Know Yourself, Forget Yourself

Book excerpt: Our brains seek order and resist the unexpected, inconsistent, and counterintuitive. But life is more often paradoxical than predictable — which is why formulas for fulfillment and success often fail. Instead of fighting the tide of contradiction and confusion, Marc Lesser asserts, we can learn to understand and even embrace them using the simple tools he presents in these pages. Readers learn to master five core competencies: Know Yourself, Forget Yourself; Be Confident, Question Everything; Fight for Change, Accept What Is; Embrace Emotion, Embody Equanimity; and Benefit Others, Benefit Yourself. The result is balance, a version of Buddhism’s “middle way,” which prompts understanding of what is required in any given moment and actions through which we skillfully “dance” with paradox in enriching and joyful ways. Bolstered by the latest in neuroscience, this guide is nuanced and direct, profound and practical.