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The Art of Procrastination: A Guide to Effective Dawdling, Lollygagging and Postponing by John Perry
tyndareos's review against another edition
1.0
9/100
Really? The Book opens with how great it is, using cherry-picked reviews.
Talk about setting the bar low. Turns out, there's not much depth behind the hype.
This book is full of fluff, made-up scenarios, and the author's random musings.
His big idea? “Structured procrastination” – basically, do something you enjoy that's also kinda productive (like I always do when I read instead of tackling my to-do list).
Feels pretty empty for a book, and I'm sure that most people already did their own version of Structured procrastination in a way, before picking up this book.
Feels pretty empty for a book, and I'm sure most people already practiced their own version of structured procrastination, before picking up this book.
This thing is so overvalued, there's a hint of a useful method, but it's never really explored in depth. The ending is worse, it's like: Well, I read it all, but that's the best I came up with... oh, and here is a list of random shit I found .... listing links and other books.
Really? The Book opens with how great it is, using cherry-picked reviews.
Talk about setting the bar low. Turns out, there's not much depth behind the hype.
This book is full of fluff, made-up scenarios, and the author's random musings.
His big idea? “Structured procrastination” – basically, do something you enjoy that's also kinda productive (like I always do when I read instead of tackling my to-do list).
Feels pretty empty for a book, and I'm sure that most people already did their own version of Structured procrastination in a way, before picking up this book.
Feels pretty empty for a book, and I'm sure most people already practiced their own version of structured procrastination, before picking up this book.
This thing is so overvalued, there's a hint of a useful method, but it's never really explored in depth. The ending is worse, it's like: Well, I read it all, but that's the best I came up with... oh, and here is a list of random shit I found .... listing links and other books.
theokaykatsby's review
4.0
I finally got to reading it after receiving it as a gift from a really good friend about six years ago. Which is really fitting because this book is for and about procrastinators - which I am and have been known for basically my whole life.
This book is brief and is really, at its core, an affirmation for procrastinators (although, as John Perry cautions in one of the later chapters, not a glorification of what is still a flaw and a hindrance to getting tasks done). There are, in every chapter, suggestions on small ways to "booby trap" yourself to get more work done or to address common pitfalls. But most importantly, he reminds us that what he calls "structured procrastinators" can procrastinate and still get a lot done. What the book addresses (and what I appreciate) is that those who often procrastinate often feel like they don't get a lot done or that there is something very wrong about them, something that is generally reinforced in a lot of self-help books and articles.
It's refreshing and, in my opinion, valuable to have someone who self-identifies as a procrastinator and who gets a lot done (or so I assume, since he has a PhD) remind us that while there are things we can (and probably should) do to help us procrastinate less, it's okay to be less efficient or rational as we might want to be and to let ourselves off the hook a little (or be a little self deceptive to get the things we need done). And John Perry is honest, self-deprecating, and funny - it felt a little like we were simply having a conversation about a common flaw, and I enjoyed it. As someone who both has felt very bad about being a procrastinator and who reads a lot of the self-help genre, I'm glad this exists and that I finally got around to reading it.
This book is brief and is really, at its core, an affirmation for procrastinators (although, as John Perry cautions in one of the later chapters, not a glorification of what is still a flaw and a hindrance to getting tasks done). There are, in every chapter, suggestions on small ways to "booby trap" yourself to get more work done or to address common pitfalls. But most importantly, he reminds us that what he calls "structured procrastinators" can procrastinate and still get a lot done. What the book addresses (and what I appreciate) is that those who often procrastinate often feel like they don't get a lot done or that there is something very wrong about them, something that is generally reinforced in a lot of self-help books and articles.
It's refreshing and, in my opinion, valuable to have someone who self-identifies as a procrastinator and who gets a lot done (or so I assume, since he has a PhD) remind us that while there are things we can (and probably should) do to help us procrastinate less, it's okay to be less efficient or rational as we might want to be and to let ourselves off the hook a little (or be a little self deceptive to get the things we need done). And John Perry is honest, self-deprecating, and funny - it felt a little like we were simply having a conversation about a common flaw, and I enjoyed it. As someone who both has felt very bad about being a procrastinator and who reads a lot of the self-help genre, I'm glad this exists and that I finally got around to reading it.
poetkoala's review against another edition
5.0
I thought it was fun and approachable. Helped me feel proud (or at least a little less guilty) to be a procrastinator.
julicke95's review against another edition
3.0
2,5 stars
This book apparently started as a short essay (now chapter 1) and to be honest, the rest of the book didn't really add much to the initial idea. The book aims to explain the usefullness of the activity the author calls 'structured procrastination', which means procrastinating on certain tasks by doing other less important tasks. As a highly experienced procastinator, I was already familiar with the concept (if not by that name) and the fact that it can be quite useful. The rest of the book was filled with some other quaint and mostly not very useful neologisms (though 'horizontal organization' was a fun one) and some rather obvious adivce on how to avoid procrastination or at least procrastinate effectively. Things like "make a happy playlist to wake up to in the morning". Wow, I had never thought of that.
Criticism aside, I did enjoy this. It was a fun, lighthearted and short read with the noble aim of making procrastinators feel a bit better about themselves. A more helpful book would have perhaps gone into the reasons why we procrastinate, the fear that keeps us from performing certain tasks on time and how to overcome that, but perhaps such a subject is perhaps best left to the psychologists.
This book apparently started as a short essay (now chapter 1) and to be honest, the rest of the book didn't really add much to the initial idea. The book aims to explain the usefullness of the activity the author calls 'structured procrastination', which means procrastinating on certain tasks by doing other less important tasks. As a highly experienced procastinator, I was already familiar with the concept (if not by that name) and the fact that it can be quite useful. The rest of the book was filled with some other quaint and mostly not very useful neologisms (though 'horizontal organization' was a fun one) and some rather obvious adivce on how to avoid procrastination or at least procrastinate effectively. Things like "make a happy playlist to wake up to in the morning". Wow, I had never thought of that.
Criticism aside, I did enjoy this. It was a fun, lighthearted and short read with the noble aim of making procrastinators feel a bit better about themselves. A more helpful book would have perhaps gone into the reasons why we procrastinate, the fear that keeps us from performing certain tasks on time and how to overcome that, but perhaps such a subject is perhaps best left to the psychologists.
hotychan's review
4.0
Pretty fun and interesting, even if I don't think it can help that much. Then again, I don't really expect a book to change things on the way I love my life (or at least not this type of book hahaha), so I'm not disappointed.
diz_tn's review against another edition
4.0
Cute and funny. But I did manage to pick up a few tips to make my problem work FOR me rather than against me. :)