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Isn't
It About Time? Reviews of Andrea Perry's book
It is my great privilege and honour to introduce THE best book on a subject of procrastination, something I never would have thought I would have the opportunity to do on Amazon.com. The book introduces the model of the Action Spiral and is filled with many great ideas. The author is a therapist, and her insight into procrastination is thorough, written in a charming way. I have read other books on the subject and found this one the most helpful book of all, a classic that will remain in my book collection.
How often have you despaired in supervision, over the client student or supervisee you wish would "just get on with it"? This book provides a new and useful diagnostic tool to help identify where and how one has become struck, and a wealth of strategies to overcome entrenched patterns of procrastination. Perry's open and conversational style puts Isn't It About Time? in the same genre as Families and How to Survive Them (Skinner and Cleese), in that it conveys complex concepts accessibly, and should appeal to counsellors, student support services and the self-help market. Procrastination is a frustrating habit both for the person concerned and those around them, including counsellors, whose challenge remains to stay alongside and not enter the complexities of the struggle. The habit may arise from the absence of crucial developmental "permissions" from our early care-givers, or later, following trauma. As a life-stratergy, procrastination undermines self-confidence, the ability to be effective thus create satisfaction, and can lead to depression and anxiety. It is powerfully linked to the ability to trust oneself, or not. If someone else broke promises to us, as we do when we continually put things off, who wouldn't become cynical? This point appealed to Janet, who felt inspired to give up smoking, a long term goal. Two months later, however, when she admitted to having started again, a clearer pattern emerged, symptomatic of the wider issues she brought to counselling. Her difficulties lay not in initiating new projects but in sustaining her original intent, and developing her capacity to be reliable. The book provides many examples of how to strengthen the ability to complete each stage of any action, immediate or long-term. It made me think, laugh and get on with this review! © Worth Publishing Ltd |