Limitless Book Summary - Limitless Book explained in key points

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Limitless summary

Name: Limitless
Rating: 4.6 (2144 reviews)
Author: Jim Kwik

Jim Kwik

Upgrade Your Brain, Learn Anything Faster, and Unlock Your Exceptional Life

4.6 (2144 ratings)

31 mins

Table of Contents

Limitless
summarized in 10 key ideas

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Key idea 1 of 10

What’s in it for me? Unlimit your brain to learn and achieve anything.

When he was a child, the author, Jim Kwik, suffered a traumatic brain injury. It left him with a learning disability, which meant that, at school, he had to work a lot harder than all the other kids. On top of that, he was also frequently bullied. Even a teacher once labeled him “the boy with the broken brain.”

For years, the author assumed that because of his injury he had to put a lot of hard work into learning. But in college Kwik realized that there was a different way. He didn’t need to work harder – he needed to learn better. The tips he uncovered allowed him to increase his focus, improve his memory, and start to absorb information faster than ever before.

Just like the author, you too may be harboring untrue beliefs about yourself. These blinks will show you that just a few changes in your mindset, motivation, and methods can help you become truly limitless.

In these blinks, you’ll learn

why taxi drivers have bigger brains than others;
how Bach can help you study; and
why you’re no better at reading than a third-grader.

Technology makes our lives easier, but it may be hindering our learning abilities.

Is digital technology good or bad? The question may be simple, but the answer is far from straightforward.

On the one hand, smartphones and tablets can seem liberating. After all, they do allow us to “outsource” some of our brain’s simpler functions. Sounds great, doesn’t it?

Well, perhaps not. Some researchers feel that this digital habit is becoming a problem. They believe it hampers our cognitive abilities. Think about how we all constantly switch between tasks – from working to checking notifications to texting. One neuroscientist, Daniel J. Levitin, believes that this process causes the brain to quickly burn up its fuel, leaving us stressed and exhausted.

The key message here is: Technology makes our lives easier, but it may be hindering our learning abilities.

We have constant access to a wealth of information right at our fingertips. It’s no surprise then that studies indicate that the average person consumes three times more information today than in the 1960s!

But pummeling ourselves with all this information isn’t necessarily a good thing. That’s because being able to look up facts whenever you need them causes your memory to atrophy. It withers away, like an under-used muscle. On the other hand, forcing yourself to recall information actually creates and strengthens memories.

Overusing technology may also reduce your capacity to think critically. After all, there’s no shortage of opinion on the internet. Some would say that it’s a good thing: it allows us to see issues from lots of different perspectives.

But the truth is that most of us don’t actually go looking for varied perspectives. Instead, we identify a few sources we already agree with, and use them to reinforce our beliefs, thus essentially accepting other people’s ready-made opinions. This means that our capacity for deduction and problem-solving begins to weaken, and we lose the ability to think critically.

So it’s more important than ever to keep your brain in tip-top shape. How do you do this? Jim Kwik offers a few suggestions. One simple tip, especially pertinent for the digital age, is to spend 30 minutes each day with all your devices turned off. You can use this time to relax, be creative, and just let your mind wander.

But what if you do spend too much time with your devices? Will it change you – and your brain – forever? Well, maybe not. Our brains are resilient and adaptable, as we’ll see in the next blink.

Each of us has the power to change our brain.

How many times have you thought, “I’m too dumb to learn a second language,” “I have a terrible memory,” or “I’m just not good at this subject”?

When we spend too much time comparing ourselves with our peers, we often fall into the trap of thinking that we’re somehow not as good as they are. But this can prevent us from reaching our full potential.

Free your mind of negative thoughts and replace them with positive ones.

Every day, each of us thinks tens of thousands of thoughts. A lot of them are questions. And many are repeating. From among these, we all have so-called dominant questions, which come up more often than others.

For instance, the author was once invited to spend some time with the actor Will Smith on a film set in Toronto. The cast and crew were working outside, in the dead of winter, overnight, from 6:00 p.m. to 6:00 a.m. During a break, Smith and the author figured out that one of the actor’s dominant questions was: How do I make this experience more magical?

