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  • The Art of Learning

  • An Inner Journey to Optimal Performance
  • Written by: Josh Waitzkin
  • Narrated by: Josh Waitzkin
  • Length: 7 hrs and 55 mins
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars (215 ratings)

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The Art of Learning

Written by: Josh Waitzkin
Narrated by: Josh Waitzkin
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Publisher's Summary

Josh Waitzkin knows what it means to be at the top of his game. A public figure since winning his first National Chess Championship at the age of nine, Waitzkin was catapulted into a media whirlwind as a teenager when his father's book Searching for Bobby Fischer was made into a major motion picture. After dominating the scholastic chess world for ten years, Waitzkin expanded his horizons, taking on the martial art Tai Chi Chuan and ultimately earning the title of World Champion. How was he able to reach the pinnacle of two disciplines that on the surface seem so different? "I've come to realize that what I am best at is not Tai Chi, and it is not chess," he says. "What I am best at is the art of learning."

The Art of Learning takes listeners through Waitzkin's unique journey to excellence. He explains in clear detail how a well-thought-out, principled approach to learning is what separates success from failure. Waitzkin believes that achievement, even at the championship level, is a function of a lifestyle that fuels a creative, resilient growth process. Rather than focusing on climactic wins, Waitzkin reveals the inner workings of his everyday method, from systematically triggering intuitive breakthroughs, to honing techniques into states of remarkable potency, to mastering the art of performance psychology.

In stories ranging from his early years taking on chess hustlers as a seven year old in New York City's Washington Square Park, to dealing with the pressures of having a film made about his life, to International Chess Championships in India, Hungary, and Brazil, to gripping battles against powerhouse fighters in Taiwan in the Push Hands World Championships, The Art of Learning encapsulates an extraordinary competitor's life lessons in a pause-resisting narrative.

©2007 Josh Waitzkin LLC (P)2014 Tim Ferriss
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What listeners say about The Art of Learning

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pay attention!

Josh is somewhat of a unicorn. I've listened to this book 3 times now and I still feel like I'm rediscovering it for the first time. make sure not to speed through this absolute gem

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    4 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars

Really an autobiography

Really, this is an autobiography of the author's own learning process, generalized. Just the same, I think it makes compelling reading for those who like to understand their own learning process.

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Loved Every Minute of This Audiobook

This was recommended by my personal trainer and glad that I listened to this audiobook. It's a really good item to listen to, and helped me during a challenging time in my life. Once you start listening to it, you'll listen to the very end. I finished it in about 4 days.

The podcast at the end of the book is awesome as well.

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    5 out of 5 stars
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Engaging and insightful

Few people cross the threshold of excellence in more than one field. Fewer still do so in fields both cerebral and physical. Josh shares how he accomplishes this through passion, dedication and training, and the mental acuity to:
1. Focus on what really matters.
2. Fight the mental demons that hold you back.

Wonderful to hear his words in his voice.

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Inspiration.

Just a well written and deeply thoughtful book. If something here does not inspire you, you must not be breathing.

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Loved it from the beginning to the end

Awesome stories. A lot of wisdom for somebody who wants to decode high performance learning process.

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    4 out of 5 stars

The guy realllyyy loves his life, but great tips

You learn a lot on what it takes to really take it to the next level, if you resist to the feeling that the author is constantly trying to remind you he "did something".

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liked

loved hearing the author speak about his parallels, and connecting learning styles to his experience

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Importance of being present

This book really draws the listener into the thought process of an incredible athlete and artist.

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Amazing

Really enjoy this book and all the incremental details on how to have more control over your learning experiences and of course recognizing what can be used as learning experiences

Congratulations on all your success. Would like to check out your bjj gym one day

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