1: Do you believe that all meaningful problems are deeply rooted and difficult to change?

David Yeager, a mindset researcher at the University of Texas at Austin, shares a story that reveals how deep people’s skepticism can run about the power of short interventions to improve people’s lives.

This week we’re examining multiple studies that show your mindset, or how you think about something, can have a profound impact … continue reading

1: Do people who have a positive attitude about aging live longer?

More than seven years longer, according to researchers at Yale University.

They followed middle-aged adults for twenty years.  “Those who had a positive view of aging in midlife lived an average of 7.6 years longer than those who had a negative view,” writes Kelly McGonigal in her terrific book The Upside of Stress.

“To put that number … continue reading

1: Many people believe they are the only ones who don’t fit in.

“Feeling like you don’t belong can change how you interpret everything you experience,” writes Kelly McGonigal in her powerful book The Upside of Stress.

“Conversations, setbacks, misunderstandings,” she notes, “almost anything can be viewed as evidence that, in fact, you don’t belong.”

“The belief that you don’t belong also feeds into many destructive states of mind, … continue reading

1: You’ve got it all wrong.

You’ve been taught that stress is bad for you.

This belief is harmful, Kelly McGonigal argues in The Upside of Stress.

“The best way to manage stress isn’t to reduce or avoid it, but rather to rethink and even embrace it.”

The fight-or-flight survival instinct is part of your stress response.  When something major happens, your sympathetic nervous system mobilizes your entire body.… continue reading

1: What we’ve taught about stress is wrong, Kelly McGonigal argues in her terrific book The Upside of Stress.

Despite what we’ve been taught and told, the latest science shows that stress, by itself, is not harmful. However, believing stress is harmful to your health is toxic.

So, how do you transform your view of stress? Are there actions you can take when you feel overwhelmed to direct your … continue reading

1: In 1998, thirty thousand adults in the United States were asked a series of questions about stress.

How much stress had they experienced in the past year?  Do you believe stress is harmful to your health?

“Eight years later, the researchers scoured public records to find out who among the thirty thousand participants had died,” Kelly McGonigal writes in her terrific book The Upside of Stress.

As predicted, … continue reading

1: What do you do when the battery turns red on your phone?  You recharge it.

Yet, many people who are tired and overworked just trudge forward.

Which begs the question, “Why do you think you can force yourself to run well on empty?” Jeremie Kubicek and Steve Cockram write in their book The 5 Gears: How to Be Present and Productive When There is Never Enough Time.

“People … continue reading

1: Each day when he’s not traveling, Kevin Deshazo, CEO of Fieldhouse Media, drives his son Gabe to and from school.

“While in transit I normally check my phone at red lights for emails and posts, trying to see what the world is up to,” he explains.

“Everything changed,” he says after learning about the 5 Gears framework.

The 5 Gears is both the title and the central metaphor … continue reading

1: Jennifer’s father was ill.
“The two things that he could do to improve his physical condition most significantly are to eat better and exercise,” she tells Jeremie Kubicek and Steve Cockram, who write in their book The 5 Gears: How to Be Present and Productive When There is Never Enough Time.
And, “the two things he refuses to do are eat better and exercise,” she says.
Jennifer … continue reading

1: What if you could feel better anytime, anyplace, no matter what?

And not only that, but you could also live ten years longer.

Sounds good, right?

How do you do this? The answer is found in an unexpected place,  Jane McGonigal writes in her book SuperBetter: The Power of Living Gamefully.

Chances are, if you are a gamer, you know about power-ups.

“They’re the bonus items that … continue reading