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Tickled: Common Sense for the Present Moment
A New York Times bestselling journalist sets out to explore our addiction to the quantification of everything and ends up confronting his own addiction to certainty. In the quiet of quarantine, he decides to choose ease, rather than control—pursuing habits and hobbies that bring joy and “tickles” to each and every moment—and finds peace of mind, renewed creativity, and deepened relationships are the reward.
In 2020, nothing went according to plan. Duff McDonald had intended to write a book about society’s obsession with measurements, data, and predictions, showing how it blunts individual happiness and decision-making while fueling corporate capitalism. But in the quiet of quarantine, McDonald found himself reexamining the assumptions beneath his own life choices. He also reconsidered his book, deciding instead to reframe his approach as an exploration of his own battle with what he calls the “precision paradox”—the existential struggle between our desire for ease and our need to exert control. Drawing inspiration from an impressive range of sources—from Borges to the Buddha to Bob (Dylan) to Harry Potter—McDonald documents how he let go of his attachment to precision in favor of delving deeper into what it means to be present—in his work, his relationships, and what he calls the “science of experience.” He asks, “What should I have been doing? I should have been focusing on things that I love, not the things that anger or annoy me. I should have been focusing on things that tickle me.” Part self-help, part memoir, Tickled is a story of how to bring joy and love into your life right now . McDonald acknowledges that “tickle” is a funny, awkward word. In one context, it’s as innocent as can be. But it also runs deeper. When something tickles you, you are in the moment, experiencing reality itself—at the vortex of truth, consciousness, and bliss. “When something tickles, that’s your soul speaking to you in the language of love, thanking you for experience,” he says. As he lays out his own personal transformation, McDonald invites readers to begin their own journeys to find out what “tickles” them, too. This exploration of joy and presence—experiences that tickle—lies at the heart of McDonald’s unusual, moving, and profound book.
In 2020, nothing went according to plan. Duff McDonald had intended to write a book about society’s obsession with measurements, data, and predictions, showing how it blunts individual happiness and decision-making while fueling corporate capitalism. But in the quiet of quarantine, McDonald found himself reexamining the assumptions beneath his own life choices. He also reconsidered his book, deciding instead to reframe his approach as an exploration of his own battle with what he calls the “precision paradox”—the existential struggle between our desire for ease and our need to exert control. Drawing inspiration from an impressive range of sources—from Borges to the Buddha to Bob (Dylan) to Harry Potter—McDonald documents how he let go of his attachment to precision in favor of delving deeper into what it means to be present—in his work, his relationships, and what he calls the “science of experience.” He asks, “What should I have been doing? I should have been focusing on things that I love, not the things that anger or annoy me. I should have been focusing on things that tickle me.” Part self-help, part memoir, Tickled is a story of how to bring joy and love into your life right now . McDonald acknowledges that “tickle” is a funny, awkward word. In one context, it’s as innocent as can be. But it also runs deeper. When something tickles you, you are in the moment, experiencing reality itself—at the vortex of truth, consciousness, and bliss. “When something tickles, that’s your soul speaking to you in the language of love, thanking you for experience,” he says. As he lays out his own personal transformation, McDonald invites readers to begin their own journeys to find out what “tickles” them, too. This exploration of joy and presence—experiences that tickle—lies at the heart of McDonald’s unusual, moving, and profound book.
- GenresNonfictionPsychology
304 pages, Hardcover
Published October 19, 2021
9 people are currently reading
1101 people want to read
About the author
Duff McDonald
7 books83 followersDuff McDonald is a journalist and the author of Last Man Standing, a biography of JPMorgan Chase CEO and chairman, Jamie Dimon. A contributing editor at Fortune magazine and the New York Observer, he has written for Vanity Fair, New York magazine, Esquire, GQ, Wired, and Time, and has been awarded two Canadian National Magazine Awards. He lives in New York.
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
November 1, 2021
Very early into Duff McDonald’s latest book, Tickled, it struck me that I had heard this story before. McDonald is having his Jerry McGuire moment. Having succeeded in higher education, business, and publishing, he now is facing the generativity vs. stagnation psychosocial developmental stage coined by psychologist Erik Erikson.
In memoir fashion, McDonald invites the reader into an introspection of equal parts self-praise, apology, Eastern philosophy, and Harry Potter. He reminds the reader on a regular basis of his Ivy League education, Wall Street banking experience, and successful publications. He explains that he originally set out to write a critical analysis of where society has gone wrong with its fixation on numbers and the over-analysis of everything that can be measured. The pandemic reordered his priorities and sent him down the path of introspection and search for meaning beyond numerical analysis.
While mostly staying the course of trying to find meaning in life and offer something to the next generation, McDonald takes many side roads. Along with touting his credentials, he returns quite frequently to his alcoholism and prior drug abuse. Other detours are the regret he experienced after dismissing his father’s earnest desire to connect before he left the world. His divorce and early failings at parenthood also are excursions.
The borderline obsession with Harry Potter no doubt stems from his daughter’s infatuation with the series and his initial rebuke of her request to read along with her. Once he dove into the series, he could not put it down. And he drags us into that obsession.
