The ART OF LIVING CONSCIOUSLY: The Power of Awareness to Transform Everyday Life (Hardcover)

by Nathaniel Branden (Author) "LIVING consciously has its roots in respect for reality-a respect for facts and truth..." (more)
Key Phrases: living consciously, typical endings, six pillars, The Six Pillars of Self-Esteem, Cosmic Consciousness, Suchness of Things (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description
A father of the self-esteem movement explains to readers his principles for dramatically increasing their awareness and their ability to make conscious choices in a time when old traditions are not always there to fall back on. 35,000 first printing.

About the Author
With a Ph.D. in psychology, and a background in philosophy, Nathaniel Branden is a practicing psychotherapist and a corporate consultant, and is widely recognized as the world authority on self-esteem, a field he pioneered more than three decades ago. His many books include The Six Pillars of Self-Esteem, Taking Responsibility, Self-Esteem at Work, and A Woman's Self-Esteem. His newest book is My Years with Ayn Rand. He lives and works in Beverly Hills, California. --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 288 pages
• Publisher: Simon & Schuster (April 21, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0684810840
• ISBN-13: 978-0684810843
• Product Dimensions: 9.5 x 6.2 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars See all reviews (20 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,079,953 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

45 of 49 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Understanding this will cause you to reflect, December 28, 1999

By	Jake Sapiens (Texas) - See all my reviews

If you have a pulse, can read, and understand this book can cause you to reflect more consciously about the everyday things that you do in your life than you may have in a long time. If you can withstand that, then doing Nathaniel Branden's exercises which he presents throughout the book will push the envelope even further. He doesn't settle for feel-good platitudes, but the medicines he offers can open us up to possibilities that we have previously not seen through the haze of unconscious behavior and thinking.

I have become extremely jaded by a lot of the feel-good new-agey speak that has become closely identified in my mind with "self-esteem" and these days. Initially that association caused me to hesitate in buying this book. To the contrary, and to my relief I found Branden's message free from that kind of shallowness. If you merely seek self-flattery Branden offers none. On a personal note, in this book Branden even succeeded in rehabilitating the word "spirituality" for this once self-identified "atheist" who still occasionally refers to himself as a "secular humanist." On the whole his message proved very accessible, and I even found myself eager to reread it after getting through it the first time.

24 of 25 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars More Rationality From The Self-Esteem Innovator, December 26, 1998

By A Customer

In the early seventies just after the publication of The Psychology of Self-Esteem, I went to the library looking for other books on the subject. I found only one other book with self-esteem in its title. Over the years, I've watched closely as the word self-esteem has exploded into American culture, and has become as American as the proverbial apple pie, often with undercurrents of confusion and ignorance. Yet, with Nathaniel Branden, the innovator of the whole movement, the definition has always been the same; what has changed is his ever-increasing knowledge and awareness of the subject, much of which he shares In The Art Of Living Consciously. For those interested in the role of consciousness in improving one's life and one's self esteem -- that one is competent to know one's world, and worthy of happiness -- this will be the book for you. Once again, Nathaniel offers up a treasure chest of personal examples, as well as the examples of his clients. Also, offered is a facinating look into the world of ¨spirituality¨ as seen through the eyes of Mr. Rationality. Here, again, is another powerful and entertaining book from the man who launched the term into public discussion.

21 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Required Reading!, December 20, 1999

By	James Kelly (Denver CO USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: The Art of Living Consciously: The Power of Awareness to Transform Everyday Life (Paperback)

I thought I knew how to live consciously after meditating (in the Buddhist tradition) for many years, doing all kinds of psycho-spiritual self-help work, two years of psychotherapy, you name it, I have at least tried it. Mr. Brandon's book opened me up to a whole new level of awareness about myself and the world around me. I would consider this required reading for almost anyone who wants to grow in any way, in any direction. It starts out kind of abstract, but hang in there. There are big payoffs all throughout this book. I cannot imagine you will be disappointd.