Unstressable: A Practical Guide to Stress-Free Living by Mo Gawdat

Unstressable: A Practical Guide to Stress-Free Living Reviews

• 
  Erin Clemence

  Special thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for a free, electronic ARC of this novel received in exchange for an honest review.
  
  Expected publication date: April 30, 2024
  
  
  Mo Gawdat is an engineer, who used to be the Chief Business Officer at Google. Big deal, right? Well, when Mo’s son died unexpectedly after a routine surgery, he began to question the choices he was making in his life. Pairing up with co-author Alice Law, he wrote “
  Unstressable: A Practical Guide to Stress-Free Living”, in order to reach a greater community and provide them with the tips needed to enjoy (and live) a stress-free life.
  
  Sounds to good to be true, right? I have read many self-help and non-fiction books that focus on how to destress, reduce anxiety and live a calmer life. My diagnosed anxiety and Type A personality make the most “common” tension reducing methods null and void, as my brain will continue to race like a hamster in a wheel. But I keep trying, and when I got the chance to read “Unstressable” my only thought was- what do I have to lose?
  
  Mo and Alice have both suffered the tragic loss of their fathers (and his son, for Mo, and sister, for Alice) from causes related to stress, and this was the turning point for both of them. “Unstressable” has a little bit of everything, for everyone, from the neuroscience and physics component of the brain and the human body right through to Reiki and the calming of the soul. Not every part will be relevant to everyone, but everyone will find something relevant within these pages.
  
  The book is easy to read and generalizable, to people of all ages, stages and professions. For those of us who have tried therapy, there are a few tried and true tips that we will be familiar with, but Law and Gawdat provide some intriguing ideas as well, that seem worth trying.
  
  I enjoyed the neuroscience aspect of the novel (less so the physics and the math) and although I am not a huge proponent of Eastern medicine, I was still able to find some useful strategies. The authors personify the brain, which was intriguing, using inner dialogue as a way to bring attention to areas of the body that we are lacking. For anyone who finds value in meditation and mindfulness, well, the authors have you covered there, too.
  
  If nothing else, this book provides a unique way to look at stress itself and how it can show up in the body (and mind). It helped me reframe how I look at my inner conversations and self-awareness, and it even provided me with a few tips to try. I don’t see a complete cure to my medically-diagnosed anxiety (but the authors don’t claim to solve this, in their defense) but this book was definitely worth reading!
• 
  Rebecca Parten

  Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Essentials for an advanced reader copy. The opinions expressed are mine alone.
  
  When I started reading “Unstressable” I really didn’t like it. I kept going and am glad I did. It’s still not one I am sure I’ll recommend but there were at least some interesting nuggets of information throughout the last 2/3 of the book. The reason for the low rating is because I felt like there were way too many run-on sentences. This made it hard to follow what the author was trying to say. I also felt like there were too many mnemonic devices the authors made up. While each on their own could have been helpful, I got lost trying to remember what they all meant. I also felt there was a lot of “do this, not that” advice that wasn't practical and/or sensitive to individuals with chronic health conditions. These are often the people who need reign in stress the most and sometimes it felt like the authors minimized the fact we can’t always control how our body responds to stress. They did point out a few times the importance of seeking professional help in cases of trauma or PTSD so that was good at least. Finally, I found it confusing when the authors kept using “I” because I never knew which author was “speaking”.
  
  All in all, while I think the authors had the best intentions in writing this book I am not sure I’ll be recommending it. The writing style felt like one extremely long blog post… I think that a significant portion of the book could have been trimmed out without taking away from the main points and would have made it a more engaging read.
• 
  Ana Stanciu-Dumitrache

  Mo este o inspirație pentru mine și ideile lui mi se par atât de utile și realiste. Stress is our new addiction. Și cea mai periculoasă as zice.
• 
  Debbie Lemonte

  "Unstressable" by Mo Gawdat is a profound guide to navigating the complexities of modern life with grace and resilience. Gawdat, known for his insights on happiness and well-being, takes readers on a transformative journey toward a stress-free existence. The book skillfully combines scientific research, personal anecdotes, and practical advice to provide a holistic approach to stress management.
  
  Gawdat's writing is both engaging and empathetic, making complex concepts accessible to a wide audience. He explores the root causes of stress and offers actionable strategies to cultivate a mindset that can withstand life's challenges. The author draws on his own experiences, including lessons learned from his time at Google X, adding authenticity to his words.
  
  "Unstressable" is not just a self-help book; it's a thoughtful exploration of the human condition and a roadmap to a more fulfilling life. Gawdat's unique perspective, grounded in his engineering background and deep understanding of happiness science, sets this book apart. Whether you're facing professional pressures or personal struggles, "Unstressable" is a timely and invaluable resource for anyone seeking a balanced and harmonious life.
• 
  Connie

  #GoodreadsGiveaway
• 
  Adriana Maria

  3.5
  4 stars for the first half
  Almost 3 for the second
• 
  Birdtrovert

  3.5 stars
  
  Thank you to St. Martin's Essentials and the authors, Mo Gawdat and Alice Law, for the free ARC in exchange for an honest review.
  
