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Outsmart Yourself: Brain-Based Strategies for a Bettery You
What if you aren't as in control of your actions as you think you are? What if your brain is driving you to decisions without your approval? Is there a way to "hack" your brain to perform better, live healthier, and break your bad habits? The brain is an amazing instrument, and neuroscientists today have more information than ever about how it works - as well as strategies for helping us live better every day. The surprising thing is just how counterintuitive some of these strategies can be. Feeling the urge to procrastinate? Do nothing for 20 minutes and you'll feel ready to get to work. Want to strengthen your athletic performance? The imagination and mental "practice" can be just as beneficial as putting on your sweats and heading to the gym. Come down with a case of the blues? Try eating some fermented foods such as yogurt or sourdough bread. Outsmart Yourself: Brain-Based Strategies to a Better You will give you insights into how your mind works and the tools you need to make lasting change. Taught by Professor Peter M. Vishton, Associate Professor of Psychology at William & Mary, these 24 exciting lectures give you a wealth of practical strategies to strengthen your creativity, improve your problem-solving, enhance your health, and generally improve your well-being. Whether we're distracted by too many tasks, being influenced by crafty marketers, or simply living in a rut of bad habits, our conscious brains aren't always guiding us toward the best actions. Fortunately, Professor Vishton offers the latest in scientific research to outsmart the subconscious.
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First published January 1, 2016
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 41 reviews
April 5, 2019
This is the second lecture series by Peter Vishton that I have listened to and I have really come to enjoy his style. He gives a good balance between technical detail and real-world experience and translates everything into "tips" that illustrate a practical, personal application for the finding. Most (if not all) of the information here is available in other places, but this is a nice collection of brain hacks and a pretty good overview that puts a lot of cognitive brain science into a common perspective.
January 19, 2017
A lot of interesting brain research and stories, but not sure the way it was presented always resonated with me.
June 18, 2017
Assorted notes:
Strategy of sitting down and thinking about the task when driven to procrastinate seems good. I think you can do better by doing Aversion Factoring or Focusing on the task, and then addressing whatever problem turns up.
He says that too much motivation can be bad, but it seems to me that he is conflating motivation and pressure here. The most obvious difference is the focus on the upside (motivation) vs. focus on the downside (pressure), but it isn't actually a clean split. There may also be something about the source being internal (motivation) vs. external (pressure). Probably there are other components.
Some very basic stuff about multitasking, taking a break while eating, smaller plates, visualization, deliberate practice, and then I got bored. "Love" stuff struck me as pretty useless.
Overall, very pop, sprinkled with neuro-stuff that doesn't actually seem useful, and studies that don't seem particularly reliable.
Strategy of sitting down and thinking about the task when driven to procrastinate seems good. I think you can do better by doing Aversion Factoring or Focusing on the task, and then addressing whatever problem turns up.
He says that too much motivation can be bad, but it seems to me that he is conflating motivation and pressure here. The most obvious difference is the focus on the upside (motivation) vs. focus on the downside (pressure), but it isn't actually a clean split. There may also be something about the source being internal (motivation) vs. external (pressure). Probably there are other components.
Some very basic stuff about multitasking, taking a break while eating, smaller plates, visualization, deliberate practice, and then I got bored. "Love" stuff struck me as pretty useless.
Overall, very pop, sprinkled with neuro-stuff that doesn't actually seem useful, and studies that don't seem particularly reliable.
July 6, 2018
This series of lectures not only gives you the strategies, it gives you the basis behind them.
It is very practical, and in a wide range of areas of your life, from procrastination to eating to phobias. Professor Vishton is an excellent lecturer, both in delivery and content.
This is the kind of series that you will want to listen to more than once. Be sure to use the course material that accompanies the lectures.
It is very practical, and in a wide range of areas of your life, from procrastination to eating to phobias. Professor Vishton is an excellent lecturer, both in delivery and content.
This is the kind of series that you will want to listen to more than once. Be sure to use the course material that accompanies the lectures.
