Christian Estrup Updated on Oct 16, 2024 2 min read

A Dilbert creator's guide to winning big

"(...) you want to put your focus where it makes a real difference," writes Scott Adam in this lovely self-development book, where he talks about his countless missteps, and how he has nevertheless managed to get things somewhat in order and come out on top in the long run.

I love his playful and humorous storytelling style, which is an extension of the comic strips that truly made him famous: Dilbert.

Personally I find the chapters on affirmation particularly worth reading.

And if you are able to imagine and visualize how it could be, you are also able to create a daily life and momentum that can turn reality in that direction

For most people, it would sound like pure nonsense that daily, chanting repetitions of a mantra in itself could have any decisive positive effect on the way things develop in reality. Nevertheless—so Scott Adams—it seems that this is often (for whatever reason . . .) actually the case.

Scott Adams on affirmations . . .

A good point that it's actually utterly irrelevant why affirmations work. The main thing must be that it apparently is more the rule than the exception that they do.

In fact, there's rarely a good reason to complicate things as we tend to do. Break it down to the very simple principles and patterns: Make sure to get some sensible nourishment, keep the body running with plenty of movement, and prioritize sufficient sleep.

If you do that, your baseline energy is up at a level where you can manage both private and work-related obligations, and at the same time have the surplus to acquire new knowledge, learn new skills, and play and experiment.

"(...) and stayed in the game long enough for luck to find me."

The ability to imagine a different, better future is perhaps more than anything else what distinguishes us humans from other creatures in the universe.

And if you are able to imagine and visualize how it could be, you are also able to create a daily life and momentum that can turn reality in that direction, no matter how many detours and dead ends you may encounter along the way.

Scott Adams' own summary in the last chapter says it all: "Focus on your diet first and get that right so you have enough energy to want to exercise. Exercise will further improve your energy, and that in turn will make you more productive, more creative, more positive, more socially desirable, and more able to handle life's little bumps."