This book is a game-changer if you are or are not feeling overwhelmed. Let's face it! We all could use a little more time on our side. There are so many things calling for our attention. There are so many GOOD THINGS calling for our attention. It can be hard to focus on what's important and our priorities when it seems like we should be able to be all to everyone and do it all for everyone. So how do we focus and not get distracted by the things that are not in our lane? Michael Hyatt's book Free to Focus is a lifegiving book that will help you take back your time and your life! There are three simple steps that he details out in the book - Stop, Cut, and Act. By giving readers actionable and practical steps, he has helped many clients, community members, and readers get free to focus on what's important to them.

Hyatt's book, Free to Focus, is a useful tool in the productivity landscape. He provides sound tips, walks you through the how to best use your 168 weekly hours, and still have time to do what you really want to do in life.

Yes! Absolutely.
When I heard the title, Free to Focus by Michael Hyatt, I knew I needed this book. Free…to focus. Yes! Absolutely. I got sucked in to the concept. I wanted it, truly wanted it…

…and then I read the book.
I began a long love-hate relationship with the book. You’re right. You’re right, I’d agree with the message. But when it came do actually doing what it said, I’d tell myself I’d get to it. As much as I wanted the freedom, I didn’t want to do the hard work of being completely honest with myself.

Free to focus quote Fail
Guilty and distracted
The book stared at me. Called me. I let my slavery to shiny objects keep me busy. But as with anything undone, it plagued my mind. Instead of being free to focus, I felt guilty and distracted. Then came the headache and a reality check.

Reality hurts
My body isn’t cooperating like it used to. After a week of an unending headache, I made the hard decision to cut back on some responsibilities. I never, never, NEVER would have done this before, but the pain made me become honest with myself. There’s a saying that goes something like “Change doesn’t happen unless the pain of remaining the same is greater than the pain of change.” What internal, dreamy want-to couldn’t do, my body made me do.

Ah-ha moment
This is what I realized: I was spending most of my work hours in the “drudgery zone” and couldn’t see a clear path to the “desire zone.” Desire seemed more like an impractical, fantasyland fit for someone else. Talk about a depressing thought.

Unicorns are real
So, I’m here at the end of 2019 and have done the impossible: I stopped. The planet kept turning. My life didn’t end. Instead, I experienced this amazing thing called “margin.” I’ve heard of this magical unicorn but didn’t experience it like I did until after I learned to speak the word “no” to areas I had put on my “come hell or high water” must-do list.

Free to focus quote celebrate
Does Free to Focus really work?
The book is a gem. The concepts aren’t entirely new, but the steps and tips are practical and easy to understand. But, books with great ideas don’t work. People do. Even if you’re resistant to making the steps, this book is one that will help you toward freedom—when you’re ready to face hard truth and take one step forward after another.

Freedom sounds wonderful. It is possible. Focus comes when a person knows what matters and is willing to grow toward it. My journey has been slow, but baby steps are baby steps.

Free To Focus is the most practical book I have read in a while. Instead of just telling you how to be more productive, Michael Hyatt shows you how to implement it step by step. After reading this book you'll walk away a productivity plan of your own because the author encourages you to create it as you go through the book, using exercises at the end of each chapter. If you feel like your to-do list is running you, you need this book! You'll not only be running your to-do list, you'll discover that it can be a lot lighter by implementing the strategies in Free To Focus.

Michael Hyatt is a go-to author for me and I think I've read everything he's written. "Free to Focus" is another great title with useful takeaways for tangibly improving your life. We're all surrounded by so much noise in modern life! It takes diligence to clear away what's not important and become...free to focus. I love this title and I think the book delivers on it.

I love this book. Michael gives concrete suggestions and common-sense advice to help you get more done in less time.

I really appreciated this book and it has been a central part of rethinking my productivity system for life. Thank you, Michael!

I have followed Michael Hyatt for several years and have come to rely on many of the methods and tools he has developed to design the life that I want, and to be more successful in reaching my goals. This book is full of practical guidance and resources to find clarity and productivity in my personal and work life.

This was an excellent book, but I love everything by Michael Hyatt. If you are in leadership I recommend reading this one. Have already put some ideas into practice.

If you feel like you are unable to gain control of your day to day goings-on; buy this book on day one. An excellent and quick read with impactful action items throughout. I feel privileged to have been part of the launch team for this book and will keep it handy until I can implement some of the new habits discussed within. A must-read for business owners, leaders and aspiring leaders alike. Well worth the time investment.

Anything written by this author is always great information. I highly recommend this book.
Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for an advanced copy. This is my opinion.

Hyatt has done it again. Leading you through the process of freeing up time do you can focus on the important things if life. A must read.

Free to Focus is Michael Hyatt‘s best to date—and his other books are excellent! I really like how Free to Focus serves as both a step-by-step guide and a personal coach combined. While reading the book I felt inspired to make some immediate changes to my routines and start some major delegating. In fact, at one point I took a break from reading the book to plan my delegation instead. After having finished reading the book cover to cover, I can’t wait to go back and systematically complete all of the guided steps and resources. A+!!!

Sometimes you need to realize you need to stop the way you have always thought and start at the beginning to see things for how they should be. We are taught from early ages how things should be, but we often don't stop and figure out why we do things the way we do, we just keep pushing and pushing even when we end up causing distress to ourselves.
Michael Hyatt's book, Free to Focus helps you think more simplistically and work through what is necessary to get the important things done, rather than just working to work. As you may have heard before more is not always better. This book helps you to walk through more of the why of things you are doing. This is truly the smarter way to work in all facets of life.
I highly recommend this book, it is a very simple and fast read but packed full of extremely useful information.

