Books: The Answers Are Within You

The Answers Are Within You
by Debbie Ford
Read by the author
Copyright 2003
Approximately 6 hours

In this book, Debbie Ford, whom I had never heard of before, writes about how we create our own story - the story of our life - which is not necessarily the reality of who we are.

As a writer, I found this idea very appealing, for it means I can change my tomorrows. Of course there are many random events that affect a person - nobody asks for a car crash or a major illness - but even so, our ideas of who we are can change and we can grow.

This audiobook offers up many meditations and questions that could help someone find triggering events that made them think certain things about themselves. For instance, some long-ago action by a parent or teacher might have given a person low self-esteem. Ford's theory is the self-esteem comes from the story you tell yourself and then believe: the teacher says I am bad, therefore I am bad, for example.

Rewriting your story takes work. She focuses on this rewriting by asking you what you gained from your story. Did thinking you were a bad person strengthen you in some way? Did it make you a better friend or coworker? Have you gone out of your way to be what you think is "good" and what kind of strengths has that brought to your life?

From there, she advocates seeking out your "secret" - the real you, the one hidden by the story we all create about ourselves. This would be the divine you, the one you really want to open up and share with the world.

I thought there were good ideas in this book. I was listening to it in the car so I wasn't able to stop and do the meditations or journaling aspects. I also listened to it over the course of many weeks and I suspect working on this daily would be beneficial.

Ford passed away in 2013, a fact I was not aware of until I began writing this blog post. I was looking to see what else she has written. Her website offers some free meditations and prayers, as well as online courses and training in various related things.

Definitely an interesting listen if you're interested in self-growth.