The Rise of Superman: Decoding the Science of Ultimate Human Performance


Steven Kotler - 2014
    Drawing on over a decade of research and first-hand interviews with dozens of top action and adventure sports athletes such as big–wave legend Laird Hamilton, big–mountain snowboarder Jeremy Jones, and skateboarding pioneer Danny Way, Kotler explores the frontier science of “flow,” an optimal state of consciousness where we perform and feel our best.Building a bridge between the extreme and the mainstream, The Rise of Superman explains how these athletes are using flow to do the impossible and how we can use this information to radically accelerate our performance in our own lives.At its core, this is a book about profound possibility, what is actually possible for our species, and where—if anywhere—our limits lie.

Personal Development for Smart People: The Conscious Pursuit of Personal Growth


Steve Pavlina - 2008
    The truth is that hard work, courage, and self-discipline are required to achieve meaningful results—results that are not attained by those who cling to the fantasy of achievement without effort.      Personal Development for Smart People reveals the unvarnished truth about what it takes to consciously grow as a human being. As you read, you’ll learn the seven universal principles behind all successful growth efforts (truth, love, power, oneness, authority, courage, and intelligence); as well as practical, insightful methods for improving your health, relationships, career, finances, and more.You’ll see how to become the conscious creator of your life instead of feeling hopelessly adrift, enjoy a fulfilling career that honors your unique self-expression, attract empowering relationships with loving, compatible partners, wake up early feeling motivated, energized, and enthusiastic, achieve inspiring goals with disciplined daily habits and much more!      With its refreshingly honest yet highly motivating style, this fascinating book will help you courageously explore, creatively express, and consciously embrace your extraordinary human journey.

Trust Works!: Four Keys to Building Lasting Relationships


Kenneth H. Blanchard - 2013
    Trust Works! provides a common language and essential skills that can replace dissension with peace and cooperation and help us all work together productively and in harmony.In Trust Works! Ken Blanchard applies that fable to real-life situations to show anyone how to get along better with those around them. He outlines his ABCD trust model and uses it to address the factors that lead to discord, including low morale, miscommunication, poor response to problems and issues, and dysfunctional leadership.

Ride of Your Life: A Coast-to-Coast Guide to Finding Inner Peace


Ran Zilca - 2014
    Back in 2010, research scientist and entrepreneur Ran Zilca set out from his home in New York on a motorcycle, bound for California in search of the next chapter in his life. Along this soul-searching journey, he spent hundreds of hours in contemplation on the road, met with fellow travelers from all walks of life, and interviewed leading experts in research labs, spiritual centers, and temples all across the country. Six-thousand miles later, he returned home, sold his company, and moved to a different continent. Ride of Your Life chronicles this transformative journey, sharing the collective wisdom Ran learned from one-on-one discussions with spiritual leaders and researchers, including Deepak Chopra, Phil Zimbardo, and Sonja Lyubomirsky. This groundbreaking book in the field of positive psychology is part travel memoir, part spiritual compass, and a practical handbook for personal transformation. Ride of Your Life will help you awaken your dreams and answer your own calling for a happier and more meaningful life.

Carpe Diem: Seizing the Day in a Distracted World


Roman Alexander Krznaric - 2017
    One of those rare books that forces you to ask what the hell you're doing with your life. --George Monbiot, The Guardian**One of Forbes' 13 Best Books for Summer 2017**We've all heard the saying seize the day. But what does it really mean--and how can we use it to jumpstart our lives? In the age of distraction, carpe diem is more essential than ever, and yet many of us simply don't employ it in our lives.In this thought-provoking and empowering book, cultural writer Roman Krznaric unpacks the history, philosophy, and modern-day applications of seizing the day and delivers a rousing call to action for anyone who wants to improve their lives--or our world.Carpe Diem is a far-ranging read, drawing on everything from the neuropsychology of regret to the anthropology of play, from medieval carnival rites to religious conceptions of the afterlife and early Japanese cinema. Offering food for thought as well as inspiring takeaways, the book examines not just the contributions of great thinkers throughout history, but also reveals insights from the lives of great seize-the-day practitioners including nightclub dancers, war photographers, bored housewives, and committed revolutionaries--offering a wide range of solutions to the daunting challenge of leading a meaningful life.

Infinite Potential: What Quantum Physics Reveals About How We Should Live


Lothar Schäfer - 2013
    With his own research as well as that of some of the most distinguished scientists of our time, Schäfer moves us from a reality of Darwinian competition to cooperation, a meaningless universe to a meaningful one, and a disconnected, isolated existence to an interconnected one. In so doing, he shows us that our potential is infinite and calls us to live in accordance with the order of the universe, creating a society based on the cosmic principle of connection, emphasizing cooperation and community.

