The Winner's Brain: 8 Strategies Great Minds Use to Achieve Success [Bargain Price] [Hardcover]

Jeff Brown (Author), Mark Fenske (Author), Liz Neporent (Contributor)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 30, 2010 | ISBN-10: 0738213608

Ever wonder why some people seem blessed with success? In fact, everyone is capable of winning in life—you just need to develop the right brain for it.

In The Winner’s Brain, Drs. Jeffrey Brown and Mark J. Fenske use cutting-edge neuroscience to identify the secrets of those who succeed no matter what—and demonstrate how little it has to do with IQ or upbringing. Through simple everyday practices, Brown and Fenske explain how to unlock the brain’s hidden potential, using:

• Balance: Make emotions work in your favor
• Bounce: Create a failure-resistant brain
• Opportunity Radar: Spot hot prospects previously hidden by problems
• Focus Laser: Lock into what’s important
• Effort Accelerator: Cultivate the drive to win

Along the way, meet dozens of interesting people who possess “win factors” (like the inventor of Whac-A-Mole™) and glean fascinating information (like why you should never take a test while wearing red). Compulsively readable, The Winner’s Brain will not only give you an edge, but also motivate you to pursue your biggest dreams.

Editorial Reviews

Review

ForeWord This Week, 1/28/10
“An informative read for those who want to better understand their own gray matter.”

Harvard Mental Health Letter, May 2010
“[Drs. Brown and Fenske] have described a set of strategies for remaining mentally sharp even under trying circumstances. In their book, The Winner's Brain: Eight Strategies Great Minds Use to Achieve Success, Drs. Brown and Fenske outline an approach they derive from well-known psychotherapies and discoveries in neuroscience. The strategies they suggest can be applied in the clinic, the classroom, and the workplace.”

Bookviews, May 2010
“A combination science and business approach to enjoying achievement in your life…If you are looking to unlock your own potential, you might want to start by reading this interesting book.”

Tucson Citizen 5/13/10
“A book that is part popular-science treatise, and part self-help guide. It is crisply written and backed by meticulously researched facts.” 

800 CEO Read Blog, 5/4/10
“The book is filled with medical research, but also some great stories…Filled with examinations of decision making, emotions, focus, memory, and more, The Winner’s Brain helps us think differently about our potential and shows us how to act upon it.”

BBC Focus, June 2010
“There are nuggets of interesting research findings in here.”

“The Bookworm Sez” syndicated column, 5/14/10
“[Brown and Fenske] give their readers an easy-to-grasp tour of the brain and its basic functions, as well as a wealth of exercises to help grow neurons and ‘re-route’ them as needed…The hard-science approach that this book takes is useful to anyone who strives to overcome modern adversity in business.”

InfoDad.com, 5/20/10
“What gives Brown and Fenske’s book its value is less the list of factors than their suggestions on how to improve each factor in everyday life…[It has] some good, specific suggestions for improving brain health mixed in with a fair number of anecdotes.”

Los Angeles Times “Booster Shots” health blog, 5/29/10
“The authors know their audience. They liberally cite scientific studies throughout the book, but they are writing for a popular audience, not an academic one. They've juiced up their thesis with stories of well-known achievers…As writers of any good self-help book must, the authors make a convincing case that change is within reach…They offer plenty of tools to help anyone develop habits to better achieve life goals.”

Sacramento Book Review, 5/27/10
“Do you enjoy reading about neuroscience and brain function? If so this book is for you!...The authors do a good job of breaking down each win factor and discussing how to apply it daily.”

Las Cruces Sun-News, 5/23/10
“Drs. Brown and Fenske share some amazing conclusions about the human brain's tremendous capacity.”

FavStocks.com, 6/15/10
“Through interviews with celebrities and everyday folks, Brown and Fenske lay out a framework for unlocking your brain’s hidden potential…The Winner’s Brain teaches you how to get more out of your most powerful muscle. With the tips, techniques, and ideas in this book, you can get more out of your career and your money.”

 

Energy Times, June 2010

“If success is your desired destination, The Winner’s Brain provides a useful road map.”

 

Taste for Life, July 2010

“Translate[s] cutting-edge neuroscience into a roadmap for training your brain to perform at a higher level and increasing your potential for success—however you define it…[An] engaging book.”

 

Entrepreneur.com, 6/29/10

“Knowing there is some science behind the book makes it a bit more meaningful than the typical self-help book…An interesting mix of science and self-help, plus the authors sprinkle some great exercises throughout…If you are self-aware and emotionally balanced enough to know that you need a little motivation to focus on your resilience, memory and adaptability, then this might be the book you should pick up to help take care of your brain this summer.”

 

Metapsychology Online Reviews, 8/26/10

“Open[s] a needed window into the brain for the layman…The book's strength is in its simplicity, and that should appeal to many.”

