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12 min 47 sec
Available in:Englishไทย

Get Your Sh*t Together: A No F*cks Given Guide

A blunt, funny guide to finally following through. It shows how to trade impossible goals for realistic ones and turn them into small, repeatable tasks for your time, home, health, worries, career and relationship.

Table of Content

If your to-do list keeps growing while your goals keep slipping, the trouble may be the size of the goals rather than your discipline. In Get Your Sh*t Together, Sarah Knight argues that most of us fail because we aim at targets we were never going to hit, then punish ourselves for missing them. Her fix is blunt and practical. Choose a change that would improve your real life, cut it into small pieces, and do a little of it every day.

That single method runs through everything that follows. Knight applies it to every corner of an ordinary week: the calendar, the messy kitchen, the gym bag, the anxious inbox, the talk with your boss and the person you share a home with. Each area gets the same treatment, scaled down until it fits. What you get is a set of small moves you can begin tonight, with no personality transplant and no free weekend required.

A goal can be so ambitious that it pushes you off the treadmill and onto the couch. Knight explains how the wrong finish line sabotages effort, and what to aim at instead.

Feeling permanently short of time usually sounds like a fact about your life. Knight treats it as a measurement problem, and her fix begins with a stopwatch and an ordinary week.

The house is spotless on Sunday and a mess again by Tuesday. Knight’s way out skips the heroic weekend clean and starts with a test involving your neighbors at the door.

Everyone tells you to think positive about getting fit. Knight suggests the opposite, and pairs it with the story of how she stopped punishing herself and still stayed in shape.

Some anxious moments only end when you face them. Others get worse the faster you react. Knight offers two opposite strategies, and the trick is knowing which moment you are in.

Many people spend years trying to guess what their manager wants before they get promoted. Knight recommends one direct conversation, and explains why even a disappointing answer leaves you better off.

Being as accommodating as possible sounds like the way to keep a partner happy. Knight proposes a contest instead, and explains why a stocked freezer can beat a yearly grand gesture.

What Knight really offers is permission to aim lower and finish more. Her book treats a well-run life as a chain of small promises you can actually keep, whether the promise is twenty minutes of laundry, a night’s sleep before answering an email or a tub of ice cream waiting in the freezer. The grand plan that collapses by Wednesday can do more damage than no plan at all, because the disappointment invites you to quit.

The method travels well because it is the same everywhere. Choose a change that would make your own days better, measured against your body, your schedule and your situation. Find the time it really needs by timing what you already do. Then break it into pieces small enough to repeat without drama, and keep repeating them.

If you start anywhere, start with one area. Pick the chore, the stretch, the question for your boss or the kindness for your partner that feels most overdue. Give it a fixed slot this week, and protect that slot.

Consistency, in Knight’s telling, is the whole trick. A little, done often, outlasts a lot done once.

About this book

What is this book about?

Most people know the cycle: a big goal, a few days of effort, then failure and a round of self-blame. Whether the target is a cleaner house, a promotion or a fitter body, the plan collapses long before the result arrives, and even everyday routines can feel like more than a day can hold. Sarah Knight argues that the problem is usually the goal itself. We aim at standards we were never going to meet, then quit when we miss them. Her alternative is plain: choose a change that would make a real difference in your own life, measure how you actually spend your time, and split the work into small pieces you can repeat. She applies that method across a whole life. Readers get 20-minute chore rotations, a way to use negative feelings as fitness fuel, two opposite strategies for anxiety, the one question to ask your boss about promotion and a loving competition that keeps a romance alive. The result is a practical, unpretentious toolkit for people who are tired of starting over.

Book Information

Rating:

Genre:

Personal Development, Productivity & Time Management

Topics:

Goal Setting, Habits, Time Management

Publisher:

Hachette

Language:

English, ไทย

Narrator:

Hannah

First published:

December 27, 2016

Pages:

304

Length:

12 min 47 sec

Get the book:

Amazon

Who it's for

  • Quitting resolutions by February

    People who set big goals every January and abandon them by February.

  • Professionals pressed for time

    Busy professionals who feel they never have time for the gym, the housework or a new skill.

