As well as examples of positive affirmations working, Adams also explains he has had several failures in life. These have all occurred when he hasn’t used positive affirmations—for example, his failed business ventures with restaurants.

The specific nature of goals can also lead to similar frustrations. For example, people often feel like failures if they don’t accomplish exactly what they set out to do. They may still be highly successful, but not meeting their goals leaves them feeling they haven’t accomplished anything. An ex...

Adams believes that systems are more effective than goals. Systems are firmly grounded in the present. This means they can be grounded in your life right now, and you will get daily pleasure from successfully operating them. Adams describes the time he first learned of the power of systems. He sa...

As well as developing general skills, you must use introspection to identify your unique skills. Parents and teachers often pressure people to pursue specific careers. You are in the best position to notice your special skills and think about which career would suit those skills. If you are strug...

There will always be certain foods that work for you while others don’t. Adams calls this the food-is-mood hypothesis. For example, white carbs make him sleepy and lethargic, but this is not the case with pasta. Adams often eats pasta as a source of carbohydrates.

Adams started implementing the law of associate energy into his life. He worked with three aspiring writers before writing Dilbert. He believes these writers’ energy helped inspire him to write his most famous comic.

Adams still doubts whether associate energy is a physical concept. That sa...

Society tells us that selfishness is something we should avoid at all costs, and you should make other people’s desires your priority. Adams challenges this view and points out that there are three kinds of people in this world: stupid, a burden on others, and selfish. 

Stupid people are so...

An exercise system would focus less on an end goal and more on day-by-day improvement. For example, committing to daily exercise. This shows one of the greatest strengths of systems, which is that it helps establish habits.

Adams used systems as a young man to help him achieve the success h...

Moods are infectious, so the moods of those around us heavily influence us. This is called associate energy and means we should always strive to associate ourselves with people we want to be like and people who give us energy. This idea was brought to Adams’ attention when one of his fri...

In that case, you should consider the areas in your life where you have always been comfortable taking risks. Adams uses an example from his own life to reinforce this point. As a child, he would draw humorous comics in class. Adams knew he could get in trouble if the teacher found out what he w...

The Six Filters for Truth are:

1. Personal experience: Because human perceptions are iffy.
2. Experience of people you know: Because they are even more unreliable.
3. Experts: Because they work for money, not truth.
4. Scientific studies: Because correlation is not causatio...

The CEO said he became successful by always looking for a better job. You see, most people wait until they need a job to start looking for one. When they reach their goal of finding a job, they stop. The CEO followed a system by constantly looking for the next promotion, even when he didn’t need ...

Adams credits himself with an advanced BS detector based on his experience in the business industry. He believes this detector is based around six filters for truth. The more filters something can pass through, the truer it probably is.

Adams also recommends spicing up foods that you know are healthy but find bland. For example, vegetables and grains are clearly healthy. That said, he doesn’t find them tasty when they are by themselves. He uses nutritious additions to make them tempting, e.g., by adding honey, lemon, soy sauce o...

This general competence is what allowed Dilbert to become a success. A wide range of skills like this will help you adapt to the constant changes of the world. That said, Adams notes that not all skills are created equal. There will be some skills that are more relevant within a specific field. S...

Adams believes affirmations should be used by all individuals with aspirations for their life. An affirmation is a positive statement about what you want to achieve. You can engage with an affirmation in whatever way you want. Still, the affirmation should be imagining what you want and repeating...

Self-help gurus have a knack for encouraging people to create and stick to goals. But Adam believes goals are for losers. According to him, the reality is that even the clearest goals have two problems that will always persist:

Goals are future-oriented

Goals can become overly-specifi...

As well as timings, you should also consider how a location makes you feel and the order of activities. For example, you should avoid working in spaces where you feel relaxed. You can also couple activities which help each other. By identifying the tasks that drain you, you can pair this task wit...

For example, athletes may have pregame superstitions. These delusions can still have a positive psychological impact that keeps you focused on your priorities. This is why Adams used and still uses positive affirmations like “I, Scott Adams, will be a famous cartoonist.”

A final tip for maintaining an exercise routine is to use food or drink as a motivator. We are like dogs. We strive for rewards and try to avoid punishment. So, Adams recommends giving yourself a healthy snack or tiny indulgence as a reward once you have completed a workout. Adams uses an indulge...

Adams offers similar advice for those struggling to establish an exercise routine. Spice up your exercise by joining a group that meets consistently weekly. This will keep you accountable but will also add an enjoyable social side to your exercise. Adams uses an example from his own life to push ...

Those who are a burden on others are not necessarily a burden because they want to be. These individuals have often been dealt a difficult hand and left to struggle with an illness or something similar. In these situations, you might become a burden, but you should remain selfish to cure yourself...

You have likely experienced occasions where you have gone on a run when you have felt drained and unmotivated. These circumstances occur when you adhere to a schedule rather than listening to your bodily rhythms. Adams believes this is an inferior approach and recommends using your energy levels ...

Here are four examples of affirmations that came true for Adams:

1. “I, Scott, will become rich.” He received two flashes of insight, telling him to invest in two specific stocks. Both these stocks grew like crazy over the next year.
2. To date a woman he’d encountered briefly at wor...