Books like Effortless: Make It Easier to Do What Matters Most

01

Essentialism: The Disciplined Pursuit of Less

Greg McKeown · Self-help

Essentialism is Greg McKeown's argument that the way most people approach work and life — saying yes to almost everything — is a slow form of defeat.

Both dig into simplicity.

02

Atomic Habits

James Clear · Self-help

Atomic Habits is James Clear's framework for how very small changes — habits so minor they seem to make no difference on any given day — compound into remarkable results over months and years.

Shares self-improvement and systems thinking with Effortless: Make It Easier to Do What Matters Most.

03

Deep Work

Cal Newport · Self-help

Deep Work is Cal Newport's case that the ability to focus without distraction on a cognitively demanding task is becoming both rarer and more valuable, and that people who cultivate it will thrive while everyone else stays stuck in shallow busywork.

Both dig into productivity.

04

The 4-Hour Workweek

Timothy Ferriss · Self-help

The 4-Hour Workweek is Timothy Ferriss's argument that the standard model of working forty-plus hours a week until retirement is a bad deal, and that a better one is available right now for anyone willing to rethink how they work, earn, and live.

Both dig into productivity.

05

Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us

Daniel H. Pink · Psychology

Drive is Daniel Pink's argument that the motivational model most organizations still run on — reward the behavior you want, punish the behavior you don't — is badly mismatched to the kind of work that matters most in a modern economy.

A kindred self-help read.

06

Do Less, Get More

Shaa Wasmund · Self-help

Do Less, Get More is Shaa Wasmund's argument that most people's productivity problem is not a shortage of effort or time but an excess of wrong activity.

Shares simplicity and productivity with Effortless: Make It Easier to Do What Matters Most.

07

Getting Things Done

David Allen · Self-help

Getting Things Done is David Allen's argument that the main source of stress in modern knowledge work isn't the volume of tasks — it's having commitments that live only in your head.

Shares productivity and systems thinking with Effortless: Make It Easier to Do What Matters Most.

08

The First 20 Hours

Josh Kaufman · Self-help

The First 20 Hours makes a sharp distinction that most books on learning quietly ignore: the difference between becoming competent at a skill and becoming world-class at one.

Shares productivity and self-improvement with Effortless: Make It Easier to Do What Matters Most.

09

The Power of Less

Leo Babauta · Self-help

Leo Babauta's central argument is that doing less, not more, is the path to meaningful accomplishment.

Shares simplicity and productivity with Effortless: Make It Easier to Do What Matters Most.

10

The 10X Rule

Grant Cardone · Business

The 10X Rule is Grant Cardone's argument that most people fail to achieve their goals because they set them too low and take too little action — and that the fix is to multiply both by a factor of ten.

Shares productivity and effort with Effortless: Make It Easier to Do What Matters Most.

11

Eat That Frog!

Brian Tracy · Self-help

Eat That Frog!

Both dig into productivity.

12

First Things First

Stephen R. Covey · Self-help

First Things First is Stephen Covey's full-length development of the time management principles he introduced in The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, particularly the distinction between urgency and importance.

Both dig into productivity.