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In the book "The Watsons Go to Birmingham — 1963," Christopher Paul Curtis shares important messages about family, growing up, and dealing with racism. He does this through the adventures of the Watson family, especially Kenny, the main character.
One big theme in the book is the strength of family. The Watsons stick together through good times and bad. When Kenny is bullied at school, his older brother Byron stands up for him. When Byron gets into trouble, the whole family works together to help him. Curtis shows this theme by writing funny and touching scenes of the family's daily life and their road trip to Birmingham.
Another theme is coming of age, or growing up. Kenny learns a lot about life and himself during the story. He faces bullies, deals with his brother's behavior, and sees the terrible results of racism. Curtis reveals this theme by showing how Kenny's thoughts and actions change throughout the book. At the start, Kenny is innocent and doesn't understand much about the world. By the end, he has faced hard truths and become more mature.
The third important theme is the impact of racism and civil rights. When the Watsons visit Birmingham, they experience the cruel reality of segregation in the South. The bombing of the church is a turning point in the story that shows how dangerous and unfair racism is. Curtis reveals this theme by contrasting the Watsons' life in Michigan with what they see in Birmingham. He also uses historical events, like the church bombing, to show the real-life effects of racism.
Christopher Paul Curtis uses different ways to show these themes. He creates believable characters that readers care about. He mixes funny moments with serious ones to keep the story interesting. He also uses Kenny's point of view to help young readers understand complex issues.
In conclusion, "The Watsons Go to Birmingham — 1963" teaches us about the importance of family, the challenges of growing up, and the fight against racism. By following the Watson family's journey, readers learn these valuable lessons in a way that is both entertaining and thought-provoking.
Tyrion visits Symon Silvertongue, and thinks to pay him to leave King's Landing. But the singer wishes to join the tournament of singers that will take place during Joffrey’s wedding. He blackmails Tyrion by indicating that he will tell about his relation with Shae. Tyrion promises him that one of the other singers will be removed, and Bronn will visit him in three days' time. Outside, Tyrion orders Bronn to kill Symon.
Later, Tyrion's father shows him the two new Valyrian swords he had made for Joffrey and Jaime. Master Tobho Mott reworked the metal, and the color of the blade on each sword is black and red. House Lannister has not had a Valyrian sword in hundreds of years, and try as he might, Tywin could never get any of the lesser houses to sell theirs. Where the steel for these new swords came from is not revealed. Tywin tells him that he must consummate his marriage to Sansa, and that Mace Tyrell rejected the marriage proposal between Cersei and Willas, probably because the Queen of Thorns told him to.
Pycelle brings dire tidings from the Wall, and that Maester Aemon fears Lord Mormont is dead. Tywin tells Pycelle to send a veiled message that no men shall be sent to the Wall unless Janos Slynt is considered for the post of Lord Commander of the Night's Watch. Tyrion thinks to himself that he should have had Slynt and Pycelle put to death when he had the chance.
On the way to Harrenhal, Jaime's wound is infected, and he is feverish from the loss of his hand (which has been cut off by Zollo). At the camp some of the Bloody Mummers come to rape Brienne. Jaime knows that if she resists they will probably kill her so he advises her to take her mind far away. He recalls that when Aerys cooked Lord Rickard Stark alive while Brandon died trying to rescue him, Jaime did the same. Brienne is stubborn and wants to resist. Jaime saves her again by yelling “sapphires” loud enough for the Goat to hear. Brienne thanks him as Jaime considers the debt (revenge) that he owes to Vargo Hoat and his Bloody Mummers: a Lannister always pays his debts.
After reaching Harrenhal, Hoat presents the Kingslayer to Roose Bolton, who is disgusted that the Mummers hacked off his hand. He has Qyburn cleanse the stump and bandage it. Jaime asks Qyburn to see to Brienne's wounds as well.
How to Find the Number of Protons, Neutrons, and Electrons
Finding the number of protons, neutrons, and electrons in a given element isn't as hard as it sounds. Oftentimes part of your answer will be right in front of you in the periodic table! Once you know where to look, finding the number of protons, neutrons, and electrons will be a breeze.
1.Get a periodic table of elements. The periodic table is a chart that organizes elements by their atomic structure. It is color-coded and assigns each element a unique 1 or 2-letter abbreviation. Other elemental information includes atomic weight and atomic number. You can find a periodic table online or in a chemistry book.
In tests, normally, a periodic table will be provided.
2.Find your element on the periodic table. The table orders elements by atomic number and separates them into three main groups: metals, non-metals, and metalloids (semi-metals). Further elemental groupings include alkali metals, halogens, and noble gases.
Using the group (columns) or period (rows) can make the element easier to locate on the table. You can also search the table for the symbol of the element if you don’t know any other properties.
3.Locate the element’s atomic number. The atomic number is located above the element symbol, in the upper left-hand corner of the square. The atomic number will tell you how many protons make up a single atom of an element. For example, boron (B) has an atomic number of 5, therefore it has 5 protons.