  • Wanting promotion or closeness

    Employees hoping for a promotion, and partners who want their relationship to feel cared for again.

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About the Author

Sarah Knight

Sarah Knight writes self-help and personal development books in a candid, humorous voice. Her No F*cks Given Guides series includes The Magic of Not Giving a F*ck, Get Your Sh*t Together and You Do You. She has also given a TEDx Talk called The Magic of Not Giving a F*ck, bringing her direct, practical approach to a wider audience.

Ratings & Reviews

Ratings at a glance

4

Overall score based on 453 ratings.

What people think

Listeners find the guide offers actionable tips and is straightforward to digest, serving as an effective motivational tool. They enjoy the comedic tone, with one listener highlighting its effectiveness for goal-setting, and feel it is well worth the investment. The concepts and the author’s caliber garner favorable reviews. However, response to the pacing is mixed, as several listeners find the material tedious.

Top reviews

Sirinat

Ever wonder why you can't seem to finish a project even when you have all the tools? Knight explains that it's because your 'self' gets in the way of your 'help.' This book was a total game-changer for my productivity levels this year. I love her aggressive, hilarious tone because it feels like a real friend telling you to stop complaining and start doing. The 'must-do' vs 'want-to-do' list strategy helped me clear my calendar of things that were just weighing me down. It’s easily worth the price for the chapter on perfectionism alone. If you're easily offended by bad language, look elsewhere, but if you want practical advice delivered with a side of snark, this is the one. I feel much more in control of my daily steamroller now.

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Fatou

The chapter on 'relationship relays' was a total revelation for my household dynamics and justified the whole book. We often struggle with who is doing what, and her 'who can be nicer' approach actually changed how my partner and I interact. I appreciate that Knight shares her own struggles with mental health and anxiety attacks. It makes the advice feel hard-won and authentic rather than just some polished corporate speech. Winning is just getting what you want out of your time on Earth, and she gives you the roadmap to do that. The humor had me snort-laughing out loud on the train, particularly the chipmunk analogy. Highly recommended for people who usually hate the self-help genre but desperately need some structure.

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Prasarn

Look, if you already have your life perfectly curated on a Pinterest board, move along. This book is for the rest of us who are currently staring at a mountain of laundry and a looming deadline. Sarah Knight’s 'let-me-help-you-help-yourself' attitude is exactly what I needed to stop procrastinating. The advice about spending money on professional help if you have more money than time was a huge permission slip for me to delegate. It’s an easy read, very motivational, and actually provides a framework for tackling big renovation projects or career changes. I’ve already recommended it to three friends who are also struggling with the 'mental load' of modern life. It’s funny, functional, and surprisingly deep when she talks about accepting failure as an option. Five stars!

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Ava

Sarah Knight isn’t for the faint of heart, but her no-nonsense approach to goal-setting actually works if you can get past the profanity. I personally loved the section on 'Just say no to being perfect.' As a perfectionist, I often find myself paralyzed by the fear of failure, and her advice to move failure into the realm of reality rather than abstract anxiety was helpful. The book is very easy to read and follow, which is exactly what you want when your brain is already overwhelmed. I’ve started using her method of timing my tasks to see how long things actually take, and it has been eye-opening. Not every chapter hit the mark, and some of the humor felt forced, but the practical tools like the flow charts made it worth the purchase.

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Ray

Finally got around to reading this follow-up and I have to say it’s much more grounded than her previous work. While 'Not Giving a F*ck' was about clearing the mental deck, this one is about actually building something on it. The way she breaks down the 'Game of Life' into competing against yourself rather than others is a great perspective. I found the advice on being a better partner through the 'relationship relay' to be surprisingly sweet and applicable. Gotta say, she does repeat herself a lot, which can get annoying if you're reading it in one sitting. However, for someone with a busy schedule, it makes it easy to jump in and out of. It’s a solid, irreverent guide to getting your life organized without the typical 'sunshine and kittens' fluff.

