Your brain is not a closed-off control area where all the thinking takes place. In The Extended Mind, science writer Annie Murphy Paul uses research from psychologists, cognitive scientists, and neuroscientists to prove that intelligence, superior memory, and sharp attention stem from interactions between our brains, bodies, spaces, and relationships. Using her practical methods, we can […]
Don’t be Your Own Worst Enemy
Everyone has a story. Today’s Instaread summary will change the way you conceptualize and tell that story, to yourself and to other people in the world. In Choose Your Story, Change Your Life, storyteller and keynote speaker Kindra Hall explains what stories are, explores their power, and details how you can rewrite the bad ones into better […]
Can You Make The Jump?
We often talk about aging in terms of decline, both physically and with regard to our cognitive abilities. But there are some specific ways in which we naturally get smarter and more skillful over time. Think of it as your second wind. Understanding, developing, and practicing these new strengths will be the key to your […]
Cut Your Laundry Time in Half
It may sound silly to invest any effort into revamping your laundry routine. But the average family has seven loads of laundry per week, which translates to about 10 hours of labor. A few smart tweaks can cut that time in half. Do all your laundry on one day of the week. It will help […]
Can You Hear Your Inner Voice?
The background noise of everyday life—from traffic to social media—is making it increasingly difficult to concentrate. The world isn’t going to get any quieter, so we have to learn how to manage it better. The same is true of our inner worlds, which can also be very noisy. Even the smallest daily conflicts create loud […]
How to Overcome Embarrassment
Have you ever found yourself awake at night, reliving a conversation in which you said or did something weird? A big chunk of adult life is feeling unconsciously stuck in the past, consumed by difficult experiences that we haven’t processed properly. Unfortunately, a bout of insomnia isn’t the time to work it out. The thing […]
Level Up to Pro Parenting
Our kids are always watching, and they model their behavior on our own. That means if you get down on yourself for making a mistake, your kids will do the same whenever they mess up. We want to cultivate resilience in our kids, as well as a positive attitude. That means for their sake, you […]
How to be a Better Person
Who needs an evil sidekick when our own brains can do our dirty work? Beneath conscious awareness, our brains are programmed to always make us act in our own best interest. In theory, you may want to be selfless and help others. But evolution has its own agenda for your survival and dominance. Basically, the […]
Is the Internet Making You Miserable?
In theory, technology should make us all feel more connected and close. It’s easy to stay in touch with friends and family who live far away, and to meet new people who share our interests instead of just geographical location. We can like and subscribe, swipe right, leave a comment, or post a photograph from […]
How to Build Your Own Personal Assistant
Our brains are good at lots of things. But they’re not great at managing knowledge. With so much information coming at us from all directions, we need a system for capturing—and retrieving—information that’s important. Productivity expert Tiago Forte developed his “second brain” note-taking system to help him manage a complicated medical condition. It’s a method […]