The Perfect Day Formula: How to Own the Day And Control Your Life

I would say this book is an excellent guide to “time management” for entrepreneurs, authors and other achievers, but it’s not your typical time management book. No one can really manage time, we can only manage our attitudes and activities. Those are two things we can control. Having the wisdom to know what we can control and what we can't is a big part of the philosophy embraced in this book.Author Craig Ballantyne shows you how to manage attitudes and activities to create a perfect day, and that’s what makes this book different from others in this genre.One thing that appealed to me about this book is that Craig’s advice, which is in fact very much geared toward entrepreneurs, is the same advice I’ve heard from some of the best and most prolific writers in the world, and that is to master your mornings. I’ve known a few night owls who have reached the pinnacle of success in their fields, but I’ve found that is more the exception than the rule. There seems to be something magical about getting it done in the morning and Craig’s book explains how and why.A second plus, for me at least, is that this book is short and to the point. The total length is only 153 pages. I feel that if an author is going to write a book on productivity, time management or controlling your days, it must be concise, to practice what the author preaches and to respect the reader’s time. I recently read a New York Times Bestselling book on productivity which was almost 300 pages and it could have been half the length because half of it was filled with anecdotes (no doubt required by the publisher, to fluff the book up to the “proper length.”)A third aspect of this book that resonated with me was Craig’s references to stoic philosophy, of which I am a big reader and fan. Anyone else who has read the likes of Epictetus and enjoyed the reading, will surely also enjoy Craig’s approach to productivity and mastering your mornings and days.Other parts of the book that stood out to me included the advice on rituals, life rules, scripting, responsibility, habits, beating procrastination, managing email and knowing not just what to do, but what NOT to do.Although I don’t plan to go to bed at 8 pm and get up at 4 am as Craig does (and he doesn’t demand that you do either), I have taken his advice and started getting up earlier than I was before and devoting that “found time” to writing or to marketing and product creation work that will impact the bottom line of my business. I have to say, there really is something about getting it done early. That goes for business and creative work, just as it does for health and fitness.

This is simply the best book I have ever read on personal productivity, I am not sure how the author packed so much good stuff in this book, but I am flabbergasted at the usefulness of this book.The idea of energy has been broached by other authors, but this author gives you a way to capitalize on this aspect, by focusing on your mornings as your uber important moment in the day. Also the idea of planning this morning the day before is simply brilliant, it allows you to plan during the end of the previous day at your low energy point, then the next morning no excuses, you act on that list like a unrelenting automaton. I am very analytical and I find it difficult making complex decisions, but I know I make those the day before, then during that morning it is about sticking to the list and following the Action Plan. I cannot relate how useful this has been, like a light bulb going on when I heard it, it was like, wow that makes perfect sense, and why I struggle so much with procrastination.Several other books I highly recommend for their own contributions1. Simple Rules ( Hull & Eisenhardt ) Craig uses this technique, w/o referencing it,but this book is amazing for highlighting the value of simple rules for cognitive performance.2. The War of Art ( Pressfield ) if you are a person who makes a living with open ended creative driven projects like writing, this book changes your way of thinking about the task, eye opening, and right on point. Resistance kills your book in the crib, if you are not careful.3. Grit ( Duckworth ) This book shows how talent is overrated, that passion and perseverance are more important to success, amazing scientific treatise on a soft science topic that is extremely important to people; stunning that this was not known sooner, but at least we now know.4. The Obstacle is the Way ( Holiday ) This book basically says effort is a habit, and avoiding effort is not the way, the way is accepting that effort needed, and earning the reward. In a world so focused on the easy way out, this book again, says human nature needs to embrace the effort required and get on with the job. The hard way, is the right way, don't be shy of difficulty, and reap the rewards.Remember the Rules you use are specific to you, and may require modification throughout your life, allow for changes and refinements over time, but always review daily, find the right balance between inflexible and flexible in your rules.This book capitalizes on the fact that willpower is limited, and Rules & Routines require less willpower over time because none of us is a superhero, and the only way to become successful is generally over the longer term, improving, and persisting until you reach of level of excellence that frankly is almost unrealistic on day one.God bless and many thanks to the author of this fabulous book!

"The Perfect Day Formula" is a helpful book with very simple, common-sense advice on how to take control of your day by getting it off to a productive start. Okay, that is simplifying it a bit, because there is a "formula" for a successful day and a successful life. As I began reading the book, I took action after the first few chapters and now I get up each morning and spend the first hour or so writing on a book I have been planning for a while. I do this before checking email or social media to avoid the time-sucking, productivity-destroying habits that have reduced my output during the past few years. I feel much more satisfied with my workday now. One of the problems with this book, however, is that the hardcover copy I bought is 154 pages, but there is a LOT of white space. There is a nice large space between each paragraph, and chapters are separated by white pages. It is a clever but obvious way to pad out a book that could be told in 100 pages or less and make it appear more substantial. In fact, there is a lot of repetition and cheerleading in the book, so I would say the key points could have been summarized easily in 50 pages. I see this in "publish it yourself" books, and this is one of them. FYI. I am glad I bought it and I recommend it if you find yourself in a situation where you are not making progress on projects and goals that matter to you.

I am hopelessly addicted to self help books yet feel more and more chaotic and frustrated because I just can't get my life together inspite of all those good intentions that 'this will be the year I finally get it together'. I read 'The Perfect Day Formula' in one day and could not put it down. Craig gives the tools to make getting the most of this one shot at life a daily habit and lose the daily bad habits that stamp out those good intentions. Craig's step by step guide and terminology seems to cut through a bewildering array of beliefs and values with instead a simple three step process of setting the rules (starting with getting up at the same time everyday and getting straight to work on the one most important thing), the 5 pillars of success and how to work out your life vision to start at the end before pinning down and actioning your goals. I love that the approach is 2,000 years old, tried, tested and timeless. I think this might be 'the one'. 10-3-2-1-0 . Thank you Craig Ballantyne.

This was one of the best books I've ever read, so easy to read, has very little 'fluff' which I love, the book covers so much important things,It covers alot of productivity and the most effective part in my opinion was having rules you live by and having a not to do list,It's not just about productivity, it has very good stuff on goal setting, creating your own vision and how to live a happier life and contribute to the world. Every person needs to read this

Easy to read. Insightful and gives a structure that could help you be productive. Like anything, it only works if you take action.Sales pitch at the end which can be ignored.A few real life client examples of their days would have been useful.

I was really looking for something to encourage me and help me restructure my working days. This book has done the above and would highly recommend this book to anyone who works really hard but doesn't see results because ultimately your busy doing the wrong things!!

Very good so far