Mind Skills: A Philosopher's Notebook

In this notebook, Joseph van de Mortel reflects on the role of epiphany and the value of philosophy, covering thinkers, concepts, methods, and principles. The result is a useful and entertaining sourcebook for every desk. The pedagogical recommendations for reading difficult material are also here. They have helped many of the author's students win scholarships and gain admission to top universities, including UC Berkeley, Stanford, and UCLA. Every dedicated student will want to review and utilize these simple methods for acquiring the habits that great students possess. In addition to reflecting on the problem of mental fragmentation, the author introduces a rich content for better word selection and discusses the importance of mindfulness and listening, lecture notes, reading notes, the read and stop method, the Socratic method, the circle method, the purpose of ethics, the chronology of philosophy, and the four aspects of philosophy. If academic self-confidence is a product of knowing what works, then this text supports that outcome. It argues that many of the problems students face are practical and can be demystified and solved with the introduction of good mental habits that are the benchmarks of sound, critical thinking.