5 comments about The Lazy Man's Way to Riches: DYNA/PSYC Can Give You Everything in the World You Really Want!.

1. I have had a copy of this book since 1995 and it has had an amazing effect in my life. Whenever I've had problems I've cracked this book open and gotten things moving ahead again! I've given many copies away to friends and family...no wonder over 3 million copies have sold! I'm a big fan of the lazy way!



2. I have had a copy of this book since 1995 and it has had an amazing effect in my life. Whenever I've had problems I've cracked this book open and gotten things moving ahead again! I've given many copies away to friends and family...no wonder over 3 million copies have sold! I'm a big fan of the lazy way!



3. There is supposed to be a companion Web site that is not available and no contact with the author seems to be available. Very frustrating. There is a companion guide that is out of print and is offered used on different Web sites for over $1,000. It's ridiculous.



4. Well, this will be a somewhat typical review that I give for an unusual book... But it will be some review. I first "bumped into" this book years ago in a little antique store in Lawndale, California called The Old Master Gallery, at first I thought the 'thing' was just a novelty to add to my collection of many books, and back then I really was "book crazy", still am, but I take most from the library read a couple of times, and if it is really good, I buy it... But most of the time I just read it a couple of times and that IS it. Anyhow, I recently found a new copy on Alibris for a lower price than on Amazon (about six months ago), so I decided to buy it. $11.95 versus $30.00 any day of the week? I know so. Especially a good book like this one. When I first got the $6.95 copy at The Old Master Gallery, I thought to myself, this is just a novelty to add to my longhair collection. I keep that original copy in storage like a "Holy Grail" item that it is with its great ideas with many of my books. But to me, the simplifying of many "complex" ideas is worth the $1,000.00 "cover price", but since it IS lower, I pay THAT, still knowing its real value. Understand what I am saying? I think you do. Indeed, this is a book that is worth something or everything to the genuinely ambitious and honestly profitive. Usually, I don't do long reviews, but this long review for this little book that costed the man who wrote it .50 cents to make in the 1970s is a most powerful statement. When he says, "Lazy Man's Way To Riches", Mr. Joseph Karbo wasn't joking, I didn't mean non-dillegent or dilettant. For you see it works like a labor-saving device such as a vacuum, versus picking up the trash off the floor by hand or whatever, that's how he meant "lazy man's way", not actual laziness. So, I rest my case right here.
   
   Captain Josh Clayton



5. I bought this book in 1974. Within a month I had started my own highly successful mail order company, which I have just sold 33 years later, having had a lot of fun. Within 18 months I was driving a Rolls Royce Corniche for which I paid cash. A big step up from the 2CV I had been driving up to that time. I cannot recommend this book too highly.
   
   I have given away many copies of this book over the years to would-be entrepreneurs.
   
   Get the origional copy as the information contained in the Nixon rewrite is of no benefit and in fact just confuses.
   
   The system is simple, but you must apply it diligently. As Charles Atlas said in his bodybuilding course. "Do not just read about the exercises, do them."

5 comments about How Do I Look?: The Complete Guide to Inner and Outer Beauty: From Confidence to Cosemetics.

1. I received this book last Xmas and it has definitely improved the way I feel about myself and how others perceive me. It is very down to earth and thus especially good for teenage girls who often are confused about what to wear. It definitely helps take all the fear girls often have about diving into clothes and makeup. This book will also help the girl who has gone overboard polish her look without loosing her sense of style. But by far the most important chapter is the last one which talks about feeling good about yourself. This book is PERFECT for correcting some of the stereotypes portrayed by magazines that emphasize money, perfection, and fads. Easy to read, interesting and good illustrations. A great pick!



2. In her book, Gale Hayman shows us how to look great. She begins by telling us about style and fabric. There are certain articles of clothing that should meet basic standards before purchasing. She gives us that criteria. From her book, I have learned: 1. How to care for my skin and not spend a fortune. 2. How to dress like a million and not overspend. When I wear a garment that was recommended from Gale's book-- heads turn. My hair isn't different, my personality hasn't changed. Most of us look good in stylish classics, the proof is in the head turning. Try it yourself and see how many glance your way.



3. As a Career Coach for women, I can't say enough good things about this book! Ms. Hayman's simple yet elegant approach is wonderful for all women, no matter what age, body type, financial status. This book is recommended reading for all my clients.



