Andy Molinsky

_Reach_, I cannot imagine a more perfect title for this book.

_Break Out_ would have perhaps been more snazzy. _Face Your Fears_, to the point with a no nonsense edge. _Quit Being a Baby_....well, you get my point. But _Reach_ - whether for the stars or just beyond yourself: going from the comfort zone to the magic zone. Beautiful. Happily, the title does the book justice. To begin, author Andy Moolinsky lays out what to expect from this book using his own experiences as an example. He then issues several challenges; to you rauthenticity, your likeabilty, your competence, your morality and yes, even your resentment. Areas in which we are most likely to talk ourselves out of something in order to apease some belief or fear that may or may not be true. He then gets down and dirty with the avoidance tactics we use to hide from these beliefs and fears. Generally, we spend more time avoiding a problem (and setting ourselves up for a negative feedback loop) then it would take to just fix it and move on (cliche alert - whatever we resist, persists). After (gently) shaming us for our wimpy ways, Molinsky gives us the tools to overcome whatever is holding us back. And here is the true gem of the book, we are then guided to making this behavior a positive feedback loop - making it a part of ourselves instead of merely an exercise Perfect.

I'll be honest, I consider myself a competent person in most areas of my life but there are a couple of things that bring out my inner doormat with a vengence. This book has helped me tremendously with fixing those areas and, while a long way from perfect, I am making progress. Molinsky was inspiring; not only in being an innovative researcher in this area but also as someone who has struggled with and overcome these same issues. I found the assessment tool in the last section of the book to be particularly valuable to as it pulls the entire book into one package (as opposed to a scattershot series of exercises) and has you apply what you have learned. Brilliant. If you, like me, have struggled with your inner wimp, I cannot recommend this book highly enough… (altro)