The First Rule of Mastery - by Michael Gervais (Hardcover)

About the Book

"With the proliferation of social media, the intense pressure to succeed, and our overreliance on external rewards, metrics, and validation, FOPO is running rampant. Our concern with what other people think about us has become an irrational, unproductive, and unhealthy obsession in the modern world. And its negative effects reach into all aspects of our lives. In The First Rule of Mastery, Michael Gervais shows us the key to leading a high-performance life is to redirect our attention from the world outside us to the world inside us. As one of the world's leading experts on the relationship between the mind and human performance, Gervais takes an in-depth look at the noxious effects of FOPO while laying out the mental skills and practices we need to achieve personal excellence-the same skills he's taught to the top performers in the world including sports MVPs and Fortune 100 leaders and teams. Filled with fascinating stories from the worlds of sports and business, leading-edge science, and insights from the popular Finding Mastery podcast, The First Rule of Mastery is a much-needed wake-up call that when we give more value to other people's opinions than our own, we live life on their terms, not ours"--

Book Synopsis

A USA Today Bestseller

High-performance psychologist Michael Gervais presents a groundbreaking guide for overcoming what may be the single greatest constrictor of human potential: our fear of people's opinions (FOPO).

FOPO shows up almost everywhere in our lives-and the consequences are great. When we let FOPO take control, we play it safe and small because we're afraid of what will happen on the other side of critique. When challenged, we surrender our viewpoint. We trade in authenticity for approval. We please rather than provoke. We chase the dreams of others rather than our own.

But it doesn't have to be this way.

In The First Rule of Mastery, Michael Gervais shows us that the key to leading a high-performance life is to redirect our attention from the world outside us to the world inside us. He reveals the mental skills and practices we need to overcome FOPO--the same skills he's taught to the top performers in the world, including sports MVPs, world-renowned artists and musicians, and Fortune 100 leaders and teams.

Filled with fascinating stories from the worlds of sports and business, leading-edge science, and insights from the frontier of human performance, The First Rule of Mastery is a much-needed wake-up call that when we give more value to other people's opinions than we do our own, we live life on their terms, not ours.

Review Quotes

Named one of the Top 23 Productivity Books of 2023 by The Next Big Idea Club

"...Gervais's ability to intertwine theory with actionable strategies make this a worthy addition to collections. Will appeal to a broad, general readership." - Library Journal

Advance Praise for The First Rule of Mastery:

"I love Mike Gervais--his insights, his straight talk, and his pitch-perfect advice! Mike draws on the latest research and his own practices and principles to explain why we care so much about what other people think of us and what to do about it." -- Angela Duckworth, bestselling author, Grit; cofounder, The Character Lab

"Whether our pursuit of being our best is in business, in parenting, or in sports, Michael Gervais's The First Rule of Mastery helps us place attention on those elements within our control rather than wasting focus and energy on those that are not." -- Satya Nadella, CEO, Microsoft

"With each page, Michael Gervais gently guides us toward a liberating realization: our worth is not defined by the judgments and opinions of others, but by our own self-awareness, passion, and commitment to our craft." -- Misty Copeland, principal dancer, American Ballet Theatre

"The First Rule of Mastery eloquently and convincingly shares modern insights and timeless wisdom to free us from the fear of other people's opinions (FOPO)." -- Brady Brewer, Executive Vice President, Starbucks Corporation

"This book is an indispensable road map to self-mastery for us all." -- Kerri Walsh Jennings, five-time Olympian and four-time medalist

"I so wish I had read this book earlier in my life. This is absolutely a game changer for anyone looking to become their very best self. . . ." -- Julie Foudy, two-time FIFA Women's World Cup champion; two-time Olympic gold medalist

"An essential read for leaders seeking to inspire a culture of learning over external validation." -- Kathleen Hogan, Chief Human Resources Officer, Microsoft

"This book is a master class on looking inward to determine our own value." -- Apolo Ohno, eight-time Olympic medalist

About the Author

Michael Gervais, PhD, is one of the world's top high-performance psychologists. His clients include world record holders, Olympians, internationally acclaimed artists and musicians, MVPs from every major sport, and Fortune 100 CEOs. He is also the founder of Finding Mastery, a high-performance psychology consulting agency, the host of the Finding Mastery podcast, and the cocreator of the Performance Science Institute at the University of Southern California.

Kevin Lake is the Chief Creative Officer at Finding Mastery. He has collaborated with some of the world's leading performers. He produced Gleason, a feature documentary film that was short-listed for an Academy Award. He created and produced Playing It Forward in partnership with Robert Downey Jr. and Susan Downey. For seven years, he led the film division of Mel Gibson's Icon Productions.

Connect with Michael Gervais on Twitter and Instagram.