russia has launched a full-scale war in Ukraine! Donate to the charity fund to support Ukraine and protect the world’s peace.

Support Ukraine

logo

Is Headway the right choice for you? Take the quiz and discover!

Start the quiz
library / 
book

Summary of Smarter, Faster, Better 

4.6 . 2311 reviews

Short summary

What makes a person successful? Why are some people more productive than others at work or in their personal lives? All these questions and many more are discussed in this tidbit. Charles Duhigg is a writer, an award-winning investigative reporter for the New York Times, and alumnus of Harvard Business School and Yale College; he explains the secrets of productivity in life and business and gives practical tips on how to achieve them. Charles Duhigg is also a winner of the National Academies of Sciences, National Journalism, and George Polk awards. “Productivity refers to the attempts we make to figure out the best uses of our energy, intellect, and time as we try to seize the most meaningful rewards with the least wasted effort.” ~ Charles Duhigg

Table of content

  • Summary of Smarter, Faster, Better
  • About the author
  • What is Smarter, Faster, Better about?
  • Who should read Smarter, Faster, Better
  • Topics in Smarter, Faster, Better
first key point

Everyone can be productive, but not everyone will know how to be

Listen the first key point
00:00
00:00
Every day, there is a task to accomplish, and there are many ways to do it. The distance between any given task and success is the choice you make. Our choices are an important part of life, and these choices make or mar our productivity.
Productivity is not the same every day; it’s best to appreciate your daily efforts.
You may then wonder: What is the solution? How can normal people be successful? Is success for only a fraction of the population? Well, you need not search too far for the answers to these questions.

This summary explores the 8 secrets — motivation, teams, focus, goal setting, managing others, decision making, innovation and absorbing data — that seem most important in expanding productivity. Connecting these secrets is a powerful underlying principle: productivity isn’t about working more. It’s not a product of spending longer hours at your desk or making bigger sacrifices. Productivity is about making certain choices in certain ways. This tidbit is about how to recognize the choices that fuel true productivity — how to become smarter, faster, and better at everything you do. If you continue through the following chapters, you will find out how Charles Duhigg, Pulitzer prize winner, answers all the questions you might have in more ways than one.
The way you choose to see yourself and frame daily decisions; the sense of community you build among teammates; the creative cultures you establish as a leader: These are the things that separate the merely busy from the genuinely productive. ~ Charles Duhigg
second key point

If you want to be productive in life and business, you need to stay motivated

In the past, most workers reported to a boss; now, a lot of people are self–employed or do other jobs that don’t require them to answer to a superior authority in a complex setting. This means that fewer bosses are breathing down your neck while you work, which leaves you to decide how you allocate your time and energy. It’s up to you to determine the goals you want to achieve for a set period and the decisions you will have to make to achieve them.
book
Continue reading with Headway app
Continue reading
Full summary is waiting for you in the app
third key point

Teamwork will only make the dream work if everyone feels safe enough to contribute

fourth key point

You cannot afford to lose focus if you want to be productive

fifth key point

Your goals are capable of helping you succeed, but they can also lead to failure

sixth key point

Everyone wants to feel needed — you need to make people feel safe to win their loyalty

seventh key point

There are no limits to the things you can do, so do not put your mind in a box

eighth key point

Be creative with your ideas; doing the same thing over and over again will only give you the same results

ninth key point

Take your time, understand what you need to do, then go ahead and do your best

tenth key point

Conclusion

Buy full book on AmazonContinue the summary

What is Smarter, Faster, Better about?

Who should read Smarter, Faster, Better

book
book

Enjoy summarized nonfiction bestsellers

Grasp the book’s key ideas in less than 15 minutes

Get started

Get new knowledge easily

Let’s check how many titles you can finish in a month with Headway! Tell us how much time you’d like to spend on reading:

2 min/day
5 min/day
10 min/day
15 min/day
20 min/day
30 min/day
45 min/day
4 titles/month
10 titles/month
20 titles/month
30 titles/month
40 titles/month
60 titles/month
90 titles/month
image
image
image
image
image
image
image
image
image
image
image
image
image
image
image
image
image
4 titles/month
10 titles/month
20 titles/month
30 titles/month
40 titles/month
60 titles/month
90 titles/month
image
image
image
image
image
image
image
image
image
image
image
image
image
image
image
image
image
image

Join 30+ million learners around the world

60K5 reviews on App Store and Google Play
icon

Everything you need to be motivate, to learn & to self improves is all here. I actually do appreciate the reminders because otherwise this wouldn’t work for me. Thank you

icon

sandypantalones

icon

Headway is the answer! No longer accumulating books I never read. With Headway, I initially chose the areas important to me such as productivity, time management, etc., and each day I'm provided several book summaries from which I devote 20 minutes or more each day reading. All of this on my phone! My life has improved with Headway. Truly my most useful app.

