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dunguyen's review against another edition
3.0
The Inner Game of Stress is kind of a weird book. It's simultaneously unhelpful and helpful at the same time and I have a hard time making up my mind how useful it is for me.
The Inner Game of Stress follows Gallwey's other and more known book, The Inner Game of Tennis. This Inner Game franchise essentially builds upon Gallwey's thesis that there we have a duality in us, a Self 1 and a Self 2. Self 1 criticizes, judges, reasons. It's the conscious part of our brain. Self 2 is the one who does things. So something of a subconscious. Gallwey's method is to let Self 2 drive more of the time instead of always using Self 1. Let Self 1 set a direction, let Self 2 get you there.
This is the same model used to describe stress. Throughout the book the model is applied to stress and then some tools are given to deal with stress. The tools are nothing that can't be found in other self-help books and shares a lot of overlap with modern CBT and stoicism (stop the automatic loops, reframe situations etc.) so the advice is valid enough I feel. On the other hand the book pushes the Inner Game thing too much and feels very unscientific as anecdotes and the association of two doctors are apparently the proof that it works.
It's an interesting book though I think the Inner Game of Tennis was more profound somehow, reading that and extrapolating out myself feels to be more valuable than reading this book. Perhaps I've read so many of the similar books that I can't really be surprised of any of the content anymore, it's merely a different way to tell me what I already know, in that case it's not a completely useless read.
The Inner Game of Stress follows Gallwey's other and more known book, The Inner Game of Tennis. This Inner Game franchise essentially builds upon Gallwey's thesis that there we have a duality in us, a Self 1 and a Self 2. Self 1 criticizes, judges, reasons. It's the conscious part of our brain. Self 2 is the one who does things. So something of a subconscious. Gallwey's method is to let Self 2 drive more of the time instead of always using Self 1. Let Self 1 set a direction, let Self 2 get you there.
This is the same model used to describe stress. Throughout the book the model is applied to stress and then some tools are given to deal with stress. The tools are nothing that can't be found in other self-help books and shares a lot of overlap with modern CBT and stoicism (stop the automatic loops, reframe situations etc.) so the advice is valid enough I feel. On the other hand the book pushes the Inner Game thing too much and feels very unscientific as anecdotes and the association of two doctors are apparently the proof that it works.
It's an interesting book though I think the Inner Game of Tennis was more profound somehow, reading that and extrapolating out myself feels to be more valuable than reading this book. Perhaps I've read so many of the similar books that I can't really be surprised of any of the content anymore, it's merely a different way to tell me what I already know, in that case it's not a completely useless read.
im2bz's review against another edition
4.0
Although most of what was written seemed like common sense to me, there was a lot of very interesting information. The book offered a fresh and different perspective on stress management.
lschmidt's review against another edition
Let me begin by saying I'm not a big fan of self help books. I think most of them say what we already know, and are therefore a waste of money; however, this book may help you realize what you don't know, or believe what you do.
Every morning when I come to work, my stomach starts to ache and rumble and becomes bloated. I told one of my closest friends and he suggested I go see a gastroenterologist, which I've been saying I would do but never had a chance to. My mother, on the other hand, said it had something to do with stress. Of course, I didn't believe her. Since when does stress cause physical pain and discomfort?? Apparently, since always. Timothy Gallwey, with the aide of real patient case notes gathered from two brilliant doctors, describes how stress can and will cause physical symptoms. Stress can kill, believe it or not.
Gallwey presents a variety of tools and exercises we can use to overcome whatever difficulties are keeping you from being happy. I used the STOP technique to notice what I'm doing when my discomfort arises, I've realized it only occurs when I'm at work. It makes sense because I don't like my job. In fact, I feel like the only person I'm helping is my cheap, selfish, inconsiderate boss and I've always said I wanted to make a difference in the lives of many ... not just one greedy bastard.
It's amazing to see how "The Inner Game" can help you improve your swing in tennis, your score in golf and your overall happiness in life. I highly recommend it for anyone who is dealing with stress or anyone who wants to have a better outlook on life.
Every morning when I come to work, my stomach starts to ache and rumble and becomes bloated. I told one of my closest friends and he suggested I go see a gastroenterologist, which I've been saying I would do but never had a chance to. My mother, on the other hand, said it had something to do with stress. Of course, I didn't believe her. Since when does stress cause physical pain and discomfort?? Apparently, since always. Timothy Gallwey, with the aide of real patient case notes gathered from two brilliant doctors, describes how stress can and will cause physical symptoms. Stress can kill, believe it or not.
Gallwey presents a variety of tools and exercises we can use to overcome whatever difficulties are keeping you from being happy. I used the STOP technique to notice what I'm doing when my discomfort arises, I've realized it only occurs when I'm at work. It makes sense because I don't like my job. In fact, I feel like the only person I'm helping is my cheap, selfish, inconsiderate boss and I've always said I wanted to make a difference in the lives of many ... not just one greedy bastard.
It's amazing to see how "The Inner Game" can help you improve your swing in tennis, your score in golf and your overall happiness in life. I highly recommend it for anyone who is dealing with stress or anyone who wants to have a better outlook on life.
katieisallbooked's review
4.0
I read [b:The Inner Game of Tennis|905|The Inner Game of Tennis|W. Timothy Gallwey|http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/41ZDUS2AHQL._SL75_.jpg|5127] at the recommendation of my tennis coach several years back. I remember enjoying it so I was excited to receive this book from a giveaway here at GoodReads. I wasn't disappointed. I read this book in just a few days and completed the exercises along the way. It never felt like work, but I still felt like I learned a lot about myself and about stress. The writing was never technical, but the case studies and medical information were a great compliment to the theories and ideas about stress that were presented throughout the book.
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