The Control Freak [Paperback]

Les Parrott III (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: February 1, 2001

They're pushy. Forceful. Impatient. Always in a hurry. And they're usually ready to tell others how to do their jobs “better.” Control freaks. Maybe you know one. Maybe you are one. What are you to do? Psychologist Les Parrott (a recovering control freak) helps readers relate better to the control freaks around them. And if you are a control freak, Les will help you become willing to lose the control you love. The book includes self-tests and a lifelong prescription for healthier relationships.

Product Details

• Paperback: 208 pages
• Publisher: Tyndale House Publishers, Inc. (February 1, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0842337938
• ISBN-13: 978-0842337939
• Product Dimensions: 8.1 x 5.5 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (14 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #146,386 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Les and Leslie. A husband-and-wife team who not only share the same name, but the same passion for helping others build healthy relationships. In 1991, the Parrotts founded the Center for Relationship Development on the campus of Seattle Pacific University - a groundbreaking program dedicated to teaching the basics of good relationships.

Married in 1984, the Parrotts bring real-life examples to their speaking platform. Their professional training - Leslie as a marriage and family therapist, and Les as a clinical psychologist - ensures a presentation that is grounded, insightful and cutting-edge.

The Parrotts are New York Times #1 Best Selling Authors. Their books include the award-winning Saving Your Marriage Before It Starts, Love Talk, Real Relationships, The Parent You Want to Be, and Crazy Good Sex.

Each year Les and Leslie speak in over 40 cities. Their audiences include a wide array of venues, from churches to Fortune 500 company board rooms. Their books have sold over two million copies in more than two dozen languages.

The Parrotts have been guests on many national TV and radio programs such as CNN, Good Morning America, CBS This Morning, The View with Barbara Walters, NBC Nightly News, and Oprah. Their work has been featured in USA Today and The New York Times.

Visit their website for lots of free resources at www.LesandLeslie.com

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

44 of 46 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Handbook for Dealing with Pushy, Domineering People, December 22, 2004

By 

Sister Renee Pittelli "Author of Breaking the... (Gloryland, USA) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Control Freak (Hardcover)

Les Parrott is a Christian psychology professor and author of several best sellers. He is well-known in the Christian community and is the founder and co-director of the Center for Relationship Development at Seattle Pacific University.

I have found Dr. Parrott's writings very useful in my ministry for adult children of abusive or controlling birth-families, Luke 17:3 Ministries. In this book, Dr. Parrott teaches us how to recognize a control freak and discusses their top ten characteristics- obnoxious, tenacious, invasive, obsessive, perfectionist, critical, irritable, demanding, rigid, and closeminded.

A Control Freak has little respect for privacy and snoops in areas that aren't her business. It doesn't matter how illogical his argument or how insignificant his point, he won't let go. He often zeroes in on some minor detail and doesn't care about the big picture. Compromise is unspeakable- she is right and everybody else is wrong. She sets standards you never agreed to live by. Anything and everything is cause for a tantrum. He will make ridiculous demands and insist or coerce you into doing things his way. He uses criticism as a terrific tool to get people to do what he wants them to.

There is a Control-Freak Self-Test which will tell you if you know a control-freak. Yes or No questions include: If something isn't exactly to this person's liking, he or she reflexively points it out- even at the risk of embarrassing others; It seems that winning an argument is more important to this person than finding the best solution; and If this person doesn't get what he or she wants, you can count on a good display of anger, pouting, or the silent treatment.

The WADIT Principle is explained in a grimly humorous way. We continue forever to do something silly that doesn't make sense because of the WADIT Principle- because that is the way We Always Did It.

Various types of Control-Freaks are discussed, as well as how to cope with them, including chapters on The Pushy Parent and The Invasive In-Law. Each chapter includes a self-test so you can see if you have a Pushy Parent or Invasive In-Law. Setting boundaries, saying "No", forgiveness, identifying your own reactive style, and making decisions are all discussed. We are also taught how to tame our own controlling tendencies.

This is a very interesting and informative book for those with controlling family members, or other controlling people in their lives, and I highly recommend it.

45 of 48 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Coming from a true Control Freak..., June 19, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: The Control Freak (Hardcover)

This book gives some practical help for both Control Freaks as well as the people that live with them. Parrott has a sense of humor and the book was easy to read, comprehend and implement. I would highly recommend the book for anyone who is or who deals with a Control Freak on an ongoing basis.

31 of 32 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Necessary, January 26, 2002

By A Customer

This review is from: The Control Freak (Paperback)

Loving 3 control freaks who are in my family; this book has totally enlightened me on the "Why?" and banished my greatest fear - that I would become one too. Excellent writing kept me glued to the pages - I inhaled the entire book in two days. If you ARE a Control Freak (and that's not all bad - just needs to be redirected, which you'll learn how to do in the book) or if you love a Control Freak - READ IT - it could save your most cherished relationships.