If you have ever felt like you were running on a hamster wheel and could not seem to find a way out then this is the book for you. Michael Hyatt has given individuals a way to assess his/her productivity to really define and get clear on whether or not one should engage in certain tasks or find a way to delegate. Filled with exercises and tools, this is a super reference to help anyone reprioritize their focus to ensure that the important tasks are being accomplished based on what he/she values to gain more freedom. Reading this book helps to get one out of the mentality of “if I do more I will accomplish more and therefore be more productive.” Unlike some other books that address productivity, Mr. Hyatt has an affable, easy going writing style that reads like two friends having a conversation while breaking down the content into manageable bites. The best part is that this book makes creating a productivity habit easier to start and gives one the confidence to keep it up long term. I highly recommend.
I volunteered to read an advance copy of this book provided by Netgalley.

Michael Hyatt's proven strategies are much-needed in our driven world where all we hear about is hustle! If you feel like you are drowning in work, especially work you do not love, you have to pick up this book. Michael does not just point out a problem, he gives tested strategies and tools for ending the overwhelm.

“Here, you see, it takes all the running you can do, to keep in the same place,” the Red Queen tells Alice. “If you want to get somewhere else, you must run at least twice as fast as that!” (Lewis Carroll, Alice in Wonderland)

No one can keep up with the Red Queen. And running faster doesn’t help if you’re pointed in the wrong direction. It’s time to rethink the whole model. (Michael Hyatt, Free to Focus)

“Free to Focus” is not your parents’ productivity book.

Productivity is not about getting more things done; it’s about getting the right things done. The important question is not, “Can I do this job faster, easier, and cheaper?” It’s,” Should I be doing this job at all?”

Productivity should free you to pursue what’s most important to you.

“Free to Focus” is not just a book, its’ an entire course on productivity. It includes links to tools the reader can use to assess their own productivity, identify their own goals and gain their own freedom.

Highly recommended for anyone who wants to be set free from running the rat race in order to run their own race.

Michael Hyatt has honed the process of getting the most important things. done. This book is for anyone who wants to accomplish more by doing less of the things that don't matter and more of the things that do. Plus Michael includes all the tools to help you along the way. I highly recommend this book.

I was blessed to be able to work in the tremendous country of Australia for a couple of years on the Olympics, but I came close to being buried there.

I almost drowned.

I enjoyed body surfing, but because I was a tall guy, I needed to go out relatively far to decrease the chance a wave would slam me into the ocean floor. I was cautious, staying between the flags on Maroubra Beach (where I loved the large waves). However, after swimming from the shore a bit one time, when I looked back I was no longer between the flags and much further out than I expected. A riptide had “assisted” me.

No matter how hard I tried to get back, I was getting no closer to the beach. Those gigantic waves I loved were pounding me, especially when I finally gave up on my male ego and raised my hands so the lifeguards would see, and save, me.

But they didn’t see, or save, me. All raising my hand did was bring me closer to drowning. I was spent.

Praise God, a few body board surfers came within shouting distance, and I yelled, “I am not going to make it.” The body board one of them lent me is why I can share this story today.

Why this apparently unconnected story in a book review?

At work, school, or otherwise in life, do you feel like you can never get ahead of all the tasks you have to accomplish? Like you’ve been pulled out so far, that you can never reach the shore accomplishment-wise? Battered and soon to drown unless you somehow figure out how to swim harder and faster? Like raising your hand for help does no good? (I remember one case where, when I mentioned to my boss I was a bit overwhelmed, her immediate request was for me to create a list of everything I was doing. Hand raised, wave dunking me under.)

Well, if you feel like that, Michael Hyatt’s Free to Focus is the body board that can save you and get you to shore every single day.

With a sense of accomplishment.

Hyatt’s book is the right combination of facts, inspiration, and practical advice. Facts that show you why you need to change how you work. Stories and quotes that will inspire you to try.

And practical advice on how to.

It is a system he had to develop for himself, since:

“My problem back then was doing to much-mostly by myself. Later I realized focusing on everything means focusing on nothing.”

We are scattered.

And drowning.

We can stop both from happening.

Without going into specifics (that’s what the book is for):

“If productivity isn’t fundamentally about improving efficiency and increasing success, then what is the goal? Why should we bother? That brings us to the real objective, and Free to Focus’s underlying foundation: productivity should free you to pursue what’s most important to you. The goal, the true objective of productivity, should be freedom...”

Not just trying to squeeze more work in. Not measuring success on success. Instead, focusing on what is important. To you. True success will follow.

I received a pre-release electronic copy to review, but I was so impressed I pre-ordered hardcover copies for boss and myself. (Don’t tell him, it’s a surprise.) I will be getting more coworkers copies and discussing it with my peers and my team.

It’s that good.

As an avid user of Michael Hyatt’s Full Focus Planner, it didn’t surprise me his book would be so useful, and it has encouraged me to start leveraging the planner more fully. If you are drowning at work, don’t swim harder or raise your hand for help. Grab this body board. Apply its advice. You won’t regret it.

Like most people I am swamped with work, volunteering and activities with my family. It feels I am not in control with my to-do lists or my time. Michael Hyatt provides great additions to the Eisenhower Matrix, the Freedom Compass and the Development Zone. These new concepts which overlay the old ideas allow you to refocus your energy into the tasks that will help you achieve your goals. Michael’s plain talk and real-life examples show you how to take back your time. He instills in you the feeling that you can get more done by doing less, by focusing on what you are good at and what is important to you.

This is an excellent book for all to read. Regardless of whether you are a solo entrepreneur, a stressed out executive, a homemaker or a college student, this book is a MUST read.