4.Determine the number of electrons. Protons are particles in the nucleus of an atom that have a positive charge equal to +1. Electrons are particles that have a negative charge equal to -1. Therefore, an element in a neutral state will have the same number of protons and electrons. For example, boron (B) has an atomic number of 5, therefore it has 5 protons and 5 electrons. However, if the element includes a negative or positive ion, then the protons and electrons will not be the same. You will have to calculate them. The ion number will appear as a small superscript after the element.
5.Look for the atomic mass of the element. To find the number of neutrons, you will first need to find the atomic mass. An element’s atomic mass (also known as the atomic weight) is the weighted average mass of atoms of an element. The atomic mass can be found underneath the symbol for the element. Make sure that you round the atomic mass to the nearest whole number. For example, the atomic mass of boron is 10.811, but you can just round the atomic mass up to 11.
6.Subtract the atomic number from the atomic mass. To find the number of neutrons, you will need to subtract the atomic number from the atomic mass. Remember that the atomic number is the same as the number of protons, which you have already identified. For our boron example, 11 (atomic mass) – 5 (atomic number) = 6 neutrons
7.Identify the net charge. The net charge of an ion will appear as a small superscript number following the element. An ion is an atom that has a positive or negative charge due to the addition or removal of electrons. Although the number of protons in the atom remains the same, the number of electrons is altered in an ion. Because an electron has a negative charge, when you remove electrons, the ion becomes positive. When you add more electrons, the ion becomes negative.
For example, has a -3 charge while Ca2+ has a +2 charge. Keep in mind that you do not have to do this calculation if there is no superscripted ion number following the element.
8.Subtract the charge from the atomic number. When an ion has a positive charge, the atom has lost electrons. To calculate the remaining number of electrons, you subtract the amount of extra charge from the atomic number. In the case of a positive ion, there are more protons than electrons.
For example, Ca2+ has a +2 charge so it has lost 2 electrons from the neutral state. Calcium’s atomic number is 20, therefore the ion has 18 electrons.
My success is my success. No one else has it.
Success lingers around me. I just have to grab onto it.
Where I focus my thoughts is where I will focus my efforts.
When I look at my past, I only see my accomplishments. I do not see failures.
Success is a reality that I live in.
No one is going to hand me success. Everything requires effort on my part.
Some things are harder to do than other things. Which ones do I want to do today?
My success is unlike anyone else's, and the more I share it with others, the more successful I will become.
Positivity leads to success in more ways than I will ever understand.
Positivity leads to success in more ways than I will ever understand.
If I think it, I believe it. And if I believe in it, all I have to do is put in the work to make it real.
Success is found in so many other places in my life.
I will not let the stress of yesterday burden me today.
Stress only burdens my success if I let it.
My life is all about balancing success and being humble.
I am thankful for the people I have watched become successful for they have been guides for my own success.
When I hear a negative comment today, I will identify it as such and then put a positive spin on it.
Success can be found in all areas of life and I will do my best today to make myself even more successful in all I do.
I am the director of success in my career.
My success is best when shared.
you’re standing in line at the grocery store or waiting for an elevator.
You have no more than a minute to kill. And yet, before you’ve even processed what you’re doing, you’ve pulled out your phone and have begun to mindlessly scroll through TikTok or Instagram.
Sound familiar?
It does to Adrian Ward, an associate professor at the McCombs School of Business at the University of Texas at Austin who studies people's relationships to technology.
“It’s not even an urge,” he says. “There’s no intention.” In his experience, checking your phone is often automatic.
Research suggests plenty of people do the same thing.
Maxi Heitmayer, a teaching fellow who studies human-computer interaction at the London School of Economics and Political Science, found in a small 2022 experiment that only 11% of people’s smartphone checks were in response to a notification.
The other 89% of the time, they checked their phones totally unprompted, often without thinking through why they were doing it.
The call of your phone
Why? Heitmayer thinks that, in our ultra plugged-in world, we’re so used to constant stimulation that we feel uncomfortable when we’re not doing anything, even for just a few seconds.
Phones are so good at relieving such discomfort that Shiri Melumad, an associate professor at the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School, calls them “adult pacifiers.”
Much as a child totes around a toy or blanket to feel safe, adults draw comfort from the constant, familiar presence of their phones, Melumad says.
You may lean on your digital pacifier deliberately when you’re alone at a party and feeling awkward, say or simply because you’ve become accustomed to always having something to occupy your brain.
Ward, meanwhile, calls smartphones a “supernormal stimulus,” or something “beyond anything we evolved to deal with or make decisions about.”
Our brains are hardwired to seek out rewards like knowledge, entertainment, and social connection, all of which were much harder to find before we had tiny computers at our fingertips, Ward says.
Now that we do, our phones are basically 24/7a buffet for our brains, endlessly and easily serving up the things they want.
Of course, our minds can’t help but gorge themselves.
Never mind that some studies suggest mindless scrolling, and smartphone use in general, can actually increase boredom
reaching for the phone gives us something to do, and a feeling that that “something” is more rewarding than whatever is happening to us in the real world.
“Unless what you’re doing right here, right now, is the most interesting thing you could possibly be doing, your phone at some level” perhaps not even a conscious one" represents a better alternative,” Ward says.
Is that a bad thing?
The answer is complex, Melumad says.