4. I love this book. Gale has written a fun , easy to read book. This book will help you get your stuff together, you will learn about clothing, makeup, jewelry and self confidence. Truly filled with style. I would recommend this book.



5. I bought this book back when it was first published. One of the tips Gale gives is to wear your clothes a size too big. Her theory is that you'll look smaller. If you watch even one episode of What Not To Wear, it's clear that in order to dress your best, your clothes must fit you, even if a tailor has to be involved. A big no-no is baggy clothes that Gale promotes in this book.

No comments about The Self-esteem Program: Inventories, Activities & Educational Handouts.

5 comments about Women's Rites of Passage: How to Embrace Change and Celebrate Life.

1. A facinating read. Really sheds some light on the importance of ritual in enriching womens' lives in this time of 'non-ritual' community living. A deep and interesting exploration by an excellent story teller. I recommend.



2. Brilliantly inspiring....This book covers so many aspects of being a woman....our struggles....our pain....but most importantly our vast ability to handle whatever unfolds along the path of life.
   Thank you Abigail!



3. I found Women's Rites of Passage to be well written and interesting. The true life stories are varied and inspiring and written from the heart. It speakes to all women of any age range and there is something in it for every women to relate to. I gave one copy to a women who had a recent death in her family and she said that it was a great comfort to her.



4. Brenner writes with great intelligence, passion and skill. This is a must read for all-whether you are going through the daily routines of life or are in the midst of challenge and extraordinary times. I just gave a copy of "Women's Rites of Passage.." to a colleague who's sister is struggling with substance abuse and mental illness and she was very thankful as Brenner's book helped ground her and got her through these hard times--This book will bring solace and interest to everyone who dares to think and view outside the box!



5. Abigail Brenner shows us the strengh of woman and thier enless ability to find ways to create passage through the challenges of thier lives. Each story is a personal and creative gem. It is a great comfort to know there is not just one way to deal with the flow of life ,it's changes and it's sorrows. All woman seem to have the instinct to create rites to honor and make sence out of the events of thier lives . In this book the stories are so vivid and evocative. As a healer and a minister I have found it a great tool and a good example of how we heal.

5 comments about The Path: A Practical Approach to Sorcery.

1. This book is an awesome account of the personal struggle of an everyday person who uses the power of sorcery to unlock her hidden potential. She shows us how to tap into our boundless potential, by shifting our perception of our visual reality. She helps to convey some of the more difficult teachings of Carlos Castaneda in a way that is easily digestible, especially to a novice to field of sorcery. I greatly appreciated her efforts. Kudos... This book is a wonderful little find..



2. It could also be called "Sorcery for dummies" or Castaneda essentials or New Millennium sorcery or ...
   Down-to-Earth grounded writing. Everything that left unclear after reading Carlos & Company. A truly sober and utilizable position of assemblage point. Must have for every Carlos fan. Thank you Esmeralda.



3. I was raised in Christian Science and thus taught from the beginning that "man is not material, he is spiritual". As a child I loved listening to the bible stories of healers and profits and discovered what "I wanted to be when I grew up". I left the church as a teen because I never saw any one doing real healing, and I found the main text book of the church useless.
   
   Near UC Berkeley there is a classic old used book store called Shakespeare & Company. One day after classes I was poking around and found a book called The Quimby Manuscripts. It was a pair of ancient beat up type-written manuscripts about the man who taught the founder of Christian Science, Mary Baker Eddy, how to heal people. I felt like Indiana Jones with a new secret map. Quimby had learned mesmerism in the mid 1800's and through his experimentation learned to heal people. He described his diagnosis method as his spiritual body interviewing the patient's spiritual body to find out what the physical problems were and how to fix them.
   
   I had recently read Life After Life by Raymond Moody about near-death experiences, which introduced me to the non-physical body. So when Quimby mentioned this sprit body I was excited and fascinated by the corroboration between the two books.
   
   I eventually read all of Robert Monroe's books about his experimentations in the non-physical body. And all of Castaneda's work with specific interest in the "double" and dreaming, and uncomfortably with the flyers or predators of man's energy.
   
   Esmeralda Arana's book is the best attempt I have found by anyone to bring all of these discussions together in one place. I love that she suggests to use these revolutionary concepts to make practical small changes in one's life.
   
