Be Your Future Self Now Book Summary - Be Your Future Self Now Book explained in key points
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Be Your Future Self Now summary

Dr. Benjamin Hardy

The Science of Intentional Transformation

4.6 (450 ratings)
16 mins
7 key ideas
Audio & text

What is Be Your Future Self Now about?

Be Your Future Self Now (2022) is a guide to defining your future self – and making sure you get there. It walks readers through the seven threats to your future self, the seven truths about your future self, and the seven steps you can take to be your future self today. 

About the Author

Dr. Benjamin Hardy is an American organizational psychologist and coauthor of The Gap and The Gain and Who Not How. Before completing his PhD in entrepreneurial courage in 2019, Dr. Hardy’s blog was read by over 100 million people worldwide. Since then, his work has been featured in publications such as the New York Times and Harvard Business Review.

Table of Contents

    Be Your Future Self Now
    summarized in 7 key ideas

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    Key idea 1 of 7

    Section One: All in the Narrative

    When Hardy was 16, his family piled into the car for a five-hour drive to visit a friend. But halfway in, his mom grew tired. Hardy was a freshly minted driver at the time, so volunteered to take the wheel and let his mom rest. She fell asleep within minutes.

    As night fell, Hardy entered a section of road under construction. He drove attentively, but could never have known that just ahead, a long stretch of construction barrier had fallen out of place. When the car hit the unguarded patch of rubble, it spun, flipped, and landed on the opposite side of the road. The next thing Hardy remembered seeing was his mom strewn across the road, 50 feet from the car.

    His mom was flown to an intensive unit and lay in a coma for weeks. Her sons weren’t sure she’d survive. Mercifully, she did regain consciousness, but was kept in a body cast for over a year and remained in constant agony for the following two decades. 

    While Hardy’s family struggled to talk about the accident for several years, his mom chose to frame the incident as a pivotal moment that clarified her purpose in life: raising her three boys. She became softer, more compassionate, and went out of her way to express gratitude for the little things. Rather than growing into a bitter future self, she grew into a better future self. 

    Your past experiences can pose a major threat to your future self if viewed negatively. In fact, research shows that specific events don’t matter nearly as much as the meaning assigned to them.

    Your hardest moments can be your most transformative teachers – if you let them. When you own your experiences, rather than them owning you, you can craft a narrative that powerfully serves your future self. 

    So when tragedy next strikes, remember Dr. Hardy’s mom. Choose a story that makes you better, not bitter.

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    Who should read Be Your Future Self Now

    • Those ready to take their careers and lives to the next level
    • Individuals seeking clarity on their future
    • Anyone frustrated by unsuccessful New Year’s resolutions

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