This column will change your life: underachieving For obvious reasons, it's entirely appropriate that a book entitled The Underachiever's Manifesto never really became a huge seller. Written by an American doctor named Ray Bennett – not the kind of doctor whom I'd necessarily want if I had a life-threatening illness – it vanished soon after its debut, in 2006. Now, though, its publishers have finally got it together to release it as an ebook in Britain, so you can download it. I mean, if you like. Subtitled The Guide To Accomplishing Little And Feeling Great, Bennett's short treatise seems at first like another of those jokey-but-unfunny gift books they sold by the tills at Borders, back before Borders itself stopped achieving. Partly, that's just because moderation's often best. This column has previously extolled the virtues of "deliberate mediocrity" as a strategy for beating perfectionism.
Things to worry about When he wasn’t busy writing some of the most critically lauded and enduring novels of the 20th Century, The Great Gatsby author F. Scott Fitzgerald could often be found penning the most fascinating of letters to such famous characters as his good friend, Ernest Hemingway; editor extraordinaire, Maxwell Perkins; and his wife and fellow author, Zelda—to name but a few. However, no letters are more revealing, or indeed endearing, than those written to his daughter, Scottie, many of which see him imparting wisdom in a way only he could. This particular letter of advice, written to Scottie while she was away at camp and still just 11 years of age, is a perfect example. (Source: F. La Paix, Rodgers' Forge Towson, MarylandAugust 8, 1933Dear Pie:I feel very strongly about you doing duty.
Charles Munger: A Lesson on Elementary, Worldly Wisdom As It Relates To Investment Management & Business I’m going to play a minor trick on you today because the subject of my talk is the art of stock picking as a subdivision of the art of worldly wisdom. That enables me to start talking about worldly wisdom—a much broader topic that interests me because I think all too little of it is delivered by modern educational systems, at least in an effective way. And therefore, the talk is sort of along the lines that some behaviorist psychologists call Grandma’s rule after the wisdom of Grandma when she said that you have to eat the carrots before you get the dessert. The carrot part of this talk is about the general subject of worldly wisdom which is a pretty good way to start. After all, the theory of modern education is that you need a general education before you specialize. So, emphasizing what I sometimes waggishly call remedial worldly wisdom, I’m going to start by waltzing you through a few basic notions. What is elementary, worldly wisdom? You’ve got to have models in your head.
Why willpower matters – and how to get it In the smart restaurant of a very smart hotel in the West End of London, Roy F Baumeister, eminent American social psychology professor, orders a lunch of fish and chips, and then decides not to eat the chips. "I won't eat something that's not good for me unless it's absolutely perfect, and it's going to give me real pleasure," he says. "I'm afraid ... Well, it just didn't look like these were going to do either." What willpower, you might say. You'd be right; the chips looked pretty good. Willpower: Rediscovering Our Greatest Strength distills three decades of academic research (Baumeister's contribution) into self-control and willpower, which the Florida State University social psychologist bluntly identifies as "the key to success and a happy life". The result is also (Tierney's contribution) readable, accessible and practical. Willpower is, Baumeister argues over lunch, "what separates us from the animals. But without willpower, it seems, we're actually rarely OK.
Fallacy List 1. FAULTY CAUSE: (post hoc ergo propter hoc) mistakes correlation or association for causation, by assuming that because one thing follows another it was caused by the other. example: A black cat crossed Babbs' path yesterday and, sure enough, she was involved in an automobile accident later that same afternoon. example: The introduction of sex education courses at the high school level has resulted in increased promiscuity among teens. 2. example: Muffin must be rich or have rich parents, because she belongs to ZXQ, and ZXQ is the richest sorority on campus. example: I'd like to hire you, but you're an ex-felon and statistics show that 80% of ex-felons recidivate. 3. example: All of those movie stars are really rude. 4. example: What's the big deal about the early pioneers killing a few Indians in order to settle the West? 5. 6. example: Either you favor a strong national defense, or you favor allowing other nations to dictate our foreign policy. example: It’s not TV. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11.
