Reading & Book Summaries

Combating shame will require more work than you can imagine. In fact, the author admits that writing this book revealed how much the he struggles with shame. Shame's power resides in the emotional state it creates regardless of the facts which caused it. This book is written from a Christian perspective, but you do not have to be a Christian to benefit from this book. In fact, the author admits he struggles with being consistent with his own beliefs. There are questions for self-exploration at the end of each chapter.

The "heart at war" focuses on self-justification, blame, and dehumanizing the "other." The "heart at peace" focuses on empathy, understanding and the willingness to see the humanity in others. Our perception is not just based on events and facts, but often are about our judgements of others and stories we tell ourselves.

Like a shadow, everyone has an imposter - it is that inner critical voice. the voice that tells you "You don't belong here." Like a shadow, mine does not look like yours. You might think that you only have success because of all your hard work, not because you are smart or know the right people. I may believe I only have success because of my connections, I am not that smart, not that hard of a worker.

In Chapter 3 the author gives the key to building better habits: behaviors with satisfying consequences will be repeated. Another interesting fact he points out: As habits are created, brain activity decreases We are wasting time and energy when we are constantly thinking about how to use our time. Time spent deciding is eating away our free time.