Intention

Intention

by Mike James Ross, Sekoul Theodor Krastev, Dan Pilat
Released February 2024
Publisher(s): Wiley
ISBN: 9781394189151

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Book description

A science-backed recipe for creating engagement, fulfillment, and achievement

We're stuck. Stuck to the couch. Stuck scrolling. Stuck at work. Stuck in worn-out paths of habitual action. Stuck in patterns and echo chambers of thought. Stuck in carefully curated lives where we've traded our agency for endless comforts that wrap us in existential ennui.

As our eyes fixate on a constant parade of images meant to engage us, we notice something in the periphery. We see folks who are just like us, except they are actually, deeply happy and fulfilled. They seem to go through life with ease and grace, overcoming obstacles and making amazing things happen for themselves.

Peering closer, we see that these aren't gods or superhumans. They're just people who have chosen to not be stuck and decided to become the main characters in their own lives. Their success (as they define it!) is not a birthright bestowed upon a lucky few, but the result of lives lived with intention. And that's what this book is about — a practical guide on infusing purpose into life in a deliberate and evidence-based way.

Through a combination of inspiring stories about unlikely high performers and evidence from the bleeding edge of behavioral science, we present you with a toolkit for learning intention — not as a fluffy concept, but as five very trainable skills.

Get your copy of Intention today and live your potential.

