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  • 168 Hours

  • You Have More Time Than You Think
  • By: Laura Vanderkam
  • Narrated by: Elizabeth London
  • Length: 7 hrs and 48 mins
  • 4.0 out of 5 stars (85 ratings)
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168 Hours cover art

168 Hours

By: Laura Vanderkam
Narrated by: Elizabeth London
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Summary

There are 168 hours in a week. This book is about where the time really goes, and how we can all use it better. It's an unquestioned truth of modern life: we are starved for time. With the rise of two-income families, extreme jobs, and 24/7 connectivity, life is so frenzied we can barely find time to breathe. We tell ourselves we'd like to read more, get to the gym regularly, try new hobbies, and accomplish all kinds of goals. But then we give up because there just aren't enough hours to do it all. Or else, if we don't make excuses, we make sacrifices. To get ahead at work we spend less time with our spouses. To carve out more family time, we put off getting in shape. To train for a marathon, we cut back on sleep. There has to be a better way - and Laura Vanderkam has found one.

After interviewing dozens of successful, happy people, she realized that they allocate their time differently than most of us. Instead of letting the daily grind crowd out the important stuff, they start by making sure there's time for the important stuff. They focus on what they do best and what only they can do. When plans go wrong and they run out of time, only their lesser priorities suffer. It's not always easy, but the payoff is enormous. Vanderkam shows that it really is possible to sleep eight hours a night, exercise five days a week, take piano lessons, and write a novel without giving up quality time for work, family, and other things that really matter. The key is to start with a blank slate and to fill up your 168 hours only with things that deserve your time. Of course, you probably won't read to your children at 2:00 am, or skip a Wednesday morning meeting to go hiking, but you can cut back on how much you watch TV, do laundry, or spend time on other less fulfilling activities. Vanderkam shares creative ways to rearrange your schedule to make room for the things that matter most.

©2010 Laura Vanderkam (P)2010 Gildan Media Corp

Critic reviews

"We so often live our lives day by day. Laura wants us to think about doing it hour by hour. Living this mantra by example, she gets more done in a day than most of us do in a week." (Seth Godin, author of Linchpin)
"Laura Vanderkam shows us how to use our only real wealth-our 168 hours a week- to make our lives richer, not busier. That's a wonderful gift, because it's what genuine success is all about." (Geoff Colvin, author of Talent Is Overrated)

What listeners say about 168 Hours

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  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars

Avoid

I thought that this would be a useful book, something to give me advice on how to manage what I perceive as my 'limited' time. However, like the other review (William), I soon began to get annoyed by my in-car passenger.

The narrator's voice soon begins to grate on you. Add to this the content which (echoing 'William') appears to be a little unstructured at times and you'll soon be switching back to the radio.

To be fair, some of the early content is useful and highlights that you're never really flat out working or playing and it suggest logging your days so you can gain a true view of your time usage.

So, some good content. However, the majority of the time the narrator is just reading off a string of useless statistical data from 'The American Time Use Survey' - data which doesn't really help but simply blinds you with numbers.

Most of the book's content falls into the category of in-depth reports of named individuals' lives, telling us how wonderful these people are, but providing very little in the way of useful advice to the listener.

I like to listen to entire audiobooks, even if I'm struggling half way through. However, in Chapter 7 the narrator began telling me how I can save time by getting all my meals cooked for me by a 'personal chef' - this would save me X hours by removing the need for shopping for food, preparation time and cooking (!!!). Then, I gave up and stopped the audiobook for good (half way through Chapter 7) after she moved on to recipes for meals I could prepare in minutes - she read out the recipes for about 5 or 6 meals, listing the ingredients! At that point I stopped the book and vowed not to complete it and that I would delete it as soon as I got home. It's gone - deleted.

Summary: some interesting advice in the early chapters but far too many useless statistics and lengthy/detailed stories about people the author has met.

Avoid this book, save your time and money.

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17 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars

Full of tips but lacks structure.

I was very excited about listening to this book, it seemed to present a completely new way of looking at the working week, it chunks of 168 hours. The author does present some good ways of plan your time however I felt it severely lacked structure and sounded a bit like someone in my passenger seat who wont stop talking (my wife sounds very similar!).

In summary I personally will be more careful before buying random books which seem good on the front cover in future, this book is not everyones cup of tea but it could well be some peoples so have a good listen to the sample before purchasing!

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4 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

Some good ideas but fo UK’s have been shorter

I’m glad I ‘read’ but she does come across a little self righteousness (perhaps inevitable for this subject?) and I think all the worth from the book could half been ascertained in half the time.

Nether the less a worthwhile listen.

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1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Just invest time to read this; the return is plentiful.

This in one of these books everyone would benefit from reading. Everyone? Yes, everyone! We all have the same hours available to us each week. So how come some thrive and have plenty left, while others always run out of time and complain they don’t have enough.
This book gives great insights to become more aware of your schedule, and practical tips on how to improve your life.
What’s not to like about it?

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1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

It's abit long-winded but still good tips

There are good tips, mainly near the beginning but it's very long winded and takes time to get the the point! found my mind drifting after the never ending stories of different people! Would help if it's was more to the point and less waffle!

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  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

Some good points

At first the book has potential and there are some useful tips/ideas on how to free up your time. However I fee like there should be a disclaimer that this book is written for middle-upper income people who can afford paying for services (cleaning, cooking, laundry, etc.) to save time. I don’t need a book to tell me that though.

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  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    1 out of 5 stars

It’s too woman centric

It needs to be a bit more balanced from a gender point of view, the author makes a specific point of not crediting men but only woman

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  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    2 out of 5 stars

Nothing new about time management

So disappointed.
I expected lots of practical tips on how to manage time.
Instead it became a review of others who had done great things, with the same time alloted to everyone else.
A little bit self centred too.
I tried to stick with it but by chapter 6 I was wishing the time away just so I could start another book.
Basically, use your time wisely to accomplish what you want. That's the book in a nutshell.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Get yourself organised!

Listeners to this twice. Really Great practical book full of useful methods to use your time more effectively.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

I'd already redesigned my week

Where does 168 Hours rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

Near the top. I'll be replaying it again!

What did you like best about this story?

I'm always stressed. I'm always thinking I don't have enough time. This book made me realise how wrong I was. Instantly I feel better, happier and able to get everything done.

Have you listened to any of Elizabeth London’s other performances? How does this one compare?

No

Any additional comments?

I've now redesigned my week to a schedule I love.

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