Wisereads Vol. 133 — Beyond Belief by Nir Eyal, Viv Groskop on the value of talking to strangers, and more
Last week, we shared a preview of The Story of Doctor Dolittle by Hugh Lofting. This week, we’re sharing an exclusive preview of Nir Eyal's newest book, Beyond Belief: The Science-Backed Way to Stop Limiting Yourself and Achieve Extraordinary Results. Plus, don't miss your chance to enter the giveaway for a free copy!
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Most highlighted Articles of the week
The stranger secret: how to talk to anyone – and why you should
Author Viv Groskop, host of How to Own the Room, argues that our shrinking willingness to chat with strangers is eroding social connection and shows, with research and practical cues, how low-stakes small talk can rebuild it. "We live in a world of intense and often unnecessary division. Small talk is a tiny, free and very possibly priceless reminder of our shared humanity."
The Mind-Numbing, Soul-Crushing Boredom of Parenthood
Author Daniel Smith, whose forthcoming Hard Feelings examines difficult emotions, captures parenthood's tedium ripening into meaning. "The effort to stifle a hard emotion almost always fails, and causes it to fester and breed. The only true way to endure boredom—like anger, despair, shame—is to move toward it. To listen to it. To try to understand it."
Nobody Gets Promoted for Simplicity
Software engineer Matheus Lima analyzes how hiring, reviews, and promotion systems bias engineers toward overbuilding and discusses how to counter it. "Complexity looks smart. Not because it is, but because our systems are set up to reward it. And the incentive problem doesn’t start at promotion time. It starts before you even get the job."
Most highlighted YouTube Video of the week
This is Going to be Very Messy
Science communicator and veteran YouTuber Hank Green surveys concrete AI risks today and pushes back on industry hype about speculative futures, then confronts his own biases in a candid chat with Cal Newport. "We should be looking at the problems as they currently exist. And what I want to say to some people who might want to be effective altruists: what if dealing with the problems that we have right now is the thing that makes the future better? Like, what if guessing at the what the future needs actually makes the future worse and dealing with the problems we have right now is what makes the future better."
Most highlighted Twitter Thread of the week
The Claude-Native Law Firm
Startup and venture lawyer Zack Shapiro outlines how his Claude-powered system encodes his personal judgment into custom skills to transform reviews, drafting, research, and client comms while keeping attorney oversight and ethics front and center. "The gap between how most lawyers use AI (typing a question into a chatbot and hoping for the best) and what I’ve described here is enormous. Closing that gap doesn’t require technical skill. It requires investing a few hours in learning how the tool actually works."
Most highlighted PDF of the week
AI Hurtles Ahead
Howard Marks, cofounder of Oaktree Capital Management and veteran investor, assesses AI's breakneck progress and what it means for investors, productivity, and jobs. "Nothing has ever taken hold at the pace AI has. It's able to change the world at a speed that approaches instantaneous, outpacing the ability of most observers to anticipate or even comprehend."
Hand-picked book of the week
Beyond Belief
Nir Eyal, author of the international bestsellers Hooked and Indistractable, returns with Beyond Belief, a science-backed exploration of how the beliefs we choose shape the results we get. Rather than chasing the perfect strategy or plan, Eyal argues that belief is the real foundation of sustained motivation, and shows how it can be strengthened to unlock your potential.
"Beliefs aren't wishes or manifestations; they are mental models built through experience, evidence, and deliberate construction. Just as you wouldn't expect to develop physical strength without training, you can't develop powerful beliefs without strategic and consistent effort."
Nir's work has a special place in Readwise's origin story. Cofounder Dan read Hooked back when Readwise was just a seed of an idea, and Nir's thinking on the intersection of psychology and technology helped shape what it grew into. Dan's been revisiting those highlights through Readwise ever since.
We're thrilled that Nir is now sharing the first chapter of Beyond Belief with Wisereads readers ahead of its March 10 release. His team will also be giving away copies of the book, so enter the giveaway here. And, if you enjoy the preview, you can pre-order a full copy here and unlock time-limited exclusive bonuses!
Handpicked RSS feed of the week
The Wake Up Call
Scott Barker, startup operator and podcaster, writes The Wake Up Call on reinvention, modern ambition, and the search for life's deeper meanings. From The Three Games of Life: "The great game of life is often described as a single journey, but for me, it has been helpful to understand it more as three successive games. We are meant to figure out these three games before we die. All of which are here to help us grow, evolve and get closer to accepting our own death."