And this is the other side of the book, the reason it is called an astronauts guide to life on Earth. To try and be an astronaut is to seek to perform a task to perfection even though it is most likely that task will never be performed by you. It is the process of learning that matters. Do everything you do as well as you can because it matters. He constantly reminds us of the phrase 'sweat the small stuff' - make sure you have every last detail covered. In our everyday lives it makes a difference to whether or not something works out as well as it should, in space it could be the difference between coming home alive or ending lives in an inferno. Landings require the same degree of focus and preparation as launching. The lesson was that the very last thing you do on a mission is as just as important as the very first. But maybe more important as now you're tired. Like the last mile in a marathon. Chris Hadfield's book is an autobiography, an astronaut's memoir, and in the first half, a self-help guidebook to developing the kind of mental attitude it takes to be an astronaut. For education, it is clear one has to go deep in subjects NASA thinks important to learn - science, technology, engineering and math. Attending the USAF test pilot school seems like a good idea too, as well as just plain WOW! In An Astronaut's Guide to Life on Earth, Col. Hadfield takes readers deep into his years of training and space exploration to show how to make the impossible possible. Through eye-opening, entertaining stories filled with the adrenaline of launch, the mesmerizing wonder of spacewalks, and the measured, calm responses mandated by crises, he explains how conventional wisdom can get in the way of achievement— and happiness. His own extraordinary education in space has taught him some counterintuitive lessons: don't visualize success, do care what others think, and always sweat the small stuff.

Access-restricted-item true Addeddate 2020-08-18 15:14:29 Boxid IA1910102 Camera Sony Alpha-A6300 (Control) Collection_set printdisabled External-identifier Hadfield is a good writer with an engaging style.... From his photos of Earth from space to his videos showing the daily grind of life on a 100-meter wide orbiting tin can, he is all about real life."— Slate P/S: I'm looking forward to read Hadfield's debut mystery thriller, The Apollo Murders. Watch this space. The Cupola, an observatory module built by the European Space Agency, had been installed on the Station. It is a thing of beauty, a 360-degree dome of windows on the world. There are trapezoidal windows on all six sides and, on top, directly facing Earth, a round, 31-inch window, the largest ever on a spaceship. It’s the ultimate room with a view, but highly functional, too: its command and control workstations enable astronauts to guide operations outside the Station, including controlling the robotic arm.

If you’re striving for excellence—whether it’s in playing the guitar or flying a jet—there’s no such thing as over-preparation. It’s your best chance of improving your odds. Being prepared for things to come is another lesson that is important for all of us but we hardly care. We all should be much better prepared for things to come. Of course no one can predict future but we are always in a good position to guess the different eventualities in various phases of our lives but we do not really care to plan ahead. We should. Dotted between the stories of Chris' years working at NASA are wonderful insights into behavior such as how to take criticism, how to learn not to worry and plan instead, how to constructively think negatively, how to keep yourself inspired and set and achieve goals. And most importantly how not to be an asshole while doing it. These lessons meant more to me than other 'life lessons' that you see in the bookstores under self-help or inspiration. This advise made more practical sense than any quote I have seen attributed to the Dalai Lama or some such. But I don't think this type of inspiration is for everyone. I think it will be most applicable to the engineering/scientist type mindset, just like Chris himself. Astronauts do survival training, on water and on land. They learn to think of success as a team sport. It takes a few years to instill the ability to work in a team productively and cheerfully in tough conditions into wildly competitive people. In zero gravity, there’s no need for a mattress or pillow; you already feel like you’re resting on a cloud, perfectly supported, so there’s no tossing and turning to find a more comfortable position.