“It’s a little bit alarmist to say that smartphones are addictive and they’re [all] bad,” she says.
Smartphones can certainly connect us to troubling content, whether we seek it out or not, and there are valid arguments about the downsides of losing the ability to do nothing, Melumad says.
But some aspects of smartphone use can also be beneficial. It’s not necessarily problematic to self-soothe by texting a friend or watching a funny TikTok video after a stressful work day, for instance.
A quick phone check probably isn’t doing your brain any real harm,
But to Ward, it's also worth considering how all those little checks add up.
Over time, constant scrolling could have a negative effect on your job performance, relationships, sleep, and possibly even physical safety, if you’re doing things like checking your phone while you walk or drive.
There’s also a mental-health element to consider.
Although not all researchers agree, many believe that heavy smartphone and social-media use harms psychological well-being.
Even beyond that, people tend to beat themselves up about their screen time.
As of 2022, about 60% of U.S. adults, and 80% of those under 30, said they were on their phones “too much.”
When you give into your urges and check your phone, then feel guilty about it, “the feeling of failure adds insult to injury,”
How to keep your phone-checking habit in check
If you want to break the habit of constant checking, you’ll have to work at it.
The more you’ve trained your brain to expect constant diversion, the harder it will be to kick the compulsion. But it is possible.
Part of that process as you can probably guess is getting used to being without your phone.
Many studies, including Ward’s, have found that simply having your phone near you, even if it’s not buzzing or lighting up with a notification, is enough to distract you and give you the itch to check.
You don’t have to quit cold turkey, Ward says. (In fact, some research suggests this kind of abrupt digital detox can trigger anxiety.)
To ease in, start going without your phone for set periods of time, like when you’re working on an important project or want to give all of your attention to your friend or partner.
Over time, as you get used to being without your device, it may get easier to resist that constant pull to check.
You may even find that you want to leave your phone behind more and more often, Ward says.
Building awareness is also helpful. paying attention to how different kinds of smartphone use make you feel.
Reading a news article on your phone, for example, may bring up different feelings than doomscrolling.
If you catch yourself swiping through your phone without even absorbing the content, take a moment to ask yourself what’s driving your behavior.
Do you actually want to be on it, or are you just putting off a less-fun task?
Tam is one of the researchers who has found that smartphone usage can increase boredom which may be handy to remember if you’re trying to cut back on your screen time.
Shifting your mindset to think of phone usage not as a salve, but as a crutch, may make it easier to cut back.
Sometimes, Tam says, “it’s our behavior that makes us feel bored.”
library (a store books). Many places public library. With library card, people home does money library libraries.
shahul hameed meeran bin zakafar raffik
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Stefa really hated typing on KeyHero. The platform was a nightmare for her, with commas that looked like periods and words that seemed jumbled and hard to read. Every session felt like torture. She much preferred MonkeyType, where the words were clear and easy to understand. She felt more confident there and always scored higher. But her tutor Ahmed still made her use KeyHero, saying it was better for structured practice. Stefa dreaded every moment of it and wished she could stick to MonkeyType. After noticing her frustration, Ahmed suggested they could use both platforms, with KeyHero for drills and MonkeyType for readability. Relieved by the compromise, Stefa began practicing on both, finally finding a way to improve her typing without dreading every KeyHero session.
Let me tell you a story about a boy named Jimmy. One years old and his first words were "mine mine gimme". Two years old he was walking, three years old walking quickly, four years old he was running round the pavements of his city. Five years old and his daddy told him "listen here son, you've got to learn to be a man, a man he works for what he wants". Six years old and he's reading, writing, top of the bunch, and when he's seven, his progression made him student number one. Eight years old and he's praised for unusual grades, nine, his parents pay for private school to nurture the flame. Ten, eleven, twelve, thirteen, he ascends and ascends. His daddy tells him "son, money is the means to all ends". Fourteen solving complex mathematic equations, at fifteen, IQ 150, still elevating. 16 he develops complex software code, that detects weaknesses in cyber security protocol. 17 and he sells his vision, keeping the share. Not yet an adult but he's practically a millionaire. 18 and his daddy tells him "now you're a man. This world don't give a damn about you, so take all that you can". 19 he turns a profit, stocks and shares, invest in product, 20 double down deposits 21 his income rockets. 22 he learns the truth is just an obstacle to wealth. If you manipulate the data, then the lie will sell itself. 23 a life of luxury Crystal and cocaine. 24 he makes the Forbes list, they're applauding his name. 25 and his daddy tells him "listen here son, while you're sitting in the palace that don't mean that you won". 26 a business shift, he switches business to arms, he's 27 dealing nuclear and shells in Iran. 28 inside the Senate, money bought him a seat. He's 29 a role of counsel in the president suite. Now he's 30. His daddy says "you're losing the race, you're just a servant to the king, not even in second place". 31 a big maneuver for his daddy's approval, moving imports over borders from the exports out of Cuba. 32 moving grams, growing kilo to tons. He's 33 filling warehouses with powder and guns. 34 turf war with nobody to stop it. Blind eye from the po po inside of his pocket. 35, he gets a call "I'm sorry, son, but it's your father, had a heart attack, I'm sorry, he's gone". 36 getting pissed off abusing this product. 37 eyes glazed, disposition demonic. 38 with a prostitute, a moment of passion. Heating up the silver spoon and then chasing the dragon. 39 getting reckless and hungry for power. Daddy's words are still driving him to kill and devour. Makes a move against the cartel, but the strategy's flawed. They retaliate and leave him in a hospital ward. A bullet buried in his vertebra, and one in his leg. The doctor sighs and says, "I don't think you'll be walking again" fuck. Let me tell you a story about a boy named Jimmy. He was 40 and he cursed the words "mine mine gimme". 41 he wasn't walking, 42 not walking quickly. 43 never running round the pavements of his city. 44, inside a palace with a mountain of gold, but those riches turn to rubble when perspective evolves. Weighing heavy on his conscience is the value of gold, Lamborghini for a life, trading money for souls. Jimmy followed the code inside the land of the free. Put your hand inside the cookie jar, take more than you need. And his example is exaggerated versions of me, and it's a version of him, and it's a version of she, and it's a version of you. There's no escaping the blame, the way we live, it's parasitic. Fuck the money and fame! Cut the music.
