I often find myself saying “What am I going to do?” or “I don’t know what to do!”. In my search for answers to these questions I have found myself reading a large number of self-help type books. They often serve to inspire me to action (if only for a short while). This is probably why I was so drawn to my latest read by Barbara Sher entitled: “I Could Do Anything, If I Only Knew What It Was.”
I knew immediately upon seeing the title that this book had to have been written for me! I have so many talents and aptitudes but I just don’t know what to do with them. While this book is definitely not new on the market it held some very timeless and appropriate advice.
I was a little skeptical at first because Barbara suggests some unusual exercises in thought and imagination. For instance, one of the first steps was to write down everything you hate about all the jobs you’ve had. Upon actually completing these exercises I found myself the proud possessor of some very honest and eye opening insights into what I really want to do with my life and what truly motivates my actions and decisions.
The other thing that concerned me at first was it seemed like the book was going to blame everything on my parents, which is something I really don’t like doing (despite their obvious flaws I am deeply defensive of their honour). Fortunately I decided to overlook my initial feeling to reject the book out of hand and I discovered that there was quite a lot for me to learn in the area of my formative years. Barbara points out that we are all the way we are for very good reasons, and once we discover what those reasons are, we can learn to respond to ourselves differently.
I Could Do Anything, If I Only Knew What It Was turned out to be one of the most helpful books I have ever read for getting practical advice and strategies for overcoming barriers to progress. It was hard to find a page that I didn’t see something I could relate to my own struggles.
Barbara Sher has a website with links to all of her books and some of her other inspirational materials. I highly recommend checking her out! I myself am looking forward to reading another of her books!
If you check out her books let me know what you think!
If you have suggestions for other books to check out feel free to share!
~Elena <3
