When women "hear" the language of men, a sea change can happen.

If you want to know what men want in order to be truly happy in their relationship, the answer lies in one thing: communication.

For example, if you've been in a relationship for a while now, you might feel like neither of you has much to say to each other these days. Bickering becomes a frequent pastime, and it seems hes only interested in being with you when he has sex in mind.

When this happens, when and how can you start a conversation about it?

RELATED: The Secret Thing Men Want More Than Love (And How To Provide It For Them)

"Babe, can we talk?" are among the most dreaded words in any language to the vast majority of men. He hears only, "Im in trouble."

And so begins an unfortunate cycle that is repeated over and over again in homes, restaurants, and parks around the globe.

Men know that they feel like they're in trouble when these words are spoken. What many men dont always know about themselves is why.

The secret is that mens happiness in relationships depends largely on whether their partners are happy and specifically happy with them.

What a man really wants is to feel emotionally connected just as much as you do. Unfortunately, too often, these attempts to communicate and connect backfire. And it's so maddening and puzzling to both of you.

He cleans off your car in every snow, shares the chores, approaches you for sex, works hard to be a good provider, and makes sure all the insurance premiums are paid.

You tell him you want to spend more time with him, to improve the communication between the two of you, and want him to suggest some fun things to do together. However, he disappears into his man cave of stony silence.

"What goes so wrong?" you both ask.

What is wrong is that he feels that hes tried so hard to show his love and affection and youre not satisfied! Instead, hes in the doghouse again.

What puzzles you is that you tell him what you want but hes not inspired.

When you tell him what you want, he hears how hes fallen short. He feels hes failed in his job as a partner and retreats in shame, usually disguised as anger or withdrawal. Meanwhile, you feel misunderstood and deserted.

In their book, How to Improve Your Marriage Without Talking About It, Dr. Pat Love and Dr. Steven Stosny assert that there are strong gender differences afoot, set in motion by biology at birth and solidified by socialization.

Were taught how to avoid shame and fear according to our gender.

What I so often hear from women is, "How do I cope with this man I love? How can I connect with him?"

The answer isnt complicated. But, it does require looking at effective communication skills through a different lens.

The first step is to define what you mean by effective communication.

Remember that you and your spouse have different communication styles. So, when you say, "We need better communication skills", you usually mean, I want you to understand me."

And he wants this just as much. One major way a man communicates is to do things for his partner in the hopes of making her happy.

When these efforts arent noticed and put in the "I feel loved" column, he feels he hasnt been "heard", much less understood.

One thing that really helps is to learn how to "hear" the language of men. You might think, "Changing the lightbulbs is great, but thats not what makes me feel loved."

However, recognizing that this is his effort to love and care for you can be a game-changer. When he feels acknowledged and appreciated for these practical efforts, he is more likely to stay present with you and his man cave feels less beckoning.

If you disrupt the cycle of misunderstanding and missed cues, then the channels of communication have a much better chance of being open. He is, then, likely to be able to hear and understand you.

Do you want to facilitate a dramatic shift towards a far more enjoyable relationship?

Tough as is it, changing this cycle requires you to temporarily set aside your frustrations and build a bridge between the two of you. Knowing your neurobiological differences makes a world of difference

In his book, Wired for Love, Dr. Stan Tatkin states that partners who become experts on each other can learn what pleases and soothes their partners. Herein lies a critical key to a satisfying relationship.

If you understand the differences in your neurobiology, those familiar arguments and impasses can fade and dissolve.

As challenging as it may be, keep your sights on the big prize of a closer relationship if you want to learn how to communicate effectively.

Do: Accept and appreciate out loud all the things he does for you and your family.

Don't: Criticize him. Most issues that are tense between the two of you can be discussed without criticism.

See his eyes light up when you tell him you appreciate that he gets up and goes to work every day, regardless that youre doing the same).

Whats important to him is that you know that the reason he does much of what he does is to make you happy.

RELATED: Men Share 11 Qualities They Look For In A Woman

Do: Be affectionate.

Don't: Complain that hes not affectionate.

You might complain that the only time hes affectionate is when he wants sex. Men often look to connect emotionally through inviting their partner into a sexual encounter.

If youre not in the mood, build a bridge between where you are and being open to touching. This could be a hot bath, a conversation, a foot massage, or a walk together.

If you have to pass, propose an alternative that is physically connecting and make good on a rain check for sex.

Do: Be that person anyone would want to be with. Listen to what he has to say, show interest, propose a fun activity, be complimentary.

Don't: Bring up issues loaded with negativity when youre having fun or some relaxing time together.

If you refer to things on his "to-do" list that hasnt been done, a pet peeve, or your best advice on how he could lose weight, hell feel pounced on. That man-cave will seem very appealing.

Do: Ask if this is a good time for him to listen to something important you have to tell him. Be a safe person for him to be in conversation with. Be vulnerable. Let him know that you realize he may not have intended to offend you.

Don't: Ambush him. Dont try to talk to him when youre angry. Dont lay out your self-improvement program for him. Hell only hear, "Heres how youve failed..."

If you unload on him when youre angry, his ears will close. Wait until youve identified your more vulnerable feelings that triggered the anger first. He can more likely hear that youre hurt, feel ignored or unimportant.

These suggestions most likely wont feel easy to do. Yet, they work. Remember this is a win-win scenario. When couples feel connected, there are fewer problems.

With understanding and respect for your differences, its possible to change this common cycle of his feeling hes failed and your feeling misunderstood and abandoned.

When men feel theyre successful partners and women feel understood, there are few problems you cant tackle together.

RELATED: 8 Little Things Women Do That Guys *Secretly* Can't Get Enough Of

Deborah Fox, MSW is a couples therapist and Certified Sex Therapist helping couples reconnect and find their way back to a passionate relationship. Visit Deborah on her on her website and follow her on Facebook.

YourTango may earn an affiliate commission if you buy something through links featured in this article.

This article was originally published at Deb Fox. Reprinted with permission from the author.

Original post:
How To Communicate Effectively & Understand What Men Want In Order To Be Happy In A Relationship | Deborah Fox - YourTango

At Mercedes' HQ in Brackley, graduates and placement students play important roles throughout the engineering department - but particularly in the race support room, which provides real-time information to the team at the track over a race weekend.

"The race support room is an extension of the track office; we replicate some of the jobs that are going on trackside," explains Dom Riefstahl, Race Support Team Leader and Test Engineer. "Our young engineers watch all of the Sky footage, listening to other teams' radio, monitoring the feedback - everything they can see, spot and hear from other teams to help us manage our strategy."

This video was brought to you in partnership with Bose

A constant thirst for self-improvement is something Mercedes share with one of their official partners. Thanks to Bose, we had the chance to speak to three young engineers from the race support room about their roles at Mercedes and what it means to them to be part of a record-breaking Formula 1 team. This is their race: these youngsters must tackle challenges under intense pressure in a fast-paced environment.

