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What's inside the Library
Switching Off
Digital Minimalism, Stoicism & Stillness, Taking Breaks, How To Do Nothing, The Value In Recharging, “Unfocusing”, Daydreaming, Walks & Creativity, Ideas In The Shower
Constraints
“Messy” Situations, Embracing Our “Shakes”, Obstacles & Opportunities, “Stretching” Mindset, “Can-If Thinking”, Being The Underdog, Laws Of Subtraction, Resourcefulness
Emotional Literacy
Identifying Emotions, Emotional Agility, Emotional Granularity, Labelling Emotions, Affective Labelling,
Emotional Vocabulary, Name It To Tame It, The Feelings Wheel, Mindfulness Of Current Events (Or ...
Square Eyes
Social Media, “Stolen Focus”, Tech & The Brain, “Irresistable” Tech, Why Tech Is Addictive, Managing Distraction, Digital Minimalism, “The Social Dilemma”, Dopamine & Apps
Easy As…
“Effortless”, Rethinking Hard Work, What If It Was Easy?, Trying Not To Try, Wu Wei & Taoism, “Don’t Try”, The 80/20 Principle, The Backwards ...
Critical Inner Voice
Managing “Chatter”, Sub-Personalities, Attachment, Quietening Hostile Voices, Origins Of Inner Critic, Negative Identities, Self-Compassion, Automatic Thoughts, The Role Of Shame
Under Pressure
Upside Of Stress, Stoicism & Stress, Mastering Stress, “Choking” Under Pressure, Nerves Vs Excitement, Anxiety Reappraisal, Yerkes-Dodson Law, Beating Overwhelm, Time Anxiety
Forgiveness
Rage & Forgiveness, Finding Closure, Letting It Hurt & Heal, Perspective & Acceptance, Forcing Forgiveness, Allowing For Time, Transcending Pain, Forgiveness & Recovery, Inability To ...
Dark Night of The Soul
Navigating The Dark Night, Ego Death, Hero’s Journey, Identity Death & Rebirth, Wake Up Call, Doing The Work, Chaos Cycles, Spiritual Crisis
Nervous System
Mastering Nervous System, Polyvagal Theory, Disregulation, Vagus Nerve, Fight Or Flight Response, Hypervigilance, Freeze Response, Parasympathetic Response, How To Feel Safe
Decisions
Fast Decisions & FOMO, Life’s Big Decisions, Being “Farsighted”, Tapping Intuition, The Art Of Choosing, The Expansion Test, Logic, Instinct & Action, Hidden Biases, Decision ...
Dopamine
Dopamine Nation, Science Of Dopamine, Focus & Motivation, Molecule Of More, Dopamine Fasting, Controlling Dopamine, Apps & Social Media, Chasing Dopamine, The Power Of ...
Hero(ine)’s Journey
The Hero’s Journey, The Key Steps, The Heroine’s Journey, The Artist’s Journey, Treasure in Dark Places, Myth As A Guide, Facing Setbacks, Rites Of Passage, ...
Early Years
Attachment & Authenticity, Early Life Stress, Upbringing & DNA, Adverse Experiences, The ACEs Study, Still Face Experiment, Signs Of Early Trauma, Healing Inner Child, ...
Acting As If
The Alter Ego Effect, As If Principle, Embodied Cognition, Attitude & Aging, Acting Younger, Posture & Posing, The Batman Effect, Changing How We Feel
Creative Block
Writer’s Block Fallacy, Writing A Book, Action & Momentum, Fear, Structure & Tenacity, Creating A Breakthrough, How To Make It Easier, Morning Pages, Design Thinking, ...
If Only…
Power Of Regret, “Bittersweet” Longing, Brooding Alternatives, Accepting The Past, Counterfactual Thinking, “Time Perspectives”, Past Authoring, Constructive Wallowing, Rumination
Meaning
The Meaning Crisis, Antidote To Hardship, What Really Matters, Lessons From The Holocaust, Meaning Vs Happiness, Eradicating Meaningless, Finding Our Own Meaning, Ikigai Recipe For ...
Scarcity & Lack
Scarcity Brains, The Cult Of “More”, The Gap & The Gain, How Much Is Enough, Money Relationships, What We Actually Need, Relative Deprivation, Our Money ...