Guitar Zero: The New Musician and the Science of Learning


Gary F. Marcus - 2012
    Do you have to be born musical to become musical? Do you have to start at the age of six? Using the tools of his day job as a cognitive psychologist, Gary Marcus becomes his own guinea pig as he takes up the guitar. In a powerful and incisive look at how both children and adults become musical, Guitar Zero traces Marcus’s journey, what he learned, and how anyone else can learn, too. A groundbreaking peek into the origins of music in the human brain, this musical journey is also an empowering tale of the mind’s enduring plasticity. Marcus investigates the most effective ways to train body and brain to learn to play an instrument, in a quest that takes him from Suzuki classes to guitar gods. From deliberate and efficient practicing techniques to finding the right music teacher, Marcus translates his own experience—as well as reflections from world-renowned musicians—into practical advice for anyone hoping to become musical, or to learn a new skill.Guitar Zero debunks the popular theory of an innate musical instinct while simultaneously challenging the idea that talent is only a myth. While standing the science of music on its head, Marcus brings new insight into humankind’s most basic question: what counts as a life well lived? Does one have to become the next Jimi Hendrix to make a passionate pursuit worthwhile, or can the journey itself bring the brain lasting satisfaction?For all those who have ever set out to play an instrument—or wish that they could—Guitar Zero is an inspiring and fascinating look at the pursuit of music, the mechanics of the mind, and the surprising rewards that come from following one’s dreams.

How to Judge People by What They Look Like


Edward Dutton - 2018
    In this highly readable analysis of the academic research, Dutton shows that we are evolved to judge people’s psychology from what they look like, we can accurately work out people’s personality and intelligence from how they look, and (quite often) we have to if we want to survive. Body shape, hairiness, eye width, finger length, even how big a woman’s breasts are . . . Dutton shows that these, and much else, are windows into personality, intelligence, or both. Once you read How to Judge People by What They Look Like, you’ll never look at people the same again.

Digital Minimalism: Choosing a Focused Life in a Noisy World


Cal Newport - 2019
    Digital minimalism applies this idea to our personal technology. It's the key to living a focused life in an increasingly noisy world.In this timely and enlightening book, the bestselling author of Deep Work introduces a philosophy for technology use that has already improved countless lives.Digital minimalists are all around us. They're the calm, happy people who can hold long conversations without furtive glances at their phones. They can get lost in a good book, a woodworking project, or a leisurely morning run. They can have fun with friends and family without the obsessive urge to document the experience. They stay informed about the news of the day, but don't feel overwhelmed by it. They don't experience "fear of missing out" because they already know which activities provide them meaning and satisfaction.Now, Newport gives us a name for this quiet movement, and makes a persuasive case for its urgency in our tech-saturated world. Common sense tips, like turning off notifications, or occasional rituals like observing a digital sabbath, don't go far enough in helping us take back control of our technological lives, and attempts to unplug completely are complicated by the demands of family, friends and work. What we need instead is a thoughtful method to decide what tools to use, for what purposes, and under what conditions.Drawing on a diverse array of real-life examples, from Amish farmers to harried parents to Silicon Valley programmers, Newport identifies the common practices of digital minimalists and the ideas that underpin them. He shows how digital minimalists are rethinking their relationship to social media, rediscovering the pleasures of the offline world, and reconnecting with their inner selves through regular periods of solitude. He then shares strategies for integrating these practices into your life, starting with a thirty-day "digital declutter" process that has already helped thousands feel less overwhelmed and more in control.Technology is intrinsically neither good nor bad. The key is using it to support your goals and values, rather than letting it use you. This book shows the way.

The You Beyond You - The Knowledge of the Willing


Ramzi Najjar - 2020
    A process that occurs right before our eyes yet mostly goes unseen due to the many obstructions in our lives.A must-read of at least once in a lifetime, for everyone who is willing to experience the real dimension of existence and go beyond the limited norms. The book contains the tip of the iceberg of life’s nature, which one can use as a platform to unveil his full knowledge and his true potentials. No matter who we are or what our life goal is, our bad habits and unhealthy beliefs are the only reasons that trouble us in becoming the best versions of ourselves. In this book, you will embark on thorough research on how these bad habits and chaotic knowledge which are gathered through our lives get embedded in our life system and create a negative framework for our lives. You will also be set on an attitude that lets you consciously and unconsciously break free from these limitations and experience the true path where everything prospers.A guide for readers of all ages, helping them to rise to the level of their life goals. Written with the sole purpose of assisting the reader to understand how mind, body, and soul work within our environment and how these age-old beliefs and perceptions which we accumulated can be turned around, dissolved, or turned into a directed drive to flourish.Inspired by biological and psychological theories, ideas, and true-life experiences, this comprehensive guide provides you with an extraordinary life approach to reach new heights. The book will truly transform your life.After reading this book, you will be able to reflect on:• How a multitude of habits pollutes our bodies.• How to overcome thoughts and ideas that frame our minds.• How to eliminate factors that destroy mental peace.• How to take control and improve ourselves and the environment around us for self-betterment.• How to experience the real secrets of life and understand how they operate.• How to be able to use these concepts to bind reality in your way.• How to reach spiritual awakening.

