A guide to overcoming the mind's resistance to change, with a method for forming habits, increasing mindfulness, and dealing with life struggles.

With the arrival of the 21st century we have encountered a mental and material explosion in the Western world: we have near-unlimited information at our fingertips, we can have children who are healthy and safe, and we have wealth and possessions beyond what most of the world can dream of. However, this is not a boast. We are more stressed than we have ever been: the majority of us are profoundly unhappy. Despite the potential of prosperity, our fears are undiminished: we are stuck with cars and computers and houses and mobiles and hundreds of other tiny apparent "needs" that, when all combined, build to something unsustainable. Though we are surrounded by what we want, our desire to keep and still get more creates a pressure that we cannot tolerate. But we do not need to "keep up with the Joneses". The flip side of our society's growth is that we can choose what to accept, and what not to accept: what to keep, and what to lose, joyfully and consciously. With this handbook of simplicity, Leo Babauta shows us: • why less is powerful • how to know what you want, and what you need • how to choose what is essential, and clear out the rest With The Power of Less, you will be able to start a complete shift from wanting everything to needing nothing, be able to live your life simply without compromise, and discover that though we cannot have everything we want, we can obtain anything we will ever need. With this book, you will find how to go through life not carefully, but carefreely.

Zen To Done (ZTD) is a system that is at once simple, and powerful, and will help you develop the habits that keep all of your tasks and projects organized, that keep your workday simple and structured, that keep your desk and email inbox clean and clear, and that keep you doing what you need to do, without distractions. This book was written for those who want to get their lives organized and actually execute the things on their to-do list by changing existing habits. And let me say that changing your habits is possible. Using the habit-changing techniques I describe in this book, I have made many habit changes: I quit smoking, started running, started eating healthier, completed a marathon, doubled my income and got my finances in order, have almost eliminated my debt now, completed a triathlon, lost more than 20 pounds, and started a successful blog, and more. Read this book. You'll be amazed at what you can accomplish with this productivity system.

Most of us rush around doing a lot of task and errands each day, putting out fires, and dealing with dramas. Most of these struggle are invented. We are simply beings. Food, shelter, clothing and relationships are all we need to be happy. Food grows simply and naturally. Shelter is a simply roof. Clothing is just cloth. Simple relationships consist of enjoying each other’s company without expectations. Beyond these simple needs, we’ve added invented needs: careers, bosses, and co-workers; new gadgets, software and social media; cars and nice clothes and purses and laptop bags and televisions and more. Imagine that you have a few close friends and family members, and you spend ample time with them. You have no expectations of them, therefore, they don’t disappoint you, and, in fact, whatever they do is perfect. You love them for who they are, and your relationships remain uncomplicated. You enjoy spending time in solitude—with your thoughts, with nature, with a book, and maybe even creating. This is a simple, effortless life. It’s not effortless as in “no effort,” but it feels effortless, and that’s what matters. And it’s entirely possible. The only thing that stands in the way of an effortless life is the mind.

Essential Mind Training is the first volume in the Tibetan Classics series, which aims to make available accessible paperback editions of key Tibetan Buddhist works drawn from Wisdom Publications' Library of Tibetan Classics. The key to happiness is not the eradication of all problems but rather the development of a mind capable of transforming any problem into a cause of happiness. Essential Mind Training is full of guidance for cultivating new mental habits for mastering our thoughts and emotions. This volume contains eighteen individual works selected from Mind Training: The Great Collection, the earliest compilation of mind-training (lojong) literature. The first volume of the historic Tibetan Classics series, Essential Mind Training includes both lesser-known and renowned classics such as Eight Verses on Mind Training and The Seven-Point Mind Training. These texts offer methods for practicing the golden rule of learning to love your neighbor as yourself and are full of practical and down-to-earth advice. The techniques explained here, by enhancing our capacity for compassion, love, and perseverance, can give us the freedom to embrace the world.

The author writes, "I've long wanted to put together a book on motivation--I get emails and comments from readers every day in need of motivation to reach a goal, to stay focused, to exercise, to be productive, to just get up off their butts and do something. But I wanted to add something, add value greater than I already offer on Zen Habits." In The Essential Motivation Handbook, author Leo Babauta definitely succeeds. Teaming up with motivational expert Eric Hamm, he provides some of the most succinct yet powerful advice available on how to get yourself up and going! The book includes practical steps to help you overcome fear, keep moving forward, boost your self-confidence, get inspiration, and turn your dreams into reality. The perfect companion to the author's book Zen To Done.

Say you want to start going to the gym or practicing a musical instrument. How long should it take before you stop having to force it and start doing it automatically? The surprising answers are found in Making Habits, Breaking Habits, a psychologist's popular examination of one of the most powerful and under-appreciated processes in the mind. Although people like to think that they are in control, much of human behavior occurs without any decision-making or conscious thought. Drawing on hundreds of fascinating studies, psychologist Jeremy Dean busts the myths to finally explain why seemingly easy habits, like eating an apple a day, can be surprisingly difficult to form, and how to take charge of your brain's natural "autopilot" to make any change stick. Witty and intriguing, Making Habits, Breaking Habits shows how behavior is more than just a product of what you think. It is possible to bend your habits to your will -- and be happier, more creative, and more productive.