The 11 Best Psychology and Philosophy Books of 2011 by Maria Popova What it means to be human, how pronouns are secretly shaping our lives, and why we believe. After the year’s best children’s books, art and design books, photography books, science books, history books, and food books, the 2011 best-of series continues with the most compelling, provocative and thought-provoking psychology and philosophy books featured here this year. We spend most of our lives going around believing we are rational, logical beings who make carefully weighted decisions based on objective facts in stable circumstances. The original trailer for the book deals with something the psychology of which we’ve previously explored — procrastination: And this excellent alternative trailer is a straight shot to our favorite brilliant book trailers: Despite his second-person directive narrative, McRaney manages to keep his tone from being preachy or patronizing, instead weaving an implicit “we” into his “you” to encompass all our shared human fallibility.
Brain Pickings 7 Persuasion Tips To Help You Reach Your Goals Having exceptional persuasion skills is one of the most essential abilities to possess in today's fast-paced society. We need the support and cooperation of other people to help us in our goal setting efforts. The saying "No man is an island" is an undeniable truth. Here are some hot tips to effectively influence and persuade anyone you desire. 1) Be nice and friendly. Smile to brighten up the day. Make them feel that whenever they need support or just someone who can give them guidance, you'll always be there to lend a hand. If you want to ask your boss a favor, do everything you can to please him. 2) Enter their world. You must understand the situation according to their point of view. Just pretend that if you are them, what would you do? Copy them. In due time, the people you're mirroring will subconsciously feel more comfortable with you. However, you must proceed with caution. 3) Consistency is the key. In order to be accepted in society, people do their best to stick to their words.