   She is also the only person I have found who linked the Loosh harvesting preditor described in Robert Monroe's book Far Journeys p. 162, with the Flyers described in Castaneda's book The Active Side of Infinity p.215 The idea that man is the "top" of the food change never seemed logical to me. Why should the food chain stop with man. These descriptions of a human predator are either the most important knowledge we can be investigating, or they are fantastic science fiction.
   
   What happened to Esmeralda? my email ... rws70 AT yahoo dot com



4. Arana offers the best distillation of Castaneda's ideas of all the books now circulating on Toltec philosophy. This book provides detailed practices of a Path with Heart. The author's definitions on energy from a sorcery perpective is stunning and without equal in my opinion. She delves deeply into the manner in which Warriors accumulate energy so as to move their "assemblage points" to break free of our collective conditioning. Change is engaged using specific methods like stalking our awareness, and noting where we hold our fear. Fear from this perspective needs to be faced every moment it arises. Arana also negatively critiques "self importance" as an inhibition to freedom. When we defend our various points of view, we contribute to our own energy expenditures, thus negating our own advancement from a spiritual perspective. Moreover, Arana provides clear insight on various psychological states offering insight on working with these destructive fields like holding on to resentment.
   
   The Chapter on Lucid Dreaming is brillant and forthright! In this Chapter she provides a clear picture of what Castaneda calls the "Double." Moreover, Arana provides many examples of her own "Double" and the uncertain landscape one enters once activated. From this perspective there is risks associated with entering into altered states of consciousness for self-knowledge and personal transformation.
   
   As the book proceeds to the more esoteric propositions of Becoming a Man or Women of Knowledge, we find the crux and focus of the book: treading where many may not find the Heart to enter. The author reminds us in her verse that walking this path can be dangerous and difficult. Here is where the faint of heart usually turn back. In other words, you have to be put together pretty well to follow this path.
   
   Overall the book provides a nice blend of the author's personal experience in walking this path and the difficulties she encounters on the way. But it is a journey that leads to some astonishing vistas of Spirit for those who keep focused on the prize. And the prize is a constellation of attributes to be brought back to the people and never for oneself. This is what many of the other New Age prophets simply don't get. They think it is all about themselves, prestige, power, and money. You won't find that kind of dishonesty in the work of this author.
   
   I think anyone interested in Spirit and the challenge of personal transformation will find this book a gem.
   
   If you decide to walk it, be prepared for monumental change in your life.



5. Once in a while a book will be a milestone in my life. I read this book about 3 or 4 years ago and it's still working it's magic in my life today. That should say it all.

1 comments about Los Principios del Exito.

1. Es un maravilloso audiolibro, uno de mis favoritos. Lo puedes escuchar varias veces, y siempre aprendes algo nuevo. En El Secreto, el capitulo de El Secreto del Dinero, se refiere competamente a este audiolibro, aunque mas completo. Altamente recomendado.

5 comments about Get to Work: . . . And Get a Life, Before It's Too Late.

1. I ordered this book because I thought it was a follow-up to her first book "Get to Work: A Manifesto for the Women of the World". It isn't. It's the same book, printed with a slightly different title. If you order Amazon's joint offering of her books, you will get two copies of the same book, with different titles and cover art. The original book was thought-provoking but elitist and somewhat dry. You would be better served purchasing Leslie Bennetts' book "The Feminine Mistake: Are We Giving Up Too Much?", which addresses the issues raised in the Hirshman book in a more relatable and readable fashion.



2. The new subtitle goes for a more practical appeal to her audience rather than the overtly political subtitle of the hardcover edition. So, I provide my review of the hardcover edition of the book with the slight change by adding this paragraph and a couple of other tweaks.
   
   Hirshman called the hardcover edition a manifesto and a manifesto is by definition a political work rather than a philosophical one. It lays out principles to explain past and future actions. Here, the author lays out her dream of a revitalized militant feminism from the Betty Friedan wing and apparently holds Friedan's "The Feminine Mystique" to be a kind of modern scripture (she refers to it reverentially quite often in this booklet). She considers Gloria Steinam too right wing and Naomi Wolf only a "so-called feminist", so you have to travel pretty far left to be where she is coming from.
   
   Hirshman wrote an article for "The American Prospect" entitled "Homeward Bound" that received a great deal of attention. Hirshman delighted in the unexpected notoriety. That it was mostly negative encouraged her into believing that she had hit a nerve and that the vitriol was masking an undercurrent of insecurity.
   
