Customer Reviews

Whatever You're Doing Now You Can Do It Better!: Your Guide to the Alexander Technique

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

In my opinion there are only two books worth reading about Alexander's work other than those written by the man himself, and Anthony Taylor's book is one of them.
It has helped my students understand the principles of this work and enabled them to make changes in the way that they think and therefore the way that they move.
Jacky Morgan
Alexander Technique teacher

I liked this book. I had thought the Alexander technique was all about posture, when in fact it's all about performance - the way that we do what we do. There are some great stories in this book which I have enjoyed reading again and again.

The author clearly knows his stuff and how to write. Having read many books about change and the Alexander Technique this has to go down as one my favourites. I recommend it to anyone looking to change deep-seated patterns of behaviour that are undermining their performance in any field.

Taylor succeeds in giving you a handle on some complex ideas. Deals with tricky but key concepts in an accessible but not simplistic way. Particularly liked the chapters on reasoning and working to principle. There are no physical exercizes to do, but there are activities which are helpful towards your understanding.

The only truly accessible but not-oversimplified book on AT I've found.

An AT teacher from Cardiff.

Taylor's writing style is very easy to read. He introduces the concepts of Alexander's work in a way that is easy to grasp and with good examples to illustrate his ideas. Taylor brings Alexander's work to today's audience and makes it relevant and understandable to them.

A brilliant book! The narrative is innovative and encouraging, bringing Alexander's work into the present day. As a teacher of the Alexander Technique, I found this book a very helpful and enjoyable read and would thoroughly recommend it

The measure of a good book is that you can read it more than once and find new things each time - and that's how it's been for me. I am still reeling as I take in the enormity of the idea that it is more how we think in relation to activity than what we think that determines the quality of our performance. And the book describes so many constructive ways for changing our thinking in relation to performance. Of course it won't be for everyone, as there are no quick-fixes offered. Instead it's a day at a time, step by step, leave your old-self behind approach.

This book has really helped me understand what the Alexander Technique is all about. I now feel able to read books by the great man himself and actually understand what he is going on about. Before, they made little sense at all, and I was fumbling around in the dark.

Taylor's writing is clear, simple and informative, and I have enjoyed working through the various chapters week by week. This has been a great addition to lessons.

Thank-you.

"Whatever You're Doing Now You Can Do It Better" demonstrates with the help of numerous examples and stories how easy change can be. The author presents 10 principles which are convincingly clear and he suggests applying these principles to improve everything we do.

The first 3 principles (psycho-physical unity, the use of reason and prevention) provide us with the foundation to go to work unbiased, open-minded and with the use of common-sense. For me the most impressing sentence in this part was: `If you stop the wrong thing from happening, the right thing happens by itself.' This sentence speaks about the concept that we as individual are well-made and that our interference with the system is one of the reason for creating the problems most of us have. The solution: Just stop to interfere with your system.
The following principles (from one extreme to another, feelings are unreliable and fixed, preconceived ideas) describe vividly the difficulties and possible false steps we can experience by beginning to change the way we are dealing with our habits. The request of these principles: Making an effort of replacing fixed ways of seeing the world with open-mindedness.
`The most effective way' is the principle that talks about reasoning out simple, manageable steps to reach our destiny.
The final 3 principles (mental discipline, genuine trust and working to principle) enable us to discover the means for making our ideas become real. With the help of reason and these beautifully presented principles we have just to put one foot after the next on our chosen path to improve our lives.

This book not only contents beautiful photographs, entertaining stories and anecdotes but also simple explanations for all the things that can go wrong in our daily lives. It is an absolutely necessity if you want to have a tool-box for on-going and lasting improvement in everything you do. It was absolutely fun to read it the first time and even more rewarding the second time.