Motivate yourself to change your behavior by defining yourself and your purpose.

The words “passion” and “purpose” are often used interchangeably. We use them to talk about something that ignites a fire in us, something we love doing more than anything else.

But, in fact, passion and purpose are entirely different. Passion is something internal. It lies in your inner core; it is buried beneath other people’s expectations or assumptions about you. Purpose, on the other hand, is aimed at what’s around you. It is something you can share or contribute to the world.

Support your brain by getting enough sleep, eating healthy foods, and exercising regularly.

So you have a strong purpose, and you also have the drive to act. But there’s still something that can hold you back. That barrier? It can simply be – a lack of energy caused by eating the wrong type of food, or by not getting enough sleep.

Sleep deprivation is tied to a long list of physical and mental issues. This list includes depression, irritability, heart disease, and even Alzheimer’s. In short: don’t sacrifice sleep! Sleeping, eating, and exercising are all essential if you want your brain to function at its best.

Increase your productivity by getting into a state of flow, and using the power of small steps.

Remember the last time you were so focused on an activity that you lost all track of time? You were probably in a state of what psychologists call flow.

When we’re in this state, we feel like the task we’re completing is almost effortless. We feel that we’re being challenged – but the challenge is not overwhelming. And we tend to get a sense of comfort and reward from what we’re doing.

Use your study time efficiently.

What do you think Bach has to do with studying? If you’re scratching your head, don’t worry – the connection is far from obvious.

Many studies suggest that there’s an intimate relationship between music, mood, and learning. Some types of music can greatly increase our ability to learn. This is where Bach comes in. Baroque music that has 50 to 80 beats per minute is particularly suitable for creating focus. Music is just one life hack that can help us use our brain’s lesser-known features to foster learning.

Visualization techniques can help increase your memory and concentration.

Concentration is like a muscle – the more you exercise it, the stronger it gets.

Here’s one way to pump it up: picture the object of your focus as a glowing ball of light. If you’re having a conversation, for instance, that conversation is the glowing ball. When your attention starts to drift, refocus on the bright light. Pretend nothing else exists.

Reading is fundamental to learning, and you can get better at it.

Let’s face it: reading isn’t everyone’s favorite pastime. To many people, the task seems difficult, boring, time-consuming. For those people, a long day at work is best finished in front of the television or with a video game.

But studies show that there is a relationship between reading ability and success in life. The better you are at reading, the more likely you are to get higher-paying jobs; the greater your opportunities to succeed.

To get better at solving problems, try new and different ways of thinking.

When you hear the word “genius,” who immediately comes to mind? Perhaps Albert Einstein or Marie Curie? But the word “genius” isn’t just limited to people with high IQ or mathematical ability. There are many different types of intelligence.

Think about Venus Williams, for example. In many ways, she, too, is a genius – somebody with extremely high bodily-kinesthetic intelligence. That is to say, she’s very good at using her body.

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What is Limitless about?

Limitless (2020) is an empowering how-to guide for making full use of your brain’s incredible capabilities. It goes out to anyone who’s ever felt too dumb, too slow, or too unskilled to succeed. Learn how to unlimit your brain – and gain the power to achieve anything at all.

Best quote from Limitless

You can learn to unlimit and expand your mindset, your motivation, and your methods to create a limitless life.

—Jim Kwik

Who should read Limitless?

Lifelong learners and people with big aspirations
Self-criticizers who fear that they just can’t learn as fast as everyone else
Businesspeople, students, and employees who want to fit learning into their busy schedules

About the Author

Jim Kwik is a world-renowned expert on meta-learning – the process of learning how to learn. A childhood accident left Kwik with a learning disability. For years, he struggled at school, but then Kwik began to uncover the secrets of learning itself. His findings laid the groundwork for Kwik Learning, an educational program used by individuals and corporations in more than 100 countries.

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Productivity Personal Development Education

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