How to Be Rich and Happy, take 2

Now I’m back to the book that started this saga.

For the most part, I enjoyed How to Be Rich and Happy, and I’m not just saying that because I know one of the authors is going to read my review. In this book, rarely do the authors talk about mind particles traveling through space and into the universe. Rather, they talk about how to use positive thinking to motivate yourself toward self-set goals.

Note, though, that they do not necessarily define “rich and happy” as most people would. Their definition is: “Rich and Happy is the ability to do whatever you want, whenever you want.”

The authors acknowledge that the definition of Rich and Happy will vary from person to person, so they allow you to define your own rich and happy place. They help you do this with a series of exercises. You start by pinpointing your core values and then you work to align your life with those values.

What I found most powerful, though, was a section about beliefs, and about how they can get in the way of our success. The authors explain how to separate your false beliefs (I am terrible at looking after money) from reality (I am $3000 overdrawn). The authors encourage us to adopt beliefs that help to motivate us toward our goals.

I tried some of their suggestions last week. For instance, I woke each day and told myself, “For me, anything is possible.” That sure made me feel good. Whether or not it’s true? I sure liked how I felt when I said those words. Sue me.

Then, on the day that I was scheduled to have sex with my husband? I told myself, “I want to have sex.” I told myself this over and over again. Note that I usually motivate myself into my marriage bed by telling myself something like, “I better have sex with my husband or my sex organs are going to shrivel up and fall off.”

Substituting the word “want” for the word “should”? It made all the difference.

Here’s another example. I usually have a hard time asking for help. I generally lead into my requests for help by saying something like, “I totally understand why you would not want to do this.” Gee, can you imagine why anyone would ever turn me down? I’m practically asking for no. So, one day last week, when I wanted to ask someone to do me a favor, I motivated myself by telling myself, “People want to help me. People want me to succeed.” It was a lot easier to ask the favor with that thought in my head.

My wish was granted.

In the event that this glowing review has you thinking that I’m somehow getting a kickback off the sales of this book (I’m not; The authors offered the affiliate program to me, but I did not sign up for it), I feel the need to tell you that some of the book was lost on me. One chapter had an exercise that asked me to list my three favorite movies. I sat and thought for 15 minutes and couldn’t for the life of me think of one movie I’d ever seen. And then when things like Kill Bill and Inglorious Bastards came to mind, I thought, “I honestly don’t think those are the kind of movies that the authors had in mind.” So I skipped that exercise.

And some of it I just plain didn’t agree with it. Like when the authors suggested that anyone with writing skills should consider becoming a ghostwriter as a means to becoming rich and happy. I am a ghostwriter. I’m probably considered one of the top ghost writers in the country. I’m among the highest paid of my kind.

I’m no billionaire.

Although I do earn a good living, it has taken me a long time to get to where I am. And while I’ve risen to the top of my field partly because of my writing skills, I’ve also done it because of my ability to play well with others, conduct painless interviews, and package information in a highly commercial way. It also must be said that I’ve gotten to where I am, in part, through connections—connections I made when I worked full time for a book publishing company.

I’m not saying that it’s impossible for someone who has some writing skills to make it rich as a ghost writer. I’m just saying that it’s not probable.

But the suggestion to become a ghostwriter was just one paragraph of an entire book. So I’m willing to overlook that.

I also decided to overlook that one part of the book that got a little too close to The Secret for my taste. One of the authors refers to himself as a #1 New York Times best selling author. It’s my understanding that he’s still trying to manifest that title for himself.

Those minor criticisms aside? I thought it was a worthwhile read. It’s the perfect book for someone who is attempting a big life change—perhaps someone just like me. It might not get you a private jet. It might not get George Clooney in your bed. But it will definitely get you a lot farther down the road to being Rich and Happy than you are right now.

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