That is not to say that I didn't like or enjoy this book. I found it to be beneficial on many levels. However, if I had cliff notes then I'd be getting somewhere. I would probably actually be able to organize these words into my real world. As previously mentioned, 101 ESSAYS that will CHANGE the way YOU THINK by Brianna Wiest is a compilation of her previously published philosophical essays. It's about: the importance of slowing down and being in the moment; fear and stepping into the unknown; happiness, passion, and purpose; identity; having choices; suffering and letting go; courage and hope. What I got from listening to this book? Invaluable insights to apply to my every day, helping me be more aware, purposeful, and happy. What else could I ask for? Honestly, the book is very well-written and covers a wide range of topics that are relevant to many people. The essays are very thought-provoking and offer a lot of practical advice for dealing with everyday challenges and struggles.The essays are also very well-organized and easy to navigate, which makes it easy to find the information you need. The essays are very short and easy to read and understand as well. You think that to change your beliefs, you have to adopt a new line of thinking, rather than seek experiences that make that thinking self-evident. The topics discussed are all basically "how to be happy or why your life isn't that bad", it's all meant to make you feel good (nothing wrong with that); but that's why i describe it as non-practical.

My disclaimer is that these are not actually essays but more or less lists of things emotionally competent people do and don't do. Self-help books and I have a strange relationship. I didn't pay detailed attention to this book except for while I was reading I kept saying Oh ok, yea I see, that is me, I definitely need to incorporate this list into my daily habit. Ask me in this moment one single anecdote from the list and I can't remember a thing. This is exactly what happens to me when I read life altering, too good, lets get you better and more happy books. In the moment I'm all vested and right after I forget all that i've "learned".

Accomplishing goals is not a success. How much you expand in the process is." - I tend to disagree. I think both are successes but for different reasons. I do not have these things. Every piece of advice given to think a certain way about what you already have, I do not have. Now what?

Brianna 's writing style is very engaging and easy to read. The way it is written is very encouraging and supportive, which makes it easy to feel like you have a friend who is there to help you through tough times. Honestly the way all of the essays force you into introspection is astonishing. All of the essays are very impactful and inspiring. I am not sure about "defines you" part. I think both successes and failures play a role in the way you think and the way you act. Also, it’s better to spend money on books written by specialists or someone with experience. The author was 24 when she published this book. She also has no training in psychology or anything close to it.You believe that creating your best life is a matter of deciding what you want and then going after it, but in reality, you are psychologically incapable1 of being able to predict what will make you happy.

You think your past defines you, and worse, you think that it is an unchangeable reality when really, your perception of it changes as you do. Because experience is always multi-dimensional, there are a variety of memories, experiences, feelings, “gists” you can choose to recall…and what you choose is indicative of your present state of mind. I recommend this book to anyone who wants to take the time to look deeper within themselves, to those open to ideas, and who will take the time it takes to not only learn but understand a concept before moving on. I'm not sure why, but I was expecting essays by different people in this book, but it's all articles by Brianna Wiest.Here are some good summary quotes on the 'nutshell' of this essay here: "The objectivity required to see the effects of present monoculture is very difficult to develop. Once you have so deeply accepted an idea as “truth” it doesn’t register as “cultural” or “subjective” anymore." Your brain can only perceive what it’s known, so when you choose what you want for the future, you’re actually just recreating a solution or an ideal of the past. When things don’t work out the way you want them to, you think you’ve failed only because you didn’t re-create something you perceived as desirable. In reality, you likely created something better, but foreign, and your brain misinterpreted it as “bad” because of that. (Moral of the story: Living in the moment isn’t a lofty ideal reserved for the Zen and enlightened; it’s the only way to live a life that isn’t infiltrated with illusions. It’s the only thing your brain can actually comprehend." 2. The PSYCHOLOGY of DAILY ROUTINE There is also an extreme level of repetition in subject matter. Some of these essays could very easily be viewed as exactly the same, just paraphrased different. Some key points: Manche Essays und Ansätze waren sehr gut und ich habe mir auch das ein oder andere zu Herzen genommen 💭 Two main reasons. One, if an important concept or idea repeats, it can only help to fully grasp its importance and meaning or to revisit the concept from a different perspective. Two, the book is long and I personally could do without some parts, but it is a compilation. I might not be interested in some chapters, just as other people might not be interested in the ones I liked most. The importance relies on that the sum of it all makes it whole; and it's a compilation!

I am thinking of Mahatma Gandhi, Kamaraj, and my grandpa. They accomplished a lot, touched many lives and did not even have a large wardrobe! They were certainly individuals of grace. I wonder what was going through their minds during moments of suffering and happiness. In this superb work of self-help and knowledge, Brianna West indeed points out in a very short and direct way how oft seemingly misunderstood and not always thought about things that we engage in daily profoundly goes on to shape the essence of the 'who' we're striving to become, be it for better or worse. "In a sense, the notion that thoughts create reality is more than just a nice idea; it’s also a fact of evolution. It was because of language and thought that we could create a world within our minds, and ultimately, it is because of language and thought that we have evolved into the society we have today—for better and for worse."In Jordan Peterson's lectures on the Biblical Series, he explains how the concept about the fundamental and innate evolutionary ability of humanity since antiquity to first of all tell stories that transform into legends and so on to eventually become myth to which religions undeniably share those self same myths, ideas and mythos from time immemorial. While Joseph Campbell also talks about the intersection of mythology and evolution in his book The Power of Myth; that it is at the point of the development of the pre-frontal cortex that then made the modern man from an oral story telling species to one in which the abstract thoughts about a certain yet to arrive future is easily conceived intellectually. This evolutionary advanage can then be confronted wherein the best possible steps are taken to ensure further successful propagation of the species.You think that being uncomfortable and fearful means you shouldn't do something. Being uncomfortable and fearful means you definitely should." I found myself dreading going to this book. When I did read it, I would get annoyed or just fall asleep. Das war aber leider nur ein kleiner Teil des ganzen Buches. Der Rest war ständige Wiederholung und der gleiche Inhalt nur in anderen Worte umschrieben. This may be my last book of the year and it is probably the most fitting. I wish I had marked more important facts and gotten more time to reflect on this book, but it just wasn't in the cards.