How to Live on 24 Hours a Day,   ISBN:9780967972800

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This amazing little book talks about some of the most important aspects of a full existence: the awareness of the passing time and methods of utilizing it to one's unique advantage. It lays out a structure to a possible way of filling one's time, and points to the obstacles and dangers lying in this execution.

The author's style is extremely honest and clear. Although it is an old book and some examples may not apply to you, the core of the approach definitely applies to every individual living in the present day.

So take this book, read it, reflect on what it says, try out its suggestions, then I guarantee you that you will have a fuller/happier life. What more can one expect from any book, let alone a small one such as this?

P.S.: I also suggest "The human machine" by A. Bennett, if you like this one.

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Rare is the book that stands the test of time. Rarer still is the book that can be read multiple times and still be engaging. This is decidedly one of those books. Each time I pull it off the shelf, I find once again how current it is, how useful, and also entertaining. Bennett is a pleasure to read and very insightful. I would wholeheartedly recommend this book to anyone and everyone. You can find a short write-up on this and other related books of his online at Wikipedia.

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With the advent of the Industrial Revolution first in England and then quickly following in America, more and more of the workforce transitioned into what we call white-collar jobs, where the workplace was outside and often far from the home. Because these new jobs more reflected our modern 21st-century jobs, in which the work was tedious, repetitive and the ambiguous results not always readily apparent (as compared to building carriages, homes, and other work in which the fruits of our labor are real and immediately visible), it was harder for workers to take the kind of craftsman pride and ownership in their work as their fathers and grandfathers might have in older trades that were phased out or in the process. Mr. Bennett writes to this new class of salarymen, who are alive and well today and joined by their sisters, mothers and wives. He assumes that MOST employees cannot take much joy in work that is allotted to them during their eight hours of work per day (as opposed to owners who take joy in their work not necessarily because the work engages them, but because they know the profits flow directly into their bank accounts; good motivating force).

I agree with him that most people cannot become truly (internally as opposed to portraying enthusiasm for promotion) enthusiastic when it comes to mundane, repetitive tasks that are characteristic of clerical and accounting-type jobs. Humans were not meant to be computers, and it shows in their passive resistance to such tasks, regardless of the what economy demands. Where I disagree is that one cannot approach ones job like a craftsman to some degree. You may not like the job you do or look forward to going to the office everyday, but you can try to take pride in doing a good job in whatever you do, as even banal tasks are the foundation for forming character that will come to bear in later more monumental tasks that you DO care about (I will mention William George Jordan later). I also disagree in that, one can FIND a job that has meaning, even if it doesn't pay much. My wife is a social worker, and she approaches menial clerical tasks knowing that they are essential to the welfare of her clients, and that little mistakes can sometimes cause a lot of harm. A person CAN find meaningful work, if they are willing to take a big pay cut and restructure their lives. Those aside, all of his advice and opinions rest on sound, tested wisdom.

The book argues that, while you may have no control over the eight of so hours you are chained to the office desk, you DO have control over the other 16. He argues for a program of self-improvement as a means of achieving happiness, and then goes about the details of how you can squeeze 90 minutes at least three times a week for active self-improvement activities to wake you up to the splendor and vibrancy of life, rather than living like a zombie before and after work time, which is the state at which most TV-addicted Americans are at today. Being a salaryman in Tokyo, where almost everyone rides the trains to and from work and where my own commute takes the roughly 50 minutes he projected, I found the parallels with my own life to be frighteningly close. His main point here is not that everyone should ride trains to use their time more efficiently, even though riding trains DOES free up time for the reading and philosophic reflection he recommends. It is that you should be much more aware of the little time wasters in your life and try to use your spare, limited minutes for activities that will improve your spiritual station in life.

