Learned Optimism: How to Change Your Mind and Your Life

Learned Optimism: How to Change Your Mind and Your Life
by Martin E. Seligman

List Price: ~~$14.95~~
Our Price: $8.14
You Save: $6.81 (46%)
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Buy Used: from $7.89 (click here)
Category: Book
See more book details and other editions

Compare Prices for Learned Optimism: How to Change Your Mind and Your Life

Buy this book at online book store in your country
Canada | UK | Germany | France

Book Summary Information

Author: Martin E. Seligman
Edition: Paperback
Published: 2006-01-03
ISBN: 1400078393
Number of pages: 336
Publisher: Vintage

Book Reviews of Learned Optimism: How to Change Your Mind and Your Life

Book Review: Learned Optimism
Summary: 3 Stars

Dr. Seligman tries to convince us that pessimism is the source of all our problems and optimism is the panacea in this book. It's basically divided into three parts: the first part deals with research in learned helplessness, the second about the advantages of optimism, and the third about how to change from pessimism to optimism.

Seligman defines optimism as not letting negative thoughts distort reality. But what if negative thoughts are reality and positive thoughts are distortions? When I realized that was true and I've been distorting reality with optimism (after I had read the book and had been applying the refutations for a couple weeks), I realized that the book had been inapplicable. He then says that even if the negative thoughts are true, what are the implications of them? He seems to think the only implications are minor things not worth bothering yourself with, but that hasn't been my experience.

To put it succinctly, it's a nice book, well-written and well-researched, but it fails by presenting depression and pessimism as not only the same thing, but something that can be cured in a one-size-fits-all kind of way that just didn't work for me.

Write your own review

All Learned Optimism: How to Change Your Mind and Your Life Customer Reviews

Summary of Learned Optimism: How to Change Your Mind and Your Life

Known as the father of the new science of positive psychology, Martin E.P. Seligman draws on more than twenty years of clinical research to demonstrate how optimism enchances the quality of life, and how anyone can learn to practice it. Offering many simple techniques, Dr. Seligman explains how to break an “I—give-up” habit, develop a more constructive explanatory style for interpreting your behavior, and experience the benefits of a more positive interior dialogue. These skills can help break up depression, boost your immune system, better develop your potential, and make you happier..

With generous additional advice on how to encourage optimistic behavior at school, at work and in children, Learned Optimism is both profound and practical–and valuable for every phase of life.

General Books

Book Subjects

Most talked about in All-Time Best Business Books by Catagory

The 51 Fatal Business Errors and How to Avoid Them
by Jim Muehlhausen
Mulekick Publishing; Published: 2008-04-25; Perfect Paperback; Book
Best price: $15.95

Adversity Quotient: Turning Obstacles into Opportunities
by Paul G. Stoltz
Wiley; Published: 1999-05-11; Paperback; Book
Best price: $15.84
Price in other shops: ~~$21.95~~

Emotional Intelligence: Why It Can Matter More Than IQ
by Daniel Goleman
Bantam; Published: 1997-06-02; Paperback; Book
Best price: $14.95
Price in other shops: ~~$17.00~~

Getting Things Done: The Art of Stress-Free Productivity
by David Allen
Penguin (Non-Classics); Published: 2002-12-31; Paperback; Book
Best price: $7.24
Price in other shops: ~~$15.00~~

Really Bad PowerPoint: (and how to avoid it) Image

Really Bad PowerPoint: (and how to avoid it)
by Seth Godin
Do You Zoom Inc.; Published: 2001-10-01; Digital; Book
Best price: $1.99

The Dip: A Little Book That Teaches You When to Quit (and When to Stick)
by Seth Godin
Portfolio Hardcover; Published: 2007-05-10; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $7.34
Price in other shops: ~~$12.95~~

Learned Optimism: How to Change Your Mind and Your Life
by Martin E. Seligman
Vintage; Published: 2006-01-03; Paperback; Book
Best price: $8.35
Price in other shops: ~~$14.95~~

The Goal
by Eliyahu M. Goldratt
Highbridge Audio; Published: 2006-09-07; Audio CD; Book
Best price: $24.23
Price in other shops: ~~$39.95~~

Secrets of the Millionaire Mind: Mastering the Inner Game of Wealth
by T. Harv Eker
Collins Business; Published: 2005-02-15; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $4.99
Price in other shops: ~~$21.95~~

The 22 Immutable Laws of Marketing: Violate Them at Your Own Risk!
by Al Ries, Jack Trout
HarperBusiness; Published: 1994-04-27; Paperback; Book
Best price: $5.99
Price in other shops: ~~$15.95~~

Similar Books and other products

Character Strengths and Virtues: A Handbook and Classification
by Christopher Peterson, Martin Seligman
Oxford University Press, USA; Published: 2004-04-08; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $60.90
Price in other shops: ~~$79.50~~

The How of Happiness: A Scientific Approach to Getting the Life You Want
by Sonja Lyubomirsky
Penguin Press HC, The; Published: 2007-12-27; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $15.36
Price in other shops: ~~$25.95~~

A Primer in Positive Psychology
by Christopher Peterson
Oxford University Press, USA; Published: 2006-07-27; Paperback; Book
Best price: $32.14
Price in other shops: ~~$41.50~~

The Resilience Factor: 7 Keys to Finding Your Inner Strength and Overcoming Life's Hurdles
by Karen Reivich, Andrew Shatte
Broadway; Published: 2003-10-14; Paperback; Book
Best price: $8.10
Price in other shops: ~~$14.95~~

Happier: Learn the Secrets to Daily Joy and Lasting Fulfillment
by Tal Ben-Shahar
McGraw-Hill; Published: 2007-05-10; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $10.80
Price in other shops: ~~$21.95~~

The Optimistic Child: A Proven Program to Safeguard Children Against Depression and BuildLifelong Resilience
by Martin E. P. Seligman
Houghton Mifflin; Published: 2007-09-17; Paperback; Book
Best price: $3.25
Price in other shops: ~~$14.95~~

Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience
by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi
Harper Perennial; Published: 1991-03-13; Paperback; Book
Best price: $5.00
Price in other shops: ~~$14.00~~