   What is this all about? The author hates the idea of well educated professional women leaving the workforce to raise their children. For her, this is all but a wasted life and demeaning to women as a sex. The attention that article has received has convinced her that there is a counter-backlash and that a revitalized sixties feminism is about to arise and shake the world. This book is the manifesto of that movement.
   
   I did find one thing I agree with her about. It does seem to me that the way married couples are taxed nowadays is unfair and that people should have the right to file separately or as a married couple depending on which is better for them (although the latter half of this is only my view).
   
   In a June 18, 2006 op-ed piece in the Washington Post, Hirshman says, "Okay, I'm judgmental. That's what CBS's Lesley Stahl called me on "60 Minutes." But I'm a philosopher, and it's a philosopher's job to tell people how they should lead their lives. We've been doing so since Socrates." Well, no. A philosopher is a lover of the truth. It isn't really a job. A philosopher invites others to consider and reconsider by using reason. In fact, the title is something like the title of economist or musician or poet; it is something others call you. If you have to draw attention to your work by claiming the title, you are likely not one. It is sort of the opposite of the poker rule of suckers. If you sit down at a table and everyone doesn't see you as a philosopher, you aren't one. Oh, and by the way, a person who goes around "telling other people how they should live their lives" is really just a busybody.
   
   Hirshman's view is admittedly elitist, but in a curiously work-slave form. For her, the only life worth living is the highly paid - all consuming professional one. In the book, she considers staying at home kissing boo-boos (her phrase - as if that is all there is to raising children into wonderful people) unworthy of a woman who has a professional degree from one of the elite universities. And she uses the standard leftist escape hatch (since Marx), that anyone who thinks differently than her has a false sense of reality (the old false consciousness nonsense) and any choice you think you made is really only equivalent to a hostage making a choice with a gun to her head. Really? Wow.
   
   Admittedly, I grew up in a working class world. My Mom worked in a factory most of my life and my Dad worked construction. They told the four of us kids that they worked to provide a better life for us than they knew growing up in the teeth of the Depression. I never saw the world of the elite wealthy until I taught their children piano in their homes in my twenties. When my wife and I were married I was working the afternoon shift ten hours a day six days a week (only eight on Saturday) on the assembly line at Ford Motor Company and practicing four to six hours a day on my piano preparing to audition at the University of Michigan (I had previously done a year at Michigan State in music right out of high school). My wife worked hard for a mortgage firm. Not all lives "worth living" or lives that "flourish" come easily, regardless of the sex of the person living that life. As an aside: she advocates that professional women only have one child. How is not even replacing yourself in the gene pool a serious definition of flourishing? Extinction is really the better choice?
   
   In my reading of American History (quite different than the Socialist trajectory of Europe), it is the private lives of our Citizens that is the reality. We are all supposed to create lives for ourselves that we find meaningful. The public sector exists as a means for exchange and political discourse. It is not the definer of our lives nor is it the source of worth. Yes, you can use your participation in that sphere as a portion or even all of your personal sense of being and worth. But your desires are not incumbent upon anyone else. The notion that we owe our lives to society and to someone else's notion of betterment comes from outside our shores and is foolish beyond measure.
   
   Right off the bat, on page four, Hirshman lists five points in her "Strategic Plan To Get To Work". The first is: "Don't Study Art. Use Your Education To Prepare For A Lifetime of Work." I mean, what is that? My undergraduate degree is in music theory and piano. And I have a lifetime of work behind me. The whole purpose of a liberal arts education (so out of date in our education-as-certification society) was that it prepared free people to live a life of rich meaning. Art is one avenue to that enrichment. It seems awfully strange to close off such a path to life just to become yet one more lawyer or business professional.
   
   She then decries the old saw that says that on their deathbed no one wishes they had spent more time at the office. She points to Mozart as an example of someone whose work was so meaningful that a life devoted to his work was more important than family life. Of course, we have no such testimony from Mozart himself, his wife, or his sons. However, even if you grant her that point for this exception of an exception of an exception (you only get a few Mozart types per planet), don't you find it delicious that she pointed to an artist as her proof text?
   