September 22, 2018
a lot of really great tips but each chapter could be condensed down to 10% of the size. going through all those scientific case studies is fine if you really want proof but i’m inclined to just believe the method and go straight to the tips. also it goes through such a varied bunch of stuff in general life tips, it’s more just fun to pick up when you have a free 30mins here and there
August 10, 2020
Such a great series of lessons. I give it 4 1/2 stars. It’s like the Owner’s Manual to the human brain, but dumbed down for those of us without a doctorate in psychology. Very enlightening & I will be reading it again.
June 3, 2020
Lots of great research and interesting tips offered
October 27, 2022
This was a moderately enjoyable and interesting lecture series. The value of the advice (both in a general sense, and on a personal basis) is fairly hit-or-miss, with some being quite good, and a lot being rather "meh". And in particular, some topics seemed of interest to me, and others much less so, but the advice all felt jumbled together, just a grab-bag of different topics most of the time. And while it is nice to have evidence to support the claims, that is always a bit iffy when it comes to social sciences. For example, at one point the lecturer talks about the idea of power posing to boost confidence, an idea that has not been strongly replicated, to the point that at least one of the original authors of the study has indicated they are no longer confident of its validity. Even for studies without known replication failures, the details often reveal them to be quite small studies (and presumably to be mostly of college students, as so many psych studies are) and so, perhaps, not as rigorously informative as, say, some result in chemistry or physics.
January 26, 2019
The author/reader tends to stumble over his words at times which distracts from what he's saying. Perhaps he was too busy to retake a recording to make sure there weren't much stuttering.
It did make it difficult to listen at times, but didn't take away from the good facts included in the book, of which there were many. This book has taught me quite a few things I didn't know about and that I'm certain a lot of people could benefit from.
It did make it difficult to listen at times, but didn't take away from the good facts included in the book, of which there were many. This book has taught me quite a few things I didn't know about and that I'm certain a lot of people could benefit from.
February 5, 2018
This is the best thing I've learned or come across for months. It's very concise and cover wide areas from health, diet to psychologies, cognitive biases to happiness and even love. And it's research-based with lots of citiations from the work other famous name (Daniel Kahneman, or Robert Caldini ...etc)
If there's only one course or book to learn in 2018 for a general reader, this may be it.
If there's only one course or book to learn in 2018 for a general reader, this may be it.
December 25, 2019
استاده خیلی منظم و با شوق متریال رو ارائه کرد، اما در مورد اون چه مه برای زبان و نیمکرههای مغز و لترالیزیشن روندها گفت میدونیم که اشتباه کرد و دادههای جدید این نگرش رو تأیید نمیکنن. باقی چیزاش بر اساس همون سیستمهای یک و دوی دنیل کانمن بود. یه مقدار پیشپاافتاده، ولی خب مفید هستن. یه چیز دیگه هم این که آدم احساس حقارت میکنه با این مغز احمقی که داریم ما آدما :))
June 18, 2017
Pretty decent book:
Talks about some interesting topics and is based on real science.
Not too many distractions in writing, so it's easy to follow.
Reminded me of "social animal" and "
You Are Now Less Dumb: ".
4/5
Talks about some interesting topics and is based on real science.
Not too many distractions in writing, so it's easy to follow.
Reminded me of "social animal" and "
You Are Now Less Dumb: ".
4/5
September 2, 2017
Fun, interesting and at times entertaining audio books but compared to other Great Courses audiobooks on the topic of neuroscience and psychology, there's not many takeaways. I did pick up a few things but nowhere learnt as much as the typical 24 lecture series that Great Courses offered.
March 4, 2018
I don't know what made this a tougher listen - somehow I found it challenging to enjoy. I really enjoyed Vishton himself, and his prior course that I listened to. It does have lots of tidbits to help live better, though in the end I think those could be summarized in <20 minutes.
February 14, 2017
This was an interesting read but not really much in the strategy department. Basically it just presented past findings of brain research and then said but you should do it this way.
June 27, 2017
Excellent information!
