A short, easy to read book which provides great reminders, especially in the New Year period. Practical, proven methods are provided lasting to growth mindset, creating the life you want and more.

This a very basic and quick read about improving cognition. I found the steps to be intuitive and fairly obvious, yet it was still a nice read.

An information dense, interesting book for those who want to improve their mental capacity, just a little bit. This is not a book for someone who is trying to increase memory, due to performance needs, no, it is a lot gentler than that. Very practical.

This book uses established science and methods that have been reviewed by scientists instead of yet to be proven newer theories. While the author is a retired dental surgeon, his own experiences with learning difficulties and a specific ‘senior moment’ led him to research the area of MCI (or Mild Cognitive Impairment).

In simple, straight-forward language, Dr. David Bardsley shows the readers various causes of MCI and teaches methods to maintain and improve and cognitive abilities. His examples and even chosen quotes, like the one from Einstein below, help drive the central concept of the book – the hows and the whys we can learn to be smarter (next year) no matter how old we are.

‘Life is like riding a bicycle. To keep your balance, you must keep moving.’ – Albert Einstein

In Summary:
A quick read that will surely ‘move us’ towards a better us – having a sound mind in a sound body.

Rating: B+

Disclaimer: Thanks to NetGalley for a digital review copy of this book. All opinions are my own

This small handbook by retired dentist is an effort to underline that our intelligence is not fixed and it can be modulated.
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Author himself had learning difficulties in childhood but he fought through them.
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Writing is lovely and engaging and pictures are awesome. Author throws light on new developments in field of cognition and there is section detailing basic concepts of cognition.
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Various causes of decreased cognition and their remedies are discussed beautifully. Concepts are easily understandable and non complicated.
It is a pacy read which can be finished in single sitting.
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What I didn't like was a little bit repitition and few boring details like scientific study details.
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Overall nice read and teaches you few things about intelligence and human brain.

My rating 3.5/5

As with any good self-help book, Dr. Bardsley makes some significant claims. Unlike a majority of self-help books, Dr. Bardsley is merely applying accepted science rather than pushing an unproven philosophy. The "8 secrets" aren't secrets at all. They are peer-reviewed science understandings that have only recently been discovered. Dr. Bardsley also encourages readers who desire to see if the argued changes have an effect to measure their results with a freely available tool.



As a physicist, biology is always a little wanky to me. I was very encouraged by Dr. Bardsley's use of peer-reviewed science. I was also inspired by his desire for readers to take measurements. My only issue with Dr. Bardsley is that his doctorate is not in neurology or biology. He is a DDS. This is not hidden. He did the work necessary to receive his DDS, but his doctorate is not vital to this research.