"I've loved F1 since I was a kid, I've always watched the races with my brother and my dad," Emma Corfield told us. "I was really drawn, not only to the excitement of the racing but also to the challenge of the technical aspect of the sport as well."

Tom Sutton was really attracted to the fast-paced development in Formula 1. He now analyses data to find ways to improve both car and driver performance and develops software applications used by the team on track and at the factory.

Alongside studying for a Mathematics degree at Bath University, Abbey O'Dwyer works on placement with the Mercedes team as a software integration tester.

"Everyone seems to be united, to work together so well," she enthused. "There's no finger-pointing - we all win together, we all lose together, and that's what I really like about Mercedes."

Technical Director James Allison explained why bringing young graduates and placement students into the Mercedes-AMG Petronas Motorsport team is so important.

"Instead of having an autocratic, top-down decision-making structure, we try instead to get people to buy into the fact that we're a team, and that being a team is going to make a big difference as to whether we're winning or losing grands prix - and to trust them to work on parts of the car much earlier than some other teams would."

'Do more, be more, feel more' is a mantra shared by both Bose and Mercedes - and it's clear that these young engineers are on a quest to drive innovation in the future.

Product featured is the new Headphones 700, discover more at bose.co.uk

See more here:
Mercedes Looks to the Future with its Young Engineers - autosport.com

"Drawdown: The Most Comprehensive Plan Ever Proposed to Reverse Global Warming" by Paul Hawken and Tom Steyer

Summary: In the face of widespread fear and apathy, an international coalition of researchers, professionals, and scientists have come together to offer a set of realistic and bold solutions to climate change. One hundred techniques and practices are described heresome are well known; some you may have never heard of. They range from clean energy to educating girls in lower-income countries to land use practices that pull carbon out of the air.

The solutions exist, are economically viable, and communities throughout the world are currently enacting them with skill and determination. If deployed collectively on a global scale over the next thirty years, they represent a credible path forward, not just to slow the earth's warming but to reach drawdown, that point in time when greenhouse gases in the atmosphere peak and begin to decline.

These measures promise cascading benefits to human health, security, prosperity, and well-beinggiving us every reason to see this planetary crisis as an opportunity to create a just and livable world.

Summary: In the face of widespread fear and apathy, an international coalition of researchers, professionals, and scientists have come together to offer a set of realistic and bold solutions to climate change. One hundred techniques and practices are described heresome are well known; some you may have never heard of. They range from clean energy to educating girls in lower-income countries to land use practices that pull carbon out of the air.

The solutions exist, are economically viable, and communities throughout the world are currently enacting them with skill and determination. If deployed collectively on a global scale over the next thirty years, they represent a credible path forward, not just to slow the earth's warming but to reach drawdown, that point in time when greenhouse gases in the atmosphere peak and begin to decline.

These measures promise cascading benefits to human health, security, prosperity, and well-beinggiving us every reason to see this planetary crisis as an opportunity to create a just and livable world.

Summary: One of the U.S. government's leading China experts reveals the hidden strategy fueling that country's rise and how Americans have been seduced into helping China overtake us as the world's leading superpower.

For more than forty years, the United States has played an indispensable role helping the Chinese government build a booming economy, develop its scientific and military capabilities, and take its place on the world stage, in the belief that China's rise will bring us cooperation, diplomacy, and free trade. But what if the "China Dream" is to replace us, just as America replaced the British Empire, without firing a shot?

Based on interviews with Chinese defectors and newly declassified, previously undisclosed national security documents, The Hundred-Year Marathon reveals China's secret strategy to supplant the United States as the world's dominant power, and to do so by 2049, the one-hundredth anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic. Michael Pillsbury, a fluent Mandarin speaker who has served in senior national security positions in the U.S. government since the days of Richard Nixon and Henry Kissinger, draws on his decades of contact with the "hawks" in China's military and intelligence agencies and translates their documents, speeches, and books to show how the teachings of traditional Chinese statecraft underpin their actions. He offers an inside look at how the Chinese really view America and its leaders as barbarians who will be the architects of their own demise.

Pillsbury also explains how the U.S. government has helped sometimes unwittingly and sometimes deliberately to make this "China Dream" come true, and he calls for the United States to implement a new, more competitive strategy toward China as it really is, and not as we might wish it to be. The Hundred-Year Marathon is a wake-up call as we face the greatest national security challenge of the twenty-first century.

Summary: One of the U.S. government's leading China experts reveals the hidden strategy fueling that country's rise and how Americans have been seduced into helping China overtake us as the world's leading superpower.

For more than forty years, the United States has played an indispensable role helping the Chinese government build a booming economy, develop its scientific and military capabilities, and take its place on the world stage, in the belief that China's rise will bring us cooperation, diplomacy, and free trade. But what if the China Dream is to replace us, just as America replaced the British Empire, without firing a shot?

Based on interviews with Chinese defectors and newly declassified, previously undisclosed national security documents, The Hundred-Year Marathon reveals China's secret strategy to supplant the United States as the world's dominant power, and to do so by 2049, the one-hundredth anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic. Michael Pillsbury, a fluent Mandarin speaker who has served in senior national security positions in the U.S. government since the days of Richard Nixon and Henry Kissinger, draws on his decades of contact with the hawks in China's military and intelligence agencies and translates their documents, speeches, and books to show how the teachings of traditional Chinese statecraft underpin their actions. He offers an inside look at how the Chinese really view America and its leaders as barbarians who will be the architects of their own demise.

Pillsbury also explains how the U.S. government has helped sometimes unwittingly and sometimes deliberately to make this China Dream come true, and he calls for the United States to implement a new, more competitive strategy toward China as it really is, and not as we might wish it to be. The Hundred-Year Marathon is a wake-up call as we face the greatest national security challenge of the twenty-first century.

Summary: Robert Greene is a master guide for millions of readers, distilling ancient wisdom and philosophy into essential texts for seekers of power, understanding and mastery. Now he turns to the most important subject of all - understanding people's drives and motivations, even when they are unconscious of them themselves.

We are social animals. Our very lives depend on our relationships with people. Knowing why people do what they do is the most important tool we can possess, without which our other talents can only take us so far. Drawing from the ideas and examples of Pericles, Queen Elizabeth I, Martin Luther King Jr, and many others, Greene teaches us how to detach ourselves from our own emotions and master self-control, how to develop the empathy that leads to insight, how to look behind people's masks, and how to resist conformity to develop your singular sense of purpose. Whether at work, in relationships, or in shaping the world around you, The Laws of Human Nature offers brilliant tactics for success, self-improvement, and self-defense.

