Book Review – Millionaire Success Habits By Dean Graziosi.

Well, I never heard of this guy before.

And if it weren’t for my quest to change my life,  by overcoming my obsessive desire to live better and be happy (with myself) and feed my soul doing what makes me feel rich inside – I would not have picked up this book – I have not regretted it.

Com’on, if you’re human you’ve most likely had feelings of insecurity, self doubt throughout your life. Especially when you were young AND … if you’re like me, have carried it around with you like a backpack full of negative experiences. Ones, although dusty still influence your thoughts and behavior.

So because I never heard of Dean Graziosi, I got the book. I was hesitant because of the title. How many entrepreneurial  books swing the “Success” word around like a cowboy rodeo. Yea, I was hesitant.

For many years I’ve struggled with poor self-esteem and even depression on and off throughout my life. I never thought I was depressed … but now it’s a word, and an experience that’s being discussed more, in the open,  these days – thankfully.

I had a shitty upbringing and I kept remembering it like wearing daily, a soiled t-shirt – never taking it off or even washing it. It reminded me of how shitty things were and they would never change.  My life sucked growing up. Can you imagine how draining and repetitious that is?

But Dean asked an amazing question. It’s within the context of thinking about people who’ve had extreme hardships and became successful in their lives regardless. How some life circumstances might seem trivial in comparison or modest in scale keeps those people from being successful. That negative experiences hold some of us back while others propel forward. So here’s the question:

What if God (or your higher power) asked “What have you done with your life”? Would you reply “Ah .. I didn’t because bla, bla, bla kept me from being successful …” For me, this would be embarrassing…. 

Lot’s of thoughtful nuggets like this. And, only if you’re in a place in your life to welcome them…

One day I said to myself “I want to forget my childhood” and I did. I was so successful that I hardly remember it – just bits of it. But guess what remained – emotion, feeling unworthy. Oh there HAS to be relief …. another way of how I feel about myself.

And there is a way – it takes conscious work to change how you think and behave. It can be done.

When I started reading Dean’s book I resonated with his words and life experiences. The metaphors and analogies he uses were digested rapidly by my subconscious and visually explored. Someone has to be good at telling stories that you remember and identify with – like this one:

A grandmother was talking with her grandson about two wolves that fought with each other constantly. One wolf devoured anything good and spit it out, thrived on negative energy. While the other wolf  thrived on positive energy, embracing all that was good and inspirational. It was a constant fight between the two wolves. Perplexed, the grandson asked his grandmother ” Is there a winner?” The grandmother replied ” the wolf that wins is the one that’s fed the most.”

The one that’s FED the most!

DING! It hit home. How much was I feeding the negative side of my life! And you know, it IS a choice what you choose to focus on.

So when you read books that trigger a new perspectives about life and how to navigate through it, it’s inspiring.

I went through the “7 steps of finding your why” exercise that was very revealing. It’s an exploration of why you do what you think you do only to discover the real, deep, reason why you do what you do, or why you want something in your life. Powerful.

When Dean discusses how your attitude transcends to outward appearances, that was a real eye opener. I had not thought of this and I have to be bold here – I usually pick up on things like this. But you go through life, meet people and you’re not always consciously aware of how attitudes are “worn” on others. Your subconscious knows. Those “First impressions” run deeper than you think.

So, in short, this book is filled with exercises, stories, and suggestions you can use to shift a negative mindset to a fruitful positive one.