The apparent central premise of McDonald’s Jerry McGuire-esque awakening is that all that matters is love. And perhaps God, which features prominently at key points he makes. The wonderful thing about love is that it’s multidirectional and messy. Those are great things in life but don’t work so well in book form. Tickled didn’t so much tickle me about life’s greatest things but rather left me asking whether McDonald’s daughter or wife, or J.K. Rowling are better equipped to have written this book. From the number of times he quoted them (no, I didn’t count, which is something McDonald would find amusing – touché), they practically did just that.
McDonald is a strong writer and good storyteller. With some better editing and organization, another version of Tickled perhaps would be a better fit for a New Yorker article. His frequent usage of “Right?” and “I mean” as filler words are distracting and annoying when spoken and more so when reduced to writing. An editor could have cleaned up those ticks and offered some guidance on tightening up the theme and not visiting ghost towns 100 miles off the beaten path.
I respect McDonald’s risk-taking at a new angle for his writing. From what he describes, his prior books were well-received. I’m not sure that applies to Tickled. At some point, we all come to the conclusion that we need to earn a living. Perhaps McDonald will find pursuits other than writing about “love and God” as the answer to everything as fulfilling endeavors.
In memoir fashion, McDonald invites the reader into an introspection of equal parts self-praise, apology, Eastern philosophy, and Harry Potter. He reminds the reader on a regular basis of his Ivy League education, Wall Street banking experience, and successful publications. He explains that he originally set out to write a critical analysis of where society has gone wrong with its fixation on numbers and the over-analysis of everything that can be measured. The pandemic reordered his priorities and sent him down the path of introspection and search for meaning beyond numerical analysis.
While mostly staying the course of trying to find meaning in life and offer something to the next generation, McDonald takes many side roads. Along with touting his credentials, he returns quite frequently to his alcoholism and prior drug abuse. Other detours are the regret he experienced after dismissing his father’s earnest desire to connect before he left the world. His divorce and early failings at parenthood also are excursions.
The borderline obsession with Harry Potter no doubt stems from his daughter’s infatuation with the series and his initial rebuke of her request to read along with her. Once he dove into the series, he could not put it down. And he drags us into that obsession.
The apparent central premise of McDonald’s Jerry McGuire-esque awakening is that all that matters is love. And perhaps God, which features prominently at key points he makes. The wonderful thing about love is that it’s multidirectional and messy. Those are great things in life but don’t work so well in book form. Tickled didn’t so much tickle me about life’s greatest things but rather left me asking whether McDonald’s daughter or wife, or J.K. Rowling are better equipped to have written this book. From the number of times he quoted them (no, I didn’t count, which is something McDonald would find amusing – touché), they practically did just that.
McDonald is a strong writer and good storyteller. With some better editing and organization, another version of Tickled perhaps would be a better fit for a New Yorker article. His frequent usage of “Right?” and “I mean” as filler words are distracting and annoying when spoken and more so when reduced to writing. An editor could have cleaned up those ticks and offered some guidance on tightening up the theme and not visiting ghost towns 100 miles off the beaten path.
I respect McDonald’s risk-taking at a new angle for his writing. From what he describes, his prior books were well-received. I’m not sure that applies to Tickled. At some point, we all come to the conclusion that we need to earn a living. Perhaps McDonald will find pursuits other than writing about “love and God” as the answer to everything as fulfilling endeavors.
March 7, 2022
This book is life changing.
March 31, 2024
When I first started reading this book I was "tickled" AF. I loved it and I have many quotes written down from it. So I'm a bit surprised that I lost all desire to finish it half-way-through. I stumbled upon this at my local library when my 1 y/o kiddo tried pulling it off the shelf. I LOVE books on mindfulness and was excited to find one written by an author who didn't spend his life being a monk.
However, as I continued into the book I found more and more personal issues with the philosophical insights of the author. By page 151 I couldn't go on.
With that said, THANK YOU DUFF for really driving home the concept that the ONLY thing that matters is what I'm going to do RIGHT NOW. Of all the ways that I've heard this concept explained DUFF did the very best at convincing me to just "be here now" more often.
You know what? Screw it. 5 stars because he did such a dang good job of convincing me that living in the future is a poor use of the time that I have right now:
"The thing that numbers do that traps us into taking our attention out of the present is that they induce us to obsess about change - progress - toward some future that promises to eclipse this moment or at least render it less important than some future moment that will surely be worth the wait." (p. 115)
However, as I continued into the book I found more and more personal issues with the philosophical insights of the author. By page 151 I couldn't go on.
With that said, THANK YOU DUFF for really driving home the concept that the ONLY thing that matters is what I'm going to do RIGHT NOW. Of all the ways that I've heard this concept explained DUFF did the very best at convincing me to just "be here now" more often.
You know what? Screw it. 5 stars because he did such a dang good job of convincing me that living in the future is a poor use of the time that I have right now:
"The thing that numbers do that traps us into taking our attention out of the present is that they induce us to obsess about change - progress - toward some future that promises to eclipse this moment or at least render it less important than some future moment that will surely be worth the wait." (p. 115)
November 16, 2021
I am so frustrated that I wasn't able to finish this book. I wanted to follow and understand the idea of Tickled, but found the book to hard to keep on. Although it is a number, the amount of times Harry Potter came up was too many for me. And really felt lost when mentioning the Law of Gravity and Quantum Physics. Whatever the idea may have been, a shorter book/entry may have better explained it.
September 15, 2023
DNF. I got to the point where he states that the advancements of modern medicine and technology don't really do any good for anyone.
May 9, 2022
Good information
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews