The Art of Impossible - by Steven Kotler (Paperback)

Book Synopsis

New York Times Bestseller

Bestselling author and peak performance expert Steven Kotler decodes the secrets of those elite performers--athletes, artists, scientists, CEOs and more--who have changed our definition of the possible, teaching us how we too can stretch far beyond our capabilities, making impossible dreams much more attainable for all of us.

What does it take to accomplish the impossible? What does it take to shatter our limitations, exceed our expectations, and turn our biggest dreams into our most recent achievements?

We are capable of so much more than we know--that's the message at the core of The Art of Impossible. Building upon cutting-edge neuroscience and over twenty years of research, bestselling author, peak performance expert and Executive Director of the Flow Research Collective, Steven Kotler lays out a neuroscience-backed blueprint for extreme performance improvement. If you want to aim high, this is the playbook to make it happen!

Inspirational and aspirational, pragmatic and accessible, The Art of Impossible is a life-changing experience disguised as a how-to manual for high achievement that anyone can use to shoot for the stars . . . space-suit, not included.

The Art of Impossible is a practical playbook that gives you the tools to accomplish your own lowercase "i" impossibles, teaching you how to:

• Master Motivation and Grit: Go beyond sheer willpower by stacking intrinsic drivers like passion and purpose to build the habit of ferocity needed to overcome any obstacle.
• Accelerate Your Learning: Discover the five essential steps for mastering new skills and information, allowing you to stay ahead of the curve and continuously improve.
• Unlock Creativity on Demand: Learn to harness the three key brain networks that drive innovation, turning novel ideas into world-changing solutions.
• Harness the Flow State: Tap into the neurobiological secret of peak performance to amplify focus, productivity, and creativity, cutting the time it takes to achieve mastery in half.

Review Quotes

"Thoroughly grounded in science, writing of the biological systems that drive fear, anger, grief, lust, and other emotions, all of which can be turned to advantage. . . . [Kotler] offers . . . an entertaining, inspiring approach to life-hacking that begs to be implemented by the willing reader." - Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

"The Art of Impossible is consistently fascinating. There aren't many writers I would follow on an intellectual journey as ambitious as this to examine peak performance; fortunately, Steven Kotler is one of them." - David Epstein, New York Times bestselling author of Range and The Sports Gene

"This book is a tour de force of high performance. It's an essential resource for those looking to align their curiosity, passion, and purpose to have not just a little more flow and creativity in their lives but to have a lot more flow and creativity. Want to learn how to take your innovation to seemingly impossible heights? Steven Kotler will teach you how." - Scott Barry Kaufman, author of Transcend: The New Science of Self-Actualization

"This book is quite literally impossible. I've been tracking Steven's work for ten years now, and it's impossible to overstate how important it is. It's impossible that he cracked the code on breakthrough success, yet he has. It's impossible to have turned extreme innovation from an art to a science, yet he has. It's impossible that he put it all together in a book that's impossible to put down, yet he has. Read it and go accomplish the impossible yourself." - Salim Ismail, chairman of ExO Works, author of Exponential Organizations

"The Art of Impossible is a must-read! Steven Kotler is one of a handful of people on the planet with a deep understanding of the frontiers of human performance. His ability to bring applied neuroscience and psychology to life through storytelling is world-class. This book is a treasure." - Dr. Michael Gervais, high-performance psychologist

"In The Art of Impossible, Steven Kotler has managed to articulate what many peak performers intuitively know but can't explain: that there's a formula for impossible. Kotler demystifies the mythic, breaking down that formula and giving readers exactly the tools they need to accomplish their dreams, no matter how big." - Laird Hamilton, waterman, big-wave surfer