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Is That All There Is?: Balancing Expectation and Disappointment in Your Life

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Is your life one disappointment after another, even when get what you thought you wanted? If so, Dr. David Brandt's latest book, Is That All There Is? Balancing Expectation & Disappointment in Your Life, is for you.

Dr. Brandt, a psychologist, has studied disappointment for more than 20 years. He lectures nationally and appears frequently on radio and television. His goal is to "unwrap the mysteries of [disappointment], show the variety of human responses to it, and reveal, surprisingly, how each of us can use disappointment for our own gain."

He say that disappointment is simply an unmet expectation. "We expected something to happen; it did not; we are disappointed." He adds that "expectation is simply the anticipation of an outcome." Wishes underlie expectations, and also serve as motivators. "It is the wish within each expectation that hooks us and maintains our emotional investment."

Dr. Brandt defines the various causes of disappointment and offers tips and techniques for learning how to minimize their impact on your life. He also describes personality styles, such as the acquiescent person who gives up personal desires to please others, and how they lead to disappointment. He uses case studies from his clinical practice to illustrate his concepts. Dr. Brandt provides six practical principles for developing realistic expectations and then teaches readers steps to overcome disappointment when it does occur.

The final chapter, "Making Disappointment Work For You" focuses on making disappointment "an ally in the search for contentment and personal happiness."

Readers wanting to learn how to avoid depression and energy loss resulting from disappointment will find Is That All There Is? teaches the skills they need to convert disappointment to a positive force in their lives.

It is a good book for people who have been enough disappointments in life and want to create changes as a result from series of disappointments.