About the book

I was afraid that this book was might be one of those self-improvement books that the market is filled with. No, it’s not.

How was the book?

This is a very elegant book – filled with beautiful and human thoughts. It has 168 pages and the book will create a flow or pull of pages when you read it. The concept is that Gordon Livingston presents ”thirty true things you need to know now”. He does not argue anything and especially does not present any scientific evidence to back-up his ”thirty true things”. The ideas are wisdom of an elderly therapist. You either believe or you don’t believe in the ideas. Having said that – these words will certainly put you think about his ideas.

Somehow Livingston’s book reminds me of Viktor Frankl’s book about ”Man’s Search For Meaning”.   

What are the key learnings?

Gordon Livingston has identified ”thirty true things you need to know now”. I won’t be going through all of those. You have to pick and choose your own favorites. But my favorites are:

·       Only bad things happen quickly.

·       There is nothing more pointless, or common, than doing the same things and expecting different results.

·       High tolerance for boredom.

Actually the last idea is not from the original list, but I took the liberty on pointing it out. Why? Livingston states that it is the most common answer to the secret to a successful marriage. I suppose that people need assurance that life might be seen as dull, but boredom actually totally normal feeling in the long-run. You just have to re-define boredom and make it meaningful.   

Only bad things happen quickly is a sinister idea, because we hope that good changes come quickly, but obviously that’s not the case. Patience and determination are ”life’s primary virtues” when you are looking for happiness-producing processes in our lives, because those take a long time. Only bad things happen quickly is also a sinister idea if you are not prepared for changes.

There is nothing more pointless, or common, than doing the same things and expecting different results idea is a great idea. Without further analysis I can state that it fits well into our protestant work ethic.    

Minor notions which might be helpful:

·       It is hope that I’m really selling.

·       We get what we expect.

·       Selective attention and a sense of humor helps to survive.

·       Past behavior is the most reliable predictor of future behavior.

·       Happiness is built from someone to love, something to look forward to and something to do.

Why do I think this book is worth the time? Because the thinking of the book which is filled with mundane ideas how to survive. No, nothing truly genial scientific analysis nor theories. Only ordinary ideas about survival, hope and happiness. Things that we all can access and most of us even can deploy whenever we want. Forget measuring the ideas – just rely on your feelings.

How should we change according to the book?

·       Be prepared.

·       Endorse patience and determination.

·       Suriving is easy – just remember to love, laugh and tolerate the uncertainty.

What should I personally do?

Read this book once a year.

Summary

The book in ”six” words – Whining is the beginning of the process.