  First, I want to mention that because this book isn't officially released until April of 2024, I won't really be talking about grammar/punctuation errors that much. While there are some throughout the book, it's also an unpublished version and so it's to be expected that the official release will have been edited and combed through.
  
  Also, there is a lot of repeating sentences/phrases/ideas but again, those are all editing points and I believe that those mistakes would be fixed for the official release.
  
  That said, this was a very good book. I'm not usually a fan of self-help books; I find them boring or very privileged. Usually the author talks about a pretty relatable experience and then breaks the illusion by talking about quitting their job and hoping on a plane or something. Basically, doing something that the average person may struggle to do.
  
  However, both Mo and Alice talk about very real and traumatic personal experiences. They talk openly about these events to show not only a sense of "relatability" but also how these dark and difficult times can be overcome. How, even in the face of tragedy, it's not game over. I appreciate the honesty and rawness.
  
  Also, some of the points made are very good and helpful. I highlighted a lot of the points I really found useful. Alice takes on a more spiritual/human side to emotions/stress and the mind, while Mo takes on a more logical/mathematical stance. This helps level the points made.
  
  Now, since this is an early version, I can't really use any quotes because the book is subject to editing and change.
  
  I want to talk about the "talking to your brain" segment. I think Alice called her brain "Becky"? It was almost kind of shocking that the brain will eventually just exhaust an idea (even an negative one) if you press it to move on.
  
  Brain: you suck
  Me: okay cool what else
  Brain: you really suck
  Me: we already talked about that, what else
  Brain: ...I like Goku
  Me: yes I do
  
  (Basically, acknowledging the thought and moving forward will confuse the negative process and force the brain to continue. Sometimes focusing on something else negative but usually just moving forward with a different thought since the initial one has already been addressed.)
  
  Conclusion: a good read and I do recommend picking this one up when it releases in April. Hopefully it's edited a bit beforehand but honestly it had a lot of really good information and helpful tips on managing stress (not treating it, but helping manage it when it seems uncontrollable.)
• 
  Chloe

  If you're anything like me and you frequently describe yourself as "stressed out" (or it's synonyms: tired, overwhelmed, exhausted, strung out, spread too thin, snowed under, drowning), 'Unstressable' is for you!
  
  In the first section, Mo and Alice examine the pervasiveness of chronic stress. They explain that stress isn’t a problem if it comes, helps us overcome a challenge, and dissipates. The stress epidemic nowadays us caused by chronic stress which our bodies and brains were not designed to handle, and which is, quite honestly, killing us. Learning to become "unstressable" is a combination of stoicism (taking action on what we can change and accepting what we can't) and learning the language of our bodies to be able to respond to the real or potential threats they are alerting us to.
  
  The second section of the book is a language course in learning to understand and converse with your mind and body. In the 21st century, particularly in the West, we rarely face life-or-death physical threats; instead, most of our stress begins with a thought.
  
  Learning the language of MENTAL STRESS teaches us that the brain is just alerting us to potential threats, which we can acknowledge and verify without letting them spiral.
  
  Learning the language of EMOTIONAL STRESS is similar: acknowledging what we are feeling, verifying the message or unmet need behind the emotion, and acting upon it by telling ourselves that we've heard the alarm and giving ourselves permission to redirect that emotional energy.
  
  Learning the language of PHYSICAL STRESS means realising that when we don’t pay attention to the first two, our bodies inflame, crying out to us with tension, aches, pains, and sickness. When we learn how stress manifests within us individually, we can work to release it. (The book gives practical suggestions for how to do this.)
  
  Finally, learning the language of SPIRITUAL STRESS (something everyone faces, even if you aren’t religious) means acknowledging that we have a life force that is more than our consciousness. Some call this intuition, but Mo and Alice prefer to call it 'soul' or 'spirit'. Learning it's language, we learn to trust out intuition and listen for the wisdom it wants to bring to our attention.
  
  Learning to be unstressable doesn’t mean we never experience stress, but that when we do, we have greater control over the stresses we allow into our lives and we're equipped to deal with stressors quickly so they do not linger.
  
  Evidence shows that stress and stress-related illnesses are the biggest killers in the West. It's time to learn how stress works, how it's gotten out of control, and what we can do about it.
  
