There’s one thing that I love more than organising my life…
And that’s reading about organising my life!
I’ve always loved dropping into the underworld of a good book. As well as being a fabulous way to relax, escape the chaos of the day, and learn new things, reading books can be a life-changing experience. Although I must admit, these days I tend to buy more books than I get time to read!
While, there’s nothing quite like sitting down to read a physical book, listening to podcasts and audiobooks has become a part of my daily routine that I relish while driving, folding the washing or just before bed.
I try to read at least one book (usually a personal development book) a month, if my schedule permits. It’s not always a walk in the park! And as someone who calls BS on the Work/Life Balance concept, I know if I want to finish a book, I have to make time for it. So, setting aside 30-minutes each day to read or listen to a book is usually achievable.
Best Organisation Books
I have read soooo many great books on the topic of organisation. Being someone very in-touch with ‘my organised side’, and having created the Life Sorted app to help families streamline their schedules for maximum freedom, I’ve put together my Top 5 Fav Organisation Books to help alleviate your organisational agony.
These are some of the best organisation books I’ve read that have struck a chord with me, teaching me new skills, knowledge, and mechanisms to cope with and create a life I love living.
// 1. Get Your Sh*t Together, by Sarah Knight
As the title suggests, this book is all about getting your sh*t sorted! If you’re unafraid of profanity and lack confidence in your adulting prowess – this book is for you! This was such an easy, hilarious read. I actually read the entire book during a business flight to Sydney and back – with champagne in hand of course! I loved it so much that I’ve also gifted this book to many of my friends.
The big picture idea is that getting your sh*t together shouldn’t be hard: you just need to be methodical and consistent. I think we can all relate to the themes in some way. Life is beautiful and crazy, and often out-of-control. This book is all about empowering you to enjoy life and to feel that little more in control of it (any fellow control-freaks out there?). The book is the perfect blend of humour and advice, offering an entertaining read with delightful sass and insight on every page. Throughout, Sarah reveals different approaches, strategies and practical ways to get your ‘things’ together.
One of the key things I took away from this book was how to allocate time to achieve more realistic goals, firstly by breaking projects down into bite-sized, manageable tasks and then scheduling them into your life. Eventually, you achieve your goal, minus the overwhelming feeling of ‘x much’ to do and ‘y amount of time’ to do it. Another gold nugget Sarah describes in her book is how to maintain your romantic relationship through loving competition. Make it your objective to be the most generous, or the most considerate. Examples of this would be surprising your significant other through stocking up the freezer with their favourite ice-cream, earning you major ‘points’ that would lead to them reciprocating the effort. Then, any mundane task you find yourself doing will be a labour of love, earning you more points!
// 2. Minimalism – Live a Meaningful Life, by Joshua Fields Millburn & Ryan Nicodemus
One of my buzzwords for 2018 has definitely been ‘Minimalism’, so this book was a MUST read! Earlier this year I went to see The Minimalists live and was absolutely enthralled, so you could say I’m a BIG fan!
The overarching idea of Minimalism – Live a Meaningful Life is that your job does not define you and neither does money or all the ‘stuff’ in your life that you do not need (and this include relationships too). The book is more about how to live a meaningful life rather than focusing on getting rid of stuff. It’s about freeing yourself from materialism and clearing your mind to concentrate on what is truly important. Focusing on health, relationships, growth, passion and contribution, the authors reveal, “Minimalism is a tool to eliminate life’s excess and focus on the essentials”.
Do you feel like you’re drowning in material things? This is where this book steps in… it gives you tools to implement in your life that will help you eliminate the things that don’t add value so you can focus on the things that do. By living simply and removing complications, you’ll be empowered to enjoy a more meaningful life.
// 3. The Organized Mind, by Daniel Levitin
If you’re reading this, you likely have a gazillion things on your mind to do today. Well, The Organized Mind teaches you how to manage it all from a neuroscience point of view. The way the human brain interprets and receives information perplexes us all. Thankfully, Daniel Levitin brings the science down to Earth and lifts the veil behind the inner workings of the brain. For instance – how the brain functions best is by tackling a few stimuli at a time, not as many as we are all guilty of attempting during our busy days. So try to keep focused on only one to a few tasks at a time.
Also – *spoiler alert* FIND a designated place for everything i.e. a bowl near your front door to always return your keys. Keeping a dedicated spot for such items will afford you more active ‘brain power’ for the rest of the day, so you spend less of it figuring out trivial things. After diving into this book you’ll be on the fast-track to a more streamlined you!
// 4. Work Strife Balance, by Mia Freedman
You can’t go past this gem – Work Strife Balance by Mia Freedman! I bloody adore her. As a woman in business who knows the struggle and sleepless nights the job can bring, Mia really connects to readers going through this. I think at some point every woman has been told that success is simple if you follow a certain pathway. But as someone who doesn’t always get it right, this is for the woman who isn’t coping or seeing the results she knows she’s capable of. Mia reveals her bumpy road to the top, full of as many potholes as milestones. It’s a story of fearless and hilarious misadventures that got her to where she is now, the Co-Founder and Creative Director of Mamamia – Australia’s largest digital women’s media company.
Reading it, you can’t help but feel Mia is your friend offering her sage advice to help you as she’s dedicated to improving the lives of other women through her honest and encouraging words. A fabulous book, it will remind you that you’re not alone and that we’re all going through our own struggles in our career, family, relationships, and the eternal wrestle with the myth of the ‘ideal woman’. Mia Freedman writes for all women who are searching for support when it comes to anxiety, motherhood, running a business, and figuring out where the authentic ‘you’ belongs amongst it all. I can’t wait for you to read this hilarious, raw, fierce and profoundly generous book!
// 5. Winging It, by Emma Isaacs
JUST WING IT! Introducing author, Emma Isaacs, the CEO and entrepreneur of Business Chicks – Australia’s largest community for women. Having five-children herself, Emma sees work/life balance as a myth. You’ll discover how she ditched the so-called life-plan and just winged it! I actually met Emma briefly at the recent Business Chicks event in Brisbane. She was so genuine and gracious and she even signed my copy of her book!
If there’s one thing I’m well versed in, it’s winging it; sometimes you don’t know everything and you just have to go for it and see what happens! Emma dishes out REAL practical advice on all things career, building a business, entrepreneurship, the joys of networking and just general day-to-day life. This book is brutally frank and is scattered with hilarious anecdotes that absolutely send you into fits of laughter. It will teach you that whether you’re a mother or an entrepreneur doing it tough, you can still kick some serious goals with grace and kindness. Emma gives you tips on how to do it all, even though sometimes it’s impossible to do it all – but we put this on ourselves! With honest life examples about how to go forward and ‘wing it’ to success, this read is one of my favourites. Get ready to feel so motivated and ready to push forward to your next big goal!
Life-Changing Organisation Books
So there you have it, my top 5 fav Organisation Books for the modern mama juggling ‘all the things’. Feel free to share this article with someone who would like a little help getting (and staying) organised!
What’s your favourite organisation book to COMBAT your organisational agony? Drop me a line if you know of any other-life changing books you’d love to see added to this list.
