Become Who You Were Born to Be: We All Have a Gift. . . . Have You Discovered Yours?

by Brian Souza

Do you ever feel burned out, beat up, or just plain bored, wondering, “Is this all there is?” Do you ever feel trapped in a stressful job that leaves you unhappy and unsatisfied? Do you ever question if you’re doing what you’re supposed to be doing—if you’re fulfilling your life’s purpose? If so, you are not alone.

Like millions of Americans, Brian Souza found himself in this precarious position a few years back. Despite attending dozens of motivational seminars and devouring the best the self-help industry had to offer, Souza was left wanting more. The turning point came when he finally realized it wasn’t artificial motivation he was after; he was really searching for a legitimate reason to be motivated. Thousands of hours of research and countless interviews later, Souza finally uncovered the secrets he was looking for all along:

Just as musicians must make music, poets must write, and artists must paint, we all have a unique gift designed for a specific vocation that will bring both meaning and purpose to our lives. True joy and happiness will continue to elude us until we use that gift to become who we were born to be.

Become Who You Were Born to Be is a blueprint for discovering your unique gift and using it to realize your personal and professional potential. Souza’s program for achieving success in all areas of life reveals:

• Four steps to discovering your gift, uncovering your passion, and unlocking your purpose
• How to overcome fears and deal with change
• How to work passion into your profession
• Why a midlife crisis should be celebrated
• How to stop stressing and start living
• How to diagnose and fix flawed life patterns
• The untold secrets of top achievers

To illustrate his life-changing philosophy, Souza relates true stories of everyday people and world-famous celebrities—including Lance Armstrong, Amy Tan, Sylvester Stallone, Garth Brooks, and Oprah Winfrey—who became heroes by overcoming adversity and squeezing every ounce of opportunity from their gifts.

Genres: Self Help, Business, Personal Development, Personal Growth, Nonfiction, Leadership

304 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2005

Reviews

[Venkataraman Sambasiva · Rating 4 out of 5]

An outstanding book. Brian Souza has touched upon all the important aspects of life and shown the way to improve and attain success.

The real life examples given by the author are all so powerful as to lift the ideas of even a reluctant browser to great heights of involvement. It is not that he has given a collection of excellent ideas of great men; but his connected account and narrations are highly effective.

Then, he has added his own ideas that easily measure up to the ones he has selected from others. For example, he says: So what is fear? I like to think of it as a poor way to use our imagination." In a small sentence such as this, he not only explains the source of fear but has also hinted at a method of driving it away.

A must read for all.

[Elisha · Rating 3 out of 5]

While there are quite a few inspiring stories in this book, there's not much "how to," which is really what I was looking for.

[Anna · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not at all what I thought it would be. I'm not a huge fan of self-help books but I thought this book would be a little more practical and with some how-to tips. It turned out to be just stories after stories and honestly the fact that I experienced this book as an audiobook with a horrible narration heavily contributed to my poor rating.

[Lupita Figueroa BookLoverRomantic · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excelente.

[Thomas · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked this book, but I didn't give it a higher rating because I lost track of what the author was saying at some points. Since my habit is to listen to audio books twice in succession, I figured I had let my mind wander and I would catch those things the second time around. Same thing happened at the same places, so I stopped the book and listened at those points to see what I had missed. As it turned out, the book just kind of wandered at those places.

The book is a good general intro to the subject of finding your purpose in life, but it falls just short of actually telling you how to do it. Many of the examples are very good, and offer words of encouragement to people who are discouraged and perplexed at the direction their life is headed. If you want specific advice on who to figure out your purpose or "gift" as the book calls it, you will need to look elsewhere.

[Preston Williams · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a decent read, many inspirational stories and such. I have no doubt that the author put in the time reading and researching. Still, it was more a hodge podge of ideas mixed in together. Than, a concise, and short book. So at times it get to be a bit of a boring read, especially with the chapters laid out in the same format each time. Not a bad idea for formality but I believe it was over done, I mean every chapter?
There are a lot of great ideas and stories in it so it is valuable in that way. I am not trying to knock it on that aspect alone, because life is like that. But for a great book to read, it doesn't qualify. I am not saying don't read it, but it is not on my all time faves list.

