Clearer, Closer, Better: How Successful People See the World
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- Create Date：2021-03-25 11:33:35
- Update Date：2025-09-06
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- Author：Emily Balcetis
- ISBN：1524796484
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Summary
Successful people literally see the world differently。 Now an award-winning scientist explains how anyone can leverage this "perception gap" to their advantage。
"Get ready for this book to change how you see everything you see。--Adam Grant， New York Times bestselling author of Originals and Give and Take
When it comes to setting and meeting goals， we may see--quite literally--our plans， our progress， and our potential in the wrong ways。 We perceive ourselves as being closer to or further from the end than we may actually be depending on our frame of reference。 We handicap ourselves by looking too often at the big picture and at other times too long at the fine detail。 But as award-winning social psychologist Emily Balcetis explains， there is great power in these misperceptions。 We can learn to leverage perceptual illusions if we know when and how to use them to our advantage。
Drawing on her own rigorous research and cutting-edge discoveries in vision science， cognitive research， and motivational psychology， Balcetis offers unique accounts of the perceptual habits， routines， and practices that successful people use to set and meet their ambitions。 Through case studies of entrepreneurs， athletes， artists， and celebrities--as well as her own colorful experience of trying to set and reach a goal--she brings to life four powerful yet largely untapped visual tactics that can be applied according to the situation。
Narrow your focus: Closing the aperture of your attention helps you exercise effectively， save money， and find more time in your day。
Widen the bracket: Seeing the forest instead of the trees reduces temptations and helps you recognize when a change of course is in order。
Materialize your plan and your progress: Creating checklists and objective assessments inspires better planning and adjusts your gauge of what's really left to be done。
Control your frame of reference: Knowing where to direct attention improves your ability to read others' emotions， negotiate better deals， foster stronger relationships， and overcome a fear of public speaking。
A mind-blowing and original tour of perception， Clearer， Closer， Better will help you see the possibilities in what you can't see now。 Inspiring， motivating， and always entertaining， it demonstrates that if we take advantage of our visual experiences， they can lead us to live happier， healthier， and more productive lives every day。
"Get ready for this book to change how you see everything you see。--Adam Grant， New York Times bestselling author of Originals and Give and Take
When it comes to setting and meeting goals， we may see--quite literally--our plans， our progress， and our potential in the wrong ways。 We perceive ourselves as being closer to or further from the end than we may actually be depending on our frame of reference。 We handicap ourselves by looking too often at the big picture and at other times too long at the fine detail。 But as award-winning social psychologist Emily Balcetis explains， there is great power in these misperceptions。 We can learn to leverage perceptual illusions if we know when and how to use them to our advantage。
Drawing on her own rigorous research and cutting-edge discoveries in vision science， cognitive research， and motivational psychology， Balcetis offers unique accounts of the perceptual habits， routines， and practices that successful people use to set and meet their ambitions。 Through case studies of entrepreneurs， athletes， artists， and celebrities--as well as her own colorful experience of trying to set and reach a goal--she brings to life four powerful yet largely untapped visual tactics that can be applied according to the situation。
Narrow your focus: Closing the aperture of your attention helps you exercise effectively， save money， and find more time in your day。
Widen the bracket: Seeing the forest instead of the trees reduces temptations and helps you recognize when a change of course is in order。
Materialize your plan and your progress: Creating checklists and objective assessments inspires better planning and adjusts your gauge of what's really left to be done。
Control your frame of reference: Knowing where to direct attention improves your ability to read others' emotions， negotiate better deals， foster stronger relationships， and overcome a fear of public speaking。
A mind-blowing and original tour of perception， Clearer， Closer， Better will help you see the possibilities in what you can't see now。 Inspiring， motivating， and always entertaining， it demonstrates that if we take advantage of our visual experiences， they can lead us to live happier， healthier， and more productive lives every day。
Reviews
kim
，
Anecdotes about author learning to play the drums were really dry and boring。 I skim-read these， but the key messages were nice reminders of obvious points like visualise your goals but make a plan， see the bigger picture， but also don't do too much at once。 Anecdotes about author learning to play the drums were really dry and boring。 I skim-read these， but the key messages were nice reminders of obvious points like visualise your goals but make a plan， see the bigger picture， but also don't do too much at once。 。。。more
