Some persons go
bananas about the one book that changed their lives. I believe that in many
instances this has been the case, but for my part I am hesitant to give that
lofty title any such tome. That said, there are a couple that have been so
useful and shaping, that they have served as a base for my education and world
outlook. Both are from memory expert Harry Lorayne.
The first book is The Memory Book written with Jerry Lucas.
Found this one while just browsing at my local bookstore. From the beginning I
was hooked and readily began to apply his systems to schoolwork. I was at
junior high at the time, and with them I quickly set myself apart from the rest
of my classmates. Not only was I better than before on the memory stuff, but I
could study the applicable material in less time and with less effort and
boredom.
His systems,
technically called mnemonics, rest on a single readily applicable principle ( I won't spoil it for you
here). In this book, the authors explore
Harry's systems and how can they be applied and further developed. The book is
an easy read and can be useful even for young children. As for seniors, I
cannot positively say it, but I'm confident that it can be of benefit to them
as well.
So as to not rest on
his laurels, he has also reached into other aspects of mind use. The fruits of
his scrutiny are gathered in the other book I wanted to talk about: Secrets of Mind Power. His thoughts are not
based either on scientific studies or on unprovable esp-like phenomena, but on
bona fide practical American common sense.
The methods are simple, sensible and useful. He gives a golden warning, however: as with
the memory stuff, the methods must be given an honest try for them to work and
that must be done now, not later.
Here are some of the
topics he covers:
Interest
|
Enthusiasm
|
Logic
|
Creativity
|
Time organization
|
Concentration
|
Problem-solving
|
Forming habits and
breaking them
|
Curiosity
|
Learning
|
Observation
|
Memory
|
Public speaking
|
Worry control
|
Success
|
Making your own
luck
|
Years now into the
future I've found some even more powerful tools from philosophy and psychology
in general and from Henry Hazlitt in particular. Notwithstanding, Harry
Lorayne's methods are the ones that gave me the start and no one can really go
wrong with them which makes this book a great place to begin with any
self-improvement programme.
Most of his
suggestions are fine and workable. Some few methods though could use tinkering
or alternatives; for instance, I've tried his concentration suggestions several
times, but have gotten better results with alternate methods.
There are some books
one wishes to have read earlier in life. I was fortunate to be acquainted with
these at the right time.
(There's another
book from him on the mind, Instant Mind Power,
but I do not know how it relates to the Secrets,
since I've never seen a physical copy.)