I was not surprised that he recommended reading such Stoics as Marcus Aurelius and Epictetus, for two reasons. First, any philosophy of self-improvement or self-help that rests on ageless, tested wisdom of the past will give central importance to willpower and reason. Aristotle and his descendants the Stoics were some of the first to write about overcoming obstacles in life using reason and the power of our own wills. Bennett even write in his book how others may promise you techniques that will make hard work easier, but he rightly and harshly reproaches the reader for their foolishness in thinking that any hard task can be anything but hard. Realizing that self-improvement is hard, and that there are no short-cuts, is the most important point a person can embrace who is on the verge of beginning such an endeavor. The Stoics also realized that self-perfection was nothing but a long, hard road of constant self-checking, self-doubt and brutal honesty about oneself. That is one reason why the mention of such Stoics is not surprising. The second reason I was not surprised was that the Stoics made something of a comeback around this time. The influence is evident in similar self-improvement works of the Industrial Revolution by Samuel Smiles (Self-help (1859), Character (1871), Thrift (1875), Duty (1880)) and William George Jordan (The Majesty of Calmness (1900), The Kingship of Self Control (?), etc.). None of these works sugar-coats self-improvement like authors do now. All state clearly that there are no easy routes to improving oneself, and that self-improvement and improvement of character is a lifelong process until our dying breathe. I have read many self-help books, but have abandoned modern ones for these older ones for many reasons, the above being just one.

Authors at this time realized that life was a struggle, any way you looked at it, with little rest stops up the mountain to pause briefly and enjoy some of the fruits of our hardships. In that sense, their philosophy and style of writing is far more reflective of real life than all of the wishy-washy New Agey self-help bores that stock the shelves today. None of them, including Covey and similar business authors have absolutely NOTHING new to say that hasn't been covered by these men or later men like Carnegie and Napoleon Hill (commissioned by Carnegie to research and write his books). And in fact, theirs is a watered down version of these past authors, with none of the grit to get you through hard times. These past authors integrated Stoic ideas into their work, because only a Stoic, resilient mindset could brace against the many dramatic changes in society at the times due to industrialization and all the wars magnified by the technical revolution and trials people experienced during those times. Is it no wonder that modern readers addicted to self-help books continue to read through the whole stack still unfulfilled and still no closer to where they want to be in life?

I therefore recommend this book, as well as those by the authors I mentioned above. Things could get a little bumpy for Americans in the 21st century. All of the pampered, upper-middle-class self-help philosophies will be trampled underneath when the $%%#$ hits the fan and the whole materially-abundant superstructure that sustains the disappearing middle-class lifestyle collapses. In hard times, only philosophies embraced by those who have seen dark, trying times can be relied on. The Stoics, and their 19th-century revisitors (the guys above) will be a strong pillar to brace against.

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Many books have been written over the years attempting to tell people how to improve their lives. They usually involve living on a certain amount of money per week or month. This book was first published in 1908, and was a major bestseller. It could be considered the first self-help book, and it takes a different approach, looking at time instead of money.

Time is a very funny thing; everyone gets the same amount per day. Rich people do not get more than poor people. It's not possible to go the store and buy time. Out of that 24 hours per day, everyone must carve out a life (marriage, family, work, hobbies, religion, etc).

This book was written in a time and place (England of the early 1900s) where everyone took the train to work. One of the author's suggestions is to use that time concentrating on one thing; it doesn't matter what it is. If your mind starts wandering, hook a leash to it and bring it back. I'm not sure how well this would work today, when everyone drives to work. You say you can't concentrate for very long? Having to give a big presentation at work, or final exams in school, does a wonderful job of focusing the mind.

Then comes the evening, after the reader has gotten home from work. If this book had been written today, the author might say that occasionally vegging out in front of the TV is not a bad thing, but don't be like the average American, who does it for several hours a day, every day. Take, say, two hours a night, three nights a week, for a total of six hours. Use that time to learn a subject about which the reader is passionate, a hobby or interest. The subject can be literally anything, from A to Z. If a big subject like history is chosen, it's allowable to narrow it down to, for instance, the French Revolution or the Vietnam War. If a subject like classical music is chosen, go to an occasional concert or try your hand at playing an instrument. Again, if this book was written today, the author might say to use the internet to research your topic, but stay away from the chat rooms. During your learning time (for lack of a better term), lay off the popular novels. The author has nothing against them, but the idea is to give your brain a workout; novels don't do that. Most of all, take your time. The worst thing a person can do is burnout.

This book is small, but mighty. It says a lot, and it's the sort of book that can be used by everyone, from one end of society to the other. Not enough time in the day? Not after reading this gem.