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Sometimes the fastest way forward starts with a pause.

In our hyper-paced world, today’s teams face relentless demands, endless distractions and intense pressure to deliver more with fewer resources and in less time. Overwhelmed with an endless stream of tasks and the constant ping of emails, our workplaces leave our teams buried in chaos, while we as managers unintentionally scatter our employees’ efforts with unclear priorities and the pressure to overcommit.

Now, in Pause, speaker and consultant Shawn Vanderhoven turns conventional thinking about productivity and leadership on its head. Drawing from the latest research and real-world insights from top-performing teams at industry giants like Amazon, Google and LinkedIn, Vanderhoven reveals that the most effective leaders don’t chase action for action’s sake. Instead, they pause.

In Pause, Vanderhoven explores how to effectively filter out all the noise - from magnifying what matters most by identifying truly urgent tasks to buffering out busy through reducing common distractions like excessive emails - so your team can finally focus on the right priorities at the right time.

Pause is the counterintuitive approach to productivity you need, to unlock your team’s highest potential through slowing down.

© Shawn Vanderhoven 2026 (P) Penguin Audio 2026