Customer Reviews

It's Up to You: A Practice to Change Your Life by Changing Your Mind

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Karen Casey has authored 18 books, including the bestseller, Each Day a New Beginning. Her writings are often devoted to enhance your personal and spiritual journey.

In Casey's 32-year journey living in a 12-step life since she dealt with her own addition, she has helped many others with the concept of taking personal responsibility. Originally she attended Alanon because she wanted to learn how to "fix someone in her life," and while there, learned the lesson that you cannot fix others--only how you react to them. She also realized she was addicted, and since then, attends Alanon and AA meetings weekly.

This book is a simple, yet powerful daily walk toward changing your life by changing your mind.

Casey has divided our life into 12 chapters, starting with "Tend Your Own Garden." The theme of Chapter 1 is "focus on yourself." She has written a thoughtful meditation for the morning and evening of each day of the week. Although you should read page by page through the 12 weeks-however, as I moved through the book, I could see that some chapters were more powerful to my own life.

In Chapter 9, "Do No Harm," Casey writes, "We are either being helpful or not, kind or not, loving or not," - anything short of that misses the point.

I also like the concept that everyone who comes into your life is there for a reason--it is not accidental, the good and the bad. And, we have to figure out what we are supposed to learn from that person/situation.

Every week the book gives you opportunities for changes-to change YOU!-and no one else. That may be the hardest lesson for us to learn: We cannot changes others; just ourselves.

Casey is a powerful giver of positive messages, much needed in today's society with its mean-spiritedness displayed on many levels. If you need to change your life, Case show how you can by changing your mind.

Check our review on another Casey book: All We Have Is All We Need: Daily Steps Toward a Peaceful Life. Check her web site for alll her other books--including Change Your Mind and YOur Life Will Follow and Be Who You Want to Be (for tween girls).

(Listen to our audio interview with Karen Casey on our Web site.)

Armchair Interviews says: Taking responsibility for your life, and how you look at it, will be enhanced with Casey's advice and meditation.

this is a really good way to go about changing your life by reacting differently,it's easy to follow with daily recommendations and evening reviews on your progress,with a different theme each week.you find yourself thinking differently and so you react in a better way with a more positive approach

It's Up to You: A Practice to Change Your Life by Changing Your Mind is a small book with powerful possiblities to change your life in ways not imagined.

I had bought Change your Thoughts, Change Your Life...and wanted more of its unbelievable help and brilliant messages on a day to day basis, including the written "work". But I found "It's Up to You" less helpful and useful than simply re-reading many parts of Change Your Thoughts and then choosing to write on those. Perhaps I will re-visit it in 2010 but am skeptical.

It's up to you is a unique format for this genre of spiritual practice/ daily meditations. The books is divided into 12 sections, 1 section per week. There is a am reading which encourages you to reflect on the passage (typically by writing about what you have read) and then another reading in the pm which has you reflect on the days events and record how you did with the daily principle which you read about that morning. It is very important to keep in mind the title of the book while you are going through the 12 weeks. To get the most out of the readings it is wise to do the suggested writing and reflection every day. One reviewer stated they were skeptical but still willing to give the book another (I am guessing they did not do the work the first time through) try. There really is nothing that one should be skeptical of in the book. The author is not pushing religion or trying to sell you anything. She Merralee writes about principles that are timeless and I would bet there is not a person in the world who would argue what she writes is actually harmful for someone instead of helpful. All of the advice is basic common stuff like "don't try to control other people, places or things" (one of the main focuses of week 1) or "detaching from outcomes is perhaps our primary work everyday" this stuff is not something I think anyone should or could be rationally skeptical. But this is a book which requires work on your part.

The 12 weeks are filled all 7 days of the week twice a day, this does require a commitment from the reader if they plan on getting the intended benefits. However, I think the book is also useful if you would rather randomly pick a day and focus on that particular principle whenever you feel the need to have a greater awareness of healthy behaviors. But the persistence of doing the work everyday for the whole 12 weeks is where the benefits the author was aiming for will be found.

I haven't read her other books but I have read daily meditation books every day since I entered sobriety (4 years). Actually I have 4 meditation books each year that I read every day for a total of 16 different books (December 31st I will finish my 16 meditation book). This is the only one that has been in this format and I have really enjoyed it. Most of the books pose a task to follow through on during the day but I haven't usually done those becasue they often involve talking with your sponsor or other people about things. That is not inherently bad but it is much more challenging to follow through with then the writing suggested with this book. That is becasue with this work it is all personal, she doesn't have you chasing people around etc...

If you are looking for a book that will help you gain some insight into your destructive behaviors and you are willing to commit to the 12 weeks, this is a great choice and 1 I would recommend. If you are looking for a book that will change your behaviors magically after reading the pages, you will be very disappointed with this book. after all the author tell it straight from the very beginning "It's up to you".