media reviews
Evolve
We make wishes when blowing out birthday candles or when throwing a penny into a fountain, but often these rituals are followed by secrecy. We’ve all been told to keep our wishes to ourselves, or they won’t come true. After reading Five Wishes: How Answering One Simple Question Can Make Your Dreams Come True (New World Library, 2007), you’ll think twice before keeping your wishes secret. In Gay Hendricks’s guide to personal growth, he reveals a metaphorical question that changed his life: When you are on your deathbed, can you say your life was a complete success? Wishing to share his newfound gift to living, Hendricks offers suggestions to turn your concealed values into present day goals. To do so, his book is equipped with an interactive worksheet where you answer this question by writing down what you want most, whether it’s lifelong happiness or your current desire to lose fifteen pounds. The process invites you to clear your mind, rid yourself of limiting beliefs (like I am too old), and make a written agreement that commits you to fulfilling your lifelong wishes. The valuable book will ultimately rid you of “what if” statements that hold you back, enabling you to keep moving forward.
How often do you think of an idea, get distracted with daily tasks, and ultimately forget what your original thought was? Our life lists go through a similar vanishing act by getting lost in the “junk drawers” of our minds. The Greatest Secret of All: Moving Beyond Abundance to a Life of True Fulfillment (New World Library, 2008) will have you transforming your mind mess before you reach the last page. Inspirational speaker, musician, and author Marc Allen’s poetic narrative reveals four steps to personal manifestation: dream, imagine, create, and believe—each followed with simple instructions to apply these abstract concepts to yourself. To begin, Allen asks you to write out your mind vows into detailed “Ideal Scenes” or a comprehensive list of goals, which he then refers to on a personal level throughout the rest of the book. This easy read will jumpstart your goal-oriented journey with questions that help you clear out your cluttered life itinerary, putting your ideas and thoughts into action (like writing a goal on your calendar to give you a deadline to complete your task). The essence of this short, but powerful book will change your New Year’s resolutions into lifelong declarations.
—Talia Goldenberg
Jan/Feb 2008