Summary: Robert Greene is a master guide for millions of readers, distilling ancient wisdom and philosophy into essential texts for seekers of power, understanding and mastery. Now he turns to the most important subject of all - understanding people's drives and motivations, even when they are unconscious of them themselves.

We are social animals. Our very lives depend on our relationships with people. Knowing why people do what they do is the most important tool we can possess, without which our other talents can only take us so far. Drawing from the ideas and examples of Pericles, Queen Elizabeth I, Martin Luther King Jr, and many others, Greene teaches us how to detach ourselves from our own emotions and master self-control, how to develop the empathy that leads to insight, how to look behind people's masks, and how to resist conformity to develop your singular sense of purpose. Whether at work, in relationships, or in shaping the world around you, The Laws of Human Nature offers brilliant tactics for success, self-improvement, and self-defense.

Summary: Plenty of experts argue that anyone who wants to develop a skill, play an instrument, or lead their field should start early, focus intensely, and rack up as many hours of deliberate practice as possible. If you dabble or delay, you'll never catch up to the people who got a head start. But a closer look at research on the world's top performers, from professional athletes to Nobel laureates, shows that early specialization is the exception, not the rule.

David Epstein examined the world's most successful athletes, artists, musicians, inventors, forecasters and scientists. He discovered that in most fieldsespecially those that are complex and unpredictablegeneralists, not specialists, are primed to excel. Generalists often find their path late, and they juggle many interests rather than focusing on one. They're also more creative, more agile, and able to make connections their more specialized peers can't see.

Provocative, rigorous, and engrossing, Range makes a compelling case for actively cultivating inefficiency. Failing a test is the best way to learn. Frequent quitters end up with the most fulfilling careers. The most impactful inventors cross domains rather than deepening their knowledge in a single area. As experts silo themselves further while computers master more of the skills once reserved for highly focused humans, people who think broadly and embrace diverse experiences and perspectives will increasingly thrive.

Summary: Plenty of experts argue that anyone who wants to develop a skill, play an instrument, or lead their field should start early, focus intensely, and rack up as many hours of deliberate practice as possible. If you dabble or delay, you'll never catch up to the people who got a head start. But a closer look at research on the world's top performers, from professional athletes to Nobel laureates, shows that early specialization is the exception, not the rule.

David Epstein examined the world's most successful athletes, artists, musicians, inventors, forecasters and scientists. He discovered that in most fieldsespecially those that are complex and unpredictablegeneralists, not specialists, are primed to excel. Generalists often find their path late, and they juggle many interests rather than focusing on one. They're also more creative, more agile, and able to make connections their more specialized peers can't see.

Provocative, rigorous, and engrossing, Range makes a compelling case for actively cultivating inefficiency. Failing a test is the best way to learn. Frequent quitters end up with the most fulfilling careers. The most impactful inventors cross domains rather than deepening their knowledge in a single area. As experts silo themselves further while computers master more of the skills once reserved for highly focused humans, people who think broadly and embrace diverse experiences and perspectives will increasingly thrive.

Summary: Populism is a threat to the democratic world, fuel for demagogues and reactionary crowdsor so its critics would have us believe. But in his award-winning trilogy We the People, Bruce Ackerman showed that Americans have repeatedly rejected this view. Now he draws on a quarter century of scholarship in this essential and surprising inquiry into the origins, successes, and threats to revolutionary constitutionalism around the world. He takes us to India, South Africa, Italy, France, Poland, Burma, Israel, and Iran and provides a blow-by-blow account of the tribulations that confronted popular movements in their insurgent campaigns for constitutional democracy. Despite their many differences, populist leaders such as Nehru, Mandela, and de Gaulle encountered similar dilemmas at critical turning points, and each managed something overlooked but essential. Rather than deploy their charismatic leadership to retain power, they instead used it to confer legitimacy to the citizens and institutions of constitutional democracy.

Ackerman returns to the United States in his last chapter to provide new insights into the Founders' acts of constitutional statesmanship as they met very similar challenges to those confronting populist leaders today. In the age of Trump, the democratic system of checks and balances will not survive unless ordinary citizens rally to its defense. Revolutionary Constitutions shows how activists can learn from their predecessors' successes and profit from their mistakes, and sets up Ackerman's next volume, which will address how elites and insiders co-opt and destroy the momentum of revolutionary movements.

Summary: Populism is a threat to the democratic world, fuel for demagogues and reactionary crowdsor so its critics would have us believe. But in his award-winning trilogy We the People, Bruce Ackerman showed that Americans have repeatedly rejected this view. Now he draws on a quarter century of scholarship in this essential and surprising inquiry into the origins, successes, and threats to revolutionary constitutionalism around the world. He takes us to India, South Africa, Italy, France, Poland, Burma, Israel, and Iran and provides a blow-by-blow account of the tribulations that confronted popular movements in their insurgent campaigns for constitutional democracy. Despite their many differences, populist leaders such as Nehru, Mandela, and de Gaulle encountered similar dilemmas at critical turning points, and each managed something overlooked but essential. Rather than deploy their charismatic leadership to retain power, they instead used it to confer legitimacy to the citizens and institutions of constitutional democracy.

Ackerman returns to the United States in his last chapter to provide new insights into the Founders' acts of constitutional statesmanship as they met very similar challenges to those confronting populist leaders today. In the age of Trump, the democratic system of checks and balances will not survive unless ordinary citizens rally to its defense. Revolutionary Constitutions shows how activists can learn from their predecessors' successes and profit from their mistakes, and sets up Ackerman's next volume, which will address how elites and insiders co-opt and destroy the momentum of revolutionary movements.

Summary: Robert Iger became CEO of The Walt Disney Company in 2005, during a difficult time. Competition was more intense than ever and technology was changing faster than at any time in the company's history. His vision came down to three clear ideas: Recommit to the concept that quality matters, embrace technology instead of fighting it, and think biggerthink globaland turn Disney into a stronger brand in international markets.

Fourteen years later, Disney is the largest, most respected media company in the world, counting Pixar, Marvel, Lucasfilm, and 21st Century Fox among its properties. Its value is nearly five times what it was when Iger took over, and he is recognized as one of the most innovative and successful CEOs of our era.

In The Ride of a Lifetime, Robert Iger shares the lessons he's learned while running Disney and leading its 200,000 employees, and he explores the principles that are necessary for true leadership, including:

Optimism. Even in the face of difficulty, an optimistic leader will find the path toward the best possible outcome and focus on that, rather than give in to pessimism and blaming. Courage. Leaders have to be willing to take risks and place big bets. Fear of failure destroys creativity. Decisiveness. All decisions, no matter how difficult, can be made on a timely basis. Indecisiveness is both wasteful and destructive to morale. Fairness. Treat people decently, with empathy, and be accessible to them.