Louise
，
Emily Balcetis is an associate professor of psychology at New York University。 Her book draws on research into vision science， cognitive research and motivational psychology and the habits， routines and practices of successful people including athletes， artists and entrepreneurs。 Using the framework of learning a new skill Balcetis's explains the power of four visual tactics to use when setting and trying to reach a goal。It's a personal story of her challenge to learn to play the drums， set alon Emily Balcetis is an associate professor of psychology at New York University。 Her book draws on research into vision science， cognitive research and motivational psychology and the habits， routines and practices of successful people including athletes， artists and entrepreneurs。 Using the framework of learning a new skill Balcetis's explains the power of four visual tactics to use when setting and trying to reach a goal。It's a personal story of her challenge to learn to play the drums， set alongside daily life with her young son and husband who are very much part of the text which is littered nicely with multiple stories of individuals practices to gain success， fascinating stories of science and psychology with a connecting thread of vision。 We are going to learn how to "leverage perceptual illusions。。。and how to use them to our advantage。""We only really experience seeing once our brains translate those sensations into something meaningful。"The wonder of vision is illustrated with amazing facts and examples of neuroplasticity such as the reading of Braille letters by the fingers being registered in the area of their brain responsible for seeing and that on a dark night we can see a candle with the naked eye 30 miles away， the International Space Station 250 miles up and Saturn at over a billion。 It is only in thinking about this that we realise it is a wonder we take for granted。 And it is by seeing the world differently that this book proposes we can see anew way forward。"Narrow your focus。。。when a goal looks closer rather than impossibly far away， our mindset inspires us to double down on the pursuit of challenge。"The fatal flaw of goal pursuit is setting one's sights too high and taking on too much right at the start。 To be successful goals need to be set at just the right level。 Narrowing your focus is a technique used by marathon runners， breaking down the distance into manageable parts and setting sub-goals that are challenging but possible to achieve within the whole distance。 They also do not pay much regard to the space around them but more importantly they have a different perspective on what constitutes a challenge。"Materialise your plan and your progress。"Creating checklists and objective assessments inspires better planning and adjusts our measurement of what is really left to be done。 By marking a destination and removing any ambiguity from aspirations a concrete plan can be put in action。 Often missed at this stage is considering obstacles and planning to circumvent them。 Companies such as Proctor & Gamble anticipate failure， removing the shame of mistakes and even celebrating it with their Heroic Failure Award。 This means that contingency plans can be made in advance of the failure。By becoming your own accountant you can collect data on your progress， but more importantly， reflect back。 Balcetis tells us about an ultramarathon runner who does this visually rather than relying on memory， reflecting on a visual log reviewing where he started and where he is currently。 By tracking progress and reviewing how far we've come we can be accountable to our own aspirations。"Control your frame of reference。"Knowing exactly where to direct attention improves the ability to read others' emotions， negotiate better deals， foster stronger relationships and overcome fears。 The power of a visual frame for our goals means we can highlight some information and cut out the rest。 Balcetis covers framing others to correctly read their emotions， even if this means they aren't happy with us， framing encouraging faces to make us feel good and framing our world to highlight some of our best contributions to find motivation in accentuating the positives and ultimately see the world as we'd like it to be。"Widen the bracket。"Stepping back and looking at the change in your progress over time will be override the present-bias with a wider viewpoint。 Reflecting over one month rather than one day will show progress， identify patterns and give motivation to carry on to the goal， maybe even redoubling intentions and efforts。There is lots more to this book than these four tools I have highlighted such as using the tools to improve our mental health， the illusion of multitasking and how to free up brain space and loads of interesting studies to illustrate the progress of setting and meeting goals in an inspiring， motivating and entertaining way。 。。。more
Vikrama Dhiman
，
This is a bit of yo yo book。 It goes into pedantic details of the four main strategies intended to reshape the way we see the world。 A narrow focus。 Materializing。 Framing。 A wide bracketIt's not what you expect ;-） I was looking for something else， got disappointed in between and then just went with the authors journey （composing music is not easy to relate to）。 In the end， I took copious notes which I'll share separately。 Recommended。 This is a bit of yo yo book。 It goes into pedantic details of the four main strategies intended to reshape the way we see the world。 A narrow focus。 Materializing。 Framing。 A wide bracketIt's not what you expect ;-） I was looking for something else， got disappointed in between and then just went with the authors journey （composing music is not easy to relate to）。 In the end， I took copious notes which I'll share separately。 Recommended。 。。。more
