Cliff notes and suggestions?

Does anyone know of any apps or websites that allows me to pretty much read the cliff notes of books?

I’ve come to realise that regardless whether I read a book or listen to the audio version I just cannot get through them. I get frustrated easily.

For example, I was reading Brian Tracy’s No Excuses! with a friend yesterday and I just couldn’t focus and get through the Intro/1st Chapter as it drones on and on. I find this happens with most things I read/listen/watch.

I want to learn, but I just need to get straight to the point.

Anyone know any websites/apps? I found Blinkist but was wondering any more.

Also, what’s your best book suggestions that have helped you with your personal development journey that I should look into?

for Personal Dev:

“One Small Step Can Change Your Life” by Robert Maurer, Ph.D.
“The Slight Edge” by Jeff Olson
“The Life-Changing Manga of Tidying Up” - Marie Kondo (I liked this better than the original book)

probably all you need. These three, instead of being “Self-help,” are more the info you need to make all other self-help work in your favor the best.

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Blinkist is what I use. I got it as part of a bundle deal with Scribd. I haven’t found anything better… there are other summary sites/apps, but after trying a few Blinkist was ahead by a long shot IMHO.

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Based on a quick browse of my bookshelf:

  • Unlimited Power & Awaken The Giant Within, by Tony Robbins
  • The Happiness Equation, by Neil Pasricha
  • 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, by Stephen Covey
  • Stress Less, Accomplish More, by Emily Fletcher (meditation)
  • The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up. by Marie Kondo
  • Anything by Tim Ferriss :nerd_face:
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I wanted to read the second and third ones but again because they’re books I didn’t want to read them :joy: now I’ll check them out using Blinkist!

Thanks for the list!

That’s why I like the Manga. I had it read in just a couple hours…which is good for me.

Do you pay per year for it? I’m assuming yes? I’m glad I picked this one.

How funny that you chose Marie Kondo too. I need her in my life.

Gonna read some of these tonight with Blinkist too.

It was annual, but when it renewed now it’s monthly… it just goes on my Apple bill.

After my girlfriend (now wife) and I read Marie Kondo’s first book, we got rid of 16 garbage bags of stuff… from our little 600 sq ft 1 bedroom apartment! Some garbage, but mostly things we donated to Salvation Army… old clothes, etc. Also 2 huge suitcases of books that we lugged downtown to a used bookstore.

Most significantly, I applied the principles to my life and decluttered my social circle. I simply stopped talking to the people who didn’t bring me joy. That sounds harsh, but there were some people that would cause me to need to recharge my mental energy after spending any amount of time with them. I understand that it may be necessary to put up with coworkers etc who are like that, but friends are a choice. So… I ditched the ones who didn’t make me feel super happy to hang out with. Ended up being about 80% of my social circle gone.

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@Brandon don’t get frustrated because you cannot finish a book. It may be that you aren’t interested in it in the first place. One thing I have found to help with my concentration and ability to get through a book is how efficiently I can get through it. With audiobooks I will listen at 2x the speed and listen when I am doing something such as driving or working out. When it comes to digital books, I use Kindle. Some Kindle books have the ability to have the text read to you while you follow along with the book. I like this method because it helps me stay focused and improves my comprehension.

If you are getting frustrated to try and read a paperback book this method that Tim Ferriss suggests works well for me.

Finally, my two favorite books are The One Thing by Gary Keller and Conversations With Richard Bandler by Owen Fitzpatrick. I like Conversations with Richard Bandler because it was one of the first self-help books I read and gives a bunch of advice for having fun, enjoying life, and making the most of things. The One Thing is the best book I ever read on productivity. To sum it up for you, it involves working on the one thing that will make the most difference in your life.

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That one is great, also Essentialism by Greg McKeown and Deep Work by Cal Newport. though I tend to classify those as business books rather than personal development… but they’re all also on the top shelf of my book case. :smiley:

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There is one called “Self-Help Stuff That Works” by Adam Khan (lol)
It isn’t meant to be read straight through.
It’s more of a desk reference where if you need help with a particular topic, you peruse the Table of Contents, and go to whatever page you want.
most of the stuff is 1-2 pages in length as I recall. Good shit.

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I used to do this but even then my mind wonders off. I just want to get to the point. It’s so frustrating. I hate the waffle they do to just get to the point of the chapter.

I’ll give this a watch! Thank you!

Thanks for both of these! These sound awesome!

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Thanks for the title dude!

Sounds pretty good, and useful!, to me!

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