I enjoy self improvement books and learning about the power of the mind. This book also speaks to the need for increasing resilience.

Harness the Power of the Invincible Mind: Spatial Strategy to Success and Happiness by Alex Neumann

203 Pages
Publisher: Pearson Press
Release Date: September 30, 2020

Nonfiction, Health, Mind, Body, Historical, Empowerment, Self-Help, Self-Improvement, Inspirational

The book is divided into the following sections.

One: Ride Your Adversity (Sir Isaac Newton, Albert Einstein, Winston Churchill, Michael Jordan, Stan Smith, Richard Bach, Beethoven)
Two: Disentangle
Three: Stop Whining, Start Thriving (Zhou Qunfei, JK Rowling)
Four: Intent, Timeframe, Effort
Five: Risk Whisper (Susan Boyle)
Six: Passionate Perseverance (Abraham Lincoln, Elizabeth Arden, Helen Keller, Bethany Hamilton, Georgia O’Keeffe, Emily Dickinson)
Seven: Obstacles Into Opportunities (Kevin Hart, Colonel Harland Sanders, Jay-Z)
Eight: Strip Naked (Thomas Edison, Oprah Winfrey, Jeff Bezos, Steve Jobs, Anna Wintour, Elvis Presley, Sidney Poitier, Moses)
Nine: Debug Your Script (Madam C. J. Walker
Ten: Happiness

The stories about the people in this book are inspiring. They show that even if you are considered a failure, you are not. The author wrote about people living in poverty that rose to great heights.

There are stories of Buddha and lessons about priorities in life. Should money have more value than time? The statements about uniforms in schools and creating sameness reminds me of Don Luis Miguel writing about the domestication of our children. The story “Inside Out” relating a discussion between a man who believed his wife was losing her hearing is brilliantly written. If you like reading stories of underdogs that find success, you will enjoy reading this book.

Harness the Power of the Invincible Mind was an interesting read for me. When it started out, it definitely was not what I expected. I had expected a book that focused more on how the brain works, psychology, how to use the power of the mind to better my life, etc. What I got instead was a book full of anecdotes, stories, and proverbs. I was initially so disappointed that I put it aside and did not plan to finish it.
However, I decided to pick it back up again and see if I could glean more from it if I went in with a different mindset. Once I accepted the book for what it was, I did enjoy it. It was an easy read, definitely didn't include and super complicated or scientific details. It included practical information and tips. While I would've appreciated a little more info on how to truly apply these concepts and work them into my daily life, I did still feel that the book provided helpful info.
One of the passages that struck me the most was about letting go of the past and not letting it control my life or my story. I also really liked the passage about yesterday and tomorrow only existing in your mind. "Tomorrow is nothing but a package of expectations that you have attached to the next sunrise." It's so true!
If you take the advice in this book and apply it to your life, I really do believe you'll witness a positive change and impact on your life. I'm glad that I accepted this book for what it was and decided to pick it up again.
Thank you to NetGalley and Pearson Press for the e-arc in exchange for my honest review.

Looking for a different way to look at your life and how to thrive? This is definitely the book for you. This book gives you simple, step-by-step instructions on how to change your life and live a more fulfilled one.

Very interesting book to read and the insights will make you think. This is definitely a book that you should read more than once to fully grasp the concepts.

I liked the author's writing style and the fact it was a sharing of stories, not just telling of theories. It was one of the easiest to read, self help books I've come across. I would definitely read more by this author.

This was an interesting read; I learned such new and interesting things about the mind. Look into it and you won't be disappointed.

Normally I only ask to get books that are fiction or biographies, as those are my jam. Psychology or self-help are decidedly not my jam, usually. But the title of this one piqued my interest, as I know the mind can accomplish amazing things. This book did not disappoint. Alex Neuman has put together a book that breaks down the steps you need to take the improve your life into little blocks that are more than manageable. I think the overwhelming thing about changing your life is how enormous and complicated it is. You just don't even know where to start. This gives you a starting point and takes you down the long path to renewal. You can focus on one thing or several, such as confidence and purpose in life, which are the two that I mainly need to focus on myself. It's a really short read and inexpensive if you buy it on Kindle, so well worth the investment.

This book is not at all what I’d expected. And that’s not necessarily a bad thing. But I have to say, it took me a beat to understand the overarching message Alex Neumann is conveying. Though into the second chapter, I grasped the rhythm and his goal. This book is his “bold endeavor” to impart to the reader what he’s learned about the power of changing one’s perspective and conditioning the mind to become more optimistic, stronger and aligned with one’s path of success and happiness.

