Do Less Be More by Susan Pearse and Martina Sheehan

Thinking about reading Do Less Be More: How To Slow Down And Make Space For What Really Matters by Susan Pearse and Martina Sheehan? Want to find out a bit more about the book before you commit to reading it yourself? If so, you are in the right place as I’ll be sharing a bit about what you can expect to find out inside, as well as telling you my thoughts on the book so you can decide whether to read it for yourself. 

 

This page includes affiliate links, which means that if you choose to make a purchase, I may earn a commission. This commission comes at no additional cost to you. Thank you to Hay House UK for sending me a free copy of the book.

 

CONTENTS

 

Introduction
Chapter 1: Why Doing Nothing Matters
Chapter 2: Why Doing Nothing is Difficult
Chapter 3: How To Do Nothing

The Exercises
21 Ways to Do Less and Be More

Final Words

 

INSIDE ‘DO LESS BE MORE’

In the opening chapters of the book Susan and Martina are essentially setting the scene and helping you to understand the importance of why you need to embrace doing nothing, why it is difficult for some people and how you can start doing nothing. 

The brain is central for their reasons of encouraging  you to do nothing. They write “A total transformation takes place in your brain when you slow down, look up, let go and fall silent”. They then go further to explain how your brain is used differently when “you’re engaged in goal-directed or attention-demanding thoughts” compared to when “you sit back, look up and relax”. 

Even if you are convinced by the science Susan and Martina understand that just because you know you should do nothing doesn’t mean you will. The fact is most of us find doing nothing difficult so they explore why it is so difficult to do nothing. Then they talk briefly about how you can start to do nothing. 

This leads nicely onto the exercise – 21 in total!

 

QUOTES FROM BE MORE DO LESS

“You are not at your best when you pack every moment of the day with more to do.”

“The greatest leaps forward, not just throughout history but for every one of us in our regular lives, rely on our willingness to stop and hear the whisper-quiet voice of our own deep knowledge and wisdom.”

“Create the life you want by choosing to live it now”.

 

FINAL THOUGHTS FROM CHARELLE

I read this book in 2020 whilst on lockdown due to the COVID-19 pandemic. At that time I felt it was a great opportunity to focus on slowing down. Usually my days are full and lockdown automatically create more space in my diary and I thought it would be a great time to really assess how I was normally using my time and get clear on how I wanted to be when lockdown ended. 

Overall I liked the opening chapters. I thought they set a great foundation for why taking on the challenge of going less would be difficult, but also worth it. For me some of the tasks were more effective than others. However, with 21 in total I’m sure you’d find a few that works for you and you only need a few to work!

 

 

WHO WOULD I RECOMMEND READS BE MORE DO LESS BY SUSAN PEARSE AND MARTINA SHEEHAN

I would recommend Be More Do Less to anyone who feels like they are constantly busy but not achieving everything they want to achieve. Or it would be useful for someone who feels that they are also working and doing feel as if the output doesn’t reflect the input. We live in a world where we wear busy as a badge. It is time to remove that badge and instead focus on being highly productive. If you are ready to be highly productive and have more free time in your life then this book is for you

 

If you like the sound of Susan Pearse and Martina Sheehan you can buy a copy for yourself by clicking here.

OTHER BOOKS YOU MAY BE INTERESTED IN

• Simplify Your Life by Mary Conroy (Read my review)
• Essentialism: The Disciplined Pursuit of Less by Greg McKeown
  

CHECK OUT OTHER PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT BOOKS I’VE READ