I’ve read a lot of self-help books over the years. A few have helped me change my life, and many have left me slightly nauseated.
Martha Beck’s “Finding Your Own North Star” is one of the best books on personal change that I have ever read. Here’s why:
- Her introduction starts with these words from a client: Right in the middle of my life, I realized that I wasn’t where I wanted to be. It was like I wandered off the wrong path into a very, very bad neighborhood. I love that description, and I think most of us have experienced this exact feeling.
- Her insights are profound yet she somehow makes them applicable.
- She’s hilarious and realistic. Here’s an example of her writing – When you’re following a direct course to your North Star, you’ll inevitably make decisions that should, by the social self’s reckoning, be scary and depressing. . . Instead, you’ll bounce around like Ebeneezer Scrooge after the ghosts finished with him: smiling at strangers . . . Bitter, unhappy people will want to slap you, but you’ll love them anyway.
- She offers incremental exercises that work with clear instructions. Unlike some authors that expect you to meditate for two hours a day and write six pages on how unhappy you are, her activities build on each other and are quick to complete.
The book has been out for a while, but if you’re looking to change direction in your life, I strongly recommend it. And, if you want to help someone else who is changing their life, I strongly recommend it. And, if you want to laugh out loud and cry occasionally, I strongly recommend it.
You get my point. If you want to buy the book, here is a link: