Sharp: 14 Simple Ways to Improve Your Life with Brain Science

by Therese Huston

What if you were capable of more? What if you could be a little more empathetic and a lot more motivated? And what if your best days weren’t left up to chance but were something you could queue up at a moment’s notice? Most of us want to be a little happier, a little more focused, and a lot less stressed. And we’d rather not quit our jobs or join a monastery to do it. We want simple life hacks that are easy to fold into our everyday lives, and we want advice that goes beyond “Get a good night’s sleep.”

Neuroscience labs are discovering a gold mine of practical advice that often debunks popular trends. Sharp will help put the lessons of neuroscience to work for people at work and at home. Sharp describes simple strategies Get Focused Get Creative Get Motivated Accomplish More Think on Your Feet Learn More and Learn It Fast Make Fewer Mistakes Relate More Be More Fair and Less Biased Make Better Decisions Stay Healthier and Feel Less Pain Take Charge of Chronic Stress Manage Intense Moments of Acute Stress Support Your Better Half There’s even a chapter on how to best support your partner through life’s stressful events. 

Cognitive scientist Therese Huston is one of those rare specialists who makes neuroscience research easy to grasp and applicable to everyday life. In Neurosavvy, she offers the lessons of neuroscience in a format that’s easy to read and even easier to apply.

Genres: Health, Nonfiction, Productivity, Self Help, Personal Development, Science, Psychology

320 pages, Hardcover

Published April 29, 2025

About the author

THERESE HUSTON, PH.D., is a cognitive scientist at Seattle University and the author of four books. Her latest book, "Sharp: 14 Simple Ways to Improve Your Life with Brain Science," helps you make the most of the brain you've got. Whatever your age, we all want to be a little mentally sharper.

Therese received her BA from Carleton College and her MS and PhD in cognitive psychology from Carnegie Mellon University. She completed a post-doc in clinical cognitive neuroscience at the Center for the Neural Basis of Cognition and she’s earned a postgraduate certificate in Organizational Leadership from the Said Business School at the University of Oxford.

In 2004, she founded the Center for Excellence in Teaching and Learning at Seattle University. Therese has also written for the New York Times and Harvard Business Review and "How Women Decide" was named a summer reading title by Oprah.com.

Therese gives talks and leads workshops on how to create more inclusive workplaces. Microsoft, Amazon, Nationwide, Morgan Stanley, the Cleveland Clinic, and TEDX have all asked Therese to give talks on creating more inclusive workplaces.

When she’s not writing or speaking, she loves to spend time with her charming and very bright husband and her adorable but not-very-bright Boston Terrier.

Reviews

[David Carriere · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sharp: 14 Simple Ways to Improve Your Life with Brain Science is a practical, grounded, and refreshingly evidence based guide to becoming more focused, resilient, and effective without resorting to extremes or gimmicks. Therese Huston excels at translating cutting edge neuroscience into strategies that feel immediately usable in real life.

What makes Sharp stand out is its clarity of purpose. Each chapter tackles a common human challenge motivation, stress, bias, decision making, creativity and replaces vague advice with concrete, research backed techniques. Huston doesn’t oversell transformation; instead, she empowers readers with tools that compound over time, making progress feel achievable rather than overwhelming.

The writing is accessible without being simplistic, intelligent without being academic. Whether discussing cognitive load, emotional regulation, or chronic stress, Huston consistently connects brain science to everyday moments at work, at home, and in relationships. The chapter on supporting a partner through stress is particularly thoughtful, expanding the book’s relevance beyond individual self improvement.

This is a smart, trustworthy, and genuinely useful book—ideal for readers who want to work with their brains, not against them.

[Tom Hedrup · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic book

This book should be read by many. Every chapter is a way to improve your life. The solutions are easy to manage and could be done by anybody. I really really enjoyed the authors smooth writing. It was almost like being back in college with your favorite professor. Highly recommend.

[June Hope Roberts · Rating 5 out of 5]

I already ordered Best Brain Ever!

This delightful and insightful book was very enjoyable because it was easy to understand. It was clearly written to help.us stay sharp. It offered many easy activities for our brain. One could only hope that this book was even longer.

[Britt Loves Books · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book has some truly great information that's easy to understand, easy to absorb, and easy to put into play.

[Golden · Rating 3 out of 5]

There are some good tips in this book and it felt like a worth-while background information type read. There was no lightening bolt moment for me, but it was worth the time.

[Robert Orliński · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such a great, insightful, and condense book.

[Cathy · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was an interesting book. It taught me some things to help with difficult situations and the brain science behind them.

[Brian Kramp · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book with simple tips about how to make your brain work for you in situations where it's hard.

[Emily Erickson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sharp is like a stack of some of the most useful articles you’ve ever read about how to leverage brain science to make your life better – professionally and personally. They cover how to make fewer mistakes, enhance creativity, make better decisions, and more. The tips are practical and quick— many take just minutes. But most importantly, Dr. Huston, a cognitive scientist at Seattle University, explains in depth why you’ll want to bother. She has a talent for translating a research paper’s mind-numbing methods section into a gripping story that sticks with you.

Recommended for anyone interested in neuroscience, psychology, self-help, science-backed mental health advice, and productivity.

Recommendation coming soon on my blog: emilypgerickson.com/blog.

Thanks to Smith Publicity and Mayo Clinic Press for providing me with an advance review copy.