Working on Yourself Doesn't Work: The 3 Simple Ideas That Will Instantaneously Transform Your Life

Working on Yourself Doesn't Work: The 3 Simple Ideas That Will Instantaneously Transform Your Life
by Ariel and Shya Kane, Shya Kane, Ariel Kane

Working on Yourself Doesn't Work: The 3 Simple Ideas That Will Instantaneously Transform Your Life
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Book Summary Information

Author: Ariel and Shya Kane, Ariel Kane, Shya Kane
Edition: Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 2008-09-05
ISBN: 0071601082
Number of pages: 160
Publisher: McGraw-Hill

Book Reviews of Working on Yourself Doesn't Work: The 3 Simple Ideas That Will Instantaneously Transform Your Life

Book Review: Brilliant, reassuring and original
Summary: 5 Stars

As a self-help junky for much of my life, I have read a great deal. Much has helped for a short time, but there was always a sense of searching and not finding.

I read "Working on Yourself Doesn't Work" several years ago and enjoyed it, but it did not make a lasting impression at the time.

Six months ago I rediscovered the book on my shelves - reread it - the epiphany arrived. No book has made as profound an impact on my life as this one - not because it is brilliant, although it is. The book transforms or shifts the way you approach life and leads to different actions. That is what all self-help or spiritual books should do, but almost never deliver. I have read a lot of Zen and Buddhism, which spoke to me profoundly, but they did not alter my life as this small book has.

I would compare this book to Strunk and White's "Elements of Style". Another small book that points one to a lifetime of wisdom. As that book does for writing, the Kanes' book outlines the fundamentals of living a magical life, but it is up to you to act in the present to bring it about.

The Kanes are also very generous in providing free podcasts which expand upon and give example to their ideas. They are genuinely enthusiastic about their ideas and providing opportunities for people to learn more, but they are not aggressive in selling. One could simply buy their book and listen to their free podcasts. For a little over ten dollars, you could have a new life.

Six months ago I would have scoffed at that notion. Not today.

Summary of Working on Yourself Doesn't Work: The 3 Simple Ideas That Will Instantaneously Transform Your Life

The acclaimed, life-changing book that shows you how to stop "working" on yourself--and start living in the moment

Have you ever wondered what it would feel like to go through your life without stress or self-doubt? To have a real sense of inner peace and fulfillment? Now you can--through the three simple principles in this book. Just as they do in their world-renowned workshops, Ariel and Shya Kane teach a refreshingly natural approach to living that is easy to do yet dramatically transformative. The three simple ideas that form the foundation of their approach are:

  1. What you resist persists and grows stronger.
  2. You can only be exactly as you are in the moment.
  3. Anything you allow to be exactly as it is completes itself.

Once you grasp these three straightforward but enlightened concepts, you can stop "working" on yourself and start living the life you've always wanted--free from your old perceptions, and open to world of possibilities for discovering the ins and outs of who you are.

"Working on Yourself Doesn't Work has much to offer to anyone who wants a more meaningful and spiritual life."
--New York Spirit magazine

"This may be the most profound and life-transforming book you'll ever read. If you want a life filled with excellence, well-being, and happiness, read this book now!"
--Marie Forleo, author of Make Every Man Want You


Instant gratification junkies seeking self-awareness are bound to find the title of Ariel and Shya Kane's book extremely attractive. And seductive it is: who wouldn't like to discover enlightenment in a moment? The key, explain the Kanes, is getting to the moment: being fully present in the here and now without trying to manipulate or change what you see. According to the Kanes, "all problems are a projection towards the future of possible realities based on the past." Consequently, inhibitors to living life directly include the inability to let go of one's history--to forgive people and events from the past--as well as resistance to the circumstances of one's life, and repetitive, mechanical thoughts and behaviors. The essence of transformation is "a non-judgmental witnessing, viewing, or seeing of yourself and how you interact with your life," which stands in direct opposition to therapy's approach of working on one's history to bring about change. Here, awareness of a prejudice or pattern of behavior is--simply and immediately--enough to transform it.

Principles of awareness, self-realization, and enlightenment, of course, are nothing new, and the Kanes are careful to point this out. Some readers may wonder, then, why the Kanes refer to themselves as pioneers of a "revolutionary new technology," and whether Instantaneous Transformation(R) really requires a trademark. Nevertheless, Working on Yourself Doesn't Work is warm, anecdotal, and conversationally written, and includes general suggestions and pointers for the reader rather than rules to memorize. All in all, it is a gentle and potentially powerful invitation to enter a new and liberating state of mind. --Svenja Soldovieri

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