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ButterscotchCherrie wrote: ↑01 May 2021, 13:42 The ones that referred to, say, reading the Bible weren't a good fit for me. I don't have a Bible - though I suppose I could read it on the Internet.

But I found most of them generally applicable. I loved the Venn diagram at the end of chapter 6, enabling me to find where my special talents intersect with what the world needs. I also loved the advice at the end of chapter 21 about setting quarterly and daily objectives. It's so important to use the present to build the future.

Yes, these were my thoughts exactly. I would recommend you simply ignore the religious aspects and perform the normal exercises as those were great and very helpful to me. The Venn diagram was quite fun as I had never looked at my talents or at myself in such an introspective manner.

I very much enjoy self help books that show how to implement the strategies in the book, into one's actual life rather than just leaving one in the lurch. Those sections were quite useful to me.

A bit disappointed with the overly religious tone of the book, as the author could have focused more on the actual implementation of the practices rather than the Bible teachings. The Try this section was quite nice but could have been better.

Hogwarts03 wrote: ↑05 May 2021, 07:53 I didn't agree with the entirety of the section which was a little disappointing but I did find some of the exercises at the end 9f some chapters quite helpful which I appreciate at the same time because you don't find a lot of books in this format.

Yes, it's quite rare to come across such a book where the author takes the time to input practices that could help one's life physically. The exercises were for the most part helpful.

I thought the try this was useful. These are the types of books that you really need to spend time with and work through, to have the most meaningful experience.

I agree with you on the "Try This" sections. While the premise was good, and some of the sections actually had decent suggestions, like the "5-minute stop procrastination" exercise, some of them were pretty vague. I liked the idea and the consistency of it, though.

I think the "Try This" section was the best feature of the book. You get so much more out of the material if you linger over it and spend time thinking about it instead of rushing to the next chapter. I am enjoying the exercises.

On Try this section, I think its a broad appeal per say, as it implies wether you have your own opinions, why not try this ! Life has many challenges , there is a saying which says, "There are many ways of killing a cat". Life with its intricancies need assistance .

I thought the section could be strengthened. Each section seemed to be a recap of questions or thoughts presented in each chapter. But with each chapter only a couple pages long, the recap just felt repetitive. I think this book would benefit from being an interactive journal so that readers can journal answer the questions as they go.

As far as whether they should be religious or not, I think the challenge is that the book didn't make it clear, at least from the title, that it's a religious book, which could attract many readers who are then set up for disappointment. For those who have the same beliefs as the author, these exercises and ideas can be really beneficial.

I agree with you. I found the exercises that needed one to have faith in God or to have a conversation with God to be ineffectual for me. However, I also understand that these exercises were probably very helpful for people who are religious.

As for completing any of the exercises, I'm implementing the 'getting rid of distractions' and 'not editing while writing' ones. They are definitely working and I find myself worrying less and getting more work done.

The 'Try this' sections are focussed on increasing the compliance of the reader. But if the reader disagrees with what the author says, then this section won't be of much use. But including a practical section with a clear demarcation is a unique as well as an important thing, because that will help most of the readers to choose from what to read and what to do.

I love this kind of sections in self help book. But this one, I didn't like it very much because the exercises focus on religion rather than evaluating and exercising values

Marcel Cantu wrote: ↑01 May 2021, 07:52

smolbird wrote: ↑01 May 2021, 00:21 I was excited to know that there were exercises after each lesson, but I was a little disappointed when I saw that the exercises weren't entirely focused on the "spark your dream" aspect of the book. A lot of the exercises had something to do with strengthening your bond with God or how you and others can pursue Him. I couldn't do many of these exercises as I didn't agree with the author's statements. What's your opinion on these sections? Did you complete the exercises? If you did, have you noticed any changes in your life?

I love when self help style books have an application section that allows you to implement ideas into your life. I do wish that they had been focused a little more on the dreaming aspect, but I understand where the author was coming from based on his spiritual beliefs. I think someone who shared the same faith would definitely find this section helpful

I agree. It makes sense that the author wrote about what he was familiar with, and that's entirely fair, but it's not entirely useful. I liked that he allowed you to choose which exercises fit you, though. There were a couple of prompts on writing out your fears and anxieties that helped me to challenge my doubts, and I feel better for it. Perhaps more generalized prompts could help to engage a broader audience.

The 'Try this' sections are focused on increasing the mental capability and knowledge of the reader. But if the reader disagrees with what the author says, then this section won't be of much use.

Yes, I see what you mean, but I actually get a lot out of the 'TRY THIS' sections because I recognise some methods that I use ro train; and my training has nothing to do with religion. Meyer gives actionable pointers that can be adapted to many situations, e.g. the three M's. Or, you could simply pick out the alternatives. For example, when he says:

'Instead of simply telling which Scripture passages to look up to make your point, make your point and then let people search for their own supporting Scripture', he also provides an alternative.

You can opt for the one that follows:

'Instead of pulling out a few points in an article that you want to use to make your point, let a small group read the article for themselves and pull out the points they see as key to the discussion.

I'd be loathe to ignore the book in its entirety because, although I certainly dismiss the scriptural aspects, a significant amount of the book is valuable.

To be fair, Meyer does advise on how to make the book work for you and, specifically, that you could pick and choose things that 'scratch an itch'. As to noticing any life changes, only time can