• What's Best Next

  • How the Gospel Transforms the Way You Get Things Done
  • By: Matthew Perman
  • Narrated by: Matthew Perman
  • Length: 9 hrs and 41 mins
  • 4.6 out of 5 stars (227 ratings)

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What's Best Next  By  cover art

What's Best Next

By: Matthew Perman
Narrated by: Matthew Perman
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Publisher's summary

Do work that matters. Productivity isn't just about getting more things done. It's about getting the right things done - the things that count, make a difference, and move the world forward. In our current era of massive overload, this is harder than ever before. So how do you get more of the right things done without confusing mere activity for actual productivity? When we take God's purposes into account, a revolutionary insight emerges. Surprisingly, we see that the way to be productive is to put others first - to make the welfare of other people our motive and criteria in determining what to do (what's best next).

As both the scriptures and the best business thinkers show, generosity is the key to unlocking our productivity. It is also the key to finding meaning and fulfillment in our work. What’s Best Nextoffers a practical approach for improving your productivity in all areas of life. It will help you better understand:

  • Why good works are not just rare and special things like going to africa, but anything you do in faith even tying your shoes
  • How to create a mission statement for your life that actually works
  • How to delegate to people in a way that actually empowers them
  • How to overcome time killers like procrastination, interruptions, and multitasking by turning them around and making them work for you
  • How to process workflow efficiently and get your email inbox to zero every day
  • How your work and life can transform the world socially, economically, and spiritually, and connect to god's global purposes

By anchoring your understanding of productivity in God's purposes and plan, What’s Best Nextwill give you a practical approach for increasing your effectiveness in everything you do.

©2014 Zondervan (P)2014 Zondervan

What listeners say about What's Best Next

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    3 out of 5 stars
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    2 out of 5 stars

Great ideas, poor execution

First, the praise: Perman's book has much to recommend. I love how he keeps the focus on the purpose of work: vocation, serving God by serving our neighbors. And he has some terrific insights. He clearly has read and digested much contemporary material on productivity and workflows, and has developed a system that worked well for him. I wish I had the kind of life where flexible routines and time-maps could work. My particular vocations make that a real challenge to implement, so while I tried to use the system he sets forth, it doesn't work for me. I suspect it would work well for many people, though, and I am glad to have read the book. (I bought both the Audible and Kindle versions, as I wanted to consult the text as I implemented some of the ideas.)

Criticism: Ordinarily, I like hearing the author read his own work, especially with non-fiction. No one knows it like the author. However, reading and oral communications are not among Perman's many gifts, and the book really could have used a professional in this area. Second, the author's view of the Calvinist god is so foreign to my understanding of the Scriptures and the Holy Trinity that I almost quit several times in the early stages. I'm very glad that I didn't, but a non-Calvinist may want to skip the early chapters and get to the practical matters.

A final positive note: the insight that delegation is not just getting stuff off my plate, but including others in cooperative work—that God has made us to need others—could be life changing. It's so foreign to how I've operated that this requires an entirely new mindset. I'm very grateful - that was worth the price of the book alone.

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11 people found this helpful

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    4 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars

Head and shoulders above secular productivity books

Matt Perman's approach differs so much from other productivity authors in his view of Why we should aspire to be productive; namely for the glory of God and the good of others. This should be especially important for the Christian. While benefiting from his practical advice, I found the most helpful things to be the big picture undergirding it all. You feel caught up in a much bigger story than simply "Be productive so that you feel good about yourself, become successful, and have free time to do what you want," (which is essentially how other productivity gurus attempt to motivate you). Highly recommend this book!

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4 people found this helpful

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Powerful organizational time saving take aways

Matthew Perman adds clarity to well known principles that act like multipliers to your personal effectiveness. He not only adds clarity in determining direction effectively but in an almost casual way adds statements about time saving techniques that if applied become highly effective.

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3 people found this helpful

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Theology and Pragmatism Together

Great book for helping combine theological principles with practical time management and productivity skills. This book is certainly worth an annual review.

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Excellent

This book is outstanding. It is full of practical advise and wisdom. I get the sense that he really cares about his readers and earnestly wants us to succeed in our vocation, in serving others well, and glorifying God in the day to day tasks. Definitely worth a second read. I will likely buy the hard copy as well.

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So Wonderful

I love this book! It is so enriching to hear such depth of wisdom about productivity from a godly perspective. Thank you Matt for such a wonderful resource. Praise God for your work!

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Highly recommended!

Loved it! Excellent resource and presentation. I can't recommend this resource highly enough. Perman nails it throughout. Wish I could have found this resource earlier in my career.

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Eh

A lot of good tips but not the best choice to listen to. Would be better as a paper book. For me anyway.

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Vicar's egg... good in spots

The author is strongest when he submerged to the details. Some will find the beginning somewhat tedious if they already have embraced the values he advocates. He gives great value (eventually), but it is a slog to get to it.

I would have profited more if a pro read it.

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Amazing book! Must read!

This book was a fantastic paradigm shift for me. I have read several productivity books, but this book sets productivity in the right context for living a productive Christian life.

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