The Remarkable Story of How One Man Defied the Odds
At 18, Paul Wood thought he had lost everything. He had committed an act he knew would send him to prison for many years. To a young man like Paul, it might as well have been for the rest of his life.
Plunged into a nightmarish world of extreme violence, solitary confinement, gang allegiances, drugs, vindictive wardens and regular stabbings, Paul spent the next 11 years confined in some of New Zealand's toughest jails.
Based on an account of his experiences he wrote while still inside, How to Escape from Prison chronicles Paul's road to redemption and a new life as a doctor of psychology, helping others strive to fulfil their potential and develop the resilience to flourish, even in adversity. This is a gripping read about a man who sank to the depths of despair, before scaling the heights of true freedom.
'Paul's transformation is unbelievable. We are sometimes brought up to think a zebra can't change its stripes. Paul Wood's story is proof that anyone can change. It gives you great courage that you can do anything.'
- Sir John Kirwan
The bestselling author of How to Escape from Prison, prisoner-turned-psychologist Paul Wood on developing the mental strength and fitness to take on all of life's challenges
Getting and staying mentally fit, just like getting and maintaining a high level of physical fitness, involves hard work, effort, and consistency. Our level of mental fitness determines how effectively we can flourish through adversity, realise our potential, and be happier with our lives - regardless of what the universe has in store.
We all know about mental stress (or we think we do). We've definitely all experienced it, and none of us like it. Yet this is not a threat to be avoided. Mental stress is perfectly analogous to physical stress: it is the mind's way of telling us that what we are attempting to perform is challenging our resource. This is a catalyst for growth, and a sign we are pursuing our potential. When we experience stress, we have a choice: we can heed that signal and give up - after all, we're meant to stay in our psychic comfort zone all the time, right? Or we can recognise the discomfort we are feeling is simply nature's way of enabling us to rise to the occasion.
In Mental Fitness you will learn how to:
- Increase your mental fitness, just as you would increase your physical fitness
- Get closer to your potential by working proactively to maintain your mental fitness
- Experience the right level of stress (this is what makes us get fitter)
- Cope effectively for longer before you get fatigued or exhausted (it doesn't mean you don't feel the struggle)
- Pay attention to the indicators of fatigue to avoid burnout and unnecessary misery