   Since she felt free to make her comment about art, let me share what I have learned in my dozen years of college education earning a Bachelor of Music and an MBA from an elite public university. There is no course of study at any university with the word STUDIES in it that is a serious academic discipline. They are all political advocacy programs masquerading as intellectual pursuits and subsidized with the taxes of people who have no say in whether those politics should be taught to their children using their money. If you want to become truly educated, avoid these courses and programs. If you want to play politics, then study away in studies programs and preach your politics. Just don't delude yourself into thinking of yourself as a serious scientist or academic thinker.
   
   The narcissistic solipsism (no, this is not redundant) of this tract is a great example of why one should avoid these otherwise obscure and impotent individuals.
   
   I realize that as a male I will be prejudicially disqualified as a commentator. However, I have been married for thirty years, my wife and I have had six children together, and we have arranged our lives in such a way so we can work together and spend as much time with our children as we can. For us, it is all about the family and our children are showing those values as they mature and live their own lives. Work is to supply the means for life. Certainly, you can choose any path that interests you. This is America, after all. But not all paths lead equally to happiness. Being a professional in a cubical farm or in a dingy office (or even a well appointed one) is often necessary to provide for one's life, but makes a very poor substitute for living one. Just a little example. Recently, my youngest daughter was able to be the assistant stage manager while my youngest son and I sang in the chorus and my wife helped queue and shepherd the children's chorus in a very nice local production of La Boheme. This year we were all on stage in the chorus for La Traviata. Now, I ask you, how much is that worth? A lot more than the 100 hour weeks I worked for a couple of years. These same two kids of ours have the benefit of working on their karate with their mother and all three are have earned their second degree black belt and are now working towards their third degree. Don't think that the years of work it takes to get that are a cake walk!
   
   Let me phrase it another way. When you die, your place of work will replace you and then forget you. All your work will be superceded. Whether you are an engineer, a doctor, a lawyer, or anything else, all your work will likely be forgotten (excepting the Newton and Shakespeare types) and all your skills made obsolete. Your house will become the property of someone else, and nearly all your posessions will become landfill. The only thing you really leave behind is what is in the hearts of your children and what they value and pass on to theirs. Any other ideas of value and permanence here on earth are almost always an illusion.



3. Manages to bash both men and women who care for kids. What a lady!



4. For a tract written by someone who is a self-styled "philosopher," this is terribly argued. A few points worth noting:
   
   "Don't study art," she says, pointing to Frida Kahlo as the only cautionary tale. What is life without the arts? After civilzations and societies are gone, it is their creative endeavors that endure. In our culture, in fact, it is in the arts that women can really shine and even make the big bucks!
   
   She tries to examine why the gay movement has done "so well," while the feminist movement has fizzled. What planet does she live on? HIV/Aids is on the rise again, gays have marital rights in only two states, while so many others have actually passed anti-gay marriage resolutions, and we still have don't ask, don't tell.
   
   Telling us exactly how to live, she so benevolently allows educated women one child, because having none is too sad and having more is too crazy. Great. So you must create a family in which the future adult, after the parents pass on, will have little extended family other than possibly their own little nuclear family.
   
   She spends little or no time on the fact that our culture provides scant support for working women of all educational backgrounds or abilities. That's why it's necessary to make such painful choices. Working 10 to 12 hour days when you have children just makes life too crazy and too much of an all or nothing choice. What about the dads? A lot of them have become more helpful, but it's usually too little.
   
   She fails to note the exploitative nature of the job of full-time nanny. Just do some google searches, the articles are everywhere. Don't you think it's sad that someone has to leave their own children behind in a third world country to be paid to love someone else's children?
   
   There are lots of other points but this is enough. And no, this was not written by a "SAHM" but by a dedicated feminist. Hirschman just makes weak arguments and offers no practical solutions such as excellent on-site day care, job sharing when children are young, getting men more involved. And I'm also tired of these kinds of books that view cultural issues entirely from a white, upper-middle class or affluent lens.



5. This book is a necessary addition to the conversation regarding men and women. Those who have bashed it in their reviews have not convinced me that they actually care that women are treated as second-class citizens. Seems to me many of them prefer it that way, and resent being shown that women do need to pay attention to what they are capable of accomplishing, and what harm it can do the world if they don't bother. Hirshman rightly points out that the more women fail to become all they can become, the less progress humanity will make.

5 comments about False Roads to Manhood: What Women Need to Know, What Men Need to Understand.

