Sunday, November 08, 2009
Quick, A+E, Q&A
AJ Jacobs
A Quick Q&A with the author of "The Guinea Pig Diaries."
AJ Jacobs
Julie Jacobs
AJ Jacobs is the author of “The Know-It-All,” which detailed his attempt to read an entire encyclopedia, and “The Year of Living Biblically,” in which he followed every rule in the Bible. His newest book is “The Guinea Pig Diaries: My Life as an Experiment.”
For those of our readers who haven't heard of your book, can you explain the premise?
What? How could that be? [He laughs.] It’s a series of experiments that I did in my life. For one experiment, I tried to be the most fashionable person alive. Another one was to follow all the rules that George Washington wrote when he was a young man, called the “110 Rules of Civility and Decent Behavior in Company and Conversation.” It teaches you how to act, like, “Do not adjust your privates in public.”
How did you pick which experiments to conduct?
I looked for ones that would change me for the better. For instance, I have a horrible multitasking problem, like talking on the phone and checking e-mails, texting while peeing … at least, I used to. Now I “unitask,” which is a word that I made up, and try to focus on one thing at a time.
Which experiment was the worst?
Probably trying to practice something called radical honesty. You should never lie. No filter. Whatever is on your brain should come out. I would go to a restaurant with my wife and we would run into some of her old friends from college. Of course they would say, “We should get together sometime.” Then I would say, “No thanks! You seem nice, but I have no interest in ever seeing you again.”
How did the experiments affect your family life?
Well, it varied. Some parts my wife loved, and others drove her crazy. I outsourced my life for a month to people in Bangalore, India. They answered my phone, checked my e-mails and argued with my wife. She liked arguing with them. They were nice and diplomatic.
Would you recommend this to anyone else?
I actually think everyone should experiment with their lives. We get stuck in ruts, and the best way to get out of it is to jolt yourself. You don’t have to do these experiments or go to the extremes. You can try a new way home from work, or a dozen new toothpastes. Just little things.
What did you learn from the whole experience?
I learned that it’s good to experiment, to see the world from a different point of view. There is a time and a place for lying. I learned that multitasking was corroding my brain. And I learned how much my wife does around the house. I followed her for a month and it was an eye-opener. I didn’t realize how much she did.
Are you working on any other projects right now?
I’m trying to become the healthiest person alive. I exercise and eat healthy, but to the extreme. Everything from what I wear to what I say, anything. I’m working on extreme chewing. There are health benefits to it. Mom was right about completely chewing your food!—Meghan Kotowski
AJ Jacobs discusses “The Guinea Pig Diaries” at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 11 at 5 Seasons Westside, 1000 Marietta St., as part of the Book Festival of the MJCCA. Admission is $10 for members and $15 for non-members. www.atlantajcc.org/bookfestival.