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Take Back Your Life!: Using Microsoft Office Outlook 2007 to Get Organized and Stay Organized (Business Skills) 1st Edition, Kindle Edition

by Sally McGhee (Author), John Wittry (Author) Format: Kindle Edition
4.2 4.2 out of 5 stars 84 ratings
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Take control of the unrelenting e-mail, conflicting commitments, and endless interruptions–and take back your life! In this popular book updated for Microsoft Office Outlook 2007, productivity experts Sally McGhee and John Wittry show you how to reclaim what you thought you’d lost forever–your work-life balance. Now you can benefit from McGhee Productivity Solutions’ highly-regarded corporate education programs, learning simple but powerful techniques for rebalancing your personal and professional commitments using Outlook 2007.
Empower yourself to:

  • Clear away distractions, tie up loose ends, and focus on what’s really important to you.
  • Take charge of your productivity using techniques designed by McGhee Productivity Solutions and implemented by numerous Fortune 500 companies.
  • Balance your home and work priorities by exploiting the enhanced productivity, organizational, and search capabilities in Outlook 2007.
  • Go beyond just coping and surviving to taking charge of your time–and transform your life today!
Previous page
  1. ISBN-13
    978-0735623439
  2. Edition
    1st
  3. Sticky notes
    On Kindle Scribe
  4. Publisher
    Microsoft Press
  5. Publication date
    June 13, 2007
  6. Part of series
    Business Skills
  7. Language
    English
  8. File size
    6948 KB
  9. See all details
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Total Price: $102.56
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Editorial Reviews

From the Publisher

Learn what thousands of people worldwide have discovered about taking control of their everyday productivity, and start transforming your own life today! Includes a tear-out poster of the proven McGhee Productivity Solutions Workflow Model suitable for keeping right next to your desk, as well as free access to MPS's supporting on-demand webinar.

About the Author

A recognized thought leader and innovator in the field of productivity management, Sally McGhee has trained thousands of people in the corporate environment. She has more than 25 years experience as a consultant and an executive coach, and is the founder and CEO of McGhee Productivity Solutions.

Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B00JDMPP38
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Microsoft Press; 1st edition (June 13, 2007)
  • Publication date ‏ : ‎ June 13, 2007
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • File size ‏ : ‎ 6948 KB
  • Simultaneous device usage ‏ : ‎ Up to 5 simultaneous devices, per publisher limits
  • Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
  • Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled
  • Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled
  • Sticky notes ‏ : ‎ On Kindle Scribe
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 367 pages
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.2 4.2 out of 5 stars 84 ratings

About the authors

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Previous page
  1. Sally McGhee

    Sally McGhee

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    Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.

    With more than 25 years of experience in productivity management and consulting, Sally McGhee is recognized around the world as a productivity leader and pioneer. A former managing partner in several European and US based firms including PDG with Russell Bishop and David Allen, Sally brings a wealth of creativity and expertise to individual and corporate productivity management.

    Today, Sally is CEO of McGhee Productivity Solutions, an international consulting organization dedicated to improving personal and professional accountability, performance and work/life balance. Her Take Back Your Life series of books are now available in Europe, Asia, Africa, Australia, North, Central and South America.

    See more on the author's page
  2. John Wittry

    John Wittry

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    Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.

    Discover more of the author’s books, see similar authors, read author blogs and more

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Customer reviews

4.2 out of 5 stars
4.2 out of 5
84 global ratings
Life changing for me and for my clients.
5 Stars
Life changing for me and for my clients.
Not only did the tools, methodologies and concepts in Take Back Your Life! improve my personal productivity, balance and sense of control, but they also have a huge impact and the clients I coach. This book provides outstanding resources for individuals and creates paradigm shifts that create sustainability for the learnings and positively impact life beyond the workplace. Highly recommend!!
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Top reviews from the United States

DH
5.0 out of 5 stars Easy to Read and Easy to Follow Advice
Reviewed in the United States on April 6, 2013
Verified Purchase
this book gives good instructions on how to use Outlook to help unclutter you life. I originally bought the first edition several years ago but was too busy with work so I had my secretary read it. She came up with some great aids in helping the office run smoother. I always meant to read this book, so when I saw it was updated I finally did it. I should have done it sooner....
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SBJ400
4.0 out of 5 stars I took my life back!
Reviewed in the United States on October 22, 2007
Verified Purchase
I was a disorganized mess. My desk was piles and piles of clutter and things (important, time sensitive materials) got lost! It took me about a good year to get where I am now. I started with Michael Linenberger's Total Workday Control. Not a good place to start so I tried David Allen's book 'Getting Things Done'. It was a great start and gave me foundation. I then moved on to Sally McGhee's book Take Back Your Life! for Outlook 2003. Awesome! That helped me integrate everything into my real world computer life. Then I went back and reread Michael Linenberger's Total Workday Control, which now made a lot more sense and I used some of his ideas to create a 'custom' system for myself.
Finally, I bought this updated book of Sally McGhee's because I am using Outlook 2007 now. The material is basically the same, but tuned for Outlook 2007.

