Don't Just Do Something

by Richard Eyre

Rewriting common cliche+a7s into thoughts appropriate for today, the author offers such gems as ""if a thing is just barely worth doing, then just barely do it,"" and ""commitment is what allows familiarity without contempt."" 125,000 first printing.

Genres: Nonfiction

Audio Cassette

First published January 1, 1995

About the author

Writers, lecturers, and grassroots and media catalysts, Linda and Richard Eyre's mission statement: "Our vision is to FORTIFY FAMILIES by celebrating commitment, popularizing parenting, glorifying grandparenting, bolstering balance, and validating values." Their latest efforts in these directions are their new books (The Happy Family [St. Martins Press], Empty Nest Parenting [Bookcraft], and The Book of Nurturing [McGraw Hill]) and their regular appearances on The CBS Early Show. Richard's new book, The Three Deceivers: How our obsessions with ownership, control and independence are ruining the quality of our lives, will be published next year.

Richard is president of a management consulting company and a ranked senior tennis player. He was a "mission president" for his church in London, and a candidate for Governor of Utah.

Richard and Linda have nine children (one of every kind) and live in Washington, D.C. and Salt Lake City.

Reviews

[Laura Cyr · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book can be read in a couple hours, or just read one or two maxims at a time. The idea is that there are cliches/sayings that we follow which, when taken to extreme, actually lead to a less fulfilling life. We should all be more mindful of how we live. For example, "Anything worth doing is worth doing well"---is that really appropriate all the time or could we cut ourselves some slack on some things and avoid perfectionist mentality where it is not needed.

[Brenda · Rating 3 out of 5]

Sensible general message - chill out a little and make sure you're focusing your energy on what really matters to you - but I'm kind of mystified by his interpretation of some of the cliches. For instance:

"You are what you eat."
My interpretation: If you want to be healthy, eat healthy food.
His interpretation: Equivalent to "the clothes make the man," i.e. what you eat is a reflection of your social standing.

"You made your bed, now lie in it."
My interpretation: You are responsible for the consequences of your choices.
His interpretation: Once you've spent years building your career in a certain direction, it's too late to make any changes.

So lots of head scratching in some of the chapters, but overall good advice, and I did find a couple of inspiring stories and helpful insights.