Shortform Books

How to Create a Healthy Work Environment With Stability

Does your workplace support a “hustle culture?” Do you know how to create a healthy work environment? In unhealthy work environments, employees and managers work nights and weekends, practically live at the office, and attack their jobs with a frantic intensity. Jason Fried and David Heinemeier Hansson argue that this mindset isn’t necessary for an efficient business. Let’s look at how managers can encourage a work environment that isn’t built on unhealthy practices.

A Failing Immune System and Aging: The Potential Fixes

What’s the link between the immune system and aging? What specifically happens to your body when the immune system begins to fail? Your immune system is a network in your body that protects you from infection. But it’s also a system that becomes less functional as you age, leading to a variety of harmful repercussions. Let’s look at how a decline in your immune system’s functionality causes aging and how to fix it.

Reclaim Your Life: Inspiration From Britney Spears’s Memoir

Do you feel like you have control of your own life? What does it mean to reclaim the narrative? Your life is the only one you’ll ever get, so you must take control of it. Britney Spears realized this after years of suffering from abuse under her conservatorship, and she took the steps to take back her life. Check out why you should reclaim your life, even if it may seem scary.

How to Change by Katy Milkman: Overview and Insights

What are the key points in How to Change by Katy Milkman? What does Milkman say are the keys to lasting behavioral changes? In How to Change, Katy Milkman describes ways of using human nature to our advantage, changing habits by working with our natural tendencies as much as possible. Learning these techniques helps you to create new habits without relying solely on willpower and discipline to make the change. Discover what Milkman has to say about habit formation by reading on.

And There Was Light: Abraham Lincoln and the American Struggle

Why did the Republican Party choose Abraham Lincoln as a presidential candidate? Why was he motivated to sign the Emancipation Proclamation? What’s his legacy today? In And There Was Light: Abraham Lincoln and the American Struggle, Jon Meacham breaks down the myths and legends that surround Abraham Lincoln. He argues that Lincoln had good intentions and accomplished great things but was still as flawed and prone to mistakes as anyone else. Continue reading for an overview of this New York Times bestseller by a Pulitzer Prize winner.

Expert Secrets by Russell Brunson: Book Overview & Takeaways

Why should you launch a movement and not just a product? How often should you publish content for your audience? How should your strategy change when you sell to a large group? Expert Secrets by Russell Brunson answers these questions and many more. The book serves as a how-to guide for creating excitement for your idea that turns potential customers into lifelong buyers, focusing on how you can tap into your audience’s emotions. Continue reading for an overview of this book, and learn the main “secrets” that will help you create loyal customers.

Invent and Wander: Jeff Bezos’s Account of Amazon’s Rise

How did Amazon become the booming online business it is today? What innovations set Amazon apart from the rest? In Invent and Wander, Jeff Bezos chronicles Amazon’s meteoric rise from a niche online retailer to the ubiquitous digital superstore of the 21st century. Bezos’s writings and speeches also illustrate his values and insights into innovation and business success. Read below for an overview of Invent and Wander by Jeff Bezos.

How the Caregiver-Infant Interaction Teaches Coping Skills

What effect does the caregiver-infant interaction have on a child? What’s the role of the caregiver in supporting infant development? Caregiver-infant interaction is the primary way that an infant learns how to handle stress, and good interactions lay the foundation for healthy coping skills later on in life. Understanding how this works can make you a better caregiver. Discover how caregiver-infant interaction impacts an infant’s experience of stress and comfort.

How to Change Your Behavior for the Better

Want to learn how to change your behavior? What does it take to make changes that last? To change your behavior, you need to work with your natural tendencies and create solutions that will ease you into a new behavioral pattern. Knowing how to engineer solutions that are specific to your situation is key. Read more about how to create lasting change with these insights from Katy Milkman’s How to Change.

Gold Standard vs. Fiat Currency: Is the Issue Just Psychological?

Which is better—the gold standard or fiat currency? Could you make a sound economic argument for your position? In Narrative Economics, economist Robert J. Shiller argues that human beliefs and actions, rather than numbers and statistics, ultimately drive economics. Specifically, he writes that beliefs about the gold standard are part of a recurring American economic narrative. Read more to learn Shiller’s take on the gold standard vs. fiat currency debate.