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85 reviews for:
The Tools: Transform Your Problems into Courage, Confidence, and Creativity
Phil Stutz, Barry Michels
3.45 AVERAGE
85 reviews for:
The Tools: Transform Your Problems into Courage, Confidence, and Creativity
Phil Stutz, Barry Michels
3.45 AVERAGE
Mr. Stutz places himself in that grand pantheon of truly gifted psychologists (such as Carl Jung, William James, Irvin Yalom, Fritz Perls, Viktor Frankl, and Richard Schwartz) balancing depth and need of meaning through transcendence and the need for healing in the present. We would all be better off if our understanding of ourselves aligned with Stutz view of humanity and healing. Wisdom and pragmatism are rarely this balanced.
challenging
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
I kind of really liked this book but also have reservations about a few things tbh. I have been using some of the tools - they are really helpful and some of them feel familiar. I don’t think my life will change just because of doing these 5 things, but they are helpful for thinking about my existing patterns and believes in a new way.
I find the overall tone of the book really irritating and struggled with some of the final chapters discussion of a ‘new spirituality’. It feels like a horrible attempt at making connection to God/ Spirit/ the universe bland and digestible for a general public that is very privileged. I really hope the future of spirituality and society in general is more interesting, multifaceted and anti-capitalist than the predictions in the final chapters of this book.
I find the overall tone of the book really irritating and struggled with some of the final chapters discussion of a ‘new spirituality’. It feels like a horrible attempt at making connection to God/ Spirit/ the universe bland and digestible for a general public that is very privileged. I really hope the future of spirituality and society in general is more interesting, multifaceted and anti-capitalist than the predictions in the final chapters of this book.
I would say three and a half stars honestly. The ideas in here are great and do have ways that would definitely help me in the future, but it leans into spirituality way too much, and I feel like that shouldn’t be the main priority in a self help book.
Was good, I like the tangible tools, otherwise nothing brand new or mind blowing.
After watching the documentary Stutz I wanted to learn more about the Tools that we can use in life to help us move past difficult times in our life. This book was a great addition, but I did skim a handful of chapters due to the similarities of the film.
challenging
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
I watched the documentary on Netflix "Stutz" first and was intrigued by the tools presented in the movie. Then I got this book and wanted to learn more and found the movie has done a better job maybe just because I am a visual person.
The Tools:
- The Reversal of Desire
- Active Love
- Inner Authority
- The Grateful Flow
- Jeopardy
The Higher Forces:
- The Force of Forward Motion
- Outflow
- The Force of Self-expression
- Gratefulness: this is the source of all higher Forces
- Willpower
Just like the book said, it is not enough to know about the higher forces, you have to experience them. It takes practice, more practice and more practice to achieve that.
The Tools:
- The Reversal of Desire
- Active Love
- Inner Authority
- The Grateful Flow
- Jeopardy
The Higher Forces:
- The Force of Forward Motion
- Outflow
- The Force of Self-expression
- Gratefulness: this is the source of all higher Forces
- Willpower
Just like the book said, it is not enough to know about the higher forces, you have to experience them. It takes practice, more practice and more practice to achieve that.
Plenty of good nuggets, so I'm giving it a high rating even though I don't believe them for the reasons the authors clearly hope I will.
Another reviewer pointed out that techniques should be double-blind tested before they become treatment standards. Totally agree! But also, gratitude and loving meditation practices have been studied quite a bit, and they make people feel better.
Basically: "The Tools" are useful practices. They're all already things I've incorporated into my life in some form before reading the book. The book gets very heavy-handed by the final portion so don't worry if you don't finish this one. However, funnily enough I have a pretty similar approach to spirituality (I don't believe in it but know some of the practices feel good so I do them anyway).
Another reviewer pointed out that techniques should be double-blind tested before they become treatment standards. Totally agree! But also, gratitude and loving meditation practices have been studied quite a bit, and they make people feel better.
Basically: "The Tools" are useful practices. They're all already things I've incorporated into my life in some form before reading the book. The book gets very heavy-handed by the final portion so don't worry if you don't finish this one. However, funnily enough I have a pretty similar approach to spirituality (I don't believe in it but know some of the practices feel good so I do them anyway).
Repackaging well-known therapy interventions from CBT and third-wave approaches as novel and revolutionary and one-of-a-kind is just silly…