List Books » Don't Sweat the Small Stuff for Men: Simple Ways to Minimize Stress in a Competitive World
Authors: Richard Carlson
ISBN-13: 9780786886364, ISBN-10: 0786886366
Format: Paperback
Publisher: Hyperion
Date Published: September 2001
Edition: 1 ED
In 1997, Richard Carlson, Ph.D., published a little book that became a big phenomenon. Don't Sweat the Small Stuff... and It's All Small Stuff was an instant bestseller, spawning a line of Don't Sweat books that cover everything from motherhood to money matters.
Over the past five years, Richard Carlson has shown countless families, lovers, and workers how to live in a more calm and productive manner. Now he turns his attention to men, with numerous simple strategies and life lessons that blend humor, warmth, and uncommon wisdom. Carlson invites men of all ages to enjoy the benefits of simplification and discover what so many of us already know: that its a stressful world out there, but it doesnt have to be.
Carlson (Don't Sweat the Small Stuff, etc.) is back, with 100 brief chapters of advice, many of which acknowledge the male psyche. For example, men have told him that doing service feeds the soul, so he reminds readers to have a special cause. He also advises men to avoid letting their competitive natures rule their lives and to maintain their male friendships after they get serious with a woman. The chapter "Take Your Wife's Advice" makes clear that Carlson is targeting readers who are part of a nuclear family. Then again, a good number of chapters offer more gender-neutral advice: cast your choices in a positive light ("be in favor of simplicity" rather than "against clutter and chaos"); keep a spare set of keys and a wallet with a credit card and some cash, so that losing these items won't be catastrophic. There's inevitable repetition if read from cover to cover Carlson advises readers to do something nice for others and to be more generous, and to practice mindfulness and be present but this book is meant to be read in inspirational snippets. The author's "half full" outlook will indeed inspire and soothe: readers should "calculate the number of things that went right today" and observe that there's no bad weather, "only different kinds of good weather." Life, he reminds us, is "too precious to take for granted." (Sept.) Forecast: Publication in time for Father's Day might have worked better, but a $200,000 marketing campaign (including major TV advertising), Carlson's scheduled appearance on Good Morning America and his bona-fide franchise bode very well. Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information.
Introduction | 1 | |
1. | Have an Affair | 5 |
2. | Make the "Peaceful Assumption" | 8 |
3. | Spend More Time with Your Kids | 11 |
4. | Take Your Wife's Advice | 14 |
5. | Avoid the "S" Word | 16 |
6. | Don't Know the Answer | 19 |
7. | Have a Special Cause | 22 |
8. | Be Able to Laugh at Yourself | 25 |
9. | Don't Let Your Competitive Nature Get the Best of You | 28 |
10. | Learn About Life from Golf | 30 |
11. | Grant Yourself One Hour | 32 |
12. | Don't Jump Ship | 35 |
13. | See It as a Test | 38 |
14. | Flash Forward for Instant Perspective | 40 |
15. | See Stress as Nonsexy | 42 |
16. | Share Your Dreams | 44 |
17. | Be a Part of the Solution | 47 |
18. | Give 'Em a Break | 50 |
19. | Keep Your Perspective | 53 |
20. | Spend Time with Your Buddies | 55 |
21. | Practice Mindfulness | 58 |
22. | Look at What the Cat Dragged In | 61 |
23. | Do at Least One Really Nice, Small Thing for Someone, at Least Once a Week | 63 |
