The Little Book of Clarity. Smart Jamie

      As you continue reading this book, you're going to start undoing the conditioning that's been keeping you from clarity until now, and notice yourself experiencing a clear mind more and more frequently (with all the benefits it brings). At the times when your mind is clouded, you'll know what to do (and more importantly, what not to do). The conditioning is based in three main areas:

      1. Contaminated thinking arising from the outside-in misunderstanding. A widespread piece of conditioning mistakenly attributes clarity (and the lack of it) to a variety of circumstances. While this can easily be shown not to be the case, the misunderstanding is extremely persistent when it goes unchallenged. You're going to be introduced to a relaxing and enjoyable way of reading that will help you to “see through” this misunderstanding, and begin having insights and realizations that will make a difference to you immediately. As you deepen your understanding of the principles behind clarity, you'll find stale habits of contaminated thinking dropping away, and clarity emerging to take their place.

      2. The move from a manufacturing economy to a knowledge economy. Just as factory workers need to keep their machines clean and well oiled, knowledge workers, coaches, creatives, managers and leaders need to take similar care of their minds. Individuals and businesses are paying the price as time-scarcity, attention-poverty and information-saturation clog the “mental machinery” we rely on. But there's good news. People are born with a powerful immune system that protects us from disease and illness. The immune system reflects an innate tendency towards health and wellness that also shows up in the body's ability to repair wounds, breaks and other injuries. It is a little-known fact, however, that people also have a “psychological immune system,” able to quickly restore even an extremely perturbed mind to clarity and well-being. As your understanding of the principles behind clarity continues to deepen, you'll find that you have what you need to prosper in times of uncertainty, complexity and change.

      3. Attempting to find clarity using outside-in methods. The mind is a self-correcting system. The primary condition needed for a self-correcting system to find its way back to balance is simple: an absence of external interference. Outside-in methods such as positive thinking, affirmations and other techniques are examples of external interference. Other examples include smoking, drinking too much and Internet addiction. While they can be used to clear the mind in the short term, they are not sustainable. In the long run, they often make matters worse if they give the busy-minded person even more to think about and do (I'm assuming that the last thing you need is more on your mind).

      This book is designed to effortlessly activate your innate capacity for clarity. As you'll find out, the principles you're going to be discovering will take care of the implementation for you.

      • Acting it: Acting like you have a cold is neither easy nor convincing. Most business and personal development books aim at giving you the things to think, change and do so you can “act” in a certain way to get the results you want.

      • Catching it: When you catch a cold, the symptoms emerge effortlessly because they're real. This book is designed so that you can “catch” an understanding that results in the “symptoms” of increasing clarity, resilience and peace of mind.

      I want to assure you that you have the capacity for sustainable clarity, and all the benefits it brings. But first, a question:

      • Q: If you're caught in a trap, what's the one thing you have to do before you can escape?

      • A: You have to realize that you've been caught in a trap.

      Until you realize you've been caught in a trap, you're very unlikely to get out of it. But once you know about the trap, and you can see how it works, then escape is pretty straightforward. Especially if other people have escaped from the same trap, and can show you how.

      So please allow me to reveal the trap that's ensnared millions of people, including me…

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      At the end of each chapter, you'll find a section containing a “thought experiment”. This is a statement or question for reflection to help you integrate what you are learning even more deeply. For example:

       Thought experiment: We each experience greater clarity from time to time. As you look back now, what are some of the more memorable occasions when you've found yourself experiencing an unexpected increase in clarity?

      When you reach a thought experiment, pause for a moment. You don't have to figure out the question or “get it right”. You don't even have to answer it. Just reading the question and reflecting on it for a moment is enough to continue your process of integration.

      This section will also contain a website URL to enter into your browser and a QR code that you can scan using your smartphone. These will take you to web pages containing material relating to the chapter you've just read, ranging from videos and audio recordings to shareable articles, photos and infographics. In addition to the resources, you'll find features that allow you to post your comments and share what you're learning with others.

      Experience shows that sharing your discoveries is a simple but powerful way for you to continue integrating what you're learning, as your understanding of the principles behind clarity continues to deepen. I encourage you to explore, comment on and share these resources as you make your way through the book. You can start now…