It's your choice! : decisions that will change your life

“It’s Your Choice! Decisions That Will Change Your Life” by Marjorie McKinnon

 This is a terrific book which reminded me once again of the greatness we enjoy as human beings. It reminded me, once again, of the real purpose of life. The author shares her love and experiences and awakens your senses. McKinnon discusses the quality of life…how to recognize it and how to share it.

I enjoyed her honesty, practicality and insights.

She leads you into the six dimensions affecting our thoughts and actions. With her help you can achieve happiness and excellence in all of these...She outlines how to make wise decisions in our lives and helps us look at how often we choose unwisely. Her dimensions are thoughtfully laid out; Mental, emotional, physical, spiritual, social and financial. She helps you understand and examine these aspects to help heal you and to improve your perspective on what can be.

She quotes Thoreau who observed that “the mass of men lead lives of quiet desperation.” Isn’t it true that we know more people who are unhappy with their lives and decisions than those that are happy and fulfilled?

I find that we sometimes need to be reminded that the glass is half full and not half empty!

“Be grateful for what you have” is a common saying…but McKinnon helps you strive for excellence. She teaches you to have skills and confidence to reach further.

Past experiences and traumas do not need to define us and she allows you to explore feelings and thinking that contributed to painful patterns you may have developed. Her dimensions help lead you out of the doldrums.

Her advice can be both simple and deep. If you fail to make constructive decisions, the author can help mobilize you. She discusses what holds us back and provides practical guidelines to get “unstuck” to help you move forward.

I enjoyed her concrete approach. She writes from the heart. This book can help you move forward. It helps you let go of unproductive feelings and patterns. Be aware of your choices!

This book has been provided for review through www.reviewthebook.com.

Reviewed by Paige Lovitt for Reader Views (08/10)

It is of utmost importance that we have purpose in our life so that we have a reason for living. There are six dimensions in our lives that we need to address to develop healthy behavior patterns. These dimensions are: mental, emotional, physical, spiritual, social and financial. The six dimensions are interconnected. By developing all of them to the maximum level possible, these dimensions will work together to help us to live at our fullest potential which in turn will maximize our quality of life.

McKinnon dedicates a chapter for each of the six dimensions. She relates stories from her own experiences in dealing with these areas and she offers sage words of wisdom, which she refers to as "rules," on how we can improve these areas in our own lives. By sharing her personal stories with us, I really felt a stronger connection with her because I could relate to so many of her experiences and thoughts. This also includes her "Ten Commandments of Obsessive Behavior." Having created this kind of connection makes me feel like this book was written specifically for me. However, I also suspect that the majority of readers will feel this way!

I highly recommend immersing yourself in "It's Your Choice!" You will find yourself doing a lot of journaling. This book will encourage you to look inside yourself to assess where you are at and what you need to do to get to where you want to be if you are not there yet. I think that the more work that we do in these areas, not only will we improve those aspects of our lives, but we will also learn to listen to that inner voice, when it is speaking, and in doing so, we will trust in ourselves more. We have the choice to decide what we need to do to better our reality. Keep in mind that while it is never too late to change your life, it is best to get started now!