Secrets of the SuperOptimist [Paperback]

W. R. Morton (Author), Nathaniel Whitten (Author)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

The brainchild of Morton and Whitten, a pair of "seekers of higher truth and optimal sensation" who claim to have received this book's 116 "wisdom transmissions" from a mysterious source called the SuperOptimist, this volume could become the self-help of choice for people who don't read self-help. This quirky, unique primer, categorized on its back cover as "Psychology/ Philosophy/ Great Religious Texts of the World/ Humor," provides more than 100 points of advice for achieving SuperOptimism, defined as "the mental discipline to reframe any situation into a favorable outcome." Centered around three central principles-believing in the preeminence of your own fortune, considering pain a kind of informative "sensation," and removing one's shoes whenever possible-specific "secrets" include: drink caffeine, "compare yourself downward," wear wool, "skip therapy," engage strangers and "tip everybody." The book also includes exercises and appendixes, as well as a handy, all-purpose slogan for 2007: "I can handle it." Whether or not one can, in fact, handle it, Morton and Whitten provide plenty of fresh perspective from way out in left field.
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About the Author

W.R. Morton and Nathaniel Whitten, the transmitters of SuperOptimism, have been seekers of higher truth and optimal sensation for over 30 years. Individually and collectively, they've studied shamanistic meta-psychology, Zen, wabi-sabi, neuro-muscular sciences, tai chi, literary deconstruction, and various foreign languages.

Product Details

• Paperback: 160 pages
• Publisher: Vitally Important; 1st edition (November 1, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0977480704
• ISBN-13: 978-0977480708
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.5 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (15 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,316,795 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars I am Free Now, November 10, 2006

By 

Max Rockbin (Portland, OR) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Secrets of the SuperOptimist (Paperback)

The walls push the air against your eyes. Even a quiet destiny seems swallowed by the very earth. Every friend is a memory of casual betrayal. And yet there is Amazon. The debris of cardboard boxes around me are a childish fort of novelty and hope. From one of them, I pull out...

SECRETS OF THE SUPEROPTMIST

Gee. I didn't even remember ordering that one.

The falling flaming man on the cover reminded me of everything. It is Truth and any certain truth, just by itself, is vaguely comforting.

Really this book is about escape. Every hint/suggestion/trope/ideal/goal/aphorism in here is a key to escaping from the cage every man has built for himself.

"Focus on the Previous Small Thing."

"Set no Goals, then marvel as you exceed them."

"Take Advantage of Free Electrical Outlets."

They are all truth and all put the lie to the canned phrases and quips that fuel Dr. Phil/et. al.

The graphics are elegant and clever. The font highly readable. I have only one thumb left(an advantage, I now see) but it is so far up for this book I can't pull it out.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A hilarious, thought-provoking hybrid, May 12, 2007

By 

Bill Weeden "billyweeds" (New York, NY United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Secrets of the SuperOptimist (Paperback)

This book will inevitably be categorized as "humor," and humorous it certainly is, with its spot-on and very funny parodic takes on idiotic self-help tomes. The amazing part is that it actually has more to say about life choices than most "serious" books in the same area. Morton and Whitten have clearly done their homework by slogging through the usual bromides, cliches, and platitudes. They have been there, read this, been nauseated by that, and had it up to here, but luckily haven't lost their sense of comedic absurdity in the process. And we are the beneficiaries. Their disillusion is our gain. All we need to do now is listen a little, learn a little more, and laugh a whole lot.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars My coffee is cold... but I still have some left!, February 22, 2007

By 

vingram (Durham, NC) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Secrets of the SuperOptimist (Paperback)

Very smart book about how to turn absolutely any negative into a positive. Great tongue-in-cheek writing that reminded me of the Colbert Report.

Especially love the exercises at the end, like the tips for dealing with the death of a loved one that include chanting "I am not a wizard", and the memory exercises that help you remember your sexual experiences by having you write a very complimentary and detailed letter from your lover to yourself.

Clever and funny, but with an air of real intelligence and truth, and damned if it won't actually make you think about things a little differently.