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Think Forward to Thrive: How to Use the Mind's Power of Anticipation to Transcend Your Past and Transform Your Life
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, self-doubt, and feelings of being overwhelmed. Most people, unaware of how to change the future, are trapped in a cycle of recreating their past over and over again. However, your past does not have to define who you are or where you are going. You can break free, but only if you know how and have the necessary skills to do something different. Future Directed Therapy (FDT) is a new psychological intervention developed to teach people to create their future with awareness and choice. Unlike other books about creating a better future, the skills in Think Forward to Thrive, are based on cutting edge cognitive science. Think Forward to Thrive will teach you step-by-step the psychological skills that can transform your life. Think Forward to Thrive is filled with information and exercises that will help you: Overcome negative emotions Identify what you want in life Transform limiting beliefs Take action Live ready for success Stop talking about your past and start creating your future!
248 pages, Paperback
First published October 1, 2013
104 people are currently reading
408 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
January 14, 2018
See my full review @ https://readrantrockandroll.com/2018/...
I purchased Think forward to Thrive after reading an article online about how people can learn with Future Directed Therapy to let go of unwanted thoughts and redirect their way of thinking to help them meet their goals and anticipate a positive future. I'd never heard about Future Directed Therapy and was intrigued.
I was pleasantly surprised with the book. It includes stories concerning multiple people and their experiences, discloses what they can do to help themselves, and offers worksheets where you can assess yourself. In these, they help train you to change your thought patterns. Whether you're in a bad relationship, sick with a disease, just plain stuck because of your past, or simply want to work on changing your thoughts, this book might help you. We are in charge of our thoughts, we don't have to limit ourselves, and we have the control to change.
I like that each chapter has a famous quote in addition to the quotes throughout the book. One of my favorites is a powerful one...
"Past experiences do not define who you are unless you allow them too. You are free to change at any time."
On the other hand, there are a few sections I felt unsure about. In one section, the book discusses people and how you can work toward getting them to admire you. Let's face it, it's possible that some people just aren't going to like you and there are some things that we just aren't in control of. Bad people exist and bad things do happen, however, I think the book can help us to keep our minds on track and thinking positively in these cases.
I like the layout and structure. The worksheets help personalize the experience because, we're all different and we all think differently. We all have different pasts and have had different experiences in life. The worksheets allow you to personally narrow in on what you want to change. I feel that's it's written well and easy to understand. In my opinion, this isn't a book you can read once and be on your way. It's full of information. I think its a work in progress over time. Overall, it's an uplifting book that can help you redirect your future.
4****
I purchased Think forward to Thrive after reading an article online about how people can learn with Future Directed Therapy to let go of unwanted thoughts and redirect their way of thinking to help them meet their goals and anticipate a positive future. I'd never heard about Future Directed Therapy and was intrigued.
I was pleasantly surprised with the book. It includes stories concerning multiple people and their experiences, discloses what they can do to help themselves, and offers worksheets where you can assess yourself. In these, they help train you to change your thought patterns. Whether you're in a bad relationship, sick with a disease, just plain stuck because of your past, or simply want to work on changing your thoughts, this book might help you. We are in charge of our thoughts, we don't have to limit ourselves, and we have the control to change.
I like that each chapter has a famous quote in addition to the quotes throughout the book. One of my favorites is a powerful one...
"Past experiences do not define who you are unless you allow them too. You are free to change at any time."
On the other hand, there are a few sections I felt unsure about. In one section, the book discusses people and how you can work toward getting them to admire you. Let's face it, it's possible that some people just aren't going to like you and there are some things that we just aren't in control of. Bad people exist and bad things do happen, however, I think the book can help us to keep our minds on track and thinking positively in these cases.
I like the layout and structure. The worksheets help personalize the experience because, we're all different and we all think differently. We all have different pasts and have had different experiences in life. The worksheets allow you to personally narrow in on what you want to change. I feel that's it's written well and easy to understand. In my opinion, this isn't a book you can read once and be on your way. It's full of information. I think its a work in progress over time. Overall, it's an uplifting book that can help you redirect your future.
4****
November 9, 2014
I am a bit biased but I am giving it five stars. :)
July 22, 2019
I'm yet to finish all the worksheets in the book, but just the ideas discussed have given me a number of things to consider and think about.