25 Beautifully Illustrated Thought-Provoking Questions A question that makes you think is worth asking… At the cusp of a new day, week, month, or year, most of us take a little time to reflect on our lives by looking back over the past and ahead into the future. We ponder the successes, failures and standout events that are slowly scripting our life’s story. If you would like to maximize the benefits of self reflection, our new sister site, Thought Questions, is for you. Remember, these questions have no right or wrong answers. Here’s a sample of 25 recent thought questions posted on the site: Thought Questions is updated daily. Title photo by: Oberazzi For all other photo credits please refer to ThoughtQuestions.com Related 6 Questions that Will Save Your Relationships When you don't ask sincere questions and talk it out, there's a lot of important stuff that ends up never getting said. May 21, 2014 In "Life" 20 Questions You Should Ask Yourself Every Sunday July 24, 2008 In "Hacks" 40 Photo-Illustrated Questions to Refocus Your Mind
Self-Image Is The Key To Success In Business And In Life “There are no limitations to the mind except those we acknowledge."--Napoleon Hill It has been conclusively demonstrated that individuals who expect to succeed at a given venture are more likely to do so than those who expect to fail. Positive expectations work as a sort of self-fulfilling prophecy--those who expect to succeed are more likely to do so, thus maintaining and reinforcing their expectation for success. Today, we are going to take this analysis one step further and address the underlying cause of these expectations. The expectations we have for ourselves are largely determined by our self-image. If you consider yourself a slow learner, chances are you will remain so. If you believe that you cannot learn a foreign language, you aren’t likely to do so. If you believe that you can’t grow a profitable business, chances are that you never will. As Henry Ford once said, “If you think you can or think you can’t, you’re right.” Don’t dwell on negativity. Step out of your comfort zone.
Lisa Chase Parenting Advice: My Father’s Magical Parenting Last year my mother died, and I became an orphan at 47. To paraphrase a friend, it was like the roof had flown off the house. Since then I've felt both unhinged (no more calling up the chain of command for advice: suddenly, I am the command) and at the same time, with no superstructure above, I've felt free, even occasionally euphoric, about the possibilities. Maybe this is why I lately find myself trying to conjure not my mother, but my father, who died 27 years ago. My mother was about home truths: Choose a college major that will translate immediately into a job, be prepared to work your way up, and don't ever lie—these were the lessons she gave my younger sister and me. But my dad—because he died when I was young, because he and my mother divorced when I was still younger and I then saw him only a few times a year, because of the brew of wild and blue inside him (which, in hindsight, was almost certainly a manic-depressive disorder)—he remains a thrilling mystery to me. I said yes.
50 Life Secrets and Tips Memorize something everyday.Not only will this leave your brain sharp and your memory functioning, you will also have a huge library of quotes to bust out at any moment. Poetry, sayings and philosophies are your best options.Constantly try to reduce your attachment to possessions.Those who are heavy-set with material desires will have a lot of trouble when their things are taken away from them or lost. Possessions do end up owning you, not the other way around. Become a person of minimal needs and you will be much more content.Develop an endless curiosity about this world.Become an explorer and view the world as your jungle. Stop and observe all of the little things as completely unique events. Try new things. Read “Zen and the Art of Happiness” by Chris Prentiss.This book will give you the knowledge and instruction to be happy at all times regardless of the circumstances.
25 Acts of Body Language to Avoid Our body language exhibits far more information about how we feel than it is possible to articulate verbally. All of the physical gestures we make are subconsciously interpreted by others. This can work for or against us depending on the kind of body language we use. Some gestures project a very positive message, while others do nothing but set a negative tone. Most people are totally oblivious to their own body language, so the discipline of controlling these gestures can be quite challenging. Most of them are reflexive in nature, automatically matching up to what our minds are thinking at any given moment. Nevertheless, with the right information and a little practice, we can train ourselves to overcome most of our negative body language habits. Practice avoiding these 25 negative gestures: “ I speak two languages, Body and English. ” — Mae West Holding Objects in Front of Your Body – a coffee cup, notebook, hand bag, etc. Want to know powerful, dominant, confident body language postures?