Now some people claim this book is a rip off of David Allen's book or that these books are all the same or they are boring. YES! and NO!

What you have to realize is that there are several ways of getting things done. All roads lead to Rome. I prefer the Sally McGhee method because it does not depend upon a plugin or extra software. It works with Outlook the way it is when you buy it and her methods translate over to my desk at home and work and since I am on the road...in my car. YES, the material is dry at times but so is work! lol

David Allen offers custom software as an add in for Outlook 2003 and 2007 that is Windows XP and Vista compatible and his extra software will cost you an EXTRA $70 folks! This could be very nice and efficient for some people. yet, there is a downside...the plug in only works with Outlook. If you use another email client, you have nothing. Another downside, you are now dependent upon that software instead of doing it yourself. If he stops making that software or it causes troubles and you have to remove it, you are now back to square 1 with no method of organizing. In other words, David Allen caught the fish for you, but McGhee wants to teach you to catch the fish yourself.

So, that is why I like McGhee's method. Yes, she basis it on Outlook but since there is no extra custom software involved to integrate into Outlook, you can translate the system to other mail clients. I also run Linux and I can use her methods in Evolution, Thunderbird, Kontact, etc. Also, it is NOT a 'blatant copy' of David Allen. They worked together and she openly discusses, reveals and discloses that info. She even quotes Mr. Allen in her book.

If you have Take Back Your Life! for Outlook 2003 and have been using it and are skilled in her methodology, you can make the transition to Outlook 2007 on your own probably. If you are new to this, and have Outlook 2007, this is a definite buy. Here on Amazon, it is only $17! What a deal! I bought a current copy for myself and to help others in my family.

She will probably come out with a SPECIAL EDITION like she did with her previous book that will include a CD, some pull out charts, etc. I would say, do not wait. Buy this book and get organized. I would also recommend the other books I have listed in my review too. I don't think just 1 book is enough! And this will take effort on your part. It took me a solid year to get really good. I fell off the wagon, got frustrated, reread the book, tweaked, learned, quit, failed, tried again, screwed up but eventually succeeded. I doubt many of you will get it going well in your first month...so don't quit! Keep trying and it will happen!
84 people found this helpful
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Paulo S Abreu
5.0 out of 5 stars A valuable book on time management and organization
Reviewed in the United States on October 23, 2009
Verified Purchase
This is a great book on time management and application of the GTD "philosophy" with the MS Outlook e-mail application.
The authors do not limit the discussion to MS Outlook configuration. In this sense, this is not a technical book, which is good.
Time Management (and for that matter, GTD) is a much broader approach and is not limited to specific tools.
So the authors discuss how you should organize and plan yourself first from a higher perspective. For example, how to manage interruptions (and, yes, that includes the automatic new e-mail alerts), how to manage your (several) collecting points (inboxes, if you will), etc.
Along the discussion the use of MS Outlook is explained. Note that if you don't use MS Outlook this could still be a useful book, because you could easily adapt the concepts to any other e-mail system.
Things like the Weekly Review, which was always a mysterious concept to me, become much clearer with the authors approach.
This may not be "the definitive guide" to getting organized and time management, but I have gone back to the book several times to check steps and reinforce some concepts. Hence, it is a valuable book to have, if you have not decided for one yet.
Good reading.
2 people found this helpful
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Rich Mcadams
5.0 out of 5 stars Awesome Productivity Enhancer... if you'll make the investment
Reviewed in the United States on February 14, 2010
Verified Purchase
This book is NOT a Microsoft Outlook book! It lays out a methodology for determining what are truly you're unifying objectives, both personal and professional, and then it helps you get organized around only those things that support those objectives. If it doesn't support a unifying objective, then don't do it (delegate, go back and renegotiate the committment, etc). While I said this is not an Outlook book, it IS a book that will teach you to use all that Outlook has to offer in terms of managing e-mail, your to-do list, your calendar, etc... ALL in the name of accomplishing your unifying objectives.