1. I read your book, "False Roads to Manhood," and think it would be helpful for those struggling to be a good man in today's society, and to know that they are not alone in their struggles. Thanks for the great thought-provoking book.



2. This book has been very instrumental in the healing process and maintenance of the men and women I have shared it with. It has taught the women how to Wake Up from the Eve spirit that we so often operate in and for the Men to Wake Up and be the Modern day Adam that we as women so very much need. This book is a must for singles and married alike! Thank you Frank, for not allowing us to remain asleep during a Great Revolution!



3. Excellent book!!!!!!!!!!!!! I enjoyed this book very much It has elevated me completley. It is a must read for all but especially for men in dealing with the false identity most men have and don't even know it!!!



4. "False Roads To Manhood, What Women Need To Know, What Men Need To Understand is in essence an analytical study of the journey of manhood. Provided with meticulous precision the author Frank Chase walks the reader through many pitfalls that often times lead to brokenhearted men. This is a compelling message that provides an unmasking of false roads as Mr. Chase articulately depicts them as the
   T. R. A. D. I. T. O. N. s. of manhood."
   
   "This book is provided as a fundamental guide that will generate thought, encouraging movement to expose those hidden painful experiences that ultimately shape men. Causing them to become angry men who feel rejected, abandoned, discouraged, uncomfortable with expressing emotions, uninformed about the trueness of manhood and a host of other issues that plaque our men today. Robbing them of the chance to live the lives that they were predestined to live."
   
   "Understanding and following the six steps of manhood, which are provided in detail in this noteworthy book will be the catalyst to setting men on the right path to healing their brokenness. This is an opportunity for men to redefine their lives and get back on the life track as healed men, mind, body and soul. A chance to break free of the false traditions and reach authentic manhood. Mr. Chase has provided an excellent tool that can be utilized by men and women alike. It is indeed a wealth of knowledge that is well expressed and definitely a must read."



5. I'm still working on the last half of the book in preparation for a full review, but I've read enough to share a few thoughts.
   
   Frank Chase has some good things to say. Several times he mentions that a relationship with Jesus Christ is the only way to ever know how to "be a man." Scripture defines manhood and womanhood and without its blueprint we will always fall into error.
   
   However - Mr. Chase, when he uses Scripture passages at all, rarely interprets them correctly. He appears to have decided what's wrong with men and how to fix it, and then set out to find some Bible stories that help make his point.
   
   Also, though he does occasionally mention our reliance on Christ, most of his recommendations come in the form of self-help. Many of the chapters contain "pull yourself up by your bootstraps" kind of language that will not ultimately struggle. Even when we encourages men to rely on other men for support (a good thing) he does not explain the limits of this kind of help apart from a relationship with Christ.
   
   The author is clearly writing out of his own experience with a bad, absent father. Most of the examples of men he uses in the book also had bad or absent fathers. While his goal, of making men better fathers for their own sons, is most certainly commendable, far too much time is dedicated to blaming our dads for our current condition. Mr. Chase projects the "father wound" on to all men who fail to live up to their biblical duties.
   
   For the sake of brevity I'll leave out other criticism except one: the book is poorly written and poorly edited. Lots of typos (including chapter headings!) abound and the writing style is rambling and often unclear. The author picks a favorite word ("truancy" in the first few chapters) and bludgeons the reader with it.
   
   If you're looking for a book on this subject that is far more grounded in the Bible, easy to read (shorter!), and well-written, get a copy of "Federal Husband" by Douglas Wilson.Federal Husband

5 comments about The Art of Mingling: Easy, Proven Techniques for Mastering Any Room.

1. My thoughts after reading through this book was "It has to be a joke". At first it seems as though the author is only trying to use humor to break the ice and get the "minglephobic" out of their old ways of thinking. Unfortunately, as the chapters progress it becomes readily apparent that the author is not merely joking, and that the silly hints and lines suggested are the author's actual advice!

   For example, the ADVANCED mingling techniques in the book suggest physically bumping into people, purposely mistaking them for someone else, using foreign accents, and wearing conversation pieces (such as a feather hat). The author also instructs one for offensive escape maneuvers to preform the following: spill something on that person; step on the person's foot, or otherwise hurt him. Unless these techniques sound realistic to you (and are really possible in your world of mingling), you would be better served looking elsewhere for a more serious effort on the topic.