Catastrophic
Hopelessness, Catastrophic Thinking, Tackling "Thinking Traps", Learned Helplessness, How We Interpret Bad Events, Overcoming Despair, Doomer Tendencies, Doom-Scrolling, Complex Trauma
Alcohol
Alcohol As A Drug, Alternatives To Drinking, Impact On Health, Effect On Sleep, Choosing Sobriety, One Year, No Beer, How Quitting Feels, The Easy Way ...
Sugar
Everyday Poison, Why We Crave It, Link With Cancer, Impact Of Fructose, Link With Alzheimer’s, Accelerated Aging, Balancing Glucose, Quitting Sugar, 60 Days Of ...
Happiness
Antifragility, The Blue Zones, The Happiness Equation, Chasing Happiness, Stoicism & Happiness, Minimalism, The Happiness Project, The Hedonic Treadmill, Spontaneous Happiness
The Difficult Years
Obstacles & Opportunities, Alive Vs Dead Time, The Messy Middle, Navigating “The Dip”, Handling Setbacks, Reframing Problems, “The Long Game”, When To Quit
Gratitude
Thanking A Thousand, Happiness From Gratitude, Gratitude & The Brain, Receiving Thanks, Impact On Physiology, Gratitude In Hard Times, Transforming Ourselves, Priming & Gratitude, Why ...
Taking Action
"Smarter, Faster, Better", Getting Things Done, Slow Productivity, Productivity Tricks, Stoicism & Productivity, Do Something Principle, Clarity Via Action, Two-Minute Rule, The Zeigarnik Effect
Imagination
Visualising Goals, Learning Via Visualisation, Imagination & The Brain, Vision Boards & The Brain, Imagination & Visualisation In Sport, Expanding What’s Possible, Aphantasia, Blind Man’s ...
I Can Do It
Growth Mindset, Figuring It Out, Expectations, Grit & Growth Mindset, “Can-If” Thinking, Being Open To Possibility, “Get Better” Mindset, Tackling Failure
Clarity
Stoicism & “Stillness”, Emptying Our Heads, Taking Action, Clear Thinking & Decisions, Clarity Habits & Routines, How To Clear Brain Fog, Knowing What We Want, ...
Aging
Why We Age, The Telomere Effect, “Super Longevity”, Longevity Genes, Extending Lifespans, Sleep & Aging Well, Exercise & Aging, Aging Well, Naturally, Aging & ...
Resilience
Stoicism & Resilience, Dealing With Grief, “Supersurviving”, The Stockdale Paradox, Resilient Mindsets, Doing Hard Things, Thinking Traps, Emotional Resilience, Nine Steps To Resilience
Procrastination
The “Do Something Principle”, Why We’re Waiting, Solving Procrastination, Role Of The Ego, Delay As Stress Relief, Our Use Of Time, Timing Things Right, Procrastinating ...
Confidence
Ego Vs Confidence, “F*ck Your Mood”, The Confident Mind, Mastery & Confidence, Accepting Failure, Confidence Myths, Gaining Experience, The Confidence Code, Brain Hacks
Archetypes
The Parts That Live Inside Us, Internal Family Systems, Alter Egos, Trauma & Fragmentation, Archetypes In Our Lives, Symphony Of Selves, Id, Ego & Supergo, ...
Self-Sabotage
What Drives Self-Sabotage, Self-Protection, Self-Sabotaging Habits, Underlying Beliefs, Upper Limit Problems, Self-Handicapping, How We Can Stop, Roots Of Self-Destruction
Rage
Reframing Anger, The Roots Of Anger, Channelling Anger, Need For Assertiveness, The Upside Of Anger, Healing Anger, Anger As Motivation, Getting “Hooked”, Releasing Resentment
Closure
Writing About The Past, “The Last Word”, Expressive Writing, What Doesn’t Serves Us, How To Move On, What Closure Is, Ambiguous Loss, Getting Over ...