In this collection of anecdotal stories and accompanying lessons, Neumann illustrates ten bold challenges to harness the power of the mind. Read More....https://booksuplift.com/harness-the-power-of-the-invincible-mind-spatial-strategy-to-success-and-happiness/

This was a very well written self help book. I enjoyed the short stories and believed them to be thoughtful and helpful.

I am able to recommend this to others as a quick, highly engaging read.

I was a skeptic, most of these types of books generally wind up being more shelf-help than self-help for me. However, this is one book in which I find myself frequently practicing some of the important life lessons. I sometimes even find myself quoting the author to a friend that's going through a difficult time. This book was written for such a time as this where people are really struggling mentally and emotionally and just like and ideas on how to go up from here.

What a positive book on focusing on the upside of difficulty. It covers how the mind can overcome and even grow out of bad situations, big and small. To look at the future and focus on the positive outcomes. Many examples are given to draw upon. Life is really an outpouring of the mind,

I found the book “Harness the Power of the Invincible Mind” to contain many good points. However, I did struggle with the author’s writing style. While I am sure that it will appeal and reach some readers, I just didn’t appreciate his prose. I found many of his statements to be oddly phrased and confusing, and some even just plain wrong. Often as you read more of the text, you can decipher his point. To give an example of a sentence that had me thinking, “What?!”, I offer the first sentence in chapter 1 …
“Adversity is the only love that will not be ashamed of you.”
Adversity isn’t "a love" and it really doesn’t have feelings. Yet, as I continued to read, I came to the understanding that the author sees adversity as something that causes humans to grow because the challenges we’re presented with force us to overcome them or die. I believe he’s advocating for embracing a challenge because it will cause growth. Other authors have spoken about this as grit and determination with much clearer language and with evidence to support their points.

Occasionally, I found the author to be quite clear and understandable. For example, on page 34,
“Attitude drives your life. It determines whether you will succeed or not. To cultivate an attitude of success; see failure as a stepping stone to success, see failure as the process of success, a raw material that needs your ingenious ability to convert.”
A very positive statement on how we could look at failure as an experiment we tried but it didn’t go as desired, so we can learn and grow from the experience. This attitude toward failure will help us move forward.

The author has stories scattered within the book. His retelling of J. K. Rowling was complex and an example of an area where the editor could have paid a bit more attention. At one point, he says
“But she never finished writing any novel.”
(page 46) Of course, we all know and he goes on to share how she has indeed published the entire Harry Potter series. She just didn’t finish writing a novel during her teen years.

The stories often are good illustrations of the point he’s trying to make and were more enjoyable to read than other parts of the book. He does try to make the stories more suspenseful by not saying who’s he’s talking about right away. I believe most readers will recognize many of the stories and parables. I did find his to be the most bizarre interpretation of Moses’s encounter with God speaking through the burning bush and Joseph's story, which is saying something if you've ever seen Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat.

An example of a time when I believe the author was just wrong, was on page 78, when he says “You can change your yesterday!” Did you oversleep yesterday and miss an important meeting? No worries! You can change that! And to a degree, you could. You could talk yourself into believing that the meeting wasn’t that important. You could come to believe your sleeping in was the best thing you could have chosen to do. So, you can change your thoughts and understanding about what happened yesterday, but you can’t go back in time and have a do-over.

While reading the book, especially in the beginning, it often felt like the author was yelling at the reader in an attempt to make his point. There are actual cases of ALL CAPS in the book. I would have preferred to have citations at the end of the book of reputable sources that support the point the author is making. As it was, this book seems more like a list of life observations that was expanded into a book format. He very much puts everything as statements. I believe the author is trying to be helpful by passing on his life learnings.

I did say there were some good points the author makes. He talks about how adversity and life’s challenges can make us stronger when we attack them with a positive attitude. He addresses what “real success” is and how it isn’t “market success.” I believe this to be true. Money isn’t the way to happiness assuming you have enough to meet your needs. He frequently tells a person to not give a damn. My interpretation of that point is that you need to recognize that not everyone is on your side and to be careful of whose opinions you value. Well-meaning people may try to hold you back from your life’s dream, because of their own fears and reasons, but you need to be true to yourself.

In the end, I did get to a point where I think I was able to understand what the author was attempting to convey despite the words he chose to use. I can appreciate a lot of the principles he was professing, as I understand them, but not all of them. I probably wouldn’t have finished the book except for the fact I was reviewing it. If you find that you tend to think differently than most folks, this could be the book for you.

