Limitless: Upgrade Your Brain, Learn Anything Faster, and Unlock Your Exceptional Life Hardcover – April 7, 2020

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Limitless is a timeless work, both inspiring and empowering. I read it at least once a year and try to impart on the of many lessons and techniques to my lifestyle. Jim is the man! He's raw and relatable, and his life serves as an inspiration. Not only does he inspire, but he also makes the act of becoming "Limitless" a reality. A must buy, a must-read, and a must apply.

Favorite Quote: Don't take criticism from someone you wouldn't take advice from.I read this quote a fourth of the way through the book: "I'm going to share much of that method with you in the book." (The referenced method is how to easily memorize information.) It's like, dude. Enough. I bought your book. You don't need to sell me. I've literally purchased and read a fifth of your book, get to the damn actionable advice already!I had to wait until Chapter 8 for this actionable information. The first third of the book has taken the approach that the reader first needs to be built up and given confidence in their abilities. Time and time again the author references limiting beliefs and such. If you don't suffer any prior traumatic psychological issues that you can't over on your own (as the author had), I think you can skip this portion. And, I'm no genius. In fact, I think my learning abilities are average.I enjoyed the part about brain foods, though, with the exception of Tumeric, I'd consider them all relatively obvious, healthfood options (blueberries, avocado, leafy greens, water, etc.).One of the most intriguing concepts in the book is the Fogg behavioral Model which says for a behavior to happen three things need to happen: trigger, ability, motivation. Let's say there's a raffle and you win. It's $10 and you win, but you're not a good dancer. You decide not to embarasse yourself in front of a big crowd. In this case, the trigger was you winning, you have the ability to dance (though you may not be skillful), but you lacked the motivation. Let's say, now, the prize is $1,000. The increase in price money gives you motivation and you dance.The author recommends some things for better minds:-a glass of celery juice and probiotics in the morning and/or before you start working.-meditation, specifically Ziva Meditation.-rubbing essential oil on your wrist while you are learning and just before the test. Smell brings back memories.-scent of rosemary to improve memory and peppermint/lemon to promote concentrationProbably the most enlightening chapter was Chapter 9: Small Simple Steps as it provided information on habits or behaviors and how to form them. Basically, everybody wants to eliminate a bad habit and form a good habit. A habit is a behavior. And a behavior happens when three criteria are satisfied: motivation, ability, trigger.Exponential thinking is a neat concept. Essentially, it's creativity at its core. How easily can you connect the dots between two seemingly unrelated things.The two bonus chapters are unavailable on his website. In fact, so is his list of brain supplements.

I originally purchased this book shortly after it was released in 2020. At the time, I was struggling to find balance in my life as well as strategies for overcoming major life challenges. This book opened a door I didn't even know existed. Not only did I find strategies in this book, but I entered a world of personal growth and teachers of things I didn't know existed (including finding your purpose from Jay Shetty). I have a PhD in theoretical physics, so I am confident in my intellectual capacity, but that was acquired in the absence of self-confidence and in interpersonal relationships. While some areas of my life were indeed limitless, it never occurred to me I could be limitless in every important aspect of my life.Jim's story is an inspiration, and the Limitless model--mindset, motivation, and methods--is one I have reflected on many times since my first reading in 2020. It was immediately clear to me that I needed to upgrade my mindset as well as get clarity on my purpose. It wasn't as obviously how profound the methods would be...though once I read through the methods, I realized I would have slept A LOT more in graduate school had I known these much earlier in life. This actually inspired me to teach a "Metalearning" course to help students get this information when they need it (not decades later). This material should be offered to students of all ages in all learning environments, and I've run 5 book clubs just to help people learn to shift their thinking.For me, the other side of the open door is an infinite amount of knowledge to gain and integrate into my life (using the tools taught in this book and through online courses, of course!). This brings me joy and continuous self-upgrades that lead to an increased capacity to help myself and others.