This book is about the relentless curiosity that has driven Iger for forty-five years, since the day he started as the lowliest studio grunt at ABC. It's also about thoughtfulness and respect, and a decency-over-dollars approach that has become the bedrock of every project and partnership Iger pursues, from a deep friendship with Steve Jobs in his final years to an abiding love of the Star Wars mythology.

"The ideas in this book strike me as universal" Iger writes. "Not just to the aspiring CEOs of the world, but to anyone wanting to feel less fearful, more confidently themselves, as they navigate their professional and even personal lives."

Summary: Robert Iger became CEO of The Walt Disney Company in 2005, during a difficult time. Competition was more intense than ever and technology was changing faster than at any time in the company's history. His vision came down to three clear ideas: Recommit to the concept that quality matters, embrace technology instead of fighting it, and think biggerthink globaland turn Disney into a stronger brand in international markets.

Fourteen years later, Disney is the largest, most respected media company in the world, counting Pixar, Marvel, Lucasfilm, and 21st Century Fox among its properties. Its value is nearly five times what it was when Iger took over, and he is recognized as one of the most innovative and successful CEOs of our era.

In The Ride of a Lifetime, Robert Iger shares the lessons he's learned while running Disney and leading its 200,000 employees, and he explores the principles that are necessary for true leadership, including:

Optimism. Even in the face of difficulty, an optimistic leader will find the path toward the best possible outcome and focus on that, rather than give in to pessimism and blaming. Courage. Leaders have to be willing to take risks and place big bets. Fear of failure destroys creativity. Decisiveness. All decisions, no matter how difficult, can be made on a timely basis. Indecisiveness is both wasteful and destructive to morale. Fairness. Treat people decently, with empathy, and be accessible to them.

This book is about the relentless curiosity that has driven Iger for forty-five years, since the day he started as the lowliest studio grunt at ABC. It's also about thoughtfulness and respect, and a decency-over-dollars approach that has become the bedrock of every project and partnership Iger pursues, from a deep friendship with Steve Jobs in his final years to an abiding love of the Star Wars mythology.

The ideas in this book strike me as universal Iger writes. Not just to the aspiring CEOs of the world, but to anyone wanting to feel less fearful, more confidently themselves, as they navigate their professional and even personal lives.

Summary: Visionary physicist Geoffrey West is a pioneer in the field of complexity science, the science of emergent systems and networks. The term "complexity" can be misleading, however, because what makes West's discoveries so beautiful is that he has found an underlying simplicity that unites the seemingly complex and diverse phenomena of living systems, including our bodies, our cities and our businesses.

Fascinated by aging and mortality, West applied the rigor of a physicist to the biological question of why we live as long as we do and no longer. The result was astonishing, and changed science: West found that despite the riotous diversity in mammals, they are all, to a large degree, scaled versions of each other. If you know the size of a mammal, you can use scaling laws to learn everything from how much food it eats per day, what its heart-rate is, how long it will take to mature, its lifespan, and so on. Furthermore, the efficiency of the mammal's circulatory systems scales up precisely based on weight: if you compare a mouse, a human and an elephant on a logarithmic graph, you find with every doubling of average weight, a species gets 25% more efficientand lives 25% longer. Fundamentally, he has proven, the issue has to do with the fractal geometry of the networks that supply energy and remove waste from the organism's body.

West's work has been game-changing for biologists, but then he made the even bolder move of exploring his work's applicability. Cities, too, are constellations of networks and laws of scalability relate with eerie precision to them. Recently, West has applied his revolutionary work to the business world. This investigation has led to powerful insights into why some companies thrive while others fail. The implications of these discoveries are far-reaching, and are just beginning to be explored. Scale is a thrilling scientific adventure story about the elemental natural laws that bind us together in simple but profound ways. Through the brilliant mind of Geoffrey West, we can envision how cities, companies and biological life alike are dancing to the same simple, powerful tune.

Summary: Visionary physicist Geoffrey West is a pioneer in the field of complexity science, the science of emergent systems and networks. The term complexity can be misleading, however, because what makes West's discoveries so beautiful is that he has found an underlying simplicity that unites the seemingly complex and diverse phenomena of living systems, including our bodies, our cities and our businesses.

Fascinated by aging and mortality, West applied the rigor of a physicist to the biological question of why we live as long as we do and no longer. The result was astonishing, and changed science: West found that despite the riotous diversity in mammals, they are all, to a large degree, scaled versions of each other. If you know the size of a mammal, you can use scaling laws to learn everything from how much food it eats per day, what its heart-rate is, how long it will take to mature, its lifespan, and so on. Furthermore, the efficiency of the mammal's circulatory systems scales up precisely based on weight: if you compare a mouse, a human and an elephant on a logarithmic graph, you find with every doubling of average weight, a species gets 25% more efficientand lives 25% longer. Fundamentally, he has proven, the issue has to do with the fractal geometry of the networks that supply energy and remove waste from the organism's body.

West's work has been game-changing for biologists, but then he made the even bolder move of exploring his work's applicability. Cities, too, are constellations of networks and laws of scalability relate with eerie precision to them. Recently, West has applied his revolutionary work to the business world. This investigation has led to powerful insights into why some companies thrive while others fail. The implications of these discoveries are far-reaching, and are just beginning to be explored. Scale is a thrilling scientific adventure story about the elemental natural laws that bind us together in simple but profound ways. Through the brilliant mind of Geoffrey West, we can envision how cities, companies and biological life alike are dancing to the same simple, powerful tune.

Summary: In a handful of nations, virtually all children are learning to make complex arguments and solve problems they've never seen before. They are learning to think, in other words, and to thrive in the modern economy. Inspired to find answers for our own children, author and Time magazine journalist Amanda Ripley follows three Americans embedded in these countries for one year. Kim, fifteen, raises $10,000 so she can move from Oklahoma to Finland; Eric, eighteen, trades his high-achieving Minnesota suburb for a booming city in South Korea; and Tom, seventeen, leaves a historic Pennsylvania village for Poland.

Through these young informants, Ripley meets battle-scarred reformers, sleep-deprived zombie students, and a teacher who earns $4 million a year. Their stories, along with groundbreaking research into learning in other cultures, reveal a pattern of startling transformation: none of these countries had many "smart" kids a few decades ago. Things had changed. Teaching had become more rigorous; parents had focused on things that mattered; and children had bought into the promise of education.

Summary: In a handful of nations, virtually all children are learning to make complex arguments and solve problems they've never seen before. They are learning to think, in other words, and to thrive in the modern economy. Inspired to find answers for our own children, author and Time magazine journalist Amanda Ripley follows three Americans embedded in these countries for one year. Kim, fifteen, raises $10,000 so she can move from Oklahoma to Finland; Eric, eighteen, trades his high-achieving Minnesota suburb for a booming city in South Korea; and Tom, seventeen, leaves a historic Pennsylvania village for Poland.

