Focus

by Daniel Goleman

Paperback, 2013

Status

Available

Call number

GOL-308

Publication

Bloomsbury Publishing PLC (2013), Edition: Export/Airside ed

Description

Psychology. Nonfiction. HTML: In Focus, Psychologist and journalist Daniel Goleman, author of the #1 international bestseller Emotional Intelligence, offers a groundbreaking look at today's scarcest resource and the secret to high performance and fulfillment: attention. Combining cutting-edge research with practical findings, Focus delves into the science of attention in all its varieties, presenting a long overdue discussion of this little-noticed and under-rated mental asset. In an era of unstoppable distractions, Goleman persuasively argues that now more than ever we must learn to sharpen focus if we are to survive in a complex world. Goleman boils down attention research into a threesome: inner, other, and outer focus. Drawing on rich case studies from fields as diverse as competitive sports, education, the arts, and business, he shows why high-achievers need all three kinds of focus, and explains how those who rely on Smart Practices�??mindfulness meditation, focused preparation and recovery, positive emotions and connections, and mental "prosthetics" that help them improve habits, add new skills, and sustain greatness�??excel while others do not… (more)

User reviews

LibraryThing member byebyelibrary
Goleman's book is a bland melange of politically correct truisms and resume wagging claiming to be science/advice/insight. Claims focus is the key to excellence but spends most of his time talking about mindfulness and saving the world. Title should have been, "Mindfulness can save the world," but
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that would not have flown off the business shelf at the airport news stand. Goleman is a narcissistic bore. Half his anecdotes seem to revolve around another line on his resume. The story of the online poker fiend ends with the rounder purchasing a copy of one of Goleman's books. Oh, and didn't you know, it was Goleman not Malcolm Gladwell that first reported on the whole 10,000 hours to mastery concept. Goleman is more than happy to spend an irrelevant chapter telling you so.
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LibraryThing member mitchellray
In "Focus" Daniel Goleman takes a wide-ranging perspective on the subject of attention. Goleman explains how what individuals and organizations focus on impacts learning, creativity, relationships, parenting, emotional intelligence, systems, gaming, the environment, leadership, and more. Goleman
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admits in an endnote that such breadth of coverage precludes depth of explanation. However, he provides a helpful section on resources for those wanting to explore in more depth topics the book touches on. Goleman does a good job in identifying the role of focus in many aspects of our personal and organizational lives. His lively writing style stimulates the reader’s curiosity to want to know more. Goleman mentions some ways we can increase focus, but this is not a how-to book. Goleman gets us to pay attention to the importance of focus. The reader will need to explore other resources to learn the skills for strengthening focus.
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LibraryThing member debnance
Now focus. I’m going to tell you something important. And...shhhh...it’s a secret. Ready? Okay, here it is: The most important thing is...focus. Yes, focus. So, are you doing that? If you aren’t, could you please try it? Yes, focus. I’m telling you it’s important. Simple. But important.
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So let’s all go out there and focus.
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LibraryThing member dazzyj
All the online reviews which point out the irony of this book's complete lack of focus are exactly right. It is a grab bag of short and superficial treatments of diverse subjects which have all been treated better elsewhere. Many of the subjects have only a tangential relationship to what is
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apparently the main topic of the book, namely attention. For example, global warming gets a guernsey because it is an important problem, so we should all pay attention to it!. And writing about the marshmallow test as if you're not the 98th person to do so in print is an insult to the reader's intelligence.
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LibraryThing member grandpahobo
The first half of this book was fascinating. It presents excellent information and insight into how our brains work with regard to attention and focus.

The second half was really just a collection of anecdotes about high powered people and how they succeed or fail at managing focus. It was ok, but
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not really very informative.
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LibraryThing member traumleben
In a bit of irony, this book lacks focus. It's a decent survey of the overall importance of focus, but it ranges from light neuroscience, to environmental activism on, to leadership. Aside from mindfulness and breathing, there's nothing prescriptive in here for achieving greater focus individually
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or as a society. Don't bother.
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LibraryThing member steve02476
Some good stuff, but scattershot. More like a series of magazine articles than a book; more like reportage than writing.

ISBN

1408850567 / 9781408850565

Call number

GOL-308

Rating

(95 ratings; 3.3)

Library's review

For more than two decades, psychologist and journalist Daniel Goleman has been scouting the leading edge of the human sciences for what's new, surprising, and important. In Focus, he delves into the science of attention in all its varieties, presenting a long overdue discussion of this
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little-noticed and under-rated mental asset that matters enormously for how we navigate life.

Goleman boils down attention research into a three parts: inner, other, and outer focus. Goleman shows why high-achievers need all three kinds of focus, as demonstrated by rich case studies from fields as diverse as competitive sports, education, the arts, and business. Those who excel rely on what Goleman calls Smart Practices such as mindfulness meditation, focused preparation and recovery, positive emotions and connections, and mental 'prosthetics' that help them improve habits, add new skills, and sustain excellence. Combining cutting-edge research with practical findings, Focus reveals what distinguishes experts from amateurs and stars from average performers.
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