Maya
，
This was a slog fest 。 Some anecdotes were nice ， but you have to really shift through the author’s quest for playing drums and being a mom all the work that comes with it 。 Could have been a crisp 50 page article with out the personal stuff 。 If we wanted to read about learning to play drums or the challenges of juggling your professional and personal with a toddler， we would have picked an apt category。 this book was picked coz I heard of in an NPR podcast ， didn’t expect it to be so blog like
Nabil
，
A great way to consider how you should see yourself to achieve success。 The author was able to follow up with evidence to strengthen her argument。 An easy read， something you can finish in a day。—In the end， keeping ourself aware and accountable with each action helps us understand where we are going in life。 Planning helps us visualize our path， but in the ends we need to learn how to adapt to the changing tides。 You won’t know until you are there。
Jacob
，
One line I really needed to hear in this book made it worth the read。
Dhiraj Bodkhe
，
Author says sometimes you need to narrow your focus to reach your goal while sometimes you need to broaden it。 Don't hold others instead keep yourself accountable for your efforts， she asks us to learn to read emotions/expressions of others。 But how？ Not specified。 Author says sometimes you need to narrow your focus to reach your goal while sometimes you need to broaden it。 Don't hold others instead keep yourself accountable for your efforts， she asks us to learn to read emotions/expressions of others。 But how？ Not specified。 。。。more
Zhivko Kabaivanov
，
Clearer， Closer， Better （2020） teaches us to view the world through the lens of high achievers。 Drawing on vision science， motivational psychology， and case studies from all kinds of successful people， author Emily Balcetis shows us how to reframe our perceptions in order to overcome challenges and meet our goals。
QUINNS
，
The author suggests that our visual perceptions are usually limited and should therefore try seeing it through successful people’s lenses。 That is to know when to narrow or broaden the focus。 Besides that， learn to materialise plans and progress， however challenging it might be。 Additionally， control the frame of reference assist us in seeing the world in a way that make goals more achievable。 To achieve goals in our lives， take time to recall your shortcomings， not just your successes。 As it re The author suggests that our visual perceptions are usually limited and should therefore try seeing it through successful people’s lenses。 That is to know when to narrow or broaden the focus。 Besides that， learn to materialise plans and progress， however challenging it might be。 Additionally， control the frame of reference assist us in seeing the world in a way that make goals more achievable。 To achieve goals in our lives， take time to recall your shortcomings， not just your successes。 As it remind us to improve and do better in the future， those choices also provide you a clearer view of what has to be done to achieve the ultimate goal。 。。。more
Karen Chung
，
I decided to read this book after hearing an interview with the author on NPR's Hidden Brain。 I shared with my students the story of a paratrooper who jumped from 25，000 feet into a net below。。。without a parachute。 This book contains some very good insights， especially the one about needing to focus narrowly and sharply on the next step of something you want to achieve， while also needing to step back and view the project and your situation as a whole to get the bigger picture。I personally， howe I decided to read this book after hearing an interview with the author on NPR's Hidden Brain。 I shared with my students the story of a paratrooper who jumped from 25，000 feet into a net below。。。without a parachute。 This book contains some very good insights， especially the one about needing to focus narrowly and sharply on the next step of something you want to achieve， while also needing to step back and view the project and your situation as a whole to get the bigger picture。I personally， however， found the book a bit too wordy and chatty， with a bit too much about the author's own life and experience， smelly diaper pails and all， and the intended humor was sometimes a bit weak and out of place。 Still， it was a quick read and contains some useful knowledge and hints。 。。。more
Asheesh Saksena
，
Truly avoidableFirstly， this should have been a two page article rather than this voluminous tome。 Secondly， the “four strategies” suggested are neither particularly insightful nor MECE。 This is not good work。 The author reads to be more accomplished than the output。
Elizabeth Knight
，
A lot of good information about perspectives but I was on the struggle bus trying to finish it。
Bridget Potter
，
Read it！ You will benefit from its content。 The author is funny and engaging。
Beth Robinson-Kinney
，
If you are looking for a few worthwhile nuggets to boost your approach to building habits， this might be worthwhile for you。 I found the endless recitation of studies that had only tenuous application to other concepts tiresome， but I enjoyed some of the profiles of successful folks and how they see the world。
