Syllabus

The living textbook

Every Issue is a numbered chapter, grouped under Mind, Body and Soul. Each row gives the key idea, one main study already cited in our films or writing, the free tool it recommends, and links to the film and journal chapter where they exist. Nothing is invented here: if a study, film or article is not ready yet, the row says so.

Made by a neuroscience researcher (master's research at VU Amsterdam).

Mind

Mind

Attention, practice, and the voice in your head.

  1. Chapter 01 · Issue 02

    Thoughts aren't you

    Key idea. You are not the voice in your head. Fighting a thought can make it louder; the first move is to come back, then, if needed, question.

    Main study

    No single main study is cited for this chapter’s key idea. The film draws on psychology and philosophy books. The laboratory studies it names (Bernardi, Porta and Sleight, 2006, and others) are about the music in the film, not the teaching.

  2. Chapter 02 · Issue 03

    Can genius grow?

    Key idea. Genius is partly a gift, but the research keeps returning to things you can choose: play widely, practise at your edge, find the right people, move, rest, and aim at something that matters.

    Free tool

    Lichess

Body

Body

Rest, movement, and a mind that can think clearly.

  1. Chapter 03 · Issue 01

    Rest is training

    Key idea. Rest is part of the work, not a break from it. Sleep alone does not always fix deep tiredness; load and recovery have to stay in range.

  2. Chapter 04 · Issue 04

    Walk to think

    Key idea. Walking is not a break from thinking. For a long time, it has been a way of thinking.

    • Film not on YouTube yet.
    • Journal chapter not published yet.

Soul

Soul

Meaning, values, and a life you can stand behind.

  1. Chapter 05 · Issue 05

    Write it down

    Key idea. Giving a hard feeling a name, in a short private note, can quiet the alarm. Writing is a small, honest practice, not magic.

    • Film not on YouTube yet.
    • Journal chapter not published yet.

  2. Chapter 06 · Library EP01

    Stop chasing happy

    Key idea. The trap is the struggle itself. Unhook from the thought, then take one towards move — a value, one small action.

    • Film not on YouTube yet.
    • Journal chapter not published yet.