Kasper van der Meulen - Mindlift: Mental Fitness for the Modern Mind

Copyright 2016 Kasper van der Meulen

All rights reserved. Nothing in this publication may be multiplied, copied, or distributed in any other way without prior written permission from the publisher and the author, with the exception of short quotations, references, or for other noncommercial purposes. The book has been written to inform and to motivate, but it is not meant to diagnose or treat any medical or psychological problem whatsoever. To that end, always consult a professional. The contents are based on subjective opinions and interpretations of the author and are not meant as medical, psychological, therapeutic or any other professional advice. Neither the author nor the publisher can be held responsible for any form of damage to persons or properties as a result of the use of the contents of this book. No guarantees or insurances are offered or expressed in this book. References and referrals of sources that are used can be found on the last pages. The author has tried to the best of his abilities to mention all sources correctly and completely. In case of incorrectly used material or a missing referral, please contact us through the website of the publisher.

ISBN/EAN: 978-0-9974600-6-3

Title: MindLift

Subtitle: Mental Fitness for the Modern Mind

Publisher: Lifestyle Entrepreneurs Press (www.LifestyleEntrepreneursPress.com)

Author: Kasper van der Meulen

Illustrator: Serena Westra

NUR-code: 860

NUR-description: Health General Edition: Second

Publishing year: 2016

Foreword

WELCOME TO MINDLIFT

Mental Fitness for the Modern Mind

Let us begin with a short overview of what you are about to experience and how you can best absorb the contents of this book.

[2 pages | 800 words | 4 minutes of reading time]

A book about focus, attention, and mental fitness

The modern world offers numerous distractions and obstacles that can make it difficult for our minds to function optimally. At the same time, it offers us the opportunity like never before to take responsibility into our own hands, to control our lifestyle factors, and to train our minds to be healthy and happy and free to choose the life we want. This book does not only offer a practical method and simple means to train your mind to deal with these challenges, but it has also been written and laid out in a way that supports your natural ability to focus:

The formatting and illustrations are simple and spacious. This allows your brain to give it a richer interpretation; brains are very good at that.

Each part and each new chapter starts with a relevant quote to spark your interest.

The first page of each part tells you the approximate word-count and estimated reading time per chapter.

A page has a maximum 500 to 600 words.

A paragraph will be no longer than 300 words.

Each page will take about two minutes of reading time, based on the average of 250 -300 words per minute.

There will be hardly any line-breaks or word-breaks that carry over into the next page. You will have consumed the content you started with by the end of the page you started on.

If you know what it takes to finish a page or a chapter, that lowers the mental threshold for starting the page and eases you into the content. It also allows you to distribute your attention and time more consciously over the content. If you know youre doing a marathon, youre not going to start at maximum sprint speed. The way that the content is presented will change throughout the book and is meant evolve along with the average readers attention span.

Part 1 guides you into a certain train of thought, taking its time to explain some theoretical principles by means of active storytelling and illustrative language.

Part 2 offers fresh insights, playful analogies, and structured diagrams to help you see things differently. The content becomes more condensed and more applicable.

Part 3 contains a step-by step guide into a method of skillful self-development. The content becomes more actionable and is geared towards direct change.

Part 4 consists of compressed blocks of information with immediately applicable tips that only require a minute of reading time for each one.

Though the book has been written with a continuous thread from beginning to end, you are free to switch around between the parts and chapters and find you own path through the book.in which you read. Dont worry about missing something important, you can always go back and re-read. With 176 pages and 62,000 words, this book will take up about three to five hours of your time, for which I would like to thank you in advance. For your optimal attention and enjoyment, take these five tips into account and notice how they influence your ability to focus:

While reading, try to not react to any distractions.

Take a small break from reading every fifteen to twenty minutes.

After each chapter, let your mind wander over what you have just read.

Read with a pen or marker in hand and highlight what stands out for you.

Tell someone about what you have read to enhance your understanding.

This book offers insight into how your brain works, how focused attention influences the quality of your life, and how making and breaking habits and consciously changing your mindset. The last chapter provides 50 tips, tricks, and hacks to work on these principles, divided into 7 categories:

Attention management and productivity.

Ability to learn and study at a rapid rate.

Meditation and mindfulness practice.

Learning about and dealing with stress.

Re-wilding yourself and unlocking natural abilities.

Movement and physical fitness.

Optimizing your nutrition and diet.

Before you start reading, ask yourself which goals you want to achieve, which assets you want to develop, which habits you want to make or break, and especially what you are hoping to get out of this book. This will put you in the mindset of finding the application to your personal situation. If you have any questions, if you learn anything new, if the book inspires you in any way, dont hesitate to get in touch with me and share your experience. Find me on:

Facebook: MindLift Learning

Twitter:

Instagram: KaspersFocus

Snapchat: KaspersFocus

If you want to dive in headfirst and start applying the principles right away, Ive provided some very valuable free resources that will help you to start integrating what youve learned. Find them at: www.MindLiftLearning.com/resources. This page also includes references to concepts described in the book. A detailed reference list can also be found in the back pages.

Now, lets go!

Introduction

THE QUEST

The story of who I am, how I turned my struggles into my strengths, and how I accidentally became a teacher and discovered the true value of attention.

[7 pages | 3.800 words | 12 minutes of reading time]

This book is a practical guide to optimize your focus in a world that is full of distractions and negative input. It focuses on simple and practical ways to instantly take your personal growth into your own hands through the practice of mental fitness. The reason I know about these things is because I have needed to learn them, and I can say that in some cases my life has depended on them. In a sense, this book could be seen a description of how I beat depression, burn out, addiction, attention disorders, and weight problems and transformed myself into a successful, physically fit, focused, and, above all, much happier version of myself.