[Diana Nagy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another one of my favorite books! I love when I come across a book that is so amazing I can't set it down and finish it in hours! This was one of those books

[Rebecca Jelinski · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book touches on many key topics and falls in line with what most coaches discuss:
- Listen to your gut
- Analyse your joyous and abysmal situations for clues about what your gut is telling you
- Dream big and hold yourself accountable by setting SMART goals
- Let go of things that rob you from living your best life
- You become what you focus on
- Be relentless in your perseverance
- You need to take care of yourself before pursuing your passion (Maslow)
- Identify and align with your values
- Face your fears, be courageous and accept responsibility for your actions
- Failure means giving up
- Don't worry about what you can't control
- Start with the end in mind and work backwards from your desired outcome
- Ensure your actions align with your long term desired results
- Give more than you as you'll receive it back tenfold
- Have faith

[Melanie · Rating 2 out of 5]

Felt cheesy, standard coaching lingo. Inspiring stories were nice.

[Aman Dogra · Rating 4 out of 5]

It is good inspirational book. Although there is nothing new in any of the advices given in the book, but the stories which the author has told in the book are interesting. I liked the Thought, Inspiration and the Question to contemplate asked at the end of each chapter. In short, I'll recommend this book.

[Jonene · Rating 3 out of 5]

Okay, Men are from Mars got me on a psychology kick. This book seemed to be the usual world advice, "You can do anything you put your mind to" stuff, but I hung in there and it took some interesting turns and really got interesting. It's worth the read.

[Jim George · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some great advice, lots of interesting strories about famous people. Quite a few of his stories seemed abit turned around from the way I'd heard them previously - I think he took some writers liberties in re-inventing. An okay read

[Darlene · Rating 4 out of 5]

The inspirational stories alone make this a worthwhile read, but the lessons the author draws from the inspirational stories and outlines in each chapter are what differentiate this book from standard motivational fare.

[Jonathan Minnick · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good book, enjoyed it all the way through, not a completely Biblical view in all of his concepts, but he ties it up with some Bible verses at the end to say that those are the most profound insights he has come across in his life.

[Jess · Rating 2 out of 5]

Obviously written in the idealistic hopeful period before the recession. Published in 2005. Stories are mostly of educated, upper-class persons.
The subtitle is misleading and the book provides no insights into how to "discover your gifts."

[Terry · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book has a lot of interesting insights into the need to follow your passions and to get energized to achieve your potential, regardless of age. There are lots of great examples and specific action steps to implement in your personal quest. I definitely would recommend it.

[Linda · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a fantastic book!!

[Chukwuma Asala · Rating 5 out of 5]

You have so much potential, but taking no action with all the potential in the world will do nothing.

[Brian · Rating 2 out of 5]

Listened to the entire book on my drive from Dallas to Austin and back. The overall content was good, but I didn't get many fresh perspectives on anything - which is what I was expecting.

[Gia · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this book! :)
It has inspired me like no other book has before.

[Sylvia · Rating 5 out of 5]

This Is Better than *The Secret* It helps You In Anything And Everything. Great Stories.. Great Tips.. Entertaining.. Really Helps You.. Lots Of Inspiration.. The Best :)

[Nathanael · Rating 3 out of 5]

Lots of inspiring stories of great people; enjoyed this book thoroughly.

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book wasn't bad, but it paled in comparison to Character is Destiny by John McCain which I finished right before this.

[Akinleye · Rating 4 out of 5]

Simply marvelous. There a lot of inspiring stories that just keeps me getting up from my feet every time I feel down.

[Darlton]

This book is one of the greatest book i have ever read in my entire life.. I was touched by the words in the article contained in this book and after i was motivated to start writing my own book.

[Brandon Dees · Rating 2 out of 5]

not what I was looking for but decent motivational fare. the Audible reader put me to sleep.

[Smita Parekh · Rating 4 out of 5]

awakens you to deeper. thinking

[Jay Dawkins · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thanks Mom

[Rob · Rating 3 out of 5]

There are some great chapters in this book on some well-known people. This was a very easy & fun read and it's highly recommended.

[Susan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Goog motivation book. Easy to listen to.