icon

Carol Slinker

icon

An excellent concept, executed well. Headway can help you retain what you've read while introducing you to the essential core of new information. It's an easier way to stay inspired, and to be reminded of the mental tools you've learned

icon

Fuse Henry

icon

In today’s world, we rarely have time. Between our jobs, our families are social obligations, when do we have time to grow and develop ourselves? Headway is an excellent app that gives you that time it gives you those little snippets of information that you need to direct your focus in on your life. Headway gives you a chance to find out the meat of a book that you might want to purchase and read or listen to in-depth without wasting a lot of time trying to figure out is this book for me? I highly recommend the app.

icon

sleepy sprite

icon

The selections are on point and the summaries are excellent! I listen while I walk my pup 🐶 and have in turn, ordered a few selections! REALLY loving the app, it’s layout, daily selections and features!

icon

JuicyBaby328

icon

I've gotten multiple books out of the library with the intent to read them, but always have a hard time finding the time. This app has helped me finally be able to get to them. Summarized, yes, and thank goodness too! Just short enough I can finish one on my way picking kids up from school/practice, or while I'm cooking dinner. I can't wait to listen to them over the summer when we visit the beach!

icon

Jillian Emmert

icon

It amazed me! There is the possibility to highlight the most important points of each book and instantly translate unfamiliar vocabulary. With the ability to review the searched words. It's a great way to learn more about English as well. The price is great.

icon

Fiamma

icon

I’m enjoying what I’m learning on headway.each summary comes with quotes at the end which you can save to help you remember key points. You can listen or read, I’ve found that reading puts me to sleep before I can finish but the listening feature keeps me engaged and I can finish in a brief amount of time if not one session.

icon

Epic waters

icon

The app it’s so easy to use. I use it while driving or cooking and is great. I love the fact that the chapters are short, so you can finish them quickly. Very knowledgeable.

icon

kathytaveras

icon

The best app for self development.It helps to keep pace with your reading and also suggests the kind of reading material you might like.It is fun as you can switch from reading to listening and vice-versa as per your convenience .Just get started and partake of the treasure of knowledge at your fingertips .I feel lucky to have spotted the app.It has helped me become self-disciplined and much better informed.The audio track is excellent.

icon

anita yadav

icon

Exactly what I need! I always have booklist to read, but can't committed enough to finish/start bc of too much pages. Headway is really helpful and concise with their summary. What I love the most is that the essence of the book is well crafted, so I don't only read the key points, but also there's the story and how personality of the author still well shown through the summary. Well done!

icon

Feninda Amalia

icon

This is outstanding best app ever and honestly whoever came up with is my app is an absolute genius kudos my gratitude definitely goes out and I’m only on my first week free trial and I’m certainly going to purchase this app annually. Now that I have it, I can’t even imagine living without it.

icon

Darlin NIKKIDOLL0923

Have questions?

Asking the right questions brings you closer to achieving your goals

Can I test out Headway before purchasing it for my team?Payment

Sure, we will gladly give you access to our app for a certain period if you are interested in purchasing a corporate subscription for your team. Please fill out the form on the website or email partners@makeheadway.com. We will get back to you soon.

What should I do if some of my employees already have your Premium subscription?Payment

Sure, we will gladly give you access to our app for a certain period if you are interested in purchasing a corporate subscription for your team. Please fill out the form on the website or email partners@makeheadway.com. We will get back to you soon.

Can I increase or decrease the number of subscriptions on my corporate subscription once it’s started?Payment

Sure, we will gladly give you access to our app for a certain period if you are interested in purchasing a corporate subscription for your team. Please fill out the form on the website or email partners@makeheadway.com. We will get back to you soon.

What are the benefits of books summary?

Do you find yourself staring at your computer for long minutes, unaware of time slipping by? Do you enter a room and suddenly cannot remember why you stepped in the first place? Is it a herculean task for you to sit through ten pages of a book without reaching for your phone? If yes, your focus needs some work and fast.

Actually, yours is not a unique situation. Many adults like you have issues concentrating on a given task. However, in this fast-paced world of ours, you can’t afford to be not focused at all times. Thankfully, this article comes to your rescue! With the tips and tricks from Hyperfocus by Chris Bailey, you will get in the top percent of folks who have mastered the art of concentration.

Do you find yourself staring at your computer for long minutes, unaware of time slipping by? Do you enter a room and suddenly cannot remember why you stepped in the first place? Is it a herculean task for you to sit through ten pages of a book without reaching for your phone? If yes, your focus needs some work and fast.

Actually, yours is not a unique situation. Many adults like you have issues concentrating on a given task. However, in this fast-paced world of ours, you can’t afford to be not focused at all times. Thankfully, this article comes to your rescue! With the tips and tricks from Hyperfocus by Chris Bailey, you will get in the top percent of folks who have mastered the art of concentration.