Let me tell you a story about a boy named Jimmy. One years old and his first words were mine, mine gimme. Two years old, he was walking, three years old, walking quickly. Four years old, he was running around the pavements of his city. Five years old, and his daddy told him, listen here son, you've got to learn to be a man. A man he works for what he wants. Six years old, and he's reading, writing, top of the bunch. And when he's seven, his progression made him student number one. Eight years old and he's praised for unusual grades. Nine, his parents pay for private school to nurture the flame. 10, 11, 12, 13, he ascends and ascends, his daddy tells him, son, money is the means to all ends. 14 solving complex mathematic equations, at 15, IQ 150, still elevating. 16 he develops complex software code that detects weaknesses in cyber security protocol. 17, and he sells his vision, keeping the share, not yet an adult but he's practically a millionaire. 18, and his daddy tells him now you're a man the world don't give a damn about you. So take all that you can. 19, he turns a profit, stocks and shares, invest in product. 20, double down deposits 21, his income rockets. 22, he learns that truth is just an obstacle to wealth, if you manipulate the data, then the lie will sell itself. 23, a life of luxury Crystal and cocaine. 24, he makes the Forbes list, they're applauding his name. 25, and his daddy told him, listen here, son, while you're sitting in the palace that don't mean that you won. 26, a business shift, he switches business to arms. He's 27, dealing nuclear shells in Iran. 28, inside the Senate, money bought him a seat. He's 29, role of counsel in the president suite. Now he's 30, his daddy says, you're losing the race, you're just a servant to the king, not even in second place. 31, a big maneuver for his daddy's approval. Moving imports over borders from the exports out of Cuba. 32, moving grams, growing kilo to tons. He's 33, filling warehouses with powder and guns. 34, turf war with nobody to stop it, blind eye from the Po po inside of his pocket. 35, he gets a call. "I'm sorry, son, but it's your father, had a heart attack, I'm sorry, he's gone". 36, getting pissed off abusing this product. 37, eyes glazed, disposition demonic. 38, with a prostitute, a moment of passion. Heating up the silver spoon and then chasing the dragon. 39, getting reckless and hungry for power. Daddy's words still driving him to kill him and devour. He makes a move against the cartel, but the strategy's flawed. They retaliate and leave him in the hospital ward. A bullet buried in his vertebra, and one in his leg. The doctor sighs and says, I don't think you'll be walking again, fuck. Let me tell you a story about a boy named Jimmy. He was 40 and he cursed the words mine, mine gimme. 41, he wasn't walking, 42, not walking quickly, 43. Never running round the pavements of his city. 44 inside a palace with a mountain of gold, but those riches turn to rubble when perspective evolves. Weighing heavy on his conscience is the value of gold, Lamborghini for a life, trading money for souls. Jimmy followed the code inside the land of the free, put your hand inside the cookie jar, take more than you need. And his example is exaggerated versions of me, and it's a version of him, and it's a version of she, and it's a version of you. There's no escaping the blame, the way we live, it's parasitic. Fuck the money and fame! Cut the music.
The Art of Impossible - Steven Kotler
A Peak Performance Primer
"This is [...] a practical playbook for impractical people."
"The only thing more difficult than the emotional toil of pursuing true excellence is the emotional toil of not pursuing true excellence."
"More meaningful does not typically mean more pleasant."
"Whenever the impossible becomes possible, there's always a formula."
"Personality doesn't scale. Biology scales."
During flow our cognition is massively changed. Creativity, learning, empathy, environmental awareness and collaboration are as much as 500% above baseline.
"Flow is to extreme innovation what oxygen is to breathing."
"When it comes to tackling the impossible, flow is necessary but not sufficient."
“Motivation is what gets you into this game; learning is what helps you continue to play; creativity is how you steer; and flow is how you turbo boost the results beyond all rational standards and reasonable expectations."
I. Motivation
1. MOTIVATION DECODED
"Motivation [...] is actually a catch-all for three subsets of skills: drive, grit and goals."