Through these young informants, Ripley meets battle-scarred reformers, sleep-deprived zombie students, and a teacher who earns $4 million a year. Their stories, along with groundbreaking research into learning in other cultures, reveal a pattern of startling transformation: none of these countries had many smart kids a few decades ago. Things had changed. Teaching had become more rigorous; parents had focused on things that mattered; and children had bought into the promise of education.

Summary: From the author of the New York Times #1 bestseller The Untethered Soul comes the astonishing true-life story about what happens when you just let go.

A thriving spiritual community on over six hundred acres of pristine forest and meadows in Florida A cutting-edge software package that transformed the medical practice management industry A billion-dollar public company whose achievements are archived in the Smithsonian Institution A book that became a New York Times bestseller and an Oprah favorite A massive raid by the FBI that would lead to unfounded accusations by the U.S. government

How could all of this spring from a man who had decided to live alone in the middle of the woods, let go of himself, and embrace a life of solitude?

Michael A. Singer, author of The Untethered Soul, tells the extraordinary story of what happened when, after a deep spiritual awakening, he decided to let go of his personal preferences and simply let life call the shots. As Singer takes you on this great experiment and journey into life's perfection, the events that transpire will both challenge your deepest assumptions about life and inspire you to look at your own life in a radically different way.

Summary: From the author of the New York Times #1 bestseller The Untethered Soul comes the astonishing true-life story about what happens when you just let go.

A thriving spiritual community on over six hundred acres of pristine forest and meadows in Florida A cutting-edge software package that transformed the medical practice management industry A billion-dollar public company whose achievements are archived in the Smithsonian Institution A book that became a New York Times bestseller and an Oprah favorite A massive raid by the FBI that would lead to unfounded accusations by the U.S. government

How could all of this spring from a man who had decided to live alone in the middle of the woods, let go of himself, and embrace a life of solitude?

Michael A. Singer, author of The Untethered Soul, tells the extraordinary story of what happened when, after a deep spiritual awakening, he decided to let go of his personal preferences and simply let life call the shots. As Singer takes you on this great experiment and journey into life's perfection, the events that transpire will both challenge your deepest assumptions about life and inspire you to look at your own life in a radically different way.

Summary: America's favorite pastime is enduring an assault of new thoughts and ideas. In recent years, the sabermetrics and analytics craze has infiltrated Major League Baseballfrom its front offices to dugouts to clubhouses to media covering both, inciting a baseball culture war. New phrases like "launch angle," "spin rate," and "pitch framing" have entered the vocabulary, often with little real meaning when it comes to how the game is actually played on the field. No more.

In State of Play, twelve-year Major League veteran, Emmy Awardwinning MLB Network analyst, and bestselling author Bill Ripken breaks down these modern statistical methods to explain which ones make sense in the game's historical context, bringing them together with proven old-school strategies. He simplifies those sabermetric terms hastily added to the baseball lexicon without being fully realized, taking new-school confusion out of old-school baseball's tried-and-true common sense. In the end, he unites the teachings of each school to show fans of both how to listen to and understand the game as it's played today and how it should be played moving forward.

From a true baseball lifer and member of baseball's first family, State of Play offers a fascinating insider's look at how to reconcile years of historical tradition with the rules and trends of the new millennium. As Ripken sees it: the game inside the game cannot be measured by a spreadsheetbut it can be measured by a qualified, crusty baseball man. Play ball.

Summary: America's favorite pastime is enduring an assault of new thoughts and ideas. In recent years, the sabermetrics and analytics craze has infiltrated Major League Baseballfrom its front offices to dugouts to clubhouses to media covering both, inciting a baseball culture war. New phrases like launch angle, spin rate, and pitch framing have entered the vocabulary, often with little real meaning when it comes to how the game is actually played on the field. No more.

In State of Play, twelve-year Major League veteran, Emmy Awardwinning MLB Network analyst, and bestselling author Bill Ripken breaks down these modern statistical methods to explain which ones make sense in the game's historical context, bringing them together with proven old-school strategies. He simplifies those sabermetric terms hastily added to the baseball lexicon without being fully realized, taking new-school confusion out of old-school baseball's tried-and-true common sense. In the end, he unites the teachings of each school to show fans of both how to listen to and understand the game as it's played today and how it should be played moving forward.

From a true baseball lifer and member of baseball's first family, State of Play offers a fascinating insider's look at how to reconcile years of historical tradition with the rules and trends of the new millennium. As Ripken sees it: the game inside the game cannot be measured by a spreadsheetbut it can be measured by a qualified, crusty baseball man. Play ball.

Summary: Pulitzer Prizewinning author Steve Coll is renowned for "his ability to take complicated, significant business stories and turn them into quick-reading engaging narratives" (Chicago Tribune). Coll is at the height of his talents in this "riveting" tale of one of the most spectacularand catastrophiccorporate takeovers of all time (Newsday).

As the head of a sprawling oil empire, J. Paul Getty was once the world's richest man. But by 1984, eight years after his death, Getty's legacy was in tatters: His children were locked in a bitter feud over the family trust and the company he founded was riven by boardroom turmoil. Then Pennzoil made an agreement with Getty's son, Gordon, to purchase Getty Oil. It was a done dealuntil Texaco swooped in to claim the $10 billion prize.

What followed was an epic legal battle that pit "good ole boy" J. Hugh Liedtke of Pennzoil against the Wall Street brokers behind Texaco's offer. The scandalous details of the case would shock the business world and change the landscape of the oil industry forever.

With a large cast of colorful characters and the dramatic pacing of a novel, The Taking of Getty Oil is a "suspenseful" and "always intriguing" chronicle of one of the most fascinating chapters in American corporate history (Publishers Weekly).

Summary: Pulitzer Prizewinning author Steve Coll is renowned for his ability to take complicated, significant business stories and turn them into quick-reading engaging narratives (Chicago Tribune). Coll is at the height of his talents in this riveting tale of one of the most spectacularand catastrophiccorporate takeovers of all time (Newsday).

As the head of a sprawling oil empire, J. Paul Getty was once the world's richest man. But by 1984, eight years after his death, Getty's legacy was in tatters: His children were locked in a bitter feud over the family trust and the company he founded was riven by boardroom turmoil. Then Pennzoil made an agreement with Getty's son, Gordon, to purchase Getty Oil. It was a done dealuntil Texaco swooped in to claim the $10 billion prize.

What followed was an epic legal battle that pit good ole boy J. Hugh Liedtke of Pennzoil against the Wall Street brokers behind Texaco's offer. The scandalous details of the case would shock the business world and change the landscape of the oil industry forever.

With a large cast of colorful characters and the dramatic pacing of a novel, The Taking of Getty Oil is a suspenseful and always intriguing chronicle of one of the most fascinating chapters in American corporate history (Publishers Weekly).

