How to Expand Your Comfort Zone: Train to Be Tougher

A woman is nervous to give a speech on stage in front of people, but she must learn how to expand her comfort zone.

Do you feel uneasy stepping outside your boundaries? How can you expand your comfort zone? To use adversity as an opportunity to grow, William B. Irvine recommends that you undergo training that expands your comfort zone. It might sound scary to look for uncomfortable situations, but it’s necessary to experience delight in a wide range of situations. Discover how to expand your comfort zone below.

You Can Negotiate Anything by Herb Cohen: Book Overview

A young woman with her hand to her chin holding a book outside.

Is it possible for both sides to win in a negotiation? How can you discover your opponent’s ceiling? Can you make a negotiation pleasant? In You Can Negotiate Anything, Herb Cohen teaches you how to conduct the most productive kind of negotiation possible: one where both sides win. You’ll also learn how to win at competitive negotiation and the secrets to a favorable deal. Read below for a brief overview of You Can Negotiate Anything.

How to Change Direction in Life & Work: Find a New Way Forward

A person holds a vintage compass and map illustrates a change direction in life

Are you thinking of doing something different with your life? How might you experiment with new goals and ambitions? Despite all your efforts to keep moving forward, sometimes your plans simply don’t work out and you discover that a goal isn’t as achievable as you’d originally thought. Adam Alter argues that, rather than throwing your hands up and quitting, you might need a change in direction. If you’re facing failure, here are ways you can change direction in life.

How to Face Difficulties in Life: 3 Areas to Confront Like a Stoic

A woman facing an obstacle in the road and learning how to face difficulties in life.

Do you know how to face difficulties in life? How would a Stoic approach failure and death? William B. Irvine says there are three key areas of life where you can apply Stoic strategies for overcoming adversity. Namely, he discusses how to approach failure, falls from high places, and death as a Stoic would. Here are the three difficult areas of life where you need to embrace your inner Stoic.

The Four Types of Information Your Brain Takes in Every Day

A man looking at a computer monitor intaking four types of information with graphs and lines.

What are the four types of information the brain consumes? What’s the difference between interpretations and inaccurate information? Mo Gawdat says there are four main categories of information that the brain takes in: sensory information, interpretations, recurring thoughts and emotions, and inaccurate takes. Your brain reacts differently to every type, so you must consume the right kind of information. Here are details about the four types of information.

Stop Trying to Be Perfect: 3 Ways to Keep Your Ideals in Check

A young woman looking in the mirror illustrates how to stop trying to be perfect

Why should you stop trying to be perfect? How does perfectionism knock you off your road to success? It’s easy to get mired on the road to success if you expect your achievements to live up to your dreams in every perfect detail. Perfectionists, especially in creative fields, often feel stymied when their work doesn’t live up to their very high personal standards. Learn how Adam Alter frames the escape from the perfectionism trap in three different ways.

Herb Cohen’s 3 Tips for a Successful Win-Win Negotiation

Two men shaking hands outside with the sun behind them in a win-win negotiation.

What’s a win-win negotiation? What are situations where a win-win negotiation is necessary? Many people think of negotiation as a ruthless showdown between competitors, but it doesn’t have to be this way. Herb Cohen asserts that the most productive negotiations are win-win, in which two parties find a solution that’s better than what either would have come up with had they stated a list of demands. Keep reading to learn how to get a win-win negotiation that pleases everyone.

The 3 Basic Human Survival Instincts That Cause Stress

A man surviving in the woods with a bow and arrow, using his human survival instincts.

What are the most basic human survival instincts? When do these survival instincts kick in? Human survival instincts tell us to fear and avoid something, to protect something, or to want something better. Mo Gawdat says these instincts can be problematic because they cause us unnecessary levels of stress and dissatisfaction. Let’s discuss each of these faulty instincts, how they function, and what happens when we use them to process information.

Stoicism on Adversity: Using the Framing Effect Against Hardship

A statue punching through a wall, representing Stoicism's adversity method.

What is Stoicism’s adversity methodology? How do the Stoics handle adversity? In The Stoic Challenge, William B. Irvine explains the Stoics’ core strategy of treating adversities as tests of character. He details how to make use of two psychological phenomena to change your relationship to hardship.  Let’s look at what the Stoics said about adversity.

Scaling People: Book Overview (Claire Hughes Johnson)

A young man reading a book at a desk in an office.

What’s Claire Hughes Johnson’s book Scaling People about? What’s the greatest resource every company has? How can you ensure you’re hiring the right people? Fast-growing companies often focus on scaling key aspects of their business, such as their sales, marketing budgets, and manufacturing processes. However, according to Scaling People, they often forget to focus on their greatest resource: their people. Read below for a brief Scaling People book overview.