The World's Best Book Summaries
Do you feel uneasy stepping outside your boundaries? How can you expand your comfort zone? To use adversity as an opportunity to grow, William B. Irvine recommends that you undergo training that expands your comfort zone. It might sound scary to look for uncomfortable situations, but it’s necessary to experience delight in a wide range of situations. Discover how to expand your comfort zone below.
What are the four types of information the brain consumes? What’s the difference between interpretations and inaccurate information? Mo Gawdat says there are four main categories of information that the brain takes in: sensory information, interpretations, recurring thoughts and emotions, and inaccurate takes. Your brain reacts differently to every type, so you must consume the right kind of information. Here are details about the four types of information.
Why should you stop trying to be perfect? How does perfectionism knock you off your road to success? It’s easy to get mired on the road to success if you expect your achievements to live up to your dreams in every perfect detail. Perfectionists, especially in creative fields, often feel stymied when their work doesn’t live up to their very high personal standards. Learn how Adam Alter frames the escape from the perfectionism trap in three different ways.
What are the most basic human survival instincts? When do these survival instincts kick in? Human survival instincts tell us to fear and avoid something, to protect something, or to want something better. Mo Gawdat says these instincts can be problematic because they cause us unnecessary levels of stress and dissatisfaction. Let’s discuss each of these faulty instincts, how they function, and what happens when we use them to process information.
Do you know how to check yourself? How are you perceiving and reacting to the world around you? By consistently checking yourself, you’re ensuring that only accurate information is given to your brain. You’ll also guarantee that you’re solving problems effectively and handling ruminative thoughts. Author Mo Gawdat provides a few methods to check yourself.
Is stress preventing you from being successful? Do you get anxious when making difficult decisions? When you feel like you’ve hit an impasse, you need to center yourself and calmly evaluate your situation. The anxiety that feeling trapped provokes can lead to rash and reckless decisions. Adam Alter says the antidote is to slow down even more, taking stock of your options as you do. Alter offers several stress relief strategies to deal with the anxiety brought about by feeling trapped or stuck.
What’s a flow state of mind? How do you get into this state of “flow?” One of Mo Gawdat’s tips to program your brain for happiness is to get into a flow state of mind. Flow is a state of intense, uninterrupted focus where your overall performance soars. Here’s how to achieve the flow state of mind so your environment fades into the background.
Do you know how to cope with failure? What can you learn from failure? Handling obstacles poorly and not persevering through difficult times will set you up for failure, not success. However, certain types of “failure” that we’ve learned to stigmatize are actually crucial stepping stones along your path. Below, Adam Alter suggests some new ways to approach failure.
What part of the brain causes depression? What’s the difference between the right and left side of the brain? Author Mo Gawdat explains that a processing error in the brain occurs when we use the wrong side of our brain to process information. Overusing the left side of the brain can cause you to overanalyze things and block emotions, which leads to depression. Read more to learn why left-brain dominance can cause mental health problems.
What are the two types of denial? What are ways you may delay reaching your goals? One certain thing is that, no matter what your goals are in life, something will get in your way. Though unforeseeable circumstances are, by definition, unpredictable, you can predict that something will go wrong and prepare yourself so you won’t get stopped indefinitely. Keep reading to learn about two types of denial that make it hard to move forward in life.