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sybrasays's review
5.0
super interesting read for working moms of new babies, but also working moms in general. I loved how she framed everything in 168 hour weeks!
ncrozier's review
In the world of books about time management, women and careers, work-life balance, etc., this book is well written, entertaining, and offers useful, practical advice.
pnw_classicelegance's review
2.0
37 pages in (12%) and I couldn’t get hooked. Honestly just rented the book because the title looked interesting…now reading the description, I understand why it didn’t resonate with me.
Women who make more than 100k have more opportunity to outsource the tasks that take up a woman’s day…so it doesn’t really help the women who can’t afford that kind of help.
Women who make more than 100k have more opportunity to outsource the tasks that take up a woman’s day…so it doesn’t really help the women who can’t afford that kind of help.
nssutton's review
3.0
I'm fascinated by time management and planning, even more so now that I have a young child. Trying to find a routine that works for us took time and is still in flux. I appreciate the author's intent - to examine how successful woman use their time, in ways that are wise, and how to bridge gaps for efficiency. But as a woman who hasn't reached that level of financial success, who chose to work in a field that is not known for its flexibility, I found this less helpful on a personal level. Many of the things she emphasized - finding time for sleep for example - I've been fortune to build systems for easily. Other things I really need guidance on weren't here. I don't have a schedule that I can compress, food allergies limit our ability to do certain things, and monetary concerns limit our ability to do others. I would love to see an examination of time logs like this with a focus on educators, nurses, and other less high-ranking public servants.
bookishlifeofbrie's review against another edition
3.0
There were some good takeaways from this book (how to keep a time log and the importance of such), but the tone of the book was hard to connect with as Vanderkam’s study is mostly relatable to white collar working women making $100k+ a year. And not just that, but these women are in roles that have a ton of flexibility when it comes to running errands during work hours or choosing to work from home at times. And the suggestion and assumption that outside help will give you back more freedom (hours) to yourself or family life is nice and all, but not everyone can afford good childcare or 2x/week housekeeping. Also, I was amazed by the lack of phone/social media use by these women who kept time logs for the research purposes of this book. Lol, maybe that’s where I truly differ from these women
evenshadow's review
2.0
Firstly, this is about successful moms. As a not-mom, I somehow missed this, and then had to skim over the many parenting chapters. Though, her suggestion to hire a backup au pair for when your regular full-time nanny needs time off was undoubtedly enlightening for those to whom this might apply.
As others have noted, this lady needs to take a minute and check her privilege, though that wasn't my main issue with this book. I just didn't find anything applicable in it. She recycles the same old tips you've heard a thousand times (listen to an educational podcast on your commute! read when you have dead time instead of checking your email!). I think a lot of the time she misses the point. People don't sit around and watch TV 30 hours a week because they are lazy and love TV. If you need "just do it!" advice, this is fine. If you know you could be doing things better and want to figure out why you can't follow your ideal productivity schedule, this will not help you.
As others have noted, this lady needs to take a minute and check her privilege, though that wasn't my main issue with this book. I just didn't find anything applicable in it. She recycles the same old tips you've heard a thousand times (listen to an educational podcast on your commute! read when you have dead time instead of checking your email!). I think a lot of the time she misses the point. People don't sit around and watch TV 30 hours a week because they are lazy and love TV. If you need "just do it!" advice, this is fine. If you know you could be doing things better and want to figure out why you can't follow your ideal productivity schedule, this will not help you.
marshmallowbooks's review
5.0
This is a non-fiction book about schedules and keeping track of time. But it is very readable and relatable - even if all the women included in it met certain specifications that truly represent only a small percentage of the population. The author has a perfectly good rationale for the criteria to be included in this study, which I appreciated. I am certain that many people might not find this relatable / will focus on privilege that does, of course, exist. But I would think many of the principles can be considered applicable to anyone.
jennycz's review
4.0
Appreciate the data-driven approach to assessing how time is spent, and the recognition that how we feel about our time (stressed, like there's never enough of it) doesn't always line up with reality. Lots of useful advice and perspective here.
(aside: whenever I read these kinds of books/articles on how to balance career and family, and what successful moms do to keep on top of everything, I feel the same way I do when I hear someone who's just done a triathlon describe all the training they did to get through it- like, ugh that sounds exhausting, you are really not selling this experience very well! maybe I can just live with not doing that!)
(aside: whenever I read these kinds of books/articles on how to balance career and family, and what successful moms do to keep on top of everything, I feel the same way I do when I hear someone who's just done a triathlon describe all the training they did to get through it- like, ugh that sounds exhausting, you are really not selling this experience very well! maybe I can just live with not doing that!)