motivational

This website is about motivational prints, and also contains resources about motivational message , motivational tapes , and motivational exercises .

Title : Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion
Author : Robert Cialdini
Rating : 3 Stars out of 5.
Summary : Good, but not totally convincing or that useful

I bought this book for two reasons - one to make myself more alert to sales techniques, and two to see if there are any useful insights to glean that could be applied to other areas of life.

On both counts the book delivers. Having recently been pitched to at work by a media tracking agency and nearly taken the bait (didn't in the end) I immediately recognised the use of reciprocity and scarcity to try and harry me into signing up. That alone was worth buying the book for, and I will definitely use that insight in future.

In addition, the chapter on consistency is also very useful. I've been involved in trying (and failing) to get people behind certain campaigns in the past. As such the discussion about getting people to make small commitments to establish a self image which they then feel the need to act consistently with both rang true on a personal level, and seems like something worth trying out in future.

So why only three stars? For one I did not find elements of the book convincing. The section dealing with newspaper coverage of suicides is the bit that really troubles me. Some of the data seems both to be limited and have been interpreted quite loosely. I would need a lot more convincing that the stats are being interpreted reasonably, it looks far too rough and ready. Given that this book is really about behavioural biases surely it should be extra careful about interpretaion of data as this is something we humans tend to be very bad at, always looking for patterns that aren't there and so on. That then leads me to query the hypothesis built on top of the data and to be honest I find myself not buying it. That also makes me query whether other chapters suffer from similar flaws.

Secondly, the book isn't actually that useful once you get your head around the key techniques because, as a previous reviewer says, simply having the knowledge that you have biases doesn't make them go away. To be really useful the book should have spent as much time reinforcing ways to resist the influence of biases as it does explaining what they are.

That said it is very readable, and I got what I wanted from it, but it could have been better.

Title : E-myth Mastery: The Seven Essential Disciplines for Building a World Class Company
Author : Michael Gerber
Rating : 1 Stars out of 5.
Summary : Heavy going, heavy on psychobabble

If you're into overwrought emotional prose this ones for you.

I quote "without the passion of the soul, the mind creates an endless stream of empty suits, dreams without heart..."

or this gem

"a part of me is just afraid. that part of me feels like i'm jumping off a cliff, but in some strange way I also trust that I'll fall into something soft and safe"

After about 100 pages it starts turning into a business book again, but after wading through the cod philosphies at the start of the book I was actually angry at the author for putting me through some really badly written stuff, concerning a lady called sarah from 'all about pies' who'd lost her passion, apparently. I knew how she felt by this point in the book.

If you buy it read the real stuff at the end of the book, but really, don't encourage him.

To misquote the book I certainly felt like jumping off a cliff at times.
If only he'd have just stuck to the business. Why does everyone have to be a cod psychologist these days? Nuff said'

Title : Sink Reflections
Author : Marla Cilley
Rating : 3 Stars out of 5.
Summary : Great system - poor book

I came across Flylady last year, starting with the BabySteps, and found very quickly that I could keep my over-cluttered home clean and tidy by following these routines - this was a great help when my flat went on the market, as it would be ready for viewings with a simple 'swish and swipe' each morning!

I bought the book to help me move onto the next stage of Flylady - decluttering, zone cleaning and the control journal - but I was really disappointed. I found the book poorly laid out (the chapter on babysteps introduces a number of new steps, numbering them would have made the book easier to read and the routines easier to follow) and the tone of writing grated on me after a couple of chapters - too many references to God and how cleaning your home will demonstrate to yourself and your family how much you love yourself and them (I'm not a lazy frump with a filthy house, I'm just a busy full-time worker who can't keep on top of the housework and can't afford a cleaner). All of the recommendations in the book, and more, are already covered on the Flylady website.

The Flylady system does work, but I would recommend saving yourself a few pounds and using Flylady.net instead of buying the book. 5 stars for the system, 1 star for the book itself.

Title : The Four Agreements: Practical Guide to Personal Freedom (Toltec Wisdom)
Author : Don Miguel Ruiz
Rating : 5 Stars out of 5.
Summary : great inspirational book

A really good read! a self help book that is true and believable. it made me think!

Title : Be Your Own Life Coach: How to Take Control of Your Life and Achieve Your Wildest Dreams
Author : Fiona Harrold
Rating : 5 Stars out of 5.
Summary : Buy this

If you make the effort to do the exercises and treat the book like a 'course', it will change your life.

Title : The 7 Habits of Highly Effective Teens: The Ultimate Teenage Success Guide
Author : Sean Covey
Rating : 5 Stars out of 5.
Summary : A truly wicked book...

I picked up this book merely because I had heard a lot about the seven habits of highly effective people. I don't think I really expected to learn anything from it. I guess I was, and still am really, the archetypal know it all teenager who doesn't need any help with anything. However, this book shows you life strategies that really do work. Some of the things in it are so simple that you wonder why you never thought like that before. This is a great book for teenagers, because we are often probably more likely to listen to a book than to a person.

Title : Think and Grow Rich
Author : Napoleon Hill
Rating : 5 Stars out of 5.
Summary : ingore negative reviews of this book

It's a truly amazing book - the philosophy works.
You need to read the book at least twice, open your mind,
follow wholeheartedly what it instructs you to do and you
will have success you never dreamed of.
I first thought it strange, abstract and unconnected to
reality but when I actually tried it without prejudice I
found a whole new world outside my door. Amazing. Everyone
should have a copy of this.