Mental Traps: Stupid Things That Sane People Do To Mess Up Their Minds - Softcover

Kukla, Andre

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0071477292 ISBN 13: 9780071477291

Publisher: McGraw-Hill Education, 2006

Synopsis

"Mental Traps will ring loud bells and switch on bright lights in the minds of all who read it."
--Richard Holloway, former BBC host and author of Godless Morality

The antidote to twisted logic, fuzzy thinking, and self-defeating behaviors that mess up your mind

They sap your energy, undermine your productivity, cloud your thinking, and generally take all the fun out of life. They're mental traps, and even the most clear-headed Einsteins among us fall victim to them from time to time. But that doesn't mean you should resign yourself to doing their bidding. Avoid these drains on pleasure and personal performance with guidance from Mental Traps.

Psychologist and philosopher André Kukla opens your eyes to the eleven most common mental traps, including persistence--the refusal to abandon a useless task or course of action; amplification--the "killing a fly with a sledgehammer" syndrome; reversion--the "coulda-woulda-shoulda" disease; and resistance--the "let-me-just" disorder. With Kukla's proven tactics, you can free yourself from time-wasting mental traffic jams and be more productive in your everyday life.

About this title

Review

" I always suspected I had few bad habits of mind. Thanks to Andre Kukla, I am now certain I have many. If that makes reading "Mental Traps" sound like a dispiriting experience, it shouldn' t. Kukla has a light touch with weighty ideas. Readers will be enlightened and entertained, as well as improved."
-- Jamie Whyte, author of Crimes Against Logic"
"" While it may be unlikely that any single person will have fallen into all mental traps so cunningly described by Andre Kukla in this exhilarating book, it is absolutely certain that every person will have fallen into some of them. That's why it will ring loud bells and switch on bright lights in the minds of all who read it. Which means, of course, that everyone ought to."
-- Richard Holloway, Bishop of Edinburgh, author of Godless Morality"
"" Ever looked TWICE for your lost keys in an EMPTY bowl? Returned more than once to check you' d locked the door? Ever spoiled a moment by niggling with your partner over trivia? Ever been unable to get yourself to do something you really know you should? EVER LOST OUT because you couldn't decide between two great lovers, or two great investments? OF COURSE YOU HAVE! Andre Kukla shows us how to think about these Mental Traps. If you want out of the big sandtraps and onto the green, read his book. KUKLA IS RIGHT! We could all be bopping along much more comfortably towards our goals. His nice, clear, straightforward examples steer us past the trap horizons. He helps us out of dark mental ditches into which we have fallen. His stories give us insights we need to talk about to those who know usINTIMATELY -- or over the watercooler, in the coffeehouse, or at our bookclub."
-- John M. Kennedy, FRSC

"From the Hardcover edition."

"I always suspected I had few bad habits of mind. Thanks to Andre Kukla, I am now certain I have many. If that makes reading "Mental Traps" sound like a dispiriting experience, it shouldn't. Kukla has a light touch with weighty ideas. Readers will be enlightened and entertained, as well as improved."
-- Jamie Whyte, author of Crimes Against Logic"
""While it may be unlikely that any single person will have fallen into all mental traps so cunningly described by Andre Kukla in this exhilarating book, it is absolutely certain that every person will have fallen into some of them. That's why it will ring loud bells and switch on bright lights in the minds of all who read it. Which means, of course, that everyone ought to."
-- Richard Holloway, Bishop of Edinburgh, author of Godless Morality"
""Ever looked TWICE for your lost keys in an EMPTY bowl? Returned more than once to check you'd locked the door? Ever spoiled a moment by niggling with your partner over trivia? Ever been unable to get yourself to do something you really know you should? EVER LOST OUT because you couldn't decide between two great lovers, or two great investments? OF COURSE YOU HAVE! Andre Kukla shows us how to think about these Mental Traps. If you want out of the big sandtraps and onto the green, read his book. KUKLA IS RIGHT! We could all be bopping along much more comfortably towards our goals. His nice, clear, straightforward examples steer us past the trap horizons. He helps us out of dark mental ditches into which we have fallen. His stories give us insights we need to talk about to those who know us INTIMATELY -- or over the watercooler, in the coffeehouse, or at our bookclub."
-- John M. Kennedy, FRSC

"From the Hardcover edition."

I always suspected I had few bad habits of mind. Thanks to Andre Kukla, I am now certain I have many. If that makes reading "Mental Traps" sound like a dispiriting experience, it shouldn t. Kukla has a light touch with weighty ideas. Readers will be enlightened and entertained, as well as improved.
Jamie Whyte, author of Crimes Against Logic"
" While it may be unlikely that any single person will have fallen into all mental traps so cunningly described by Andre Kukla in this exhilarating book, it is absolutely certain that every person will have fallen into some of them. That s why it will ring loud bells and switch on bright lights in the minds of all who read it. Which means, of course, that everyone ought to.
Richard Holloway, Bishop of Edinburgh, author of Godless Morality"
" Ever looked TWICE for your lost keys in an EMPTY bowl? Returned more than once to check you d locked the door? Ever spoiled a moment by niggling with your partner over trivia? Ever been unable to get yourself to do something you really know you should? EVER LOST OUT because you couldn t decide between two great lovers, or two great investments? OF COURSE YOU HAVE! Andre Kukla shows us how to think about these Mental Traps. If you want out of the big sandtraps and onto the green, read his book. KUKLA IS RIGHT! We could all be bopping along much more comfortably towards our goals. His nice, clear, straightforward examples steer us past the trap horizons. He helps us out of dark mental ditches into which we have fallen. His stories give us insights we need to talk about to those who know us INTIMATELY or over the watercooler, in the coffeehouse, or at our bookclub.
John M. Kennedy, FRSC

"From the Hardcover edition.""

Synopsis

This is the overthinker's guide to a happier life. Everyone falls into mental traps, those annoying ways of thinking that waste time and energy. Maybe we persist in watching a bad movie or fixate on the clock. Maybe we just watch our thoughts, unable to stop the turning wheels. Finally, there's a way out. With intelligence and wit, professor Andre Kukla shows how to identify and free yourself from 11 time-wasting mental traffic jams: persistence, amplification, fixation, reversion, anticipation, resistance, procrastination, division, acceleration, regulation, and formulation.

About this edition

• Publisher: McGraw-Hill Education
• Publication date: 2006
• ISBN 10: 0071477292
• ISBN 13: 9780071477291
• Binding: Paperback
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 176