Drive is emotional motivation like curiosity, passion, and purpose.
Goals is knowing where we want to get to.
Grit is persistence when things get difficult.
Elite performers "stack" their fuel. Physically by making sure their nutrition, sleep, and health are on point, and psychologically by aligning things like curiosity, passion, and purpose.
Drivers can be split into extrinsic (money, fame, sex) and intrinsic (curiosity, meaning, mastery, autonomy,...).
"As high-minded as something like 'meaning and purpose' might seem as a driver, this is actually evolutions's way of saying: Okay, you've got enough resources for yourself and your family. Now it's time to help your tribe and your species get more."
Intrinsic drivers take over once a basic level of extrinsic ones are met.
Ultimately motivation and drive boil down to neurochemistry, particularly dopamine, norepinephrine, oxytocin, serotonin, endorphins, and anandamide.
2. THE PASSION RECIPE
"The easiest way to start stacking intrinsic drivers is with a list."
Write down 25 things you're curious about. The more detailed and specific, the better.
Then look for overlaps of several of them. When multiple interests intersect, it triggers your pattern matching mechanism, and leads to powerful releases of dopamine.
"By stacking motivations, that is, layering curiosity atop curiosity, we're increasing drive but not effort.”
Learning about the history and technical language of a subject might feel like a waste of time, but it's actually a powerful anchor that helps our memory and understanding.
Adding "public successes" where you talk about your interests, even just to friends, and get positive reinforcement can be a massive boost to our passion.
"At this point in the process, it's time to transform the fire of passion into the rocket fuel of purpose."
"Neurobiologically, purpose alters the brain. It decreases the reactivity of the amygdala, decreases the volume of the medial temporal cortex, and increases the volume of the right insular cortex. [...] All these changes seem to have a profound impact on our long-term health. [...] Additionally, from a performance standpoint, purpose boosts motivation, productivity, resilience, and focus."
By shifting the attention away from self-rumination, it's also a protector against anxiety and depression.
Want to dream big, identifying a "massively transformative purpose" MTP that intersects with our passions.
3. THE FULL INTRINSIC STACK
Curiosity, passion and purpose are a great start, but they are not enough to reach the impossible. For that we also need to add autonomy and mastery.
"If autonomy is the desire to steer your own ship, mastery is the drive to steer that ship well."
Companies like Google and 3M show how giving even just a few hours of autonomy to each employee can have huge results.
Making your own schedule can be critical for sleep and making sure you are aligned with your chronotype.
"Exercise is a non-negotiable for peak performance."
Building flow activities into our day that are playful and not part of work is also important.
"Mastery is the desire to get better at the things we do. It's devotion to craft, the need for progress, the urge to continually improve."
"When we work hard toward an important goal - that is, when we pursue mastery - dopamine levels spike."
"Flow follows focus."
Flow triggers all help us shift our attention to the present moment, either through dopamine/norepinephrine release, or by reducing cognitive load.
"Start chasing the high of incremental improvements."
4. GOALS
Want to break down the impossible into a long series of difficult but achievable goals, to give clear direction to our drive.
Clear goals are one of the easiest ways to increase motivation and boost performance.
"Because the brain is a prediction engine and consciousness is a limited resource, fear and goals are the basic building blocks of our reality."
[q] "Big goals significantly outperform small goals, medium-sized goals, and vague goals." - Gary Latham
"MTPs, utilized properly, aren't aspirational, they're filtrational: they weed out the work that doesn't matter."
"High, hard goals" (HHGs) are the sub-step that helps us accomplish our larger mission.
Counterintuitively, research shows that talking about your goals publicly reduces the chances of achieving them.
"The act of telling someone about your goal gives you the feeling that the goal's already been achieved. It releases the dopamine you're supposed to get afterward, prematurely."
HHGs should be further broken down into clear short-term (say daily) goals.
"At a very basic level, this is exactly what the road to impossible looks like - a well-crafted to-do list, executed daily."
"Clear goals act as a priority list for the brain, lowering cognitive load and telling the system where to expand its energy."
Clear daily goals are great triggers for flow.
"Impossible is always a checklist."
5. GRIT
[q] “No pressure, no diamonds.” - Thomas Carlyle
Regularly doing hard things teaches the brain to associate persistence with dopamine rewards.
Six types of grit. The grit to…
persevere
control your thoughts
master fear
be your best when you’re at your worst
train your weaknesses
recover
Psychologists consider three levels of wellbeing:
Moment-to-moment “happiness,” a hedonic approach to life.
“Engagement,” a high-flow life where happiness comes through a pursuit of challenges rather than pleasure.
“Purpose,” same as engagement but with an added sense of having a bigger impact.
Studies show that the grittier a person, the higher their level of wellbeing, and despite embracing hard things, they actually experience a deeper sense of happiness.
Willpower is a big part of perseverance. It’s linked to our energy levels, and depletes throughout the day, so it helps to schedule things right (hard things first) and carefully choose/design our environment.
“For sustained perseverance, the research shows, a growth mindset is indispensable.”
[q] “Get obsessed, stay obsessed.” - John Irving
“Quite often, passion feels like frustration on the inside and looks like obsession from the outside. Peak performers must learn to tolerate enormous amounts of anxiety and overwhelm.”
