By one of the great psychologists of our time, a book that shows us how we can answer the universal questions that define our lives: Can I succeed? Do I belong? Am I loved?Carol S. Dweck, PhD, bestselling author of Mindset

Discover simple psychological shifts that build trust, belonging, and confidencefrom the co-director of the Dweck-Walton Lab at Stanford University

The emotional questions we face can define our lives. If youre expecting an interaction to go wrong, that expectation can make it so. Thats spiraling down.

But as esteemed Stanford psychologist Greg Walton shows, when we see these questions clearly, we can answer them well. Known to social psychologists as wise interventions, these shifts in perspective can help us chart new trajectories for our lives.They help us spiral up.

This is ordinary magic: The ordinary experiences that help us set aside the ordinary worries of life to unleash extraordinary change.

Through vivid storytelling and insightful analysis of fascinating researchboth his own and othersDr. Walton pulls back the curtain to reveal the magic at work:

With our children: The few choice words from a parent or a teacher that builds trust and achievement.
In our relationships: How the right opportunity to reflect, for just a few minutes before a conflict conversation, can engender greater intimacy among coupleseven a year later.
In school: How learning thateveryone feels as out of place at first as you do at a new schoolthey really docan unleash extraordinary potential, improving your life a decade later.
In our policy: how a one-pageletter reducedrecidivism among kids returning to school from juvenile detention by 40 percentage points; a postcard campaign cut suicide rates in half.

Its easy tothinkproblems are out of our control.But in fact, we have vast opportunities for change. Ordinary Magic putsthe tools for change at yourfingertips.