Think Forward to Thrive by Jennice Vilhauer

Think Forward to Thrive by Jennice Vilhauer is a self-help book that features forward ideas on how thinking positive about the future, and not letting your past define you can truly help you become the person you want to be in the present as well as in the future. If you or someone you know needs a little (or a lot) of help in this area, be sure to read this book!

Book Description

“Anticipating a positive future is the key to well-being and mental health. Yet when many people think of the future, they experience anxiety, depression, fear, and self-doubt. Unaware of how to change the future, most people are trapped in a cycle of re-creating their past. But your past does not have to define who you are or where you are going — you can break free. Future Directed Therapy (FDT) is a new psychotherapy that helps people create their future with awareness and choice, with skills based on cutting-edge cognitive science. Think Forward to Thrive is filled with information and step-by-step exercises to help you:

• Overcome negative emotions 
• Identify what you want in life
• Transform limiting beliefs 
• Take action 
• Live ready for success” – Think Forward to Thrive

My Thoughts

Think Forward to Thrive is a book that I think everyone could benefit from reading. It doesn’t just give the same old positive self-help advice that we’ve read over and over again. It gives fresh examples on how to change behavior, figure out what it is you really want, what is holding you back, and actually make the changes needed to reach your goals. The best advice in the world won’t get you there though if you don’t actually do it, so with the help of this book and your determination to make those changes, you can see real changes in your life.

One of the small additions that I really like that was included in this book is that in the beginning of each chapter, the author included a meaningful quote. My favorite is the one for chapter 1 by Stephen R. Covey which states “Live out of your imagination, not your history.”

I especially liked the section on goal setting, visualizing, and asking myself what it is that I really want. For instance, wanting to lose weight or have a better car are good goals, but there are underlying factors in them. Those “goals” aren’t necessarily what we really want, but a problem we are trying to solve. When we figure out the problem, then we can reach the ultimate goal associated with what we thought we wanted in a much more meaningful way.

Overall, I really like this book and think that it gives fantastic advice. I highly recommend it to everyone.

* Thank you to the publisher of Think Forward to Thrive, New World Library, for providing me with a copy of this book for review. All opinions expressed are my own.