“Passion doesn’t make us gritty. Passion makes us able to tolerate all the negative emotions produced by grit.”
[q] “High performance is 90 percent mental. And most of the mental edge comes from being able to control your thoughts.” - Micheal Gervais
Positive self-talk, mindfulness, and gratitude all help with controlling our thoughts, and teach us to focus on the positive.
Almost all peak performers struggle with fear of some kind. What sets them apart is that they find it more bearable to run towards the fear rather than away from it.
Fear is a great source of attention and motivation.
Should establish a regular fear practice, taking physical, emotional, intellectual, or creative risks in a controlled but increasing way.
“The goal is to become comfortable with being uncomfortable.”
Peak performers use fear as a compass.
“Going in the direction that scares you the most amplifies attention and this translates into flow. […] Our real potential lies on the other side of our greatest fears.”
[q] “The grit that matters most is learning to be your best when you’re at your worst. This is really the difference between elite-level performers and everyone else. And you have to train this kind of grit.” - Josh Waitzkin
When you’re not feeling great, it’s easy to make excuses. But that’s exactly when you should push, and tap into those energy reserves you didn’t know you had. If you do that in training, you’re prepared for bad situations when it actually matters.
Ask several friends to identify your weaknesses (to avoid your own bias), then find the most mentioned physical, emotional, and cognitive weaknesses and work on them.
“It’s hard for peak performers to relax. […] You absolutely have to get gritty about recovery.”
Key recovery tools should be good sleep, active recovery (e.g. yoga, nature walks, sauna, …) and occasional total resets, stepping away from everything for a few days.
6. THE HABIT OF FEROCITY
“Excellence always has a cost. On a daily basis, if your goal is greatness, then you’re going to put just about every available hour towards that goal.”
“It’s hard to achieve the amazing by accident. You have to dream big.”
Peak performers all share a “habit of ferocity”: When they come across a challenge, they immediately lean in. They are attracted to challenge.
[q] “Figure out what you would die for, then live for it.” - Peter Diamandis
II. Learning
7. THE INGREDIENTS OF IMPOSSIBLE
Since flow requires a certain level of challenge, a continuous flow lifestyle also requires lifelong learning.
“Psychologists consider lifelong learning foundational to satisfaction and wellbeing.”
8. GROWTH MINDSETS AND TRUTH FILTERS
We need to develop our own rigorous “truth filters” to assess the information around us in fast and reliable ways.
“You can’t get to impossible on bad information.”
9. THE ROI ON READING
“If you’re interested in learning, then you’re interested in books.”
Blogs are less condensed than long-form articles, which in turn are less condensed than books.
“Books are the most radically condensed form of knowledge on the planet.”
Talks are great for igniting curiosity but don’t have the depth and detail of books.
10. FIVE NOT-SO-EASY STEPS FOR LEARNING ALMOST ANYTHING
“Step One: The five books of stupid”
Pick five books on a subject and read them without judging your understanding too harshly.
“Biologically, a lot of learning comes down to pattern recognition, and most of that takes place on an unconscious level.”
Take notes in a notebook on three points: the historical narrative, key terminology, and anything that gets you excited.
This stage is about knowledge acquisition, skill acquisition is separate.
“Step two: Be the idiot”
Step one should have filled you with lots of questions. Now it’s time to seek out experts, leaving your own pride at home, and let them do the talking.
“Step three: Explore the gaps”
By following your own curiosity rather than a standard curriculum you should eventually get “slow hunches,” a feeling for gaps in the knowledge which none of the experts covers, or a new relation to a different domain.
“Step four: Always ask the next question”
Seek out experts that disagree with the standard narrative of a field.
“Step five: Find the narrative”
Condense all your learning into a story and tell it to both people with no background, as well as experts.
11. THE SKILL OF SKILL
Pareto’s principle, the 80/20 rule, is great for skill acquisition. Focus on the 20% of material that gets you 80% of the results.
Only the core skills should be approached differently, for anything else 80/20 is the shortcut to overall mastery.
12. STRONGER
“The best way to increase flow is to spend as much time as possible on activities that utilize one or more of our five top strengths.”
Focusing on our strengths accelerates learning and motivation. Weaknesses get dragged along and improved in the process.
13. THE 80/20 OF EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE
Your support network has a big influence over whether you see something as an interesting challenge or a dangerous threat.
Neurobiologically, high EQ means a good ability to manage the brain’s emotional systems: fear, lust, care, play, rage, seeking and panic/grief.
“EQ remains one of the highest indicators of high achievement.”
Four areas of EQ: self-awareness, self-management, social awareness, and relationship management.
14. THE SHORTEST PATH TO SUPERMAN
Rather than early specialization, many top performers actually try and abandon a lot of different things, until they find “match fit.”
“When flow is the reward, learning shifts from something done consciously, with energy and effort, to something done automatically, out of habit and joy.”
III. Creativity
15. THE CREATIVE ADVANTAGE
“If your interest is high achievement, creativity matters.”
“In the infinite game of peak performance, motivation gets you into the game, learning allows you to continue to play, but creativity is how you steer.”
