Customer Reviews

Only Nuns Change Habits Overnight: 52 Amazing Ways to Master the Art of Personal Change

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

 

 

Author Karen Scalf Linamen offers 52 practical ways to change habits that stall women from achieving their dreams and goals. Her writing style is humorous and easy to read, and she is able to instill a positive attitude in the reader that indeed makes you think you can apply these steps to various life situations.

The greatest drawback to the book is that there are 52 ways to change habits. This is a great deal of information to actually use, even to sift through and choose what works best for each individual reader.

It is a good book to casually read and take away practical information for making simple but impactful changes in your life.

Karen Scalf Linamen has some questions for the reader. What changes do you want to make in your life? Are you missing out on something? Ever thinK, "I can't do that." She knows change doesn't happen over night and it takes a real determination to choose to change and to follow through on that decision. She lists fifty-two life changing actions the reader can put to use in his or her own life. Lots of good advise writen with a humorous style that will engage the reader from page one to the end. Fun, witty, and wise.

Only Nuns Change Habits Overnight by Karen Linamen is the perfect book to start reading at the beginning of the year. There are hundreds of books out there that will tell you just how to fix your life: budgeting, diet, exercise, self-improvement, etc, but the reason there are always more of these books is that we find it hard to stick with any plan that requires us to change, even if we desire it! Linamen seeks to help us stick with actual change by determining what holds us back from making changes and helping us overcome those obstacles. Her writing is always funny, yet incredibly smart. Most chapters include the opportunity for journaling and self-discovery exercises. I didn't do all of them, but the ones I did revealed a lot, even to me! There are many reasons why we can't stick with serious change, but Linamen addresses each one with the encouragement to never give up. I do recommend reading this book in the morning or midday. I read it each night before bed, and I sometimes forgot to keep the vows I made to myself the night before, but that's my own fault. I've passed the book on to my husband in hopes that we can both makes changes together.

I will urge you, dear reader, to pick up ANY of Karen Scalf Linamen's books, and dive into her wacky, wonderful world of living each day to its fullest! laughing some more, singing, exploring feelings, having "TA-DA" moments, eating more chocolate, and laughing some more. Mostly they have brought me closer to God in ways I hadn't even imagined. Her latest book, "Only Nuns Change Habits Overnight" is all of these things, times ten. It came at a time when I was stuck -- stuck in my own desert of self-ness instead of being in His Garden of abundance.

As someone who has a pretty strong willpower this wasn't a book that made a tremendous impact on me, though I did think some of the points were really good and would recommend it for those who are in need of making positive changes in their lives. Especially if you find yourself in a "starting over" point of life, needing encouragement to continue on with a good outlook and help from Jesus.

This book is meant to help us with the process of change. How do we change a bad habit to a good habit? How long will change take? Why do my efforts to change always fail?

Although this book could help someone make a life-change that will last, there is one element that is untouched until page 121, "amazing way" number 38 out of 52. That is prayer. I disagree. Prayer is the way for Christians to begin the process of change. Any other way to try to change epitomizes the adage, "Do everything you can and then ask God for help."

Perhaps the author is trying to reach a non-Christian audience. However, this book is published by a Christian publisher and holds itself out to be a Christian book. Prayer needs to be our #1 "Amazing Way to Master the Art of Personal Change" not #39.

I was intending on giving this book as a gift, but brought it back to the store i bought it from. Because after I skimmed through a couple of the chapters, I didn't feel that the writing brought much inspiration.

The writing was quirky and sometimes the chuckle factor was there. But The author LOVES to compare her personal experiences to: herself. Not much development went on in the chapters. She mentions to write a lot of stuff down, which I guess can be cathartic, but keeping a journal without her suggestions is cathartic in and of itself. In the "take away notes", she wants her audience to read some Bible verses but does not elaborate on why she chose those.

Save your money.

This is the first of Karen Scalf Linaman books I've read and I enjoyed her cut to the chase style of putting it out there. I also enjoyed her sometimes subtle, sometimes in your face humor.

If you are looking for some enthusiastic cheerleading for choices you know you need or should make, you could benefit from Linaman's helpful ideas. If you aren't ready to do what you need to do to move forward with lifestyle changes, this book isn't going to make your life better.

I appreciated that all her wisdom and suggestions can be applied to all areas of life. You don't necessarily need a handful of how-to books to cover all your resolutions. Hers would be sufficient because her insight covers across the board. Her chapters are short and broken up into quick bite-sized nuggets and snippets of story.

Very conservative religious may struggle with some aspects of this book and the author's personal struggles. If you can't accept a Christian remarrying after divorce, then you'll want to pass because Linaman is honest about her own path in life that includes a failed marriage. If you are expecting very deep Biblical wisdom and counsel you might be disappointed. However, the author includes the basic Gospel message and several scripture references. That said, non-religious can find takeaways that will help them to focus on what they could do to move beyond a struggle or bad habit.

As with all self-help books if it just ends up on your bookshelf it's not going to benefit you. If you are going to buy it and not commit to pulling out what makes sense to you and using it, don't waste your money. But if you truly want to makes some changes Only Nuns could be just what you're looking for.

Every woman longs for change in some area of her life. Unfortunately, fear, fatigue, adversity, heartbreak, past failures, and even the choices of other people get in the way and make lasting change seem out of reach. Having been there herself, Karen Linamen knows exactly how to take readers from where they are to where they want to be.

In Only Nuns Change Habits Overnight, she examines 52 powerful actions readers can apply to any change they long to embrace. Her insights apply to career, finances, personal health and fitness, relationships, faith--in fact, every facet of a woman's life.

Blending laugh-out-loud humor and sage advice, Linamen shows readers the link between dissatisfaction and transformation, how to remodel habits, the little-known truth about procrastination, how to generate the energy they need to pursue the life they desire, how to benefit from options and resources they never dreamed they had, and much, much more!

I found various portions and chapters to be interesting and humorous. I have found in my life that the title "Only Nuns Change Habits Overnight" is quite true. You can try and try to figure how to change and feel all the more confused when your done trying. This book has some very practical examples for applying change to your everyday routine.

Karen Scalf Linamen says she writes humor and self-help - together, not separately. To really understand that description, you have to read one of her books. Luckily, I recently did just that.

In light of the quickly approaching New Year and our propensity for resolutions, Only Nuns Change Habits Overnight is extremely timely. Her advice is sound, but her delivery is hilarious. Check out some of these chapter titles:

Does the Name Pavlov Ring a Bell?

If at First You Don't Succeed, Skydiving Is Not for You.

The Next Time You Come to the End of Your Rope, Start Flapping Your Arms

Very Funny, Scotty. Now Beam Up My Clothes

A Journey of a Thousand Miles Begins at the Fuel Pump

Only Nuns Change Habits Overnight will give you advice on how to make ANY change you desire. It doesn't matter if your desired change is simple (stop losing my car keys) or difficult (learn how to manage my temper), short term (organize my spice cabinet) or long term (lose 75 pounds). This book will help you identify the areas of your life you want to improve, set specific goals, motivate you to get started and encourage you to persist until you're successful. Karen gives the reader 52 tips, detailed instructions, examples, and anecdotal stories funny enough to make you wet yourself as you nod and think, "Yep, I've done that!" Of course, just as many times you'll say to yourself, "At least I'm not that bad!"

If you desire to make any lasting change in your life, Only Nuns Change Habits Overnight is the book you need to truly believe, "Yes, I can!"