“All wish to possess knowledge, but few, comparatively speaking, are willing to pay the price.”

- Juvenal

This post introduces you to simple steps toward managing information and toward rock-solid knowledge. No cheap miracles, just a clear and straight approach based on facts and science. I’m sure you’ll find some points obvious, but please do not stop reading if this is the case. This is the shortest path to empowering knowledge:

1. Nurse your hunger for knowledge.

If your motivation for getting knowledge is weak you can stop reading this post. All the other advices will not work for you. Your motivation can’t be shallow (passing an exam, showing off, impressing the boss, etc.). You have to find the clear-cut link between knowledge and the value it brings to life.

Do you love science programs? Are you interested in how your computer works? Are you surfing the net looking for news? If the answer to this questions is yes, you are probably on the right track. But if you can spend more than 30 minutes on a totally uncreative and non-intellectual activity (like gossip, adult magazines, unadulterated laziness, etc.), then you may have a motivational problem.

Remember that hunger for knowledge grows as you learn more (the more you know the more you know you don’t know). So there is an excellent remedy for poor motivation: learn more and see how it can impact your and others’ life. Recent research shows that strong motivation may actually count more than your IQ.

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“Sometimes the most productive thing one can do is to sleep.”

Tired of being tired? You want your energy back? This kind of stuff probably sounds familiar, whether you’re moving in slow-motion or frazzled from juggling work, family, and friends. Feeling tired robs you of productivity and pleasure.

So arm yourself for the holidays and beyond with these eight tools that will help you have an amazing sack time, the kind that will boost your energy levels and slow the aging process. And in no time flat, you’ll be catching your second wind.

Tool #1: THE MATTRESS

We often seem to be remarkably unaware that our mattress may be undermining our attempts to get a good night’s sleep. And although we agree that a good mattress is important for sound sleep, good health and to prevent back problems, we still keep our mattress until it’s well past its prime and disrupts sleep.

Survey findings also indicate that people recognize on a theoretical level the crucial role their mattress plays in their sleep and health. But on a practical level, when it comes to their own sleep and health, they usually overlook the condition of the mattress they sleep on every night.

So, maybe what’s really keeping you up nights is as plain as the tired old mattress on which you’re trying to sleep. Spend some money on a new one.

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