Alfred North Whitehead apparently coined the term “creativity” only in 1927.
Our cerebral cortex is much larger than other animals’, allowing us to put a break into the instinctive action-reaction cycle and allowing us to consider options, as well as simulate their results.
Creativity is “the production of novel ideas that have value.”
Three overlapping neural systems are involved in creativity: attention, imagination, and salience.
Imagination network more technically known as default mode network (DMN).
“When switched on, it’s the brain in daydreaming mode, stimulating alternative realities and testing out creative possibilities.”
Default mode network and executive attention network actually work in opposition and switch each other off, but creatives can transition between the two with far more fluidity.
Three Bs: bend, break, and blend.
Salience network is the master switch that orchestrates the other two.
16. HACKING CREATIVITY
An active anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) is required for insight moments. And good mood activates the ACC.
ACC monitors the ideas of the DMN and identifies valuable ones, brining them up to our conscious attention.
For creativity, we want to consider the big picture. Mood again is important (fear gets us to focus rather than think wide), but time in nature with literally open view can also help.
Solitude is important for creativity.
When starting a new creative task, starting with something weird or unfamiliar is much better than starting with the easy and familiar. It primes you for making unusual connections.
Constraints and limits drive creativity.
“If creativity is required, not knowing where you’re going is the fastest way to never get there.”
Read outside your core domain and allow yourself to daydream if an idea catches your interest. This gives our pattern recognition system a great chance to come up with new and useful ideas.
17. LONG-HAUL CREATIVITY
Staying creative over decades requires to continually reinvent ourselves.
You have to get comfortable with learning and applying things outside your comfort zone.
“The Ferriss Four”: Daily exercise, keep a maker schedule, take long walks, and ask better questions.
Momentum is critical. Stopping the day’s work while still excited and with clear direction may seem counterproductive but it carries momentum to the next day.
“Long-haul creativity, [Sir Ken] Robinson believes, requires a low-level, near-constant sense of frustration.”
Remembering that the competition is always chasing you can be a great motivator.
“Creativity is almost always a byproduct of passionate hard work and not the other way around.”
“I always set out to write great sentences, but I never set out to write a great sentence.”
Creatives often combine personality traits from opposite extremes. Specifically, Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi identified ten “both/and” characteristics of creatives:
Energetic and sedate
Smart and naive
Playful and disciplined
Fantastical and realistic
Extroverted and introverted
Ambitious and selfless
Conservative and rebellious
Humble and proud
Passionate and objective
Sensitive to others and cold as ice
While the source of creativity, these opposites can also lead to emotional rollercoasters and difficult social interactions.
18. THE FLOW OF CREATIVITY
“Nature builds creatives; nurture tears them down. Growing up, according to this research, was the number one risk factor for squelching innovation."
As our executive attention network matures, less creative/divergent ideas pass through its filter. Except in flow, where all the networks work well in harmony.
“Flow is the brain on creative overdrive. It mimics all the inventiveness that comes with being four years old, just, you know, without the downside of having a four-year-old brain.”
IV. Flow
19. THE DECODER RING
Flow can even be a source of mystical experiences.
During extreme focus, to conserve energy the brain can shut down regions that are not critical, such as the right posterior parietal lobe, which helps us navigate through space and gives us a sense of where our body ends. Without that sense it’s essentially like you’re becoming one with the universe, or at least with whatever you are focusing on.
20. FLOW SCIENCE
Nietzsche was maybe the first thinker who studied peak performance through a modern scientific approach.
Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi coined the term flow and studied the concept intensively in the 1970s and after.
Flow has six core physiological characteristics:
Complete concentration
Merger of action and awareness
Sense of self vanishes
Altered sense of time
Paradox of control
Autotelic experience
“People who scored off the charts for overall well-being and life satisfaction were the people with the most flow in their lives.”
During peak performance and flow, our brain is actually less active, not more.
“Transient hypofrontality”: Our prefrontal cortex shuts down, handing over control to the faster and more energy efficient subconscious thinking. This also shuts down self-monitoring and our sense of past and future.
21. FLOW TRIGGERS
Initial research pointed at three main flow triggers: clear goals, immediate feedback, and challenge-skill-balance. But we now know of 19 more triggers.
All these triggers work by pushing attention into the present moment, through releasing norepinephrine and/or dopamine, and/or by lowering cognitive load.
Complete concentration, autonomy, and curiosity-passion-purpose are three more internal triggers.
“Peak performers routinely turn down opportunities, even fantastic ones, if those opportunities reduce autonomy.”
To really give flow a chance, should block out at least 90 to 120 minutes, ideally more, with completely zero distractions.
Statistically, surgeons are the only type of physician that actually get better over time after leaving medical school, because they receive immediate feedback.
Should set a “feedback buddy,” someone to share clear and concise feedback with without fluff or subjective opinions.
Societal norms and values can be tricky for peak performers and can weigh them down if they don’t manage to navigate/balance them properly.
“Demand more excellence from yourself.”
Extended triggers are high consequences, rich environments, and deep embodiment.
Rich environments actually contain three triggers: novelty, unpredictability, and complexity.
