Instant Analysis

Rating:
Summary: insightful, concise, and fun
Review: An easy to read and understand book. anyone who thinks they have some issues regarding themselves should read this before seeking professional help. Not only it gave me exercises to help me with my issues but also to reflect on the things that I haven't really thought about. It expands your views to things you didn't know its there.

Rating:
Summary: ONE OF THE BEST, IF NOT THE BEST
Review: boy, that kilpatrick6 (second reviewer) must be getting some kickback. this book basically says 'if you do X then you're insecure...get professional help'. oh, thanks for the insight. i think the greatest benefit from this book can be obtained by simply reading the TOC and thus performing a behavioral inventory on the spot. the first step in solving a problem is recognizing it (or something like that)

Rating:
Summary: One of the best self help books I've ever read
Review: I admit it. I've spent the better part of the past twenty years trying to find out why I think and do the things I do. Instant Analysis has done more for me than any other book, video, tape, or seminar ever has. It's clear and concise and best of all gave me short-term techniques that I was able to apply instantly. I'm not saying that I'm 'cured' but I feel much better about myself and life and feel like I've come so far--and it has only been about three weeks since my first read through. This book delivers and it's the best of its kind out there. If you want to feel better about life and yourself I say buy it and read it as soon as you can.

Rating:
Summary: Good enough to be true
Review: I thought at first that this book would provide quick and easy answers that were too good to be true (like horoscope readings?), but upon reading, the answers were thoughtful and insightful! The author's intuition makes sense. It's fun to read, too. You also learn that you may not be as weird (or at least, uncommon), as you think.

Rating:
Summary: ONE OF THE BEST, IF NOT THE BEST
Review: This book is one of the best I've ever read. I got the book to understand people but I found out a lot about myself. Today I'm a happier better person and have been able to help many others with my knowledge from this book. Thank you.

Rating:
Summary: Very Interesting
Review: This book is perhaps unique in the self-help/pop-psychology category as it provides a practical formulaic approach for improving your life in a very readable format. Most impressive is that Lieberman uses reality as the basic frame for his advice, rather than the more popular "just imagine everything in your life being perfect and it will be" visualization/ daydreaming/ self-delusion approach that is offered far too often at present (and by the way does not work). This book is extremely practical because the exercises recommended can be put into action immediately, and will inspire further thought by the reader. Personally I noticed a genuine improvement in just a few days.

Rating:
Summary: Poor design
Review: This is a neat book, but only two stars because of its design. 100 short chapters uncategorized and in no particular order, with no index. There is a table of contents, of course, but the chapters are in no order and the way the chapters are titled they are not easily scanned by the eye, especially across 4-5 pages of listings. It's fun to flip through the book at random for a short while, but it's impossible to refer back to something you found useful at a later date unless you want to turn page by page until you find it. This was really a preventable problem and it's a shame it had to made an otherwise great book frustrating.

Rating:
Summary: Beat Analysis Paralysis and Become More Content
Review: Time-poor clients frequently ask for an easy to read guide to the analysis of self-defeating behaviors and this is one that I recommend for several reasons.

1 Lieberman is very clear about the intended audience for Instant Analysis. "Most people are almost happy. They're so close to being the kinds of people they want to be, living the kinds of lives they want to live, yet they are stuck in a mental rut."

2 Lieberman acknowledges the difficulties of direct introspection and concentrates on assisting the reader by "cutting away the clutter" and illuminating behaviors that have become an automatic response mechanism.

3 Lieberman has a plain and engaging writing style. The nutshell summaries are well-written and provide a good overview of the topics. The suggestions for change are simple, powerful, and (notionally) easy to implement.

The analysis of each self-defeating behavior is in three parts:

1 A concise description of particular behaviors, attitudes, and feelings that are consistent with the troublesome automatic responses.

2 A discussion of the response that includes plausible reasons for its creation and existence.

3 Simple techniques to force awareness of a response, and suggestions for changing the behavior.

Why Do I Enjoy Being Angry?

Issue: Enjoyment of anger and a reluctance to calm down and lose the sensation of power and vitality.

Discussion: Anger is usually a mask for fear and vulnerability. Anger can be a strong emotion that you feel in an otherwise numb existence. You may feel that no one pays attention to you unless you compel it. You may also enjoy getting angry because it makes you feel powerful.

Getting angry can alienate others and is rarely a good way to communicate effectively with them or enlist their support. It is an effective way to increase the risk for heart disease and to undermine your immune system.

Suggestions for change: Avoid inappropriate/disproportionate anger by identifying and acknowledging your feelings as they arise: what is causing the fear that underlies the anger?

Example: If you react with anger to trying situations, examine what you can do to prevent such occurrences. E.g., if your car tyres need air, top them up when you notice it, and avoid creating an avoidable drama when they blow in the middle of a journey to an important appointment.

If you rely on anger to make you feel powerful, then explore more benign ways to get the same feeling; e.g, take an advanced driver's course. If you crave high-stakes, high-drama excitement, then a challenging sport may be a good option, such as adventure excursions, white-water rafting or mountaineering.
Lieberman recommends a five phase process for loosening the hold of self-defeating behaviors and accepting control of your life; four of the stages are succinctly described in ten pages.

Some clients dislike Instant Analysis because they assume that it offers a quick fix or is too simple to meet the needs of people who have complex lives or whose behaviors cause them (and others) significant distress. One client told me that the techniques in the book were too simple just after he had told me two stories:

1 "Obesity is a ridiculous case of self-harming. Everyone knows that they need to eat fewer calories and do more exercise. It's that simple but no one wants to face it. They'd rather spend their time examining their relationships and blaming others. Or they're just too lazy to do what they know needs to be done."

2 "We've just had to pay out [the equivalent of 8.5 thousand dollars] to repair the water damage caused to the house by the recent leaks in the wet weather. It turned out that the gutters were blocked. It wasn't anything major at all and it caused all that damage."

Solutions to many issues are essentially simple and Lieberman describes them very well. The challenge to every reader is to know whether one is ready to implement them and be willing to change.