When you want to improve an important aspect of your life, the self-help industry recommends a fairly simple exercise: imagine yourself renewed, with the necessary changes made. This practice has been recommended for years. Today, a vast body of research reveals that such exercises are ineffective. It's true that asking someone to imagine their perfect self can make them feel good. But engaging in this type of mental escapism can also have the side effect of leaving the individual unprepared to deal with the difficulties that accumulate on the road to success. This increases the chances of faltering at the first obstacle, rather than persisting in the face of failure. The self-help industry disseminates lessons that ultimately destroy motivation and creativity. Based on this observation, psychology professor Richard Wiseman compiled in 59 seconds several recommendations, taken from the latest scientific research, that will transform your life in less than a minute. From humor to memory, from persuasion to procrastination, and even delicate relationship issues, Wiseman didactically summarizes research on the science of rapid change, showing how strange habits—like putting a toothpick between your teeth or carrying a photo of a baby in your wallet—can yield unexpectedly positive results. In this reinvention of the myths of modern life, the guru of Weirdness offers innovative and peculiar techniques that can be easily incorporated into daily life and will help you achieve goals and ambitions in a matter of seconds—not months. These are small insights that help cultivate decision-making, creativity, and, consequently, happiness.