I was given a free copy of this book through Netgalley and from the author.

This book has a lot of great insight on mindset. Some of the stories mentioned are familiar such as the story of the elephant, etc., but it’s told in an inspiring, motivational and unique way to help strengthen our perseverance and our mind. A great tool as a pick-me-up book when you need a hit of inspiration while dealing with reality (such as dealing with adversity), or as inspiration in general reading about the success of others, such as Oprah and Jeff Bezos. A great, motivational read to help with your mindset.

4 stars

I thought this was a very interesting read. It challenges you in many ways. This is one of those books you will need to keep on your shelf and refer back to often.

It has a lot of great insights and ideas that really made me question how I was thinking about things in my life. Definitely a great self help reference for the mind.

If you like self help and books that challenge your mind, definitely check this one out. You won’t be disappointed.

I received this as an ARC (Advanced Reader Copy) in return for an honest review. I thank NetGalley, the publisher and the author for allowing me to read this title.

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This book touts itself as "revolutionary" and there were certainly some interesting anecdotes, but it fell a little flat to me. I think there are books with more applicable advice available and would not say that I got much out of the book aside from a few interesting tidbits.

Harness the Power of the Invincible Mind is an interesting read. I personally enjoy encouraging self help material so while some sections of the book seemed bogged down or a bit confusing I was overall pleased with the material. This book is chock-full of encouragement and inspiring tid bits and short stories. I am glad that the author took the time & effort to write down all of the many thoughts & ideas that he has gleaned along his life journey for myself & future generations to learn from by reading this book. He has a keen interest in improving the life experiences of his fellow people which is evident by his passionate sharing of the material in this lovely book. At first I felt put off by the writing style but I continued reading the book and I am glad that I did.

The Review
This was an incredibly well-written and knowledgable read. The author brilliantly highlights and frames the struggles we often deal with on a daily basis and gives life and meaning to those adversities, from traditions to unfounded knowledge and so much more. Then by learning to flip those adversities and turn them into a positive, the author has showcased how to frame the “invincible mind”.

One concept that stood out to me early on was the Ride the Adversity lesson, which highlights the need to take the adversity we face and not allowing ourselves to simply wallow in it. Instead, the author highlights the need to turn that adversity into a stepping stone to overcome the obstacles in our path towards happiness and our dreams, which is highlighted in a truly appropriate tale of the donkey and the well in the early chapters of the book.

The Verdict
Powerful, thought-provoking, and inspiring, author Alex Neumann’s “Harness the Power of the Invincible Mind” is a must-read book. With 2020 having dealt the majority of the world some truly difficult adversities and obstacles, the need to overcome those odds and find a path to our happiness has never been more important, the author does an incredible job of imparting this wisdom through experience and wise life-lessons that readers will be able to relate to. If you haven’t yet, grab your copy today!

Initially, I was approached by the author for a book review in exchange for a copy of the book. However, I ended up downloading it from Netgalley. I was apprehensive about reading a self-help book, as they are all similar and regurgitate the same material. And while Neumann's book did have repeat material, his writing style was impactful.

He has split the chapters into sub-chapters, and as a reader, I liked it. It made it easier to enjoy the chapter and made it an intricate weaving of smaller stories to depict the larger picture. The author used real-life stories to inspire and motivate his readers. I genuinely enjoyed his selection of anecdotes as they were well-connected with the lessons. Neumann pushes his readers to overcome obstacles and find solutions. The book uses multiple Buddhist principles and talks about redefining success.

However, I wish the author had included more practical advice. I appreciate books that include a list of steps or worksheets. It allows the readers to utilize the lessons that the author imparts. The book did feel repetitive and drawn-out in a few sections. It did fail to reel me in.

I would give the book 3 out of 5 stars. A good read.

A great self-help book that gives a lot of practical and valuable suggestions and motivates readers to never let go.

He explains the everyday problems of people very artistically through the help of short stories as an example and I loved the way he used the examples from Buddhism, Christianity and history to show the real potential of every person.

He shows very realistically how people chase success, how we keep worrying about our problems and advises to let go of the sufferings and move forward. He uses examples of life stories successful people like J K Rowling and tries to motivate the readers.

He tries to make readers come out of their destructive zone, realise their true potential and teaches them how to look at everything with a new perspective. He explains how to identify the difference between negative and positive thinking and how to find true happiness. This book has so many valuable suggestions that can prove very helpful for every person.