I have read hundreds of self-help books.

For eleven years, it was my job. I had a TV show on Wisdom Television and interviewed over 400 authors in the personal growth field.

Between you and me, most of them said the same things – just in a different way. One of my objectives was to find some nugget of information that cast a different light on the subject for the interview.

So, when I recommend a book, I am even surprising myself that I have found something different.

Such a book is TOO SOON OLD TOO LATE SMART by psychiatrist, Gordon Livingston, MD. The introduction was written by Elizabeth Edwards.

She says, “As I read his essays, I am reminded of a trailer for a self-improvement television series:
“Your friends won’t tell you … but we’re not your friends and we will.”

There is no psycho-babble here. This is a wise man whose heart has been broken by the loss of two children in a year and a man who was a doctor in Viet Nam and chose to leave that war. He speaks for all the patients he has ever treated in his practice. He dedicates his book –
“To my patients – Who taught me most of what is in this book.”

He speaks to the young on how to choose a mate – and to the old who wonder why they are still living.

It is an extraordinary commentary on all of life.

I first heard about it from a blog called Advanced Life Skills and just the chapter headings sent me right to Amazon.com to get a copy. I will provide a link to his article at the end of this one. He did a marvelous review.

Here are the chapters -

1. If the map doesn’t agree with the ground, the map is wrong.
2. We are what we do. We are not what we think, or what we feel, or what we say, we are what we do.
3. It is difficult to remove by logic an idea not placed there by logic in the first place.
4. The statute of limitations has expired on most of our childhood traumas.
5. Any relationship is under the control of the person who cares the least.
6. Feelings follow behavior.
7. Be bold, and mighty forces will come to your aid.
8. The perfect is the enemy of the good.
9. Life’s two most important questions are “Why?” and “Why not?”
10. Our greatest strengths are our greatest weaknesses.
11. The most secure prisons are those we construct for ourselves.
12. The problems of the elderly are frequently serious but seldom interesting.
13. Happiness is the ultimate risk.
14. True love is the apple of Eden.
15. Only bad things happen quickly.
16. Not all who wander are lost.
17. Unrequited love is painful but not romantic.
18. There is nothing more pointless, or common, than doing the same things and expecting different results.
19. We flee from the truth in vain.
20. it’s a poor idea to lie to oneself.
21. We are all prone to the myth of the perfect stranger.
22. Love is never lost, not even in death.
23. Nobody likes to be told what to do.
24. The major advantage of illness is that it provides relief from responsibility.
25. We are afraid of the wrong things.
26. Parents have a limited ability to shape children’s behavior, except for the worse.
27. The only real paradises are those we have lost.
28. Of all the forms of courage, the ability to laugh is the most profoundly therapeutic.
29. Mental health requires freedom of choice.
30. Forgiveness is a form of letting go, but they are not the same thing.

The book is a simple series of essays that will make you want to say to yourself, “Of course, I knew that.” But even when truth is spoken, it is important to be reminded of what we have forgotten.

Although I would classify this as a spiritual book, it has nothing to do with religion. It is more about the spirit of the Universal heart.

I strongly advise you to buy this small book for yourself. it is inexpensive.

Then, go back and get a copy for everyone you love. They will thank you.

Special thanks to Jonathan Wells - who brought this book to my attention so I can do the same for you.

His review and his link to Amazon is at -
TOO SOON OLD TOO LATE SMART