   In a perhaps strange twist, the text blatantly provokes the reader to lie in most situations. If I may quote directly from the book: "Being willing and able to tell a fib is the cornerstone of the art of mingling, the basis from which all techniques in this book are taught." Finally, the book is badly dated, with a whole chapter dedicated solely to mingling in the nineties.

   Sadly, the author's joke here is entirely on the reader.




2. I bought this book in hopes of picking up a few simple tips on how to mingle among a new crowd. As I read through the first chapter I was, to say the least, very disappointed with the first advice... "picture everybody naked." How many times have we heard that one? And, why am I paying money to hear it again?
   A little discouraged, I continuted to read on. Throughout the whole book it seems that all the author is teaching us is how to lie for the sake of conversation. I would hate to see what our society would become if we all side-stepped reality and only discussed 'safe' topics.
   To those of you that want some good advice on how to mingle, don't buy this book.



3. This book is a waste of time and money. I was turned off because the author actually advises you to lie and misrepresent yourself in many situations. While reading the book I spent a lot of time trying to figure out if the advice was a joke, like during the section, "Practice you mingle on a nerd." The advice is clumsy and probably won't help. If someone comes up to you at a party and says, "how's life treating you?" they probably read this book.



4. This book needs a revision and bad. This book was first published in 1992 and was first revised....never. There are a few interesting techniques in this book but they all seem a little outdated. There is even a section with old early 90's slang. Read this book for it's humor but do not take it seriously



5. I cannot understand as to why this edition has gotten so many negative comments as compared to the 2006 edition. In short Jeanne Martinet in my opinion is a clever and witty writer who has great tips for anyone who wants to learn how to be a master mingler -- notice how I said "learn" and "mingle" : these are not tips for those who already consider themselves good conversationalists or who want to learn how to win lasting friendships. I got over this distinction very quickly, and frankly I feel as though those users who gave Jeanne negative comments have yet to understand this. The whole concept of "telling white lies" does not bother me in the least. In the art of mingling telling a little lie will only catch someone's attention in a non-threatening way. This is not a social disservice or a crime against feminism. You will probably never see the people with which you mingle with again (especially if you did not hit it off with them), and if you happen to hit it off with someone, surely you should be smart enough not to tell any larger lies!
   Also for those users who encourage others to just "be themselves", this does not work for most people. I myself often feel overly-cocky in social situations, and feel that because I am fabulous people should want to come talk to me, or eventually will. This is a twisted, narcissistic logic, and never works as I have often employed these tactics at parties and have wound up spending most of my time alone. Jeanne's book has taught me to re-channel my outgoingness in a positive way and has also reminded me to pay more care to those who I am attempting to mingle with - many of her tips are reactionary to people you HAVE to mingle with, and people you don't care for. She doesn't cover it as much, but by all means if there is someone you hit it off with or enjoy their company then good for you! Be yourself! Don't lie! Truly be invested in what they have to say!
   If you do not like Jeanne's specific tactics (with which she provides ample examples) then at the very least she teaches you to be comfortable with being equally vulnerable (as most people are at parties) as well as comfortable with taking charge of your own social situation.
   I believe that Jeanne deserves many stars for her work. She is quick minded and funny and I can see her tactics working in many social settings for many people. I just don't agree with the negative comments about her work, especially about telling "white lies"... she promises to teach you to be a good mingler, one whose sole purpose is to survive and even have fun in slightly-awkward social situations. If you want to learn to make people like you forever or make true friends and "be yourself", read some other book...although I doubt that tactics of using flattery or white lies in initial contact to win someone's favor will be any different

2 comments about Conquering Insecurity: Secrets to a More Confident You.

1. This book helps to shed light on experiences, sometimes painful, which causes feelings of inadequacy, emotionally and spiritually. This book is so powerful that it is now part of our church's weekly bible study. I'll be putting in another order very soon.



2. I was very extremely disappointed in this book. I was looking forward to something that was practical and implementable and all I got was religious preaching from a woman that obviously doesn't understand human psychology and prefers to exist in the realm of religious faith. Anyone would be MUCH better off reading Dan Rutley's book "Escaping Emotional Entrapment." Even though it does not specifically address jealousy, it gives an implementable framework to address a myriad of issues including jealousy. This author misses the mark completely by taking a religious perspective rather than a clinical one.