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Summary: Simple Steps to Help alleviate STRESS tremedously
Review: You only need to read the table of contents of this book & you'll feel better already. I have done so prior to purchasing the book & was immediately intrigued. Wonderful book for those who don't have the time to read. I recommend it URGENTLY!!!
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Summary: If You're Dumber Than a Fish...
Review: A colleague raved about this book so much that I read it merely out of curiosity. I no longer speak to that colleague.If you're dumber than a fish, this book is for you. If you can't handle sentences with more than five words in them, you'll love it. If you consider "STOP" signs to be intellectual, this title will entrall you. There is more depth and intelligence in "The Cat in the Hat" than in this ...piece ...! So if you actually plan to read it, get a paper bag. Either wrap the paper bag around the book so nobody knows what ...you like to read, or put the bag over your head so nobody knows who ...thinks this is worth his/her time!
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Summary: Required reading for angry aggressors and cherubic creatures
Review: In the 1950s two American scientists studying coronary-prone personalities defined what they called Type A and Type B personalities; in the 1980s the study of cancer-prone personalities yielded an additional Type C. Extreme Type A personalities are characterized by a free-floating hostility, aggressiveness, competitiveness, a constant sense of time-urgency, impatience and a constant striving for ill-defined goals. Just think of a choleric person you know. Extreme Type C personalities, on the other hand, suppress strong emotions, comply with the wishes of others, lack assertiveness, avoid conflict and behavior that might offend others, they obey conventional norms of behavior and maintain an appearance of niceness; stoicism and self-sacrifice appeal to them, their approach to life is outwardly calm and unemotional, and they have a tendency to feelings of helplessness and hopelessness. Richard Carlson has something to tell both of these types. His message is: become more sanguine, more forgiving and accepting of yourself, more laid-back, unaggressive, and easy-going; be the driver, not the driven; in short, become more like a typical Type B personality. Richard Carlson's 100 suggestions how to slow down to the speed of life (incidentally, the title of another of his books) and how to focus on what is important are valuable reminders and great common-sense advice sprinkled with small bits of Eastern wisdom. Carlson does not push any theories or New Age stuff at the reader; he simply says, here are some things you might try and see if they work. If they do, practice them. Practice makes the master. To give an example of a typical suggestion by Carlson: if you face an angry, aggressive person, imagine the person as a tiny infant and as a 100-year old adult; it will give you some needed perspective and compassion. That's true. When I underwent military training, the recommendation was that whenever the drill-sergeant yelled at me, I should picture him naked instead of resorting to some typical Type A or Type C behavior. It worked quite well. The yelling usually stopped with the comment "get that smirk off your face".
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Summary: What about the "big stuff"?
Review: For the most part I enjoyed reading Richard Carlson's book. I've always thought that sweating the small stuff is a major problem in life and that putting things in perspective is an important element in being happy. It was gratifying to have some of these feelings reinforced. Many of his exercises were actually already part of my way of life, but there were also many new ideas that were interesting and helpful. The main problem I had with this book was that it was too one-sided. Carlson's overall message is suitable for those folks firmly entrenched in the upper-middle class. But for those of us who are still down there with the masses, struggling to make ends meet, Carlson's book is a little too laid-back. What do you do for instance when your're faced with the dilemma of having to work longer hours so you can put your children through a great college (which they deserve to go to), but because of those long hours you have no time to be with your children in the first place? What do you do when a colleague at work or a neighbor is constantly overstepping his teritory and even though it's not that big a deal, it's really beginning to get you down. These are tough problems- "big stuff" -that involve making tough decisions. Putting these problems in perspective is definitely helpful, but being laid back and accepting is not necessarily the way to go. By the way, another exercise could have been added to the book. How about - "Lose your temper at least once a month". That at least will help you get out some of the frustration of having to take out the trash everyday!
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Summary: A reminder of what's really important in life
Review: One of the most important books I have ever read. Its commons sense wisdom is extremely comforting and the philosophy of life that this wisdome comes from is very empowering. After reading "Don't sweat the small staff... " I bought every single one of Richard Carlson's books (my favorite ones were "You Can Feel Good Again : Common-Sense Therapy for Releasing Depression" and Changing Your Life" , "Shortcut through therapy" and "You can be happy no matter what".) I was not depressed but I was trying to stop smoking. This was my nineth try. His prospective helped me immensely. I truely don't know if I could have done it without the books. To this day I often pick one up and start reading some of my favorite parts.
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Summary: A Life Changer !
Review: This book changed how I view life! Richard Carlson's way of gently reminding me of the importance of a softer approach to life has added years to my life and saved me countless wasted hours of stress. Whenever I feel as if my life is becoming overly stressful or my priorities are out of line, I read one of the chapters in this book and inevitably I am amazed at how I read something newly and uniquely applicable. This book was a gift in my life.
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Summary: Filled with helpful advice!
Review: This is a fantastic book that is filled with advice on how to live a more rewarding and fulfilling life. While little of the advice is new, it is extremely helpful and serves as a reminder to not let little annoyances and inconveniences get in the way of life. Richard Carlson does an excellent job of presenting the material in a way that's fun and informative at the same time. This book is packed full of strategies that any and everyone can use anytime, anywhere. Some of the strategies included are setting aside quiet time each day, learning to look at problems as potential teachers, ignoring negative thoughts and many more useful tips! This book can be read cover to cover or used as a reference manual when life becomes too overwhelming. By reading these effective strategies, one can almost feel their blood pressure dropping. Highly recommended!
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Summary: Philosophy of Small Stuff
Review: I have always had a philosophy in life, and I've had a difficult time in describing how I want to live my life. THIS BOOK IS IT!! Finally a way to show the people I care about in life. "to Be like Mike" well in this case "Charlie" Thank you for a wonderful book Charles Harvey
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Summary: GOOD ADVICE, BUT NOTHING NEW!
Review: The content contained good advice so I will give the author credit for that; however, I found much of the material to be little more than good old-fashion common sense with a few "cliches" thrown in for good measure. Little of the material was so new or sensational that most of us have not heard or read it before in similar self-help books. It is standard advice I have been advocating in my classes for years. "Learning to live in the present" and "living each day as if it were your last," is, without question, sound advice. However, statements of this nature, and many others found here, are so "old hat" they could be considered redundant. There are certainly other quality books in existence which I would recommend before this material.
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Summary: Wow! Surprisingly good!
Review: After reading some longer books like The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People and First Things First, I expected this book to be a lightweight popular psychology with some worthwhile platitudes and witty observations, but nothing major. I was pleasantly surprised! This book is really well-written. I will be reading it more than once. I found some powerful and lifechanging new perspectives and it is already helping me to be a calmer, happier person. While a few of the points it made paraphrased concepts from other wisdom literature (like the Seven Habits), those points are still true and the author shed new insight on them. I highly recommend this book to anyone who tends to be made overly anxious by everyday circumstances, or who simply wants to become better at "living in the moment."
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