Table of contents

  1. Cover
  2. Table of Contents
  3. Title Page
  4. Copyright
  5. Dedication
  6. PART I: Fundamentals
    1. CHAPTER 1: Introduction
      1. Why Intention?
      2. No, These Traits Are Not Innate and Immutable
      3. What Do We Mean by High Performance?
      4. Beyond the Individual
      5. About Us
      6. Note
    2. CHAPTER 2: A Languishing World
      1. As Far as the Eye Can See
      2. Languishing and Self-Destruction
      3. The Decline of Workplace Autonomy
      4. Notes
    3. CHAPTER 3: What Is Intention?
      1. Intention as a Survival Tool
      2. What Are Shared Intentions?
      3. Intention, Passed on as a Flame
      4. Intention and Self in the Modern Age
      5. Notes
    4. CHAPTER 4: Becoming Main Characters
      1. Intentionality 101: Making Choices
      2. NPCs, Pawns, and Wantons
      3. Finding Our Pools of Will
      4. The Power of Responsibility
      5. Becoming a Main Character in a World of Shared Intentions
      6. Notes
    5. CHAPTER 5: Intention Is Trainable
      1. Training Intention as a Key to Sports Performance
      2. Training Intention as a Key to Academic Performance
      3. Training Intention as a Key to Healthier Eating
      4. Notes
  7. PART II: Willpower
    1. CHAPTER 6: The Surprising Impact of Willpower Attitude
      1. The Birth of Limited Willpower
      2. Shifting the Willpower Narrative
      3. How Tired Are You, Really?
      4. Seeing through the Limited Willpower Illusion
      5. Notes
    2. CHAPTER 7: High Performers Have Nonlimited Willpower
      1. Finding Our Real Limits
      2. Willpower Can Make Anyone a High Performer
      3. Make Your Next Challenge a Test of Willpower
      4. Define Your Limits
      5. Notes
    3. CHAPTER 8: Physical Ingredients to Willpower
      1. Does Being Hungry Make You Lose Self-Control?
      2. Re-thinking Drowsy Days at Work
      3. Is Willpower Even Real?
      4. Looking for Cues
      5. Notes
    4. CHAPTER 9: How to Train the Experience of Willpower
      1. How Seeking Novelty Can Replenish Us
      2. Start Small
      3. Small Wins Are Better than Major Losses
      4. Good Motivation versus Bad Motivation
      5. Productivity Tools Don't Build Willpower
      6. Take Pride in Your Achievements
      7. Exercising Willpower
      8. Notes
    5. CHAPTER 10: Willpower as a Team Sport
      1. Willpower as a Group Superpower
      2. The Three Keys to Sharing Willpower
      3. Closer Teams Share Willpower Better
      4. Training for Team Willpower
      5. Notes
  8. PART III: Curiosity
    1. CHAPTER 11: High Performers Are Curious
      1. Knowledge for Its Own Sake
      2. The Real Superpower: Focused Curiosity
      3. Living the Atelic Life
      4. Notes
    2. CHAPTER 12: Don't Stop (Re)believing
      1. The Art of Changing Your Mind
      2. How to Get Cognitively Flexible
      3. The Science of Cognitive Flexibility
      4. Notes
    3. CHAPTER 13: How to Change Your Mind
      1. Techniques to Reduce Extreme Beliefs
      2. Deep Canvassing Inward
      3. What Do You Get from Your Beliefs?
      4. Notes
    4. CHAPTER 14: Believing Together
      1. Two Minds Aren't Always Better than One
      2. Group Beliefs: A Whole New Ballgame
      3. Groupthinking Our Way to Disaster
      4. Psychological Safety 101
      5. Notes
  9. PART IV: Integrity
    1. CHAPTER 15: Living Our Values
      1. Integrity: The Seeds of Intention
      2. How Do We Identify Our Values?
      3. Growing into Integrity
      4. Ashoka's Lasting Legacy
      5. Notes
    2. CHAPTER 16: How to Uncover Your Values
      1. The Complexity of Values through AI
      2. How to Clarify Your Own Values
      3. Notes
    3. CHAPTER 17: When Values Conflict
      1. The Benefits of Value Tension
      2. Reconciling Intentions
      3. The Power of Diverse Dissent
      4. Set the North Star
      5. Pick Alignment over Consensus
      6. Leading with Integrity
      7. Notes
    4. CHAPTER 18: Know Thy Team
      1. How Well Do We Really Know Others?
      2. The Mistake of Assuming Values
      3. How to Know Thy Team
      4. The Benefits of Sharing
      5. Notes
  10. PART V: Attention
    1. CHAPTER 19: High Performers Are Focused on the Right Things
      1. Open the Aperture to Focus It
      2. Attention as a Tool
      3. The Illusion of Choice
      4. Notes
    2. CHAPTER 20: Directing the Spotlight
      1. Building a World, One Piece at a Time
      2. Attention as a Magnet
      3. Notes
    3. CHAPTER 21: Spotlights at Work
      1. Attentional Spotlight: Workplace Edition
      2. KPIs as Shared Intentions
      3. The Problem with Most KPIs
      4. Notes
    4. CHAPTER 22: Intentional Wandering
      1. The Benefits of a Wandering Mind
      2. Structuring Your Environment
      3. Reframing Your Language and Story
      4. The Stories We Tell
      5. Open Expectations Lead to Unexpected Paths
      6. Notes
    5. CHAPTER 23: Not All Flow Is Created Equal
      1. Is Flow the End-All-Be-All?
      2. How Does Flow Work?
      3. Not All Flow Is Created Equal
      4. The Intentional Flow Spectrum
      5. Flowing Our Way to Burnout
      6. Creating Team Flow
      7. Notes
    6. CHAPTER 24: Focusing Teams
      1. Nothing Focuses You Like a Fight
      2. Breaking It Down with the 1-2-3 Model
      3. Create Open Pathways
      4. Notes
  11. PART VI: Habits
    1. CHAPTER 25: The Roots of High Performance
      1. The Basics of Deliberate Habits
      2. Habits as Tools for Intention
      3. Note
    2. CHAPTER 26: Taking Control of Unconscious Actions
      1. Are Habits a Bad Thing?
      2. Habits as an Expression of Intentions
      3. The Natural Ease of Habits
      4. Building Intentional Habits
      5. Disrupting Negative Habits
      6. Stacking Your Habits
      7. Rewire Your Own Brain
      8. Notes
    3. CHAPTER 27: Finding the Power Within
      1. The Behavioral Zeitgeist of the 1970s
      2. What Drives Us When No One Is Looking?
      3. The Beginner's Guide to Extrinsic Motivation
      4. Hijacking the Brain's Reward Systems with Awareness
      5. The Seven Steps to Rewire Our Habits
      6. Notes
    4. CHAPTER 28: The Importance of Workplace Rituals
      1. The Power of Workplace Rituals
      2. The Need for Workplace Rituals
      3. The Benefits of Workplace Rituals
      4. Choosing Workplace Rituals
      5. Notes
  12. PART VII: Closing
    1. CHAPTER 29: Intention in Our Relationships
      1. What Makes a Family?
      2. Bringing Intention into Our Relationships
      3. Other People Have Intention, Too?
      4. Helping Others Be More Intentional
      5. Giving Up Power for a Good Cause
      6. Notes
    2. CHAPTER 30: The Garden of Intention
      1. Planting a Garden
      2. Becoming a Gardener
  13. Index
  14. End User License Agreement

Product information

  • Title: Intention
  • Author(s): Mike James Ross, Sekoul Theodor Krastev, Dan Pilat
  • Release date: February 2024
  • Publisher(s): Wiley
  • ISBN: 9781394189151