background preloader

AWESOMENESS

Facebook Twitter

Life's Instructions. Six Keys to Being Excellent at Anything. I've been playing tennis for nearly five decades. I love the game and I hit the ball well, but I'm far from the player I wish I were. I've been thinking about this a lot the past couple of weeks, because I've taken the opportunity, for the first time in many years, to play tennis nearly every day. My game has gotten progressively stronger. I've had a number of rapturous moments during which I've played like the player I long to be. And almost certainly could be, even though I'm 58 years old.

During the past year, I've read no fewer than five books--and a raft of scientific research--which powerfully challenge that assumption (see below for a list). We've found, in our work with executives at dozens of organizations, that it's possible to build any given skill or capacity in the same systematic way we do a muscle: push past your comfort zone, and then rest. There is something wonderfully empowering about this. Pursue what you love. Here are the recent books on this subject: 15 Free Guides That Really Teach You USEFUL Stuff. Advertisement Over the past months, we’ve written quite a few PDF manuals for you, on all kinds of diverging subjects, including BitTorrent, iTunes, iPhone, Twitter, Mac, Linux, Photoshop and several other topics. Freely available to MakeUseOf subscribers, there are now multiple manuals released every month, for everyone to enjoy. After releasing 15 manuals and nearly half a million downloads we thought it was about time to look back and review what has been published so far.

Enjoy! Do us a favor by sharing those manuals friends! 1 – Internet Guide for the Movie Addict Written by Saikat Basu, this entirely free PDF production will show you anything you’ve ever dreamed about knowing related to movies on the web. Original Post | Download NOW 2 – Internet Guidebook for An Audiophile Original Post | Download NOW 3 – The Incredible Free Manual for Every Mac User Original Post | Download NOW 4 – The Underground Guide to the iPhone Written by Stefan Neagu. Update: The guide is no longer available. 50 Life Secrets and Tips.

Memorize something everyday.Not only will this leave your brain sharp and your memory functioning, you will also have a huge library of quotes to bust out at any moment. Poetry, sayings and philosophies are your best options.Constantly try to reduce your attachment to possessions.Those who are heavy-set with material desires will have a lot of trouble when their things are taken away from them or lost. Possessions do end up owning you, not the other way around. Become a person of minimal needs and you will be much more content.Develop an endless curiosity about this world.Become an explorer and view the world as your jungle. Stop and observe all of the little things as completely unique events.

Try new things. Get out of your comfort zone and try to experience as many different environments and sensations as possible. This world has so much to offer, so why not take advantage of it? Greg Rutter's Definitive List of The 99 Things You Should Have Already Experienced On The Internet Unless You're a Loser or Old or Something. How to Procrastinate and Still Get Things Done - Archives. By John Perry I have been intending to write this essay for months. Why am I finally doing it? Because I finally found some uncommitted time? Wrong. I have papers to grade, a grant proposal to review, drafts of dissertations to read. I am working on this essay as a way of not doing all of those things. All procrastinators put off things they have to do.

If all the procrastinator had left to do was to sharpen some pencils, no force on earth could get him to do it. To make structured procrastination work for you, begin by establishing a hierarchy of the tasks you have to do, in order of importance from the most urgent to the least important. The most perfect situation for structured procrastination that I have encountered occurred when my wife and I served as resident fellows in Soto House, a Stanford University dormitory. Procrastinators often follow exactly the wrong tack. At this point you may be asking, "How about the important tasks at the top of the list? "