Summary: Farooq Kathwari's extraordinary life began in politically divided Kashmir, where his family was separated by government decree. He had to leave home as a refugee, helped his mother survive shock therapy, joined student activists in street demonstrations, and faced down a gun-wielding security officer--all by the age of seventeen.

Forced to become self-reliant, Kathwari journeyed to the United States, talked his way into a bookkeeping job, and earned a degree from NYU graduate school. He launched his first entrepreneurial venture selling Kashmiri crafts out of his Brooklyn apartment. When Kathwari's best customer, the iconic furniture maker Ethan Allen, needed fresh leadership, he was asked to become its president. He transformed the company and become one of America's most successful--and admired--CEOs.

Meanwhile, spurred by the tragic loss of his teenaged son in war, Kathwari dedicated himself to the cause of peace in Kashmir and around the world. He hosted meetings with diplomats, shuttled messages between heads of state, and worked with global leaders on issues from human rights to refugee resettlement.

Brimming with drama, insight, and unexpected humor, Trailblazer recounts a unique life story, offering readers not just an engrossing journey but also the wisdom of an exceptional leader.

Summary: Farooq Kathwari's extraordinary life began in politically divided Kashmir, where his family was separated by government decree. He had to leave home as a refugee, helped his mother survive shock therapy, joined student activists in street demonstrations, and faced down a gun-wielding security officer--all by the age of seventeen.

Forced to become self-reliant, Kathwari journeyed to the United States, talked his way into a bookkeeping job, and earned a degree from NYU graduate school. He launched his first entrepreneurial venture selling Kashmiri crafts out of his Brooklyn apartment. When Kathwari's best customer, the iconic furniture maker Ethan Allen, needed fresh leadership, he was asked to become its president. He transformed the company and become one of America's most successful--and admired--CEOs.

Meanwhile, spurred by the tragic loss of his teenaged son in war, Kathwari dedicated himself to the cause of peace in Kashmir and around the world. He hosted meetings with diplomats, shuttled messages between heads of state, and worked with global leaders on issues from human rights to refugee resettlement.

Brimming with drama, insight, and unexpected humor, Trailblazer recounts a unique life story, offering readers not just an engrossing journey but also the wisdom of an exceptional leader.

Summary: People know who Stephen Schwarzman isat least they think they do. He's the man who took $400,000 and co-founded Blackstone, the investment firm that manages over $500 billion (as of January 2019). He's the CEO whose views are sought by heads of state. He's the billionaire philanthropist who founded Schwarzman Scholars, this century's version of the Rhodes Scholarship, in China. But behind these achievements is a man who has spent his life learning and reflecting on what it takes to achieve excellence, make an impact, and live a life of consequence.

Folding handkerchiefs in his father's linen shop, Schwarzman dreamed of a larger life, filled with purpose and adventure. His grades and athleticism got him into Yale. After starting his career in finance with a short stint at a financial firm called DLJ, Schwarzman began working at Lehman Brothers where he ascended to run the mergers and acquisitions practice. He eventually partnered with his mentor and friend Pete Peterson to found Blackstone, vowing to create a new and different kind of financial institution.

Building Blackstone into the leading global financial institution it is today didn't come easy. Schwarzman focused intensely on culture, hiring great talent, and establishing processes that allow the firm to systematically analyze and evaluate risk. Schwarzman's simple mantra "don't lose money" has helped Blackstone become a leading private equity and real estate investor, and manager of alternative assets for institutional investors globally. Both he and the firm are known for the rigor of their investment process, their innovative approach to deal making, the diversification of their business lines, and a conviction to be the best at everything they do.

Schwarzman is also an active philanthropist, having given away more than a billion dollars. In philanthropy, as in business, he is drawn to situations where his capital and energy can be applied to drive transformative solutions and change paradigms, notably in education. He uses the skills learned over a lifetime in finance to design, establish, and support impactful and innovative organizations and initiatives. His gifts have ranged from creating a new College of Computing at MIT for the study of artificial intelligence, to establishing a first-of-its-kind student and performing arts center at Yale, to enabling the renovation of the iconic New York Public Library, to founding the Schwarzman Scholars fellowship program at Tsinghua University in Beijingthe single largest philanthropic effort in China's history from international donors.

Schwarzman's story is an empowering, entertaining, and informative guide for anyone striving for greater personal impact. From deal making to investing, leadership to entrepreneurship, philanthropy to diplomacy, Schwarzman has lessons for how to think about ambition and scale, risk and opportunities, and how to achieve success through the relentless pursuit of excellence. Schwarzman not only offers readers a thoughtful reflection on all his own experiences, but in doing so provides a practical blueprint for success.

Summary: People know who Stephen Schwarzman isat least they think they do. He's the man who took $400,000 and co-founded Blackstone, the investment firm that manages over $500 billion (as of January 2019). He's the CEO whose views are sought by heads of state. He's the billionaire philanthropist who founded Schwarzman Scholars, this century's version of the Rhodes Scholarship, in China. But behind these achievements is a man who has spent his life learning and reflecting on what it takes to achieve excellence, make an impact, and live a life of consequence.

Folding handkerchiefs in his father's linen shop, Schwarzman dreamed of a larger life, filled with purpose and adventure. His grades and athleticism got him into Yale. After starting his career in finance with a short stint at a financial firm called DLJ, Schwarzman began working at Lehman Brothers where he ascended to run the mergers and acquisitions practice. He eventually partnered with his mentor and friend Pete Peterson to found Blackstone, vowing to create a new and different kind of financial institution.

Building Blackstone into the leading global financial institution it is today didn't come easy. Schwarzman focused intensely on culture, hiring great talent, and establishing processes that allow the firm to systematically analyze and evaluate risk. Schwarzman's simple mantra don't lose money has helped Blackstone become a leading private equity and real estate investor, and manager of alternative assets for institutional investors globally. Both he and the firm are known for the rigor of their investment process, their innovative approach to deal making, the diversification of their business lines, and a conviction to be the best at everything they do.

Schwarzman is also an active philanthropist, having given away more than a billion dollars. In philanthropy, as in business, he is drawn to situations where his capital and energy can be applied to drive transformative solutions and change paradigms, notably in education. He uses the skills learned over a lifetime in finance to design, establish, and support impactful and innovative organizations and initiatives. His gifts have ranged from creating a new College of Computing at MIT for the study of artificial intelligence, to establishing a first-of-its-kind student and performing arts center at Yale, to enabling the renovation of the iconic New York Public Library, to founding the Schwarzman Scholars fellowship program at Tsinghua University in Beijingthe single largest philanthropic effort in China's history from international donors.

Schwarzman's story is an empowering, entertaining, and informative guide for anyone striving for greater personal impact. From deal making to investing, leadership to entrepreneurship, philanthropy to diplomacy, Schwarzman has lessons for how to think about ambition and scale, risk and opportunities, and how to achieve success through the relentless pursuit of excellence. Schwarzman not only offers readers a thoughtful reflection on all his own experiences, but in doing so provides a practical blueprint for success.