Stories
How We Are Unreliable Narrators, Ego Stories, “The Work”, Narrative Identity, Identity Shifting, Reconstructing Pasts, Reframing Stories, Stories Around Grief, Narrative Psychology
Journalling
Stoicism & Journalling, Getting A Clear Head, Improving Our Thinking, 30-Day Experiments, Bullet Journal Method, Self-Authoring, Morning Pages, Fostering Positivity, Expressive Writing
Luck & Opportunity
Principles Of Luck, Weak Ties, Serendipity Mindset, Seizing Opportunities, Lessons From Poker, Taking Small Risks, Being Prepared, Self-Fulfilling Prophecy
Dreams
Why We Dream, Neuroscience Of Dreaming, How We Learn & Forget, Lucid Dreaming, Nightmares, Recurring Dreams, Healing Power Of Dreams, Hypnagogia, Remembering Dreams
Relax, Unwind
The Art Of Rest, Deliberate Rest, Yoga Nidra (NSDR), The Relaxation Response, Powering Down, Stoicism & Stillness, Niksen (Doing Nothing), Progressive Muscle Relaxation
Uncertainty
Fear Of The Unknown, Embracing Uncertainty, Certainty As An Illusion, Experimental Mindset, Gateway To Possibility, Creativity & Uncertainty, Facing The Unknown, “Poking The Box”, The ...
Ego & Pride
Ego Is The Enemy, Ego & Creativity, Success & Humility, Ego Stories, Ego Defense Mechanisms, Authentic Pride, Keeping Ego In Check, Ego Work, Id, Ego ...
Target
Setting & Achieving Goals, Stretch & SMART Goals, Visualising End Result, Thinking Big, Top Level Goals, Being Realistic, Goals Vs Systems, The WOOP Technique, Rules ...
Baby Steps
Getting 1% Better A Day, Keeping It Small & Simple, Do Something Principle, The Progress Principle, Taking Small Steps, Celebrating Small Wins, Incremental Improvement, The ...
Discipline
Stoicism & Discipline, Science Of Discipline, The Ulysses Contract, The Marshmallow Test, Self-Control, The Willpower Instinct, Temptation & Hot States, Temptation Bundling, If-Then Planning
Me, Myself & I
Self-Compassion, Being There For Ourselves, True Self Acceptance, Affirming Values, Self-Confidence Vs Ego, Feeling Enough, Embracing Disowned Parts, Having Our Own Backs, Healthy Self-Esteem
Limerence
Romantic Obsession & Us, Childhood Neglect, Trying To Escape Our Lives, Attachment & Infatuation, Spotting The Signs, Science Of Limerence, Idolatry & Self Acceptance, Emotional ...
Passion
The Passion Paradox, Finding Your Element, Intrinsic Skills, Skills Vs Passion, Strengths & Virtues, Harmonious Passion, Pathways To Bliss, Passion In Practice, The Hero’s ...
A Walk In The Park
Happiness & Longevity, Power Of Movement, Evolution & Exercise, Creativity & Insight, “Hope Molecules”, Moving Vs Exercise, Reshaping The Brain, Forest Bathing, Healing Walks
Fantasy, Reality
The Third Door, Turning Pro, Shipping Our Work, Putting Ideas Out There, Plans Vs Strategies, What It Takes To Write A Book, Building From Scratch, ...
Fellowship
The Village Effect, Happiness & Longevity, Social Health, Wired To Connect, Emotional Health, Coming Together, Science Of Connection, Power Of Moai
Paradise Lost
Navigating Grief, “Good Grief”, Managing Expectations, What Prevents Healing, Resilience & Grief, Anticipatory Grief, Complicated Grief, Ambiguous Loss, 5 Stages Of Grief
Grit
Passion & Perseverance, The Types of Grit, Formula For Grit, Stoicism & Grit, Mental Toughness, Science Of Endurance, Gritty Traits, Killing Our Excuses, “The Long ...
Agency
The Power Of Agency, The Power Paradox, Feeling Empowered, Feeling In Control, Radical Responsibility, What We Can Control, The Locus Of Control, Autonomy & Drive, ...
Beliefs
The Art Of Rethinking, Our Hidden Beliefs, Personality Change, Self-Image & Belief, Taking Ownership, “The Work”, The Lefkoe Method, Early Life Influences, Metacognition
Victim Mentality
Interpreting Bad Events, Braving Hard Times, Victim Complex, Radical Responsibility, Spotting Victim Thinking, Drama Triangle, Control Dramas, Power Trips, Learned Helplessness
Focus
Deep Work, Attention Crisis, Beating Distraction, Mental Models, Science Of Focus, Single Tasking, Paying Attention, Performance Drivers, Focus & Mastery
Facing Pain
Embracing Darker Emotions, Taking Responsibility, The Completion Process, Feeling To Heal, Emotional Suppression, Benefits Of Crying, Why We Resist, Healing Physical Pain, Being Present
Boundaries
Putting Our Needs First, Stopping People-Pleasing, Healthy Boundaries, Getting Priorities Straight, How To Say “No”, Giving & Taking, “Obliger” Tendencies, When The Body Says No, ...