September 1, 2017
backed by so many researches
March 4, 2018
Very good book. Understanding how the brain works changed my life
December 19, 2018
2.75 stars
January 31, 2019
Good, practical, research-based takeaways. I've read a few sections a couple of times.
.
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This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
December 8, 2025
I thought this was a great set of lectures that everyone could benefit from. Will help you understand how better to exert control over yourself and others in your life, and also hints on how understanding these same ideas can help you be smarter when dealing with other people. Unlike most self-help sources, this one he backs up with research that has been done--It is not based so much on opinion but solid scientific research. So many areas cover, and thought it would be best to include the lecture names: “Take Control of Your Automatic Brain”, “Beat Procrastination by Doing Nothing”, “Train Yourself like a Dog”, “Clean Your Kitchen, Improve Your Diet”, “Eat Slow, Eat Small, Eat Smart”, “The Myth of Multitasking”, “Future You and Better Decisions”, “How to Become an Expert on Anything”, “Tune Up Your Brain with Meditation”, “Take the Sleep Challenge”, “Boost Insights and Creativity”, “Enhance Performance with Imagery”, “Overcome Your Aging Brain”, “Grow Your Brain Out of Depression”, “Hack Your Brain to Unlearn Fear”, “Use Your Body to Alter Your Mind”, “Suppress-Don't Repress-Anger”, “How Little Things Cause Big Persuasion”, “How Framing Changes Decisions”, “How Language Changes Your Brain”, “How Your Brain Falls in Love”, “The Neuroscience of Lasting Love”, “How Your Brain Creates Happiness”, “Happy Brains Are Smart Brains”.
An interesting revelation was that telling people you were going to accomplish some goal has more negative results. Much better to not tell others that you will accomplish something. Another is to stop procrastination; the best thing is to do nothing. Basically, gives your brain time to think about task and do not get diverted by other activities.
He talked about losing weight in one lecture, and I think my own experience validates some of his assertions. I know there is a difference between eating when you are full and when you are not hungry. It is definitely different. If you stop when you no longer are hungry you will eat less.
Another interesting research result was the people eat less if the kitchen is clean. Smaller plates is another way to cut consumption. Tall slim class will appear to hold more than a short wide glass so used tall slim glasses
Multitasking does not work
An interesting statement is that there is no language without a word for love. That should indicate how important it is to humans.
The lecturer references Gottman’s work, one of the most significant writers on how to relationships and partner communication. I think it is a restatement of Gottman so gives a different way at looking at Gottman’s work.
People’s happiness comes from inside, and not the outside. Research done on people that had a windfall from let’s say a lottery winner, and people that have something terrible happen to them. The change in happiness is only temporary—these events to not have create a happier or unhappier future. So people’s happiness does not change in the long term due to life events. And there are recommendations on how to be happier. Thinking of being happy will make you happier, sad sadder.
Studies also show that green spaces help happiness, and urban decreases. Hospital patients recover better and have fewer issues if there is a window in the room.
An interesting revelation was that telling people you were going to accomplish some goal has more negative results. Much better to not tell others that you will accomplish something. Another is to stop procrastination; the best thing is to do nothing. Basically, gives your brain time to think about task and do not get diverted by other activities.
He talked about losing weight in one lecture, and I think my own experience validates some of his assertions. I know there is a difference between eating when you are full and when you are not hungry. It is definitely different. If you stop when you no longer are hungry you will eat less.
Another interesting research result was the people eat less if the kitchen is clean. Smaller plates is another way to cut consumption. Tall slim class will appear to hold more than a short wide glass so used tall slim glasses
Multitasking does not work
An interesting statement is that there is no language without a word for love. That should indicate how important it is to humans.
The lecturer references Gottman’s work, one of the most significant writers on how to relationships and partner communication. I think it is a restatement of Gottman so gives a different way at looking at Gottman’s work.
People’s happiness comes from inside, and not the outside. Research done on people that had a windfall from let’s say a lottery winner, and people that have something terrible happen to them. The change in happiness is only temporary—these events to not have create a happier or unhappier future. So people’s happiness does not change in the long term due to life events. And there are recommendations on how to be happier. Thinking of being happy will make you happier, sad sadder.
