ABOUT THE BOOK

As Seen in The New York Times!

Toddlers hold the secrets to having more fun and living a fulfilling life. It’s true! In the first book to offer adults important lessons that can be gleaned from toddlers—as backed by science—a Harvard-trained physician helps us rediscover what we once knew.

Terrible twos, temper tantrums, and grocery store meltdowns are usually the first things that come to mind when people think of toddlers. But pediatric emergency medicine physician and researcher Dr. Hasan Merali has long thought toddlers are among the best people in our society and adults could do well to learn from them. They can teach us how to:

• Lose weight naturally
• Sleep better
• Build stronger friendships
• Improve teamwork
• Be more productive
• Have more fun, and
• Live a more fulfilling life

These extraordinary youngsters can be impulsive, but with this comes a remarkable ability to take risks and ask questions—two qualities that can help us enjoy life more. Toddlers act kindly toward strangers, are eager to work with others to solve problems, and demonstrate extraordinary dedication and perseverance. These are all traits that many of us aspire to have in order to improve both our personal and professional lives.

Dr. Merali includes many humorous examples from his experience as a pediatrician and father, but the core lessons are drawn from two decades worth of fascinating and surprising studies in child psychology and development. Merali connects these studies to research about adults to create the first book to offer adults research-backed lessons that can be learned from toddlers. Since toddlers aren’t able to formally communicate their most important lessons or impart their own innate wisdom, this book uses their actions as examples to guide your self-improvement journey.  

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Hasan Merali, MD, MPH, is an associate professor in the Department of Pediatrics, McMaster University and a pediatric emergency medicine physician at McMaster Children’s Hospital in Hamilton, Ontario. He received his medical degree from Harvard Medical School and Master of Public Health degree from Johns Hopkins University. His research focuses on child injury prevention in low- and middle-income countries. He has published more than 25 peer-reviewed journal articles and his writing has been featured in Science, the Boston Globe, NBC, CBC, and Popular Science. Dr. Merali lives in Oakville, Ontario with his wife and their toddler daughter. 

TALKING POINTS

• Toddler traits that adults should emulate 
• How understanding toddler behavior can improve adult sleeping and eating habits
• The teamwork and interpersonal relations lessons we can learn from toddlers
• The science of toddler psychology and development
• The remarkable traits we lose as we grow to be adults, and the importance of getting them back
• Surprising stories from the pediatric ER that demonstrate kindness and risk taking
• The toddler focus on learning and how this can help us ask more questions
• Lessons in workplace leadership from toddlers
• Talking to yourself, like toddlers do, can improve every aspect of your life
• Learn to say “No!” from a pro: a toddler