 

Magill Book Reviews
“Brown and Fenske share technical brain research data in an engaging anecdotal style…Using their game plan to develop a winner’s brain can clearly help athletes, students, business people, parents, retirees, and others at any stage of life create success from the inside out.”

About the Author

Jeffrey Brown, PsyD, ABPP, a psychiatry instructor at Harvard Medical School, lives in Boston.

Mark J. Fenske, PhD, a former research fellow at Harvard, is an assistant professor in neuroscience at the University of Guelph. He lives in Ontario, Canada.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 240 pages
• Publisher: Da Capo Lifelong Books (March 30, 2010)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0738213608
• ASIN: B004HEXSUO
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #794,419 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

38 of 40 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars `Your brain, much like the rest of you, has fundamental needs.' August 19, 2010

By J. Cameron-Smith TOP 500 REVIEWER

Format:Hardcover

What enables some people to succeed in life, while others simply survive? Is our maximum potential predetermined, or do we have the capacity to push beyond what we perceive to be our limitations? The authors of this book say that the workings of the brain make the difference, and that it is possible to train the brain to perform at a higher level. How? By identifying and employing the same strategies as high-achieving individuals use to overcome obstacles and reach their goals.

Perhaps the key message is that `the brain is active and subject to change no matter what you do'. This provides an opportunity: `what sets the owner of a Winner's Brain apart is the desire and the know-how to take charge of the process.' The authors have identified five `BrainPower Tools' commonly used by successful people: seeing opportunities where others don't (`Opportunity Radar'); accurately gauging and being willing to take risks (`Optimal Risk Gauge'); being able to stay focussed on a goal (`Goal Laser'); possessing the energy to take action (`Effort Accelerator'); and being able to accurately assess one's strengths and weaknesses (` Talent Meter').

Of course, we don't all share the same goals, and we will each have different definitions of success. But whatever your goals, it is likely that one or more of the eight strategies listed below will provide the keys to greater achievement. The eight strategies ( `win factors' ) are: self awareness; motivation; focus; emotional balance; memory; resilience; adaptability and brain care. In this book, the authors give examples of how each strategy works and share techniques to enhance brain function. The theory is strengthened by the inclusion of stories such as: London cabbies who have increased the size of their hippocampus by memorising city routes; a teenage chess master whose memory of previous games enabled him to predict where a game was going; and a rock star turned rock climbing instructor turned medical student.

All of this is geared to make you believe that change is possible - if you are seeking it - and if you are prepared to make some changes to achieve it.

Jennifer Cameron-Smith

31 of 33 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars One the one hand I loved it, on the other.... October 15, 2010

By Ghoti

Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase

I'm in two minds about this book. On the one hand I loved it and certainly got my money worth but, on the other I didn't learn anything of practical use that was new. Maybe that's an unfair statement since for years I have been a keen study of these types of books, and I am a demanding reader.

Back to the positive, this book was really well written and very interesting. I thought all the "tools" and "win factors" were very valid and certainly would help someone move towards success (see the table of contents for a summary). There were no Ra-Ra moments, instead there were solid and convincing scientific arguments which were new to me.

This discussion on what functional MRI's (and other studies) show about brain functioning were fascinating and really helped to illustrate and support the points made. They went into the right level of detail, good solid discussions without getting too long. As an example, I already knew that labelling emotions helped to calm myself down but I didn't understand why. The book gives an interesting discussion of a study showing how labelling emotions calmed down the amygdalae while brain areas involved controlling behaviour lit up. To quote "By simply labelling what they were feeling with words, they were better able to control the parts of their brain responsible for overreaction and call upon greater neural resources to help them stay in Emotional Balance'.

The other aspect I liked were the examples of people who demonstrate the "win factors" eg Whoopi Goldberg "the Queen of Resilience". Typically I don't enjoy these types of digressions, but they we un-usually well written and well integrated in this book.

If this is an area that is at all new to you, I would highly recommend this book.

For those of you like me it's still a useful book. It is a great re-cap and maintains interest due to the new discussions regarding brain function. I personally got an unexpected benefit from reading it. I am currently in a very long term project and I have been aware that I've recently lost my way/motivation. While reading this book and revising the "win factors" I realised that I have not been applying what I already knew to that particular project. Since reading this book I've started to apply the strategies and now it's all back on track.

25 of 32 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Fascinating, accessible, and practical March 17, 2010

By Champy

Format:Hardcover

I was lucky enough to receive an advance copy of this book. It immediately grabbed my attention and held on to it. I am not a science-y person, but the book is written so it didn't matter. It's intelligent, yet not written in a high-brow, aren't-we-so-brilliant way. The writers bring wit and vitality to the topic, offering relatable, real-life examples. The book is populated with engaging personalities. The writers offer practical, take-away advice that I was able to apply in my real life, both for work and as an avid athlete. I recommend this book to a wide spectrum of readers--from business executives to teachers, from athletes to parents.