The Leader's Greatest Return: Attracting, Developing, and Multiplying Leaders


John C. Maxwell - 2020
    Maxwell as he shares the most important lessons he’s learned about the leadership development process over the last quarter century.What is the greatest return on a leader’s time? After leaders have invested in their own leadership growth, what is the best way to accomplish their vision and grow their organizations? Develop other leaders! The more leaders an organization has and the better equipped they are to lead, the more successful the organization and its leaders.In the last twenty-five years, New York Times bestselling author John C. Maxwell has grown from equipping a handful of leaders in one organization to developing millions of business, government, and nonprofit leaders in every country around the world. In this book, Maxwell takes the reader step-by-step through the process of identifying, attracting, empowering, and positioning leaders to create a culture capable of then reproducing and compounding the value of its leaders.In The Leader’s Greatest Return, you will be instructed on:The Leadership Table - Create a place where people not yet leading at your level can come, be welcomed and try on leadership.The 7 Motivators - Review the seven motivators and discover what motivates each person and then lead him or her accordingly.Team Success - Use the 10-80-10 method to set people up for success and empower them to perform at a high level.Who to Grow as a Leader - Love and value everyone but use the Pareto principle to choose who to grow as a?leader.This is where leaders really experience the compounding value of developing leaders and go to the highest levels of leadership themselves. The Leader’s Greatest Return is perfect for anyone who wants to take the next step in their leadership, build their organization or team today, and create their legacy for tomorrow needs to read.

A Technique for Producing Ideas


James Webb Young - 1940
    Professionals from poets and painters to scientists and engineers have also used the techniques in this concise, powerful book to generate exciting ideas on demand, at any time, on any subject. Now let James Webb Young's unique insights help you look inside yourself to find that big, elusive idea--and once and for all lift the veil of mystery from the creative process."James Webb Young is in the tradition of some of our greatest thinkers when he describes the workings of the creative process. The results of many years in advertising have proved to him that the key element in communications success is the production of relevant and dramatic ideas. He not only makes this point vividly for us but shows us the road to that goal."--William Bernbach, Former Chairman and CEO, Doyle Dane Bernbach Inc.

Intangibles: Unlocking The Science and Soul of Team Chemistry


Joan Ryan - 2020
    As Ryan puts it, team chemistry, or the combination of biological and social forces that boosts selfless effort among more players over more days of a season, is what drives sports teams toward a common goal, encouraging the players to be the best versions of themselves. These are the elements of teams that make them "click," the ones that foster trust and respect, and push players to exceed their own potential when they work well together.Team chemistry alone won't win a World Series, but talent alone won't win it, either. And by interviewing more than 100 players, coaches, managers, and statisticians, as well as over five years of extensive research in neuroscience, biology, physiology, and psychology, Ryan proves that the social and emotional state of a team does affect performance. Grit, passion, selflessness, and effort matter -- but never underestimate the power of chemistry.

Money Success and You a New Approach to happiness and Personal Fulfillment


John Kehoe - 1990
    

Leap First: Creating Work That Matters


Seth Godin - 2015
    But secretly, do you yearn to fly higher? To challenge the rules and surprise us with something remarkable? To instigate delight, connection, and real change? To choose better over safer?Business and cultural visionary Seth Godin has transformed the terrain of marketing and commerce more than once. But many of his readers remain stuck in their own work lives. So what’s keeping us back?“The problem isn’t a lack of knowledge or skill,” he’s realized. “The problem is fear.”With Leap First, Seth Godin is here to help. This immersive audio program invites us to learn with him personally, unrehearsed and in the moment, as he shines a light for us, not with answers but with questions on the road to:• Overcoming our instinctual resistance to risk and change• Discovering our creative genius in the face of the empty page or whiteboard• Finding the courage to share that work—with vulnerability, generosity, and resultsRecorded in an intimate gathering of aspiring entrepreneurs, writers, and leaders, Leap First teaches us 49 essential principles, practices, and life lessons that have helped Seth the most in his own work and life.More than an audiobook or keynote speech, each track here presents a carefully chosen catalyst intended to trigger our own passion and insight with each listening.“It always feels too soon to leap. But you have to. Because that’s the moment between you and remarkable. I hope this helps you return to that edge. And then, to leap.”