Studies also show that green spaces help happiness, and urban decreases. Hospital patients recover better and have fewer issues if there is a window in the room.
October 31, 2024
DNF (at around 65%)
I can't seem to bring myself to finish this course. Even sped up, it became so tedious that my dog decided to leave the room.
The only tid-bit of information that I truly found useful (and have seen in my own life time and time again) is that telling people about what you plan on doing makes you want to do it less. It really is better to keep new goals and things you're working towards to yourself at the start.
The whole weight-loss advice part was incredibly longwinded and the same old same old useless information. I cannot imagine this helping anyone trying to lose weight, which begs the question as to why it was even included in the course. Filler anyone?
In conclusion, I do not recommend this course as it has not taught me things I didn't already know or benefited my life in any large or measurable way.
I can't seem to bring myself to finish this course. Even sped up, it became so tedious that my dog decided to leave the room.
The only tid-bit of information that I truly found useful (and have seen in my own life time and time again) is that telling people about what you plan on doing makes you want to do it less. It really is better to keep new goals and things you're working towards to yourself at the start.
The whole weight-loss advice part was incredibly longwinded and the same old same old useless information. I cannot imagine this helping anyone trying to lose weight, which begs the question as to why it was even included in the course. Filler anyone?
In conclusion, I do not recommend this course as it has not taught me things I didn't already know or benefited my life in any large or measurable way.
July 26, 2022
This entry from The Great Courses has a nice selection of tips and studies to help the listener better understand how our minds work and how we can more effectively improve ourselves and reach our goals - although much of the content is more along the line of general information than actionable tips.
I've heard many of the studies before in other books, but it's still good information.
I do wonder if all of the information provided is completely justified. For example, it mentions Amy Cuddy and power poses - but her experiments could not be reproduced, and her conclusions are very much in doubt. That makes me wonder if there's anything else that may be inaccurate. But still, on the whole it's pretty good.
I've heard many of the studies before in other books, but it's still good information.
I do wonder if all of the information provided is completely justified. For example, it mentions Amy Cuddy and power poses - but her experiments could not be reproduced, and her conclusions are very much in doubt. That makes me wonder if there's anything else that may be inaccurate. But still, on the whole it's pretty good.
April 30, 2023
Best lecture/self help audio book I have read. The information was divided into relevant bite size chapters encompassing easy to follow explanations of causes for certain issues, areas of the brain responsible for it and how it works. Followed by study based and very practical strategies to tackle our issues and retrain ourselves to overcome them and thrive in life.
Absolutely brilliant book.
The narration was outstanding. He spoke clearly and it was easy to follow, even if at times I sped up the audio if the chapter wasn’t relevant to me.
Worth purchasing.
Absolutely brilliant book.
The narration was outstanding. He spoke clearly and it was easy to follow, even if at times I sped up the audio if the chapter wasn’t relevant to me.
Worth purchasing.
August 20, 2019
Peter Vishton is a superstar teacher. He makes the information fly off the screen. I knew some of what he taught already but that does not matter. He helped me learn more and refreshed the material I already knew. I am eager to take his course on perception next!
September 14, 2020
If you read enough books about psychology and how the brain works, there won't be a ton of new material here. There are some useful hacks and ideas I had not heard of before that made it worthwhile. For a beginner, this is a great launching pad from where to go to many other books and research.
September 16, 2020
Neuroanatomy + Neuro imaging + Randomized control tests = Sexy and useful!
Loved every bit and found many useful nuggets. Planning to revisit in a couple of years.
Loved every bit and found many useful nuggets. Planning to revisit in a couple of years.
March 7, 2021
Great content well organized, sensible and interesting - Listened (not read) but took notes and will listen again to pick up more - love most of the stuff in the Great Courses Series
April 2, 2021
Peter Vishton provides interesting facts and insights in this audio book, but why all the superfluous details? The information could be given in a tenth of the time.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 41 reviews