  'Unstressable' is an informative, highly practical book, best enjoyed over a few weeks as you learn and apply each lesson. I'm so glad I read this when I did, and I hope that, in time, many more busy students, high-flying executives, and stressed out parents read this too.
• 
  Suz Jay

  This book, which is separated into three parts: The Basics, A Language Course in Becoming Unstressable, and Putting It All Together, is chock full of information about stress and how to decrease stress in your life. I found this deep dive both wonderfully comprehensive and frustrating, because it made for a slow, repetitious read. At the end of each part, a summary is included, which makes it a good reference, but because so much information is included in each part, the summary doesn’t cover all the major points. While there are plenty of actionable suggestions about reducing stress, there are several plugs for buying paid subscription to the authors’ unstressable community. The authors provide lots of personal anecdotes about how embracing an “Unstressable” lifestyle has improved their lives and helped them cope with personal tragedies.
  
  I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
  
  Thanks to St. Martin’s Essentials, an imprint of St. Martin’s Publishing Group, for providing an Advance Reader Copy via NetGalley.
• 
  Michael Moseley

  This was a book that I wanted to read and for the first time in my life I preordred it before publication. A well written and very well researched book which gave me a lot of practical help and ideas to tackle my stress which has some impact on my life. Alice Law was not given the recognition for her contribution in the publicity material that I have heard Mo Gawdat complain about. The duo worked well together and Alice would come more from the heart & Mo from the logic and together they produced the whole. Majority of the book contained really practicale ways of dealing with and removing strees many of which I will do my best to adopt in my own life. I was less able to take onboard the section talking about the soul. All in all a great read that I would recomend to anyone living in the madness of the modern world.
• 
  Anita

  Unstressable by Mo Gawdat is a guide to stress-free living. Who doesn't have stress. Mo and Alice have some good points. Think the book could have been scaled back a little bit. It has a lot of information, maybe a little too much. Sometimes it was a little overwhelming. Overall, I do think it is a great read and guide to stress free living.
  
  I do think this one is a little hard to read in e-book format. There are a lot questions you need to answer and write down your thoughts. I plan on buying the book and re-reading it.
  
  Thank you NetGalley for this ARC Unstressable by Mo Gawdat, Egypt; Alice Law. #NetGalley
• 
  Justin Guyette

  this book was EXCELLENT!!! I totally under-estimated how satisfied I would be with this one, but it totally exceeded my expectations. So much amazing content in here. My notes are long. Thankfully I own this book on audible so i will most definitely listen to this one again in a couple weeks. I have full faith that I will absorb so much more on the second round. I thoroughly enjoyed this book from front to back. I have loved everything written by Mo Gawdat so far and am super eager for him to put out some more amazing books for me to consume and add to my library. Check it out. This was a great read!
• 
  Rafael Angelo

  Honestly, I was expecting more from this book because I liked “Solve for Happy” a lot.
  My review is based on three key factors:
  1) I dislike the style of having two different authors as their language is very different and I found it a bit distracting the constant shift.
  2) In all honesty, I didn’t learn much from this book. A lot of things are paraphrased from other books I read before. I think the authors missed an opportunity to back up their recommendations in research and data.
  3) Related to number 2, I think this book would be better if it were condensed in fewer than 200 pages. I constantly found myself feeling like I was reading the same things with different words over and over.
• 
  Christine

  So many helpful tips in this wonderfully written book about how to deal with stress and the steps to deal with them all! How we react to stress will
  help alleviate some of the anxiety and undue stress on a person and if you use his tactics and tips and how to handle the bad things that come our way ! In this book it’s all about how we react and how to deal with how we react to it ! change your mindset !
• 
  Tom

  ‘Unstressable’ is een toegankelijke introductie tot stressmanagement, ideaal voor beginners. Het eerste deel van het boek is interessant door de analytische benadering van stress. Het biedt inzicht in wat stress is, hoe het werkt, en welke factoren bijdragen aan stress.
  
  Het tweede deel, dat zich richt op praktische tips en oefeningen, vond ik minder sterk. Het was me iets te soft.
  
  Conclusie: een goed boek voor wie nog nooit iets over stressmanagement heeft gelezen, maar zeker geen must-read.
• 
  Evelien

  Read this book after Mo appeared on the Diary of a CEO podcast
  
  It’s an interesting read with some takeaways that I was able to apply immediately. As I’ve read quite a number of self help books, I did find the extensive examples too long and repetitive at times and flicked through these pages more quickly.
• 
  Maneka Balasooriya

  A great read! Quite comprehensive with insights and action points. Always interested in reading a book by Mo, the concepts will be clearly explained and analyzed with examples, some anecdotes, and takeaways with actions to do.
  
• 
  Alexandra

  Terrible book..!!! Wow, I can't believe it was allowed to be published. Complete, utter c*ap.
• 
  Tj Okor

  Very practical and relevant
  Lots of useful and easily applicable tools
  Some of the self promo was a bit poorly timed but wasn’t overbearing
• 
  Jo

  Really enjoyed this. I did listen and get through it quite quickly. The usual reminders of how to live and how to be