24. | Avoid "As If" Assumptions | 66 |
25. | Be Careful of the Comparison Trap | 70 |
26. | Take Up Yoga | 73 |
27. | Schedule Time for Yourself | 75 |
28. | Get Out of the Serious Mode | 78 |
29. | Think "Maybe So, Maybe Not" | 81 |
30. | Don't Let the "Turkeys" Get You Down | 84 |
31. | Rid Yourself of a Busy Mind | 87 |
32. | Create an "Easier Life" List | 90 |
33. | Keep in Mind that the Fantasy Is Often Better than the Reality | 93 |
34. | Read Your Audience | 96 |
35. | Have Conflict Without It Having You | 99 |
36. | Take the Quirks with the Perks | 102 |
37. | Find a Place to Park | 105 |
38. | Avoid the Pursuit Trap | 108 |
39. | Think C-A-L-M | 111 |
40. | Eliminate Entitlement Thinking | 113 |
41. | Learn from Fellow "Sweat"-ers | 116 |
42. | Be For Something Rather than Against It | 118 |
43. | Blow Off Steam | 121 |
44. | Avoid the Excuse, "That's the Nature of the Business" | 124 |
45. | Be Aware of the "Taken Away" Trap | 126 |
46. | Have a Beginner's Mind | 129 |
47. | Don't Do It Yourself | 132 |
48. | Engage in Less Picking and Choosing | 134 |
49. | Keep in Mind that No Decision Is a Decision | 136 |
50. | Memorize the Words, "There's No Such Thing as Bad Weather--Only Different Kinds of Good Weather" | 138 |
51. | Try the "Pause and Come Back to It" Technique | 141 |
52. | Remember that Sometimes Less Effort Is Better | 144 |
53. | Ease Up Behind the Wheel | 146 |
54. | Quiet Down | 148 |
55. | Have a Spare Set | 151 |
56. | Anticipate the Best | 154 |
57. | Be Sure You're Mad at What You Think You Are | 156 |
58. | Experience the Power of Being Present | 159 |
59. | Identify Your Stress Signals | 163 |
60. | Become More Accepting of Change | 166 |
61. | Reflect on the Power of Prevention | 169 |
62. | Redefine the Word "Emergency" | 171 |
63. | Develop Some Nonnegotiables | 174 |
64. | Avoid Overidentifying with Your Role | 177 |
65. | Wait | 179 |
66. | Have a Change of Heart | 181 |
67. | Honor the Humility Factor | 184 |
68. | Acknowledge Your Inner Intelligence | 186 |
69. | Use Hindsight to Create Foresight | 188 |
70. | Diversify | 191 |
71. | Calculate the Number of Things that Went Right Today | 193 |
72. | Underreact | 196 |
73. | Let Go of the Past | 200 |
74. | Anticipate Defensiveness | 202 |
75. | Think "Yeah, So?" | 205 |
76. | Try Not to Be Frustrated When It Might Be More Appropriate to Be Grateful | 207 |
77. | Consider that "Needing a Vacation" May Not Be the Real Problem | 210 |
78. | Avoid the "Caught Up" Trap | 212 |
79. | See the Irony of "Striving" for Balance | 215 |
80. | Check Your Blind Spots | 218 |
81. | Open Your Heart to Compassion | 220 |
82. | Live by the Motto, "It Is as It Is" | 222 |
83. | Don't Miss the Fun! | 225 |
84. | See Things from a Distance | 227 |
85. | Prevent Little Things from Becoming Front-Page News | 230 |
86. | Use Compliments as a Stress-Reducing Tool | 232 |
87. | Keep in Mind that Practice Doesn't Make Perfect--Perfect Practice Makes Perfect | 234 |
88. | Be More Generous | 237 |
89. | Let Others Be Right About the Little Things | 240 |
90. | Apply the "One-Year" Standard | 243 |
91. | Extend Compassion to Your Daily Life | 245 |
92. | Stop Broadcasting Your Thoughts | 247 |
93. | Practice the Rule of Two | 250 |
94. | Become a Health Nut | 253 |
95. | Have a Favorite Cause | 256 |
96. | Respect the Law of Diminishing Returns | 259 |
97. | Be a Quitter | 262 |
98. | Remind Yourself--One More Time--of the Mood Factor | 265 |
99. | Ask the Question, "If Not Now, When?" | 267 |
100. | Deepen Your Perspective | 269 |