54 pages • 1 hour read
Ed MylettThe Power of One More: The Ultimate Guide to Happiness and Success
Nonfiction | Book | Adult | Published in 2022A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Chapters 12-13Chapter Summaries & Analyses
Chapters 12 Summary: “One More Habit”
Chapter 12 argues that habits are a way for your brain to conserve energy. Habits establish what the brain needs to do automatically so it can go on autopilot. For this reason, people can develop bad habits without realizing it.
Mylett insists that positive habits are key to success: “It is the habits you create to get you through those days when you don't really feel like doing the things you need to do to be successful” (155). Mylett describes habits in relation to Achieving Goals With Neuroscience and Quantum Mechanics. The brain operates in a relaxed state and an alert state. When in the alert state, physiological changes occur, such as higher blood pressure, increased heart rate, and release of cortisol in the bloodstream. He cites the concept of neuroplasticity: the idea that the brain can change because of experience.
Mylett writes that “creating new habits involves three steps: the trigger, the action, and the prize” (158). The trigger involves intentional thoughts and repetitions to create new habits. Then, you should create a new trigger that will prompt the brain and body to react in the desired way. The action is the response you have when in a heightened state of alert. The prize comes as a large dopamine hit in the brain when a new habit accomplishes a goal. This feeling further solidifies the habit in the brain. By creating a new trigger, executing a new action, and enjoying the prize, you can create one more habit that will improve your life.
Chapter 13 Summary: “One More Multiplier”
Chapter 13 talks about attracting talented people. A “one more multiplier” is someone who seeks out challenges and who propels people around them to greater success. For example, Mylett refers to Tom Brady’s championship run with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers after his dynastic tenure with the New England Patriots. Brady’s “warrior mentality” elevated his teammates’ level of play, and his influence led to their enhanced success.
Adding a one more multiplier to your team can dramatically increase success and performance in a number of ways. Mylett suggests nurturing a one more multiplier’s skills by giving them the space, resources, and authority to work outside of traditional roles. Here, Mylett is addressing a reader as a boss or leader about how to effectively utilize a one more multiplier to make their whole team better.
Chapters 12-13 Analysis
Chapter 12 deals with Achieving Goals With Neuroscience and Quantum Mechanics in greater detail. Establishing habits is a neurological and neurochemical process. By training the reticular activating system, people can intentionally alter their daily habits. Mylett grounds this idea in the theory of neuroplasticity. Mylett urges readers to take stock of their habits and evaluate their effectiveness and impact in their life. The three steps to creating new habits—trigger, action, prize—follow the theoretical and practical framework discussed throughout the book. Readers need to think about what triggers their bad habits and then think of new triggers to motivate good habits. Then, they need to act on the positive triggers and set up a prize after practicing the new habit. This sequence of thinking and doing is meant to trigger neurochemical reactions, like increases of dopamine in the brain, that reinforce good habits. Mylett also claims to use this tactic for elite performers and athletes, although no specific names or instances are mentioned. As in other chapters, Mylett avoids citing scientific research or evidence that his theories work in the real world. His authority always refers back to his own success in life.
In Chapter 13, the one more multiplier is added to the list of identities one needs to be successful. The one more multiplier is the person who attracts talented people, leads teams to success, and levels up other people’s performance. Mylett cites Tom Brady as his key figure in this chapter because of Brady’s athletic success with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers after he left the New England Patriots. Although Brady was not the youngest or the most athletic on any of the championship teams he led, he always made himself the leader, change maker, and multiplier of the immense talent that surrounded him. As such, the one more multiplier is the embodiment of The One More Mindset because they demand more from everyone around them. These individuals work harder and smarter, motivate their followers, demand better performance from people around them, and provide a vision for the future. Like the one more thinker, the one more multiplier is a leader, an identity described in detail in Chapters 15 and 16. Mylett advises readers to not only try to find a one more multiplier to learn from, but also try and become one. Adding a one more multiplier to your team relates back to Chapter 6, “One More Association.” Likewise, the one more leader is encouraged to seek out and add one more multipliers to their team. Once again, Mylett prioritizes the capacity for free will and intention in decision-making. One more leaders need to know what their teams need, who can make that improvement possible, and how they can make them better. Mylett also encourages readers to add a one more multiplier to their inner circle to level up their own game. This connection provides cohesion to The Power of One More by referencing and reengaging concepts from previous chapters. One more thinkers, leaders, impossibility thinkers, possibility achievers, and multipliers all have separate functions in the one more mindset. Readers need to keep track of and distinguish between all the one more identities as they develop and build on one another the text.