Scott Wozniak
，
This book is a rehash of other books， literally citing the other books， with advice on how to set goals， form habits and have a positive mindset。 It covers things like making a "vision board" and "narrow focusing" on your goal （not trying to do too much）， etc。It's not wrong and there are several useful tips in this book， but there are better versions of each section of content in other books。FAIR WARNING: If I had read this book before reading any of the others， I might have given it 4 stars。 Bu This book is a rehash of other books， literally citing the other books， with advice on how to set goals， form habits and have a positive mindset。 It covers things like making a "vision board" and "narrow focusing" on your goal （not trying to do too much）， etc。It's not wrong and there are several useful tips in this book， but there are better versions of each section of content in other books。FAIR WARNING: If I had read this book before reading any of the others， I might have given it 4 stars。 But after reading all the others， I just couldn't get excited about this one。 。。。more
Mark
，
Hidden Brain podcast: You 2。0: The Mind's Eye 10 Aug 2020: listened to 01 September 2020 Hidden Brain podcast: You 2。0: The Mind's Eye 10 Aug 2020: listened to 01 September 2020 。。。more
Ida Hatoum
，
I do not care about this person learning drums。 Could have been a cute story demonstrating some points， but it’s literally like half the book。 Maybe this would have been better for me if I had read the written book so I could skip those parts more easily。 The audiobook is read by the author who has sort of a cutesy voice not in a good way。 Couldn’t finish， will try to find a synopsis because it sounded interesting。
Ady
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Read for LeaderBooks in 2020。
Marc
，
I was asked to review this book so I quickly skimmed through it。 It is a nice collection of stories around the topic of success and how people have achieved it by narrowing the focus of attention， materializing goals， steps and efforts。 She then introduces framing as a tool to improve how to read others emotions， negotiate better and improve the relationships we have with others。 Interesting the concept of wide bracketing introduced toward the end of the book。 While the concepts are interesting， I was asked to review this book so I quickly skimmed through it。 It is a nice collection of stories around the topic of success and how people have achieved it by narrowing the focus of attention， materializing goals， steps and efforts。 She then introduces framing as a tool to improve how to read others emotions， negotiate better and improve the relationships we have with others。 Interesting the concept of wide bracketing introduced toward the end of the book。 While the concepts are interesting， and some of the stories are compelling， the book could have been written better。 It is sometimes hard to follow， a bit confused and doesn’t summarize the concepts， nor provides actionable advices at the end of the chapters。 。。。more
Yohannes
，
the book was written in a funny way。 I appreciated the author walking us through her journey of learning to be a drummer。 Even though it was humors， I had a bit of a hard time relating to some of the observations she had during her research。
Jiri
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Kniha se čte jako poznámky z osobního diáře。 Obsahuje poznámky z přečtených i vlastních výzkumných studií autorky， o péči o miminko， ke kterým přidala osobní cíl - naučit se zahrát jednu písničku na bicí。 Předkládá a v závěru shrnuje čtyři strategie k úspěšnému dokončení vytýčených cílů a navigování životem bez kognitivního zkreslení， z pohledu psychologa a výzkumníka - narrow focus - materializing - framing - wide bracket。 Právě tento pohled na jednotlivé životní postoje， strategie a taktiky je Kniha se čte jako poznámky z osobního diáře。 Obsahuje poznámky z přečtených i vlastních výzkumných studií autorky， o péči o miminko， ke kterým přidala osobní cíl - naučit se zahrát jednu písničku na bicí。 Předkládá a v závěru shrnuje čtyři strategie k úspěšnému dokončení vytýčených cílů a navigování životem bez kognitivního zkreslení， z pohledu psychologa a výzkumníka - narrow focus - materializing - framing - wide bracket。 Právě tento pohled na jednotlivé životní postoje， strategie a taktiky je užitečný pro vnitřní retrospektivu， hledání nových - jak můžeme doufat - i zdravých a poctivých cest k vlastní reinvenci， jak autorka uvádí: “Knowing there are many rather than few paths that lead to a desired end offers a sense of possibility。 It propels us off the starting block， but it also lessens the blow if and when the time comes for redirection and reinvention。” Kniha obsahuje řadu příběhů pro dokreslení a dobře se čte。 The book reads as notes from a personal diary。 It contains notes from the author's own research studies and readings， care of a newborn， to which she added， one personal goal - a challenge to learn to play one song on drums。 It presents and concludes with four strategies to successfully complete the set goals and design life without cognitive distortion， from the perspective of a psychologist and researcher - narrow focus - materializing - framing - wide bracket。 It is this review of individual life attitudes， strategies and tactics that is useful for internal retrospective， and the application of new ones - we can only hope - that are healthy and honest paths to self-reinvention， as the author states: “Knowing there are many rather than few paths that lead to a desired end offers a sense of possibility。 It propels us off the starting block， but it also lessens the blow if and when the time comes for redirection and reinvention。” The book contains a number of illustrative stories and is easy to read。 。。。more
