Grappling with her lifelong phobia of anything slick, cheesy, or remotely claiming to provide self-empowerment, Beth Lisick wakes up on New Year's Day 2006 with an unprecedented feeling. She is finally able to admit to herself that she's grown tired of embracing the same old set of nagging problems year after year. She has no savings account. Her house feels unorganized and chaotic. She and her husband never hang out together. The last time she exercised regularly was as a member of her high school track team almost twenty years ago.
Instead of turning to advice from the abundant pool of local life coaches, therapists, and healers readily available on her home turf of northern California, Beth confronts her fears head-on. She consults the multimillion-dollar-earning pros and national experts, not only reading their bestselling books but also attending their seminars and classes. In Chicago, she gets proactive with The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People. In Atlanta, she tries to get a handle on exactly why "women are from Venus," and in a highly comedic bout on the high seas of the Caribbean, she gamely sweats to the oldies on a weeklong Cruise to Lose with Richard Simmons.
Throughout this yearlong experiment, Beth tries extremely hard to maintain her wry sense of humor and easygoing nature, even as she starts to fall prey to some of the experts' ideas, ideas she thought she'd spent her whole life rejecting. Beth doesn't think of herself as the typical self-help victim. But is she?
Customer Reviews:
Avg. Customer Rating: 4.0 / 5.0
Neurosis with a Wry Smile:
As an admitted self-help-book junkie, I adored this book! The author has a perceptive, incisive, and sassy writing style that I thoroughly enjoyed. It was like having a good conversation with your smart-alecky best friend. It's a laugh-out-loud read for those of us still searching for that key to unlock the mysteries of this messy, challenging, and confounding life, but hopefully finding lots to laugh about (especially ourselves).
HELP yourself to BETH LISICK's insight!:
I had read an impressive review of this book, which made me consider checking it out. After all, where could you see 10 different approaches to improving your life in one place? It was especially intriguing since I could have the advantage of the author's experience without the aggravation of going through all of the self-help options myself! And, I might even get something positive out of her revelations. That is exactly what this book is....Beth's account of trying out the suggestions of nearly... more info
Quite readable and sometimes laugh-out-loud funny:
Beth Lisick spent 2006 improving herself. Or at least working her way through the bestselling advice of ten renowned self-help gurus. Her book is divided into twelve chapters, one per month, including two nominal, page-long chapters for July and August, during which she essentially took a vacation from the project. In most cases Lisick read a book of advice by her current month's guru: Jack Canfield of the Chicken Soup series, John Gray's Men Are from Mars, Women Are from Venus, The 7 Habits of Highly... more info
beth lisick rocks!:
this is a laugh out loud book. I know because I read it and I laughed out loud. But it also has a lot on its mind, and it has a great big heart. ms. lisick has a fantastic, page turning style which keeps you coming back for more. It's like she's the greatest houseguest ever who keeps telling you these amazing stories, and who you hope will never leave. And if you ever get the chance to see her perform, do yourself a favor, go.