Adaptability
Adaptability Quotients, Diversification, Adapting To Change, Having A “Flux Mindset”, Becoming “Formless”, Adapting To What Life Hands Us, Mindful Change, "Be Like Water", The Way ...
Savouring
Boosting Happiness, Taking In The Good, Recalling Happy Memories, Priming Ourselves With Positive Emotions, Incorporating Savouring Into Our Lives, Nostalgia & Happiness, Three Good Things ...
Failure
Path To Innovation, Failure Resumes, Flipside Of Failure, Constructive Failure, Learning Acceptance, “The Rise”, “Failosophy”, Failure & The Growth Mindset, “The Long Game”
Fasting
Science Of Fasting, When We Eat, Weight Loss, Longevity, Anti-Aging Benefits, Water Fasting, Ketosis, Dinner vs Breakfast, One Meal A Day
Crash & Burn(out)
The Stress Cycle, Productivity & Burnout, Focus & Priorities, Tapping Into Flow States, Spotting Signs Of Burnout, Work Vs Reward, Job Satisfaction, Striving Without Burnout, ...
Growing Pains
Benefits Of Suffering, Antifragility, Post-Traumatic Growth, “Supersurvivors”, Evolving From Pain, Meaning In Adversity, Advesity As a “Gift”, What Doesn’t Kill Us, Happiness & Adversity
Rise & Shine
How To Start The Day, Morning Routines, Stoic AM Habits, Two-Minute Mornings, Kickstarting The Brain, The Night Before, The 5AM Club, Morning Pages, Miracle ...
Tribe
1,000 True Fans, Smallest Viable Audience, Creating “Superfans”, Networking, Building A Tribe, Contagious Ideas, Starting From Nothing, Finding Your Niche
Bias & Filters
Optimism Bias, Negativity Bias, The Halo Effect, Status Quo Bias, Confirmation Bias, The Invisible Gorilla, Emotions & Perception, The Brain’s Filter, Implicit Bias
Misfit
Fitting In Vs Belonging, Being Awkward, The Underdog Advantage, Underdogs Vs Giants, Original Thinkers, Being An Introvert, Cultivating Weirdness, The Freak Factor, Upside Of Not ...
Depression
Hidden Causes Of Depression, Scaling Back The Dragon, Spotting The Signs, Types Of Depression, Futility, Apathy, Hopelessness, Emotional Suppression, Junk Food
Authenticity
Habits & Identity, Attachment Issues, Finding Integrity, Congruence, True Belonging, The Three Pillars, “One Last Talk”, False Vs True Self, Being Inauthentic
Patience
The Slow Movement, Slow Productivity, Cultivating Calm, Learning To Breathe, How To Slow Down, Patience In Business, The Delayed Response, Savouring The Moment, Hurry ...
Shame
What Shame Tells Us, Shame & Addiction, Shame As A Reaction, Toxic Shame, Grandiosity & Shame, Trauma & Shame, Inner Critic & Shame, Negative Self-Talk, ...
Work, Life, Balance
Lifestyle Design, A Well Lived Life, The 4 Metrics, Life Vs Work, Time Poor vs Time Rich, Purpose, Work-Life Integration
Energy Psychology
Science Of The Biofield, Energy Medicine, Boosting Vitality & Health, Biofield Tuning, Acupuncture Points, Tapping (EFT), Tapping (EFT) Basics, Bioenergy Medicine, The Healer
Attachment
Attachment Styles, Anxious, Avoidant, Disorganised & Secure Attachment, Authenticity Struggles, Trauma Bonds, The Strange Situation, Healing Wounds
Perfectionism
The Perfection Trap, Becoming Flawesome, Brave, Not Perfect, Gifts Of Imperfection, Progress Vs Perfection, Imposter Syndrome, Optimalism, Wabi-Sabi, Kintsugi
Structure & Routine
Sticking With Habits, Stoic Routines, Famous Routines, Time Management, “Drunk Tank Pink”, Environment Design, Behavioural Triggers, Working From Home, Morning Routines
Contagion
Contagious Emotions, The Facebook Study, Catching Others’ Moods, The Ripple Effect, Highly Sensitive People, Empathy & Boundaries, Mirror Neurons, Why Yawning Spreads
Resistance
The War Of Art, Beating Resistance, Lizard Brain, What Stops Us, Sources Of Resistance, Delays & Restrictions, Creative Fears, The Artist’s Way Tools
Problem-Solving
Lateral Thinking, Workshopping Ideas, Elastic Thinking, Design Thinking, Asking Right Questions, Six Thinking Hats, Functional Fixedness, Problems Solving Us, Finding Root Causes
Higher Cause
Effective Altruism, Doing The Right Thing, Moral Ambition, Having A Just Cause, Creating A Vision, Committing To Vision, Giving To Others, Pursuing Noble Goals, Social ...
Ambition
Aiming High, Avoiding Clearer Paths To Lesser Goals, Stoicism & Success, Having A Dream, What’s Required, Making It Happen, The 10X Rule, Being Unrealistic, Raising ...
Braving It
Call To Courage, Vulnerability, Creative Fear, Courage Muscles, Facing Rejection, Admitting Desires, Stoicism & Fear, Fear-Setting, What Makes A Hero
Priorities
Essentialism, The One Thing, Prioritisation Strategies, What Matters Most, Big Picture Thinking, Clarifying Values, Top Level Goals, Prioritisation Tricks, Eisenhower Matrix
Inadequate
Imposter Syndrome, Roots Of Insecurities, Unrealistic Expectations, Self-Doubt, Limiting Beliefs, Not Good Enough, Pillars Of Self-Esteem, Feeling Inferior, Perfectionism
Stoic
Memento Mori, Amor Fati, Reframing Obstacles, Negative Visualisation, Premeditatio Malorum, What We Can Control, Becoming Resilient, Managing Stress, Apatheia & Ataraxia
Food & Mood
Diet & Mental Health, Brain Health, Healing Anxiety, Nutritional Psychiatry, Food As Medicine, Diet & Depression, The Biology Of Mood, Impact Of Junk Food
Groupthink
Dangers Of Group Identity, Wired For Conformity, Stanford Prison Experiment, Milgram Experiment, Asch Conformity Test, Echo Chambers, Groups & Creativity, In & Out-Groups, Herd ...
Toxic Positivity
The Risks Of A “Good Vibes Only” Attitude, Forcing Happiness, The Antidote To Too Much Positivity, Relentless Optimism & Appreciating "Beautiful Terrible Days", When Positivity ...
Aimlessness
Lacking Direction, Liminality, Being In Limbo, Being Lost & Found, Reframing Our Thinking, Feeling Behind In Life, Finding Our North Star, Knowing What We Want, ...
Intrinsic Motivation
What Motivates Us, What’s Our Payoff, The Science Of Motivation, The Power Of Autonomy, Self-Determination, The Goldilocks Rule, The Autotelic Personality, Our Basic Needs
Detach
Seeing Facts Of Situation, The Law Of Detachment, The Backwards Law, Detachment & Creativity, What We Can Control, Power Of Surrender, Taoism & Letting Go, ...
F**k It
The Subtle Art Of Not Giving A F**k, Getting Over The Fear Of Other People's Opinions, “Let Them” Theory,
Stoic Ways To Care Less, Saying ...
Caffeine
Caffeine Addiction, Sleep & Exhaustion, Caffeine Intake, What Too Much Caffeine Does, Caffeine's Impact On Brain, Focus & Productivity, Quitting Effects
Broken Pieces
Broken Open, Facing The Inexplicable, Stoicism & Bad News, When Things Fall Apart, Endings & Beginnings, If The Worst Happens, Loss & Betrayal, Healing Heartbreak, ...
Hope & Optimism
If Everything Is F*cked, Active Optimism, Getting Ahead In Life, Hope Molecules, Optimism Vs Being Realistic, Learned Optimism, Pathways To Hope, Optimism In Hard Times, ...
Psychosomatic
T.M.S. & Pain Psychology, When The Body Says No, Unlearning Our Pain, Training The Brain, Thinking Away Our Pain, Processing Emotions, Somatic Experiencing, The Nocebo ...
Latest Blog posts
When Our “Passion” Fails To Deliver
What to do when our passion project ceases to be one.
Is It Procrastination Or Is It This?
It might very well be procrastination. But it might also be that we feel helpless.
Distraction Isn’t Always The Enemy
Yes, it’s important to focus. But those times when we can't matter just as much as well.
When Positive Thinking Is Hard, Try This
Why we need to consider the idea of radically accepting what is missing in our lives.