The Listening Scene
I was reorganizing my home office - yes, on a Saturday, Jenny was thrilled - when I decided to knock out Gitomer's "Get Sh*t Done." At under four hours, I figured this was finally a business book that respects your time. My parents ran a dry cleaning business for 30 years. They got sh*t done before it had a hashtag. So I'm always skeptical when someone packages hustle into a product.
Bottom line: There's maybe 90 minutes of solid, actionable content here stretched across almost four hours. But honestly? That's better than most productivity books. At 2.0x speed, I finished it before I finished alphabetizing my client folders. (Yes, I alphabetize. Don't @ me.)
The Gitomer Experience
Here's the thing about author-narrated business books - you're getting the real deal, unfiltered. Gitomer sounds exactly like what he is: a guy who's been doing sales training since before most tech bros were born. Clear delivery. No nonsense. Also... kind of grumpy? Like your uncle at Thanksgiving who's tired of explaining why crypto isn't real money.
Some listeners find this grating. I get it. The man quotes himself. A lot. Like, he'll make a point, then reference his own book where he made that same point. It's jarring the first few times. By the fifth time, I was laughing. By the tenth, I'd made peace with it. This is just who he is.
The monotone thing is real though. If you're looking for Tony Robbins energy, you're in the wrong audiobook. Gitomer delivers information like he's reading a really important memo. Which, fair - that's basically what this book is. A memo on not being lazy. But it means you probably can't do this one at bedtime. I tried. I woke up three chapters later with no idea what happened.
What Actually Works
Okay, so here's where I'll give credit. The GSD formula he lays out? It's not revolutionary, but it's practical. This is what my parents did instinctively. Now it has a TED talk. Wake up early. Prioritize ruthlessly. Stop making excuses. Eliminate distractions. He breaks down procrastination not as a character flaw but as a habit you can systematically dismantle.
The best chapters are the ones on self-discipline and profit connection. Gitomer draws a straight line between getting things done and making money - not in a gross hustle-culture way, but in a "your time has value, act like it" way. I've seen this framework succeed at companies where I've consulted. I've also seen it fail when leadership doesn't model it. He doesn't really address that, but whatever.
Skip to the middle sections if you're already familiar with basic productivity concepts. The opening feels padded with motivation that anyone buying a book called "Get Sh*t Done" probably doesn't need. We're here. We're committed. Just tell us how.
What Might Bug You
Look, I need to be honest. If you've read more than three productivity books in your life, a lot of this will feel like a remix. Eat the frog. Time blocking. Morning routines. It's solid advice but it's not new advice. Gitomer's spin is his bluntness and his sales background, but the core concepts have been circulating since before Getting Things Done was a thing. Same deal with Good to Great—solid frameworks you've probably seen before, just packaged differently.
And the self-quoting. I mentioned it but I need to mention it again because it's... a lot. "As I said in my Little Red Book..." "In my previous work..." Sir, I bought THIS book. Can we focus?
Also - and this is minor - the audiobook is basically just him talking. No music, no production flourishes, no chapter breaks that feel distinct. Clean audio, sure. Professional, absolutely. But also kind of like listening to a long voicemail from a very organized person.
Who Should Listen (And Who Should Skip)
This is genuinely great for people who are new to productivity literature and want something direct without the fluff of a 12-hour tome. If you're a procrastinator who needs someone to basically yell at you (in a measured, slightly grumpy way) to get your act together, Gitomer delivers.
Commuters, this is your jam. Short enough for a week of drives, dense enough to feel productive while sitting in traffic. I wouldn't recommend it for workouts - the energy doesn't match - and definitely not for bedtime unless you want weird dreams about to-do lists.
Skip if you're already deep in the productivity game. You'll spend more time nodding along to things you know than learning things you don't.
Bottom Line
My 2.0x speed actually worked for this one. Gitomer's pace is deliberate enough that speeding it up just makes him sound... normal? Almost energetic? Try it.
Jenny would say I'm being harsh about the self-quoting thing. Jenny is right. But also, Jenny didn't have to listen to a man reference his own bibliography fifteen times in four hours.
The key takeaway is worth the listen. The other 3 hours? Not so much. But at least it's only 3 hours. Finally, a business book that respects your time. Mostly.
