Review: Techniques for changing your behaviors and habits
Rating: 3 out of 5
Date: 12 3, 2013
I was asked if I would take a look at this particular book.  I will admit that I am not usually someone who reads self-help books.I will say that the book is written in an easy to understand fashion.  It has many good points to be made in the respect of thinking positively about yourself and your life.  I also appreciate the author's desire to break us of the habit of seeing ourselves as victims or as the party that has always been hurt.I do a lot of counseling in the realm of Pastoral work and so many times people believe they have been victims or everything is the other persons fault, it is never their fault.  Stop that thinking right now and Steve Norton hits that nail on the head.So, why only three stars if I agree with much of what he says in the first part of the book?  Well, I didn't like his hype at the beginning of the book.  He has found the answer!  He knows the truth!  He has read everything and put it all together and come up with the solution!  That sounds more like a self-help salesman than someone who wants to help us change our lives.  I don't think he is technically that type of person, but it left me with that feel.I also did not agree with the approach of simple self inflicted bad responses to our bad habits.  He talks about using a rubber band to twang yourself when you have bad thoughts or when you remember bad habits that hurt your life.I guess I am more a fan of the power of positive thinking.  I turn to scriptural responses to help people see the terrible consequences of their "victimization" or their comment, "It's the other persons fault and issue not mine."I believe that Nortons technique will work for some, but I am not a fan of it overall.Overall there are many good points that Norton makes in the book.  So, read it with an open mind, but also read it with an honest question of how this will work for you.  In the mean time, you are not the victim.  You own your life and the happiness or pain in it.