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Owen

Frankly, I needed a kick in the pants and Knight provided exactly that without the usual spiritual nonsense. Her comparison to the Marie Kondo method was spot on—tidying doesn't stick if your life is still a mess beneath the surface. I enjoyed the focus on prioritizing by due date and the 'must-do' list which actually keeps things manageable. To be fair, she uses the word 'sh*t' about 300 times, so you have to be okay with that vibe. Some parts felt a little repetitive, especially the first few chapters which seemed to circle the same drain. But once she gets into the meat of the strategy, it’s incredibly useful. It's a great book for anyone who feels like they are constantly drowning in 'urgent' tasks that aren't actually important.

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Chanpen

After hearing so much hype about the 'Anti-Guru,' I expected something a bit more revolutionary than just making a prioritized list. The truth is, the advice is solid but incredibly basic. Knight’s writing style is a rapid-fire chatter that might appeal to some, but I found it a bit exhausting after the first fifty pages. I did appreciate the sections on dealing with anxiety and perfectionism, as it made her feel more human and less like a shouting head. However, the constant 'sh*tmanteaus' grew tired quickly. It’s a decent motivational read if you are in a deep rut and need someone to aggressively tell you to get moving. Just don't expect any deep 'life-changing' wisdom that you haven't already seen on a motivational poster.

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Chai

Picked this up during a particularly messy week where I felt like my life was a total dumpster fire. I opted for the audio version, and I think that helped because Knight’s personality really shines through the narration. She manages to convey important messages with a lot of wit, even if those messages are things we already know we should be doing. The focus on 'strategize, focus, commit' is a good framework, but the book definitely suffers from being overlong. I feel like she could have cut 100 pages and not lost a single piece of actual advice. It’s a useful reminder to stay on task, especially for younger people struggling with the 'adulting' curve. It’s not a masterpiece, but it’s a functional kick in the pants when you need it.

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Wachira

Why does every self-help author feel the need to reinvent the wheel with swear words? Knight is clearly an acquired taste, but for me, she comes off as an overbearing and self-centered blowhole who can't stop talking about her own success. The book is padded out with so many cutesy anecdotes that the actual substance is buried under a mountain of fluff. I found the pacing incredibly boring because she spends thirty pages explaining a concept that takes five seconds to understand. You set a goal, you find the time, and you do it. That is the entire philosophy. I’m kicking myself for wasting my time on this 'trash' when there are much better options available. If you enjoy being yelled at by someone who thinks cussing makes them a rock star, have at it.

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Charles

This book is basically a 300-page expansion of a single sticky note. I was hoping for actual psychological insights, but instead, I got the groundbreaking revelation that I should break big tasks into smaller pieces. Really? I spent money to be told that if I want to find a new job, I should probably look for one? The repetition is absolutely staggering as the author spends chapters paraphrasing her own introduction. To be fair, if you have never heard of a to-do list or a calendar, this might be a revelation. For the rest of us, it’s a transparent money grab riding the coattails of her previous success. The forced swearing feels like a desperate attempt to stay edgy while delivering advice your grandmother gave you twenty years ago. Save your cash and just Google 'how to manage time' for free.

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Questions about this book

Knight argues that most people fail because their goals are unrealistic, not because they lack willpower. Her method is to choose a change that would genuinely improve your own life, measure how you actually spend your time, and break the goal into small tasks you repeat consistently. She applies this approach to time management, housework, fitness, anxiety, career progress and romantic relationships.

She starts with one modest decluttering session, aiming only for a home you would not be embarrassed to show unexpected neighbors. Then you sort every chore into categories, such as toys, laundry, bins and vacuuming, and tackle one or two categories every other day in roughly 20-minute sessions. Spreading the work out keeps any single day from turning into hours of piled-up chores.

Knight recommends two things. First, project confidence by copying the simple habits of colleagues who seem capable, such as a cheerful, steady manner and clean clothes. Second, ask your boss directly what you would need to do to reach a specific role, like director. Even if the answer is that no path exists, you learn that it is time to look for a job where you can progress.

Beyond seeing a medical professional, Knight offers two opposite strategies. For situations that only you can resolve, such as telling a housemate you are moving out, act quickly and get the dreaded conversation over with. For situations that may resolve themselves, such as an ambiguous email from your boss, deliberately do nothing and sleep on it, since the problem often looks harmless the next day.

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