59 Seconds Summary

 

Brief synopsis: 59 Seconds gives you a variety of self-improvement techniques, based on psychology, that you can use in less than a minute to improve your thinking, happiness, and overall quality of life.

When it comes to research, Richard Wiseman isn't like the rest of them. There are more than 2 million subscribers to the English psychologist's YouTube channel about magic, and he is the sole professor of public understanding of psychology.

Debunking paranormal claims is one of his favorite pastimes, which has led to the publication of over ten books so far.

The majority of self-improvement books focus on long-term goals and transformational processes. According to Richard, this is unnecessary as there are so many things that can be done in less than a minute.

Here are three takeaways from 59 Seconds that you can implement right away:
1. To ensure that you achieve your long-term goals, ask yourself what you want the speaker at your funeral to say.

2. When you have a good idea, don't waste time mulling it over and over again. Instead, put it into action immediately.

3. Use "but" whenever you point out a weakness in someone's character.

Are you willing to invest three minutes each in improving your life in three different ways? Some quick 59-second hacks are in order!

Lesson #1: Think about your own eulogy to connect your activities with your long-term goals in the first lesson.

Visualizing your goals is a popular self-improvement strategy. Imagining yourself accomplishing your goals and doing the things you need to do to get there is a great way to keep yourself motivated. Doing it as part of my daily Miracle Morning routine has been shown to be beneficial.

Some research, on the other hand, says that when people envisage their goals, they work less.

Having a step-by-step plan has been demonstrated time and time again to be effective. According to Richard's research on the New Year's resolutions of more than 5,000 people, having a strategy and breaking down your goals is critical.

To begin with, you must have a clear understanding of your long-term objectives. Simply imagining your own eulogy is an excellent 59-second activity for clearing your mind. At your memorial service, what do you hope the eulogist will say about you? You can even jot it down if you want to be extra detailed.

You can use this to discover what's most important to you and connect your actions with those goals.

Lesson #2: Don't waste time pondering and jump directly into putting your eureka moment into action.

You've ruined a terrific idea by planning how it will be executed. As a supposed way to come up with new ideas, brainstorming actually slows down and stops those ideas from being put into action.

This is especially true in groups, where members are typically afraid to express their thoughts for fear of being judged by their peers. Do not fool yourself; you can spend hours in "brainstorming hell" on your own—I've done it.

What if, instead of deliberating, you went straight from distracted to doing, from eureka to execution?

Salvador Dali was the master of this technique: he waited to slumber while sitting in a chair with a hefty key resting on top of an upside-down plate on the floor. The key would fall out of his hands, smash into the plate, and wake him up with a scream. Awakened from sleep, he'd immediately begin drawing the images in his thoughts.

Any moment you're distracted and letting your subconscious work is referred to as a hypnagogic slumber. When you have a breakthrough insight, put everything on hold and immediately begin putting it into action.

Your planning time will be greatly reduced and your productivity will soar, since ideas will continue to flow as they are needed.

Lesson #3: Use "but" whenever you point out a flaw in another person's character.

When researchers Sandra Murray and John Holmes spent a year tracking couples to discover what makes some relationships work and others fail, they found one word to be particularly helpful: "but."

Imagine making dinner for your sweetheart, only to have her grin and say, "You're such a terrible cook!"

Even if it's cute, it's still going to sting, isn't it?

Instead, imagine if she said: "You're such a terrible cook...

At the very least, you're funny.

Isn't it strange how different it feels now? The reason for this is that adding "but" to the end of any negative comment makes it easier for the other person to see your connection from a different perspective, therefore softening the blow.

To be sure, this technique should be adopted when relating to everyone in your life, not just your significant other, because I can see how it would improve our interactions with coworkers, family, and friends.