Montessori education offers some of the highest flow educational environment.
Creativity is a combination of pattern recognition and risk taking, both of which neurobiologically aid flow through dopamine release.
“Make creativity a value and a virtue. Your life needs to become your art.”
Flow can also happen in groups with a shared goal and collective ambition.
22. THE FLOW CYCLE
Flow is actually a cycle with four phases that you have to pass through one at a time.
“Unpleasantness is a built-in part of the experience. It’s an unavoidable biological necessity.”
Stage one: Struggle.
“Optimal performance begins in maximum frustration.”
During struggle we acquire knowledge and skills. But at this stage it still feels uncomfortable and effortful.
[q] “Many people find [flow] so great and high an experience that it justifies not only itself, but even living itself.” - Abraham Maslow
Flow redeems the struggle, and lies beyond struggle. For peak performers, frustration and struggle are actually a compass, because they know what lies beyond it.
Stage two: Release.
Release is the incubation period where information moves over from our conscious to our subconscious mind.
Low-grade physical activity (a hike, long car drive, playing an instrument, etc) works best.
Stage three: Flow.
Once in the zone, need to avoid the main flow blockers distraction, negative thinking, non-optimal arousal, and lack of preparation.
Stage four: Recovery.
Flow is a high-energy state, so we need to recover from it. But it requires active recovery.
“After a hard day, even the extra energy it takes to take a long bath can feel like a Herculean task. Well, Hercules up, because there’s no choice.”
23. ALL TOGETHER NOW
Seven daily and six weekly practices that are non-negotiable.
Daily:
90 to 120 minutes of uninterrupted concentration
5 min for distraction management (preparing for the next day)
5 min for making a clear goal list (preparing for the next day)
5 min for daily gratitude practice
20 min for release/mindfulness
25 min to learn and load the pattern recognition system through reading outside your core area
7 to 8 hours of sleep
Weekly:
2 to 6 hours of high-flow fun activity (surfing, dancing, skiing, …)
60 min, 3 times a week: challenging exercise session
20 to 40 min, 3 times a week: active recovery (sauna, massage, light yoga, …)
30 to 60 min, once a week: train a weakness or being your best when you’re feeling the worst
30 to 60 min, once a week: get feedback on the work you do during your daily high focus blocks
120 min once per work: social support, making time for other people
“Creativity and the pursuit of mastery should be built into everything you do."
There is only one solution to infection: quarantine. But by the time you recognize the problem it is often too late. A Lola Montez overwhelms you with her forceful personality. Cassius intrigues you with his confiding nature and the depth of his feelings. How can you protect yourself against such insidious viruses? The answer lies in judging people on the effects they have on the world and not on the reasons they give for their problems. Infectors can be recognized by the misfortune they draw on themselves, their turbulent past, their long line of broken relationships, their unstable careers, and the very force of their character, which sweeps you up and makes you lose your reason. Be forewarned by these signs of an infector; learn to see the discontent in their eye. Most important of all, do not take pity. Do not enmesh yourself in trying to help. The infector will remain unchanged, but you will be unhinged.
There are many kinds of infector to be aware of, but one of the most insidious is the sufferer from chronic dissatisfaction. Cassius, the Roman conspirator against Juslius Caesar, had the discontent that comes from deep envy. He simply could not endure the presence of anyone of greater talent. Probably because Caesar sensed the man's interminable sourness, he passed him up for the position of first praetorship, and gave the position to Brutus instead. Cassius brooded and brooded, his hatred for Caesar becoming pathological. Brutus himself, a devoted republican, disliked Caesar's dictatorship; had he had the patience to wait, he would have become the first man in Rome after Caesar's death, and could have undone the evil that the leader had wrought. But Cassius infected him with his own rancor, bending his ear daily with tales of Caesar's evil. He finally won Brutus over to the conspiracy. It was the beginning of a great tragedy. How many misfortunes could have been avoided had Brutus learned to fear the power of infection.
Understand this: In the game of power, the people you associate with are critical. The risk of associating with infectors is that you will waste valuable time and energy trying to free yourself. Through a kind of guilt by association, you will also suffer in the eyes of others. Never underestimate the dangers of infection.
The incurably unhappy and unstable have a particularly strong infecting power because their characters and emotions are so intense. They often present themselves as victims, making it difficult, at first, to see their miseries as self-inflicted. Before you realize the real nature of their problems you have been infected by them.
Keys To Power
Those misfortunates among us who have been brought down by circumstances beyond their control deserve all the help and sympathy we can give them. But there are others who are not born to misfortune or unhappiness, but who draw it upon themselves by their destructive actions and unsettling effect on others. It would be a great thing if we could raise them up, change their patterns, but more often than not it is their patterns that end up getting inside and changing us. The reason is simple humans are extremely susceptible to the moods, emotions, and even the ways of thinking of those with whom they spend their time.
Yond Cassius has a lean and hungry look. He thinks too much.... I do not know the man I should avoid so soon as that spare Cassius.... Such men as he be never at heart's ease while they behold a greater than themselves, and therefore are they very dangerous.
Julius Caesar, William Shakespeare, 1564-1616
