wouldn't serve to his own family?"

We need to put our devices down & remember that work is not life. Such a good book!

TAKE AWAY POINTS
Increase time perception
Create your ideal schedule
Stop comparing at a distance
Work fewer hours
Schedule leisure
Schedule social
Work in teams
Commit small, selfless acts
Focus on ends not means

“The idea is not that everything should be slower, but that not everything needs to be fast.”… (mere)

This is a great little book full of common sense advice about how to be a better conversationalist. It is not necessarily geared towards getting ahead in the corporate world, but it is helpful. Written by a "human nature expert" Headlee offers practical tips for listening and speaking with meaning. I appreciated the reminders about repeating oneself and using negative language. Even though she did not provide much information I haven't heard before I would like to check out her TED talk. Out of all of the self help books on communication I've read, We Need to Talk was the most enjoyable.… (mere)