Reddit reviews Brain Rules (Updated and Expanded): 12 Principles for Surviving and Thriving at Work, Home, and School

It doesn't deal with the question of corporal punishment but this is a really interesting book about how the brain works and it is written in very easy to understand terms and language.

http://www.amazon.com/Brain-Rules-Updated-Expanded-Principles/dp/098326337X/ref=dp_ob_title_bk

I highly recommend this book for anyone that wants an ELI15 (yes 15, not 5) version of how the brain works and how this can help you as a student, businessman, or just as a person.

> The Game - Neil Straus

Not sure if you know this but Neil Straus did another AMA a few months back in wake of his new book. And you can search the internet for more recent interviews with him. The guy has changed a lot and even said he was kinda embarrassed about that part of his life (but in a good way because it showed he was growing)

Anyway, my current recommendation is One Small Step Can Change Your Life: The Kaizen Way. It’s about taking small, consistent actions towards life changes you want to make.

I’m currently reading Brain Rules which explains current research findings on the brain and how we can use these findings for our benefit. It is a very easy read.

(In case it wasn’t obvious, I’m currently on a brain & neuroscience binge)

One book I always seem to go back to is Be Excellent at Anything. OK, the title may sound click-baity but the essential argument is that instead of managing time we need to be managing our energy. The book introduces a model of 4 categories of energy (physical, emotional, mental and spiritual) and pulls from scientific research to discuss ways to improve our energy in each category. Having more energy equates to better performance (i.e. “becoming excellent”).

Honourable mention: The Power of Habit. I only read the first one-third of the book because that’s the part that explains the science behind habit formation. The rest of the book is dedicated to showing how it happens in an organization and society. In fact, if all you want is that first third then go to the resources on the book’s official website and go through everything there (especially the flowchart PDFs).

First off, don't believe anyone who tells you that non-fiction books are the only worthwhile books. That is blasphemy. Non-fiction might make you more knowledgeable about certain things, but fiction allows you to entertain an entirely different perspective of the world for the duration of the book. I would argue that the latter is more beneficial to your development as a critical thinker and a human being.

Secondly, it sounds like you haven't really found your genre yet. You couldn't get through all of Harry Potter, maybe fantasy isn't your thing. Try historical fiction. What kind of movies and TV shows do you enjoy? Try finding books along the same vein. Just like anything else, you're going to have to sift through a lot of stuff you don't like to find the ones you do.

I like to have at least two books going at the same time, because sometimes reading just one book gets boring. At any given time, I'll be reading one book for pleasure (I really like fantasy - so something like Malazan Book of the Fallen), and one book for merit (anything from philosophy to psychology to a travel memoir).

Lastly, try getting your reading time in right before you go to sleep. It's less stimulating than watching TV or being on the computer. You can get a few pages in when you're taking a shit, too.

Brain Rules, by John Medina. The audiobook, book book, and website are all great to learn more.
http://www.amazon.com/Brain-Rules-Updated-Expanded-Principles/dp/098326337X

I had some similar issues (felt tired and sleepy through the day and I'm a light sleeper). And then I just started to do trainings in the morning (even if I felt asleep), after a month my body adjusted so I didn't feel exhausted anymore.

Keep in mind that to start with it's not necessary to do any hardcore training or heavy lifting, even just casual activity (or any fitness class) is great for your brain and body, just to keep you tone. I mean you could add some short 20m sessions daily and be fine with that. You could start even from doing just good warm up sessions to pump you blood a bit and make your heart work.

Wake up half an hour earlier and do some quick workout it will actually help you to fill less tired eventually (after your body will adjust), because your body temperature will be higher and it provides awakening effect (I was very sleepy through my day too and after I've started doing workout in the morning I feel way more charged through the day). If you gonna do some heavy training don't forget to eat something before, even a protein bar would be good. You don't have to push your self to eat a lot right before training but at least something, And you could fill your self later, otherwise it would be hard to train on heavy stomach.

As I sad I'm also light sleeper and I use melatonin time to time to get better sleep and soft ear plugs and eye mask. But keep in mind that for melatonin effective dose is around 300 mcg to 1 mg (according to MIT http://news.mit.edu/2005/melatonin ). I found through different tries that ~500 mcg works best for me. But pharmacy usually sells way too high dosage like 5mg etc keep that in mind and it could give your negative effect in a long run (not even negative, but I would say, it won't just work. In case of melatonin more doesn't mean better. You just need to find right dosage that would be enough for you and that won't make you too much sleepy next day).

Basically, when you have boring routine and you have very sedentary work you gonna feel very tired anyway, just because of the lifestyle. You have to increase energy spending to get a new fresh fill up, and don't forget to eat more if you going to do workouts. Also, highly suggest you to read a book Brain Rules by John Medina about how exercising affects your brain and feelings ( https://www.amazon.com/Brain-Rules-Updated-Expanded-Principles/dp/098326337X/ )

Don't go crazy and smoothly build new habits and in a couple months or so you would start noticing a difference. Also, with short workouts you could do it even during the breaks on the work (right in the office). I've seen people doing that. And some training that requires body movements is also a must when you getting older, because we start loosing the mobility once we got older.

Good luck

P.S. And get enough sleep. If you have to wake up so early, well, go to bed early too.

That sounds like a really lovely and interesting book! I will put it on my "to read" list.

At the moment I have on the list:

The Happiness Trap - haven't started this yet though

Setting Limits with Your Strong-Willed Child - started this but just pissed me off because it made me realise my husband is a permissive parent and I wish he weren't.

Brain Rules - haven't started this but has a lot of science backing it up.

Get Out of Your Mind and Into Your Life - this book was used by my counsellor, it has some great activities on ACT/Mindfulness.

I am spending way too much time binge watching shows in my uni holidays - I ought to get reading!

Read Brain Rules by John Medina. You'll learn how your brain works, and you'll be able to hack studying and a lot of other things. For example, your brain likes novelty which means you'll remember the details of a helicopter crash better than you'll remember a typical hand you had in a game of poker. Perhaps you can use novelty to remember what you're studying better. That's just one of twelve "rules" your brain follows. It's a great book that has benefited me a lot.