Summary: Journalist and bestselling author Michael Lewis (Liar's Poker, Moneyball) takes a searing look at what's happened to fairnessin financial markets, newsrooms, basketball games, courts of law, and much more. And he asks what's happening to a world where everyone loves to hate the referee.

Summary: Journalist and bestselling author Michael Lewis (Liar's Poker, Moneyball) takes a searing look at what's happened to fairnessin financial markets, newsrooms, basketball games, courts of law, and much more. And he asks what's happening to a world where everyone loves to hate the referee.

Summary: HBO and The Ringer's Bill Simmons hosts the most downloaded sports podcast of all time, with a rotating crew of celebrities, athletes, and media staples, as well as mainstays like Cousin Sal, Joe House, and a slew of other friends and family members who always happen to be suspiciously available.

Summary: HBO and The Ringer's Bill Simmons hosts the most downloaded sports podcast of all time, with a rotating crew of celebrities, athletes, and media staples, as well as mainstays like Cousin Sal, Joe House, and a slew of other friends and family members who always happen to be suspiciously available.

Summary: Dope Labs is a new podcast from Spotify Studios hosted by best friends (and two of the dopest scientists you will ever meet), Titi and Zakiya. In each episode, they serve up scientific principles with a healthy dose of tea. From cuffing season to Cardi B, they'll take what's trending and put it under the microscope with the help of some very smart (and cool) scientific friends. At Dope Labs, we believe "science is for errybody" and our mission is to bring out the inner scientist in YOU.

Summary: Dope Labs is a new podcast from Spotify Studios hosted by best friends (and two of the dopest scientists you will ever meet), Titi and Zakiya. In each episode, they serve up scientific principles with a healthy dose of tea. From cuffing season to Cardi B, they'll take what's trending and put it under the microscope with the help of some very smart (and cool) scientific friends. At Dope Labs, we believe science is for errybody and our mission is to bring out the inner scientist in YOU.

Summary: The podcast of Comedian Joe Rogan.

Summary: The podcast of Comedian Joe Rogan.

Summary: The best startup advice from Silicon Valley & beyond. Iconic CEOs from Nike to Netflix, Starbucks to Slack share the stories & strategies that helped them grow from startups into global brands.

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Here are 13 books and 7 podcasts on leadership and success recommended by one of tech and media's most influential bankers - Business Insider India

Bruce Parlette

Jane White

Georgina Starr

Anne Eisen

Margaret (Maggie) Martin

Kari Morrison

Rylan Villard

Kayla Dalrymple

3. ALLIED ORGANIZATIONS THAT HAVE WORKED IN PARTNERSHIP TO STRENGTHEN THE FABRIC OF THE MUSKOKA COMMUNITY:

YMCA Employment Services South Muskoka

Muskoka Victim Services

Recipients were presented with certificates, floral arrangements and handshakes, as Grace Urbanski and Christian Masters, both masters of ceremony and district staffers, shared brief overviews of recipients achievements with the audience.

Attendees heard, for example, that Amanda Shelton had left behind a world of adversity when she moved to Muskoka and had since continued her commitment to health and self-improvement both for herself and her two children.

She had participated in several personal and professional skills development workshops and programs with the district, Muskoka Womens Advocacy Group, Elizabeth Fry Society and YMCA and ultimately secured full-time employment.

Amanda is one the of the most inspiring and resilient clients I have had the opportunity to work with, wrote her nominator. Her commitment to recovery, to growing, to learning and to bettering herself are traits truly to be admired.

And Margaret Maggie Martin has volunteered with the districts seniors programs and services department since 2017 as an intergenerational mentorship volunteer, while also assisting with programs at Simcoe Muskoka Family Connexions, Great Moose Adventures Academy, and K.P. Manson Public School, said staff.

Maggie actively contributes to the success of each program she attends by arriving early to set up, staying late to clean up, assist with meal prep and ensures that each child felt included and a part of the program, said Masters.

She has also volunteered with Muskoka Discovery Centre, the board of Orillia Soldiers Memorial Hospital, the districts community volunteer income tax program and Hospice Muskoka.

The seniors team is so appreciative to have Maggie engaged in programming and recognize that the Muskoka community thrives in part because of her volunteerism and active involvement within the community, added Masters.

And YMCA Employment and Learning Services Huntsville provides employment and literacy supports to local job seekers and employers, as well as employment-related expertise to their partners, while also hosting an annual job fair in Huntsville, stated staff.

The YMCA is a strong and dedicated partner who works to make their community a more vibrant place to work, live and play, said Masters. We would like to recognize their commitment year after year to their community and ensuring that the annual Huntsville Job Fair is a success for both for the hundreds of job seekers and the employers that attend the fair.

Fellow recipients included community services clients and program facilitators, a landlord focused on housing stability for vulnerable residents, a volunteer driver, child-care providers, seniors program volunteers, and homelessness-reduction partners.

Wed like to thank the 2019 Muskoka Community Services Recognition Awards recipients for instilling hope, changing lives and working together to make Muskoka a thriving, caring community, concluded Urbanski. Thank you friends, family and community members for being with us today to celebrate our volunteers.

Read more about the 2019 Muskoka Community Services Recognition Award recipients on muskokaregion.com in future.

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Muskoka awards 15 nominees for 'making Muskoka a better place to live' in 2019 - muskokaregion.com

WORDs BY RACHAEL AKHIDENOR

The ghosts of resolutions past.

These three inspiring yet loaded words are the source of a multitude of reactions. The variety of emotions sparked from them is representative of the hopefulness or cynicism toward the potential held by the year to come.

A few years ago, fed-up with feeling like a failure, I resolved that I would no longer set resolutions. They are arbitrary and contrived anyway, I reasoned to myself.

Yet, as December rolled around, I couldnt shake the feeling that I was failing myself for not even attempting to set something for the year to come.

After all, the concept of resolutions is undoubtedly a beautiful one. To set goals of self-betterment and self-improvement is an act of faith and hope. It represents a level of belief in oneself and ones capability to grow and evolve.

Determined to find a way to make New Years resolutions work in my favour, I began to question whether it was how I was setting my resolutions that was the real problem.

Like many, I had traditionally set insurmountable goals. Such activities were either achieved or not. Perhaps, I thought, this was where I was going wrong.

Yogis set intentions (sankulpa) for their practice as opposed to distinct goals. The esteemed Canadian author and inspirational speaker Danielle Laporte focuses on emotions as opposed to concrete actions.

Taking inspiration from these two sources, I concluded that perhaps the best New Years resolution was not to focus on arbitrary activities but instead, centre the goals around how I wanted to feel. Perhaps, it was best to focus on the energy I wanted to bring into my life.