If you're like me (4,500 e-mails in my inbox when I read this book), it will take a significant investment in time to adopt this methodology. I spent the better part of the week between Christmas and New Years reading, organizing, deleting, etc to put the system in place. Here's the bottom line: IT HAS MADE AN AMAZING DIFFERENCE IN MY PRODUCTIVITY. I spend far more time working on things that support my goals and far less on distractions.

IF you read the book and decide to implement the McGhee Productivity Solutions Workflow Model, I strongly suggest you purchase the accompanying $59 Outlook Add-in... it adds some great features to Outlook that make processing e-mail SOOO much faster. I downloaded the add-on trial and used it for 30 minutes before realizing just the Quick-File feature alone was well worth the cost... then I learned how to use the other half dozen features.

GREAT book to get organized... but like any productivity methodology, if you think you can read the book, not make any changes in how you do things, and then expect magic to happen, don't bother.
6 people found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

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Al Rogo
5.0 out of 5 stars Der Name ist Programm - Das beste Buch zum Thema!
Reviewed in Germany on January 26, 2019
Verified Purchase
Sensationell, unterbewertet, unerkannter Ratgeber, der das hält, was er verspricht und darüber hinaus unglaublich praktisch angelegt. Man kann die Inhalte direkt anhand von Übungen im eigenen Leben umsetzen.
Nachdem Sie das Buch gelesen haben, sind Sie besser organisiert!

GTD konnte ich nicht umsetzen, dieses Buch hingegen hat mein Leben massstäblich verändert und ich habe wieder die Kontrolle über selbiges.

Übrigens: Ich nutze das Buch mit Google Tasks, Mail und Kalender - nicht Outlook. Es ist möglich!

Kaufempfehlung!
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Honest Reader
5.0 out of 5 stars Honest Review
Reviewed in Canada on June 24, 2013
Verified Purchase
Much better than Getting Things Done: The Art of Stress-Free Productivity by David Allen.
Useful example of managing interruptions.
The writer honestly mentions: Everything is depend on your personal discipline.
5 stars!
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Liz
5.0 out of 5 stars This book has transformed my life. Best book I've read in 10 years.
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on July 22, 2012
Verified Purchase
I bought this book after reading the recommendations on Amazon, and have been more than impressed by the contents. It took me several weeks to work through and implement, but the difference in my work and home life has been phenomenal. Prior to reading this book I only used Microsoft Outlook for email, and my inbox was overflowing. I was stressed, anxious, and constantly worried that there were things I had forgotton.

I now have a complete task list, where I store everything I have to do. I transfer this onto my calender and work from there. I've used the suggestions for working through projects, and setting my goals for the year, and that alone has been incredibly useful. I now have a clear idea of what I can say no to, and, for the first time, I am comfortable saying no, as I can see where things fit into my overall goals, and also see how much time I have available.

The difference this book has made is amazing. Each day I wake up and cannot wait to get started. I know exactly what needs doing, and I can forget about upcoming jobs as they are on my task list, not in my head. I have changed the way I write emails: I pay attention to the content, think carefully about who I copy in, and write specific subject lines. I am stricter with myself about sticking to my working hours, have set up systems to that colleagues know when I am available and when I am not and have stopped doing countless hours unpaid. Despite this, my productivity has shot up.

In my personal life, I am getting through hundreds of jobs on and in the house, and gradually am transforming my home into the place I want it to be. I feel happier, more in control and a whole lot less stressed.

My recommendation would be to buy this book if: you have any projects to manage, you have a hectic work and personal life to balance, you want to sleep through the night and not wake up worrying about unfinished jobs, you want to be more organised, you want to know how to deal with email overload.

Any negatives? Well, it takes time to put the principles into action and you need to silence that nagging voice that says you don't have time for this. My personal view is that it is definitely worth the effort. The time I spent setting the system up, is nothing compared to the time I now save. As I set up my management system I occassionally found myself wondering why the book recommended doing it a certain way. If this happens to you, I would say, have faith in the system and go with it, as the reasons for doing things become clear as you go on. A couple of times I didn't do it as they suggested, thinking it seemed a bit unneccessary, but I always ended up going back and doing it their way, as the reason for it became obvious later on.

I am recommending this book to all my friends and colleagues.
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George
4.0 out of 5 stars great system, simple to follow
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on July 15, 2014
Verified Purchase
some really simple ideas to make your work life easier, everyone needs a system so you may as well design yours around the familiar platform of Outlook. Everyone could benefit from reading this
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flapflyer
5.0 out of 5 stars A really useful book, life-changing content!
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on September 4, 2013
Verified Purchase
The book was in great condition and has allowed me to completely organise my life with the simple systems promoted throughout.
I'd recommend it to anybody who is struggling with workloads in a professional job.
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