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Conquering Procrastination
Neil Fiore PHD (also author of ‘The Now Habit’)
Simon & Schuster Audio, Abridged edition (RRP: £13.00)
Do you have an unrealistic sense of time that causes you to be chronically late? Do you speak to yourself in ‘have tos’ and deprive yourself of the fun things in life? Perhaps you are a perfectionist with a fear of failure and making mistakes, or you are a workaholic? If you answer ‘yes,’ then this double CD programme is a must for you.
Being able to listen whilst driving is a perfect solution for all procrastinators. Dr Fiori’s clear deliberate tone explains procrastination as a coping strategy, enabling you to overcome three common fears: that of being controlled by an authority, being judged, criticised and punished by that authority for some mistake or character flaw, or of being deprived of the good things in life.
Win a free copy of Neil Fiore’s CD set Conquering Procrastination .
Email diana.spencer
@healthpublishing.co.uk with the correct answer to the following question: Who said “Nothing is so fatiguing as the eternal hanging on of an uncompleted task”? |
We each have two other people within us to look after – a playful three-year-old who wants to have fun and a six-year-old who worries about everything – the have to/must do part of you. To overcome procrastination you need to be in control of them and take a leadership role. Procrastinators shift energy between these two powerful parts creating a frustrating cycle of discipline and depravation where burn out, bingeing and dried up motivation is the result. Dr Fiori explains that whilst the initial benefits of procrastination is to take the fear away from what you are planning to do, it ultimately causes feelings of being overwhelmed, which can then lead to anxiety and depression.
This programme offers simple and effective strategies. It is not about discipline and organisation, nor is it a time management programme, but it will help you to set well-defined priorities and a clear plan to restore your natural motivation. Personally, as a selfconfessed procrastinator, I have found it invaluable. The downside for me is the ‘Americanism’. However, that to one side, I am confident that you too will find it a beneficial tool to move your life forward!
Trisha McGarry
Personal Social Responsibility – Arvind Devalia
Nirvana Publishing (RRP: £9.99)
This slim book has the subtitle ‘A powerful workbook for being Socially Responsible in business’. It is not a factual study of either personal or corporate social responsibility. Rather, it’s an attempt to guide the reader through an analysis of both terms and how they relate to the reader’s experience.
Devalia’s key argument is that Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) – defined by him as companies “doing the right thing” – is rooted in Personal Social Responsibility (PSR). By this means, he tries to reconcile the corporate imperative of maximising profit with the personal imperative of conscience – a balance that he sums up as “being in integrity”. While this argument lacks economic rigour, it has a certain intuitive appeal.
How can companies improve the effects of their business on the community and the environment without sacrificing profitability? Devalia notes that in a recent survey, 95% of employees thought companies should do more to protect the environment, but only 39% of companies had a formal sustainability policy. He argues that, using the principle of personal integrity, we can define CSR as a balanced and sustainable strategy for business that makes a positive contribution to society.
The bulk of this book is taken up with 52 questions (or groups of questions) for the reader to answer on the facing page. These progress from the general and subjective (e.g. “How will the world be a better place because you have lived?”) to the specific and objective – the stakeholders, policies and implementation strategies associated with CSR (e.g. “What will you do to reduce your company’s carbon footprint to a minimum level?”). A final section invites the reader to sum up their thinking, and there is a list of websites containing information on CSR and sustainability.
This is a book of targeted questions, not answers. It’s low on facts, but quite effective as a stimulus to joined-up thinking.
Ron Snargett is a freelance journalist and recovering medical sales executive.