Michael Knolla
，
Calling dibs on “how successful people taste different” （still going back and forth on whether this is about their ability to appreciate fine wine or a darkly satirical variation on the ever popular eat the rich genre。。。）。 I have to think it will be more successful than “how successful people smell different”， which seems to be the other sense left to those looking for a quick and easy framework for their “success book”。 Joking aside after reading a couple books on how to hear/listen better I wa Calling dibs on “how successful people taste different” （still going back and forth on whether this is about their ability to appreciate fine wine or a darkly satirical variation on the ever popular eat the rich genre。。。）。 I have to think it will be more successful than “how successful people smell different”， which seems to be the other sense left to those looking for a quick and easy framework for their “success book”。 Joking aside after reading a couple books on how to hear/listen better I was intrigued by the framework of improving visualization。 The strength of the book is when the author focuses on their own work， which is in that area but the majority of the book is the usual suspects of professional or personal self-improvement repackaged with varying degrees of success， into a visual framework。 。。。more
Todd Buegler
，
I'm a sucker for a good story。 Any book that can draw me in with a story。。。especially with a bit of humor。。。I'm a fan of。In this case， there are good stories， but there is also depth behind them。 The stories serve a purpose， make the reading feel quick and meaningful， and help point me to the truths behind the stories。Understanding。。。learning。。。growing。。。leading is largely a matter of perspective。 And how we look at things is at least as important as what we actually see。 The skill set I want to I'm a sucker for a good story。 Any book that can draw me in with a story。。。especially with a bit of humor。。。I'm a fan of。In this case， there are good stories， but there is also depth behind them。 The stories serve a purpose， make the reading feel quick and meaningful， and help point me to the truths behind the stories。Understanding。。。learning。。。growing。。。leading is largely a matter of perspective。 And how we look at things is at least as important as what we actually see。 The skill set I want to desire now is to be able to change my perspective， to see things from a different way， so that I can lead in the best way possible。 。。。more
Teresa
，
An interesting book mixed with social Phycology and neuroscience， telling people that how visual takes important part of people's lives。 There are a lot of interesting stories， survey results， and personal experience。 But maybe they are not really in my field， plus I don't think I learned much new things from this book， I am giving it 3 stars。 An interesting book mixed with social Phycology and neuroscience， telling people that how visual takes important part of people's lives。 There are a lot of interesting stories， survey results， and personal experience。 But maybe they are not really in my field， plus I don't think I learned much new things from this book， I am giving it 3 stars。 。。。more
PottWab Regional Library
，
A
Lingarasu Kittusamy
，
I remember I read somewhere about having short term and long term goals during my academic years。 But， this book gave us a brief insight on how to approach such goals using four strategies 'a narrow focus'， 'materializing'， 'framing'， 'a wide bracket'。 Our Author Emily Balcetis shared her personal and professional experiences through this book and made it crisp to read。 I remember I read somewhere about having short term and long term goals during my academic years。 But， this book gave us a brief insight on how to approach such goals using four strategies 'a narrow focus'， 'materializing'， 'framing'， 'a wide bracket'。 Our Author Emily Balcetis shared her personal and professional experiences through this book and made it crisp to read。 。。。more
Aditya Varma
，
Too complex presentation style。 Entire concept would have been condensed to 4 pages。 It more of personal journal regarding author journey in learning drums。
Briana
，
Initial Thoughts:Literally 40% of this book is just stories about the author's own quest to learn to play a single song well on the drums。The parts of the book that people actually want to know--how to act and reframe their perspectives to get things done and be successful--could have worked better as an essay than a book。 Initial Thoughts:Literally 40% of this book is just stories about the author's own quest to learn to play a single song well on the drums。The parts of the book that people actually want to know--how to act and reframe their perspectives to get things done and be successful--could have worked better as an essay than a book。 。。。more
C
，
I received this entertaining self help book as Goodreads giveaway。 The author uses her personal backstory effectively throughout to illustrate four important life concepts used by successful people。
Simon Hohenadl
，