While An Astronaut's Guide spends a lot of time on the author's attitudes and ethics, it's by no means a self help book. The text is also a candid biography, giving great insight into the years of development that went into building the career of a star (no pun intended) astronaut. Hadfield reminisces on his youth, his time as a military test pilot, and his many additional years training at NASA before ever reaching space. We learn how the intense commitment involved can affect personal relationships and family dynamics. It becomes clear that today's select few astronauts represent, in many ways, the pinnacle of humanity: it's a lifestyle that demands levels of intelligence, dedication, and both physical and mental training that very few of us could hope to successfully achieve. A lot of times the work isn’t glamorous, but that’s okay. The workplace itself is, after all, in a pretty great location.” His book is an autobiography as well as a lesson to the reader on what he's learned throughout his life and travels. And in his particular distillation of 'success,' he is wonderfully counterintuitive in his interpretation of common sense.... A startlingly intimate and warmhearted view of an arcane world, one which he makes plain even to those not educated in fields of scientific inquiry."— Ryan Downer, The California Aggie Like most astronauts, I'm pretty sure that I can deal with what life throws at me because I've thought about what to do if things go wrong, as well as right. That's the power of negative thinking.

The Book in Three Sentences

In space every day is eventful making it the stuff of dreams. The improbability if being there makes the experience transcendent. But on Earth you can choose what to focus on too - the surprises and pleasures or the frustrations. And you can choose to appreciate the smallest scraps of experience, the everyday moments, or to value only the grandest, most-stirring ones. Like Hadfield, I also believe in enjoying the small things. If we only are happy during the big positive events, we won’t be happy very often! I celebrate any small victory or beautiful everyday event so that there are things to enjoy on a regular basis. (As well as reading An Astronaut’s Guide, I also cleared, cleaned and reorganized my cookbook shelf in the kitchen yesterday—I’m spending far more time than I thought I would just admiring my handy work and celebrating cleanliness!!)

Working underwater and then in the air has at times been life threatening. But since 2014, having read this book has made that journey distinctly easier through the insights it gives into how very much more extreme challenges can be! I hate sci-fi and science, so I was pleased that this didn’t linger too much on those fronts at all. There was a lot of explanation of the crafts and procedures they do while on board, but it was actually fascinating rather than laborious to read about. It’ll especially be cool to think about in 50 years when technology has far surpassed what he describes in this book. I learned a lot while reading this book, but my main takeaway is that Chris Hadfield is a really, really nice guy. Reading similar books I often think "wow, this guy is an ass but he gets the job done, so I guess it is fine?" Hadfield has every reason to be a jerk, but his attitude and humbleness is so refreshing and contrasting when compared to a lot of people who reached his level of success. What truly surprised me is the aspect I loved most about this book had nothing to do with space travel. Sure Hadfield writes about some exciting moments; like scary incidents while spacewalking and tumultuous landings, but the real draw for me was his personal observations as to what made him a good astronaut, and essentially a successful person. He explains so many intriguing approaches to every day life, things that make you reconsider the way you do your own job or interact with others. It's all presented in his fairly matter of fact prose. There's always a slightly technical feel to the way Chris writes, but some sections like the opening chapter are beautifully written. His description of the views from space are almost poetic, indicating that his skills surpass the realm of science and qualify him as a true author.Life is just a lot better if you feel you’re having 10 wins a day rather than a win every 10 years or so”. When you have to plan for a major event in life like a launch, it's obvious it needs to be planned. But you also need to come up with an equally detailed plan for how to adapt afterward. Physical and psychological adaption to a new environment, whether in space or on Earth isn't instantaneous. There is always a lag between arriving and feeling comfortable. Having a plan that breaks down what you're going to do big and small, in concrete steps is the best way to bridge that gap. To drive that message home, we have what we euphemistically refer to as “contingency sims”—death sims, actually—which force us to think through our own demise in granular detail: not only how we’d die, but what would happen afterward to our families, colleagues and the space program itself”. It's counterintuitive but promoting your colleagues interests helps you stay competitive, even in a field where everyone is top notch. And it's easy to do when you understand that you have a vested interest in your co-workers success. In a crisis, you want to them to want you to help you survive and succeed. They may be the only people in the world who can. If you're striving for excellence whether playing guitar or flying a jet - there is no such thing as over-preparation., It's your best chance of improving your odds.