By focusing on a feeling as opposed to a goal, the rate of failure was minimised. Instead of the resolution being something I either did or didnt achieve, this feeling was my mere guiding light; the focus point that I could come back to again and again.

Over the years of trial and error, I have found the following four principles to be most useful when setting a New Years intention:

Focus on how you want to feel instead of setting a goal

While goals are often centred around activities, focus on what energy you want to cultivate in the year ahead. Do you want to feel calm? Grateful? Joyful? Love? Space? Power? Whatever the emotion, choose one and write it down. This will be the theme for the year ahead.

Use the theme to guide action

Say youve decided that you want to feel calmer in the year 2020. Think about all the activities you could do to bring that energy to your life. You could meditate; begin yoga; have a dedicated me night once a week. You could distance yourself from friendships and relationships that cause you stress. You could see a psychologist; write a journal; say no more often.

You dont have to do all these activities. In fact, you may only do one. Thats the beauty of setting an intention as opposed to a goal. It provides us with choice and adjustability as the year progresses; a stark contrast from the usual rigidity of a goal that is set months prior.

Remain open-minded and flexible

One of my greatest disdains towards traditional New Years resolutions is their rigidity. It denies the reality that circumstances change. Where we are emotionally and physically at the beginning of the year may not remain the same as the year progresses. Thus, stay open-minded, gentle and compassionate. Even when you veer off track, continue to come back to that word, the theme, to guide your action.

Check in

Check in with yourself monthly or quarterly. Reconnect back to the intention you set and see how youve been doing. Reflect on the activities that brought you closer to the chosen feeling and what takes you further away from it. You may do this formally, through a ritual of reflection and journaling, or informally by simply thinking back and noting what worked for you.

Despite what I had previously believed, New Years Resolutions dont have to make us feel bad about ourselves. In fact, they can be empowering, motivating and really quite useful in determining how the year unfolds. Such a change has forever altered my life (and no, that is not an overstatement). Call me optimistic, but I have full faith that intention-setting for the new year can change yours too.

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How to set New Year's resolutions you will actually stick to - Fashion Journal

Download copy from here Leo Gura - One Rule For Acing Life

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I have been thinking about this article for a while now. It feels like one that comes from a place deep within and contains a piece of my soul. As I sit down to write it, I question why it has taken me so long to put pen to paper. Some would say I was procrastinating, but I prefer to think I was letting it percolate until it was ready.

A few months ago, I read an article by Jari Roomer. He titled his article "Are You a Self-Improvement Junkie Or Are You an Action Taker?" In it, he revealed how he was a self-improvement book junkie.

He said the habit started when he read "The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People." From there he spent the next 18 months consuming as many self-help books as he could. All the while feeling like he was making progress towards changing his life.

Story continues below video

Yet, after 18 months he reflected on his status and realized not much had changed. The realization of little to no movement had a profound effect on him and his approach to the next few months. As I reflected on his thoughts, I realized I have been a victim of the same issue the illusion of progress.

For many, myself included, the key to success lies within the next book, blog article or online course. We think that by consuming knowledge, we are making progress towards our goal. Yet no real movement occurs.

What I have discovered is the self-help genre does have value. When one is stuck in a rut or struggling, the books and courses can provide some thought changing direction. But that is where their usefulness begins to fade.

Changing or opening one's mind is only the beginning of the path. I remember being in college and having a paper due. I spent time in the library researching and taking notes. I spent time thinking about the paper and the direction to take.

I even interviewed a couple of people on the subject. All the while, my mind tricked me into thinking I was making progress writing the paper. Yet, as the due date approached, I soon realized I hadn't made much progress at all. I hadn't even started writing anything!

Some would argue that I had made great progress. Because of the research, thinking, and interviews. While true, I hadn't put any actual words on paper. I wasn't much further along with the writing than when the assignment was given. This is the problem with consuming knowledge without acting.

Because we consume, we believe we are making progress. Yet without action, there can be no progress. Progress is an illusion created by our minds to trick us into happiness.

We want to feel good about ourselves, so the mind creates the illusion to help us feel better without ever taking a step. Consuming knowledge is easy, but taking action is difficult.

Tony Robbins says, "Knowledge is not power, it is potential power." Author/Psychologist Phil McGraw says, "Awareness without action is worthless."

The beauty of the world we live in is the ability to consume knowledge. Yet the ease with which we can consume knowledge makes us lazy and hinders our ability to do something.

The answers we seek lie in action. Success comes from taking the first step, then following it with another and another. It comes from stumbling, falling and getting back up.

Real knowledge and progress comes from overcoming fear and moving outside of one's comfort zone.

Nothing of value was ever discovered on the couch. The real self-improvement discoveries occur from the "trenches" when we push the boundaries of who and what we think we are.

They come when one takes action and pushes past the illusion of progress.

Jeff Hough is a business writer, blogger and speaker in Pocatello.

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The illusion of progress - Idaho State Journal

As the classic saying goes, work on yourself first and love yourself before anyone else can love you or appreciate you for the person you are. There must be the desire within you, to know, understand and change yourself, so that you can leave this world confident that you have done your best. One of my favorite quotes has an unknown source but Mahatma Gandhi and Ralph Emerson are famous for saying this: Your thoughts become your words. Your words become your actions. Your actions become your habits. Your habits become your character. Your character becomes your destiny.

If you read my previous articles, you now know why it is important to master your mind. You must control your thoughts, or they will wreak havoc in your life. If you believe you have no control over your life, you are wrong. You have control over what you think, feel and do. Your mind is a magnet, attracting everything you think, effectively creating everything in your reality. In other words, you are what you think, and what you think about you bring about. Every thought, positive or negative, has a vibration that attracts situations or people with the same vibration. It is a universal law that two drops of water will merge, but a drop of water and a drop of oil will repel each other.

You must make your mind strong so that your negative thoughts dont rule you. Practice meditation, yoga, read good books, keep good company, eat good quality food, get enough sleep- all these things will help you.

Problems come in everyones life; its how you handle them that makes you strong. Failure is all about perception. It is a test of your strength, will power, belief and faith. Thomas Edison once said: I have not failed. Ive just found 10,000 ways that dont work. It took him years to find the right formula. When difficult times come, as they do in all our lives, watch how you handle them. Learn to accept that not everything happens the way you want it to, to forgive yourself and others for mistakes, and ask for support from those who care about you.

Consciously think positive thoughts. At the end of every day spend time with yourself and think of five things in your day that you have gratitude for anything, like a beautiful sunset, the sound of laughter. Your brain will, over time, automatically rewire itself to find the positive. Following these tips will pay off in dividends, being the best investment you will ever make.

More:
Why Self-Improvement Is the Best Investment You Will Ever Make - Thrive Global