Cognitive science says 'depression' is a learned helplessness. It could happen when a person is left absolutely helpless in the face of a negative experience that they can do nothing about and then carry that helplessness to other situations where one can actually do something about it.
While there are many ways to look at how this pattern can be broken, this book argues that without an expectation/anticipation of a positive future, you can never even get your brain to start solving the problems that need solving. It's a classic cost-benefit calculation that the brain does and expectations of a negative outcome would mean that there are no benefits for trying. It is argued that this can be broken with a positive future expectation. Most of the worksheets are designed to help a person develop a positive future expectation and it is suggested that one starts small and work their way upwards.
I do however wish that the book had more science to explain the concepts discussed, but that did not by itself make the ideas irrelevant.
I nearly quit reading the book when I came across a thoughtless example which condoned killing in the name of religion, but I'm glad I didn't. For the idea that you can never move out of a negative pattern of thinking without anticipating a positive future for yourself (no matter how small) is in itself worth thinking about.
Cognitive science says 'depression' is a learned helplessness. It could happen when a person is left absolutely helpless in the face of a negative experience that they can do nothing about and then carry that helplessness to other situations where one can actually do something about it.
While there are many ways to look at how this pattern can be broken, this book argues that without an expectation/anticipation of a positive future, you can never even get your brain to start solving the problems that need solving. It's a classic cost-benefit calculation that the brain does and expectations of a negative outcome would mean that there are no benefits for trying. It is argued that this can be broken with a positive future expectation. Most of the worksheets are designed to help a person develop a positive future expectation and it is suggested that one starts small and work their way upwards.
I do however wish that the book had more science to explain the concepts discussed, but that did not by itself make the ideas irrelevant.
I nearly quit reading the book when I came across a thoughtless example which condoned killing in the name of religion, but I'm glad I didn't. For the idea that you can never move out of a negative pattern of thinking without anticipating a positive future for yourself (no matter how small) is in itself worth thinking about.
June 30, 2017
Great! Challenges the brain and emotions to learn the ways of changing the thought flow to have a better outcome in the end.
August 9, 2021
This book came at the right time for me
April 14, 2024
When it comes to judging the books which claim that they will solve your problems ,the only metric is to test the claims of that book .
This book is based upon the premise that our feelings comes from our thinking and i think writer also says - "Past experiences do not define who you are unless you allow them too. You are free to change at any time." .This is the same premise on which Stoicism is based and CBT REBT etc therapies are based .
According to my own experience the premise on which this book and cbt,rebt etc are based is completely wrong our feelings do not depend on our thinking but our thinking do depends upon our feelings ,our feelings depends upon our genetics , our environment (current and past).
Then why some people claim that CBT and REBT have helped them ? i think it is due to confusing correlation with causation , when a person goes to a therapist he is changing his environment ,the talking ,going to a new place etc maybe these are the factors which cause the change not the premise of challenge your thoughts and your feelings will change ,if cbt or rebt or Future directed therapy or Bryon kt's method or any other whichcraft from cognitive psychology was true then people would have felt ok even without going to therapist after applying principles of these therapies but no that rarely happens ,on the other side there are many people for whom these therapies do not work at all in spite of the big claims by albert Ellis and other cognitive psychologists .
Our childhood impacts us very deeply , changing your thoughts doesn't do anything, redirecting your thinking doesn't erases the pain of the childhood .Writer of this book says "Past experiences do not define who you are unless you allow them too. You are free to change at any time." thats completely false ,our past experience impacts us and if the negative experience was really intense then it can leave a serious imprint on our brain and the pain can resurface during anytime our mind goes back to that situation .
Now if CBT,REBT or this therapy do not work at all ,yes i do think these therapies are like whitchcrafts like homeopathy and these therapies do not work at all ,so do we have something which works ? I do not know yet .But i will leave with a quote from ex student of Albert Ellis -
When important things go wrong in a person’s life, that person predictably and understandably becomes emotionally upset. This was a common-sense perspective until rational and cognitive therapy resuscitated an ancient Roman slave’s perspective which asserts (wrongly) that people are not upset by what happens to them!
And that is precisely the problem. Epictetus was a slave in ancient Rome. Not only was he a slave, but his mother, before him, was also a slave; and he was born into slavery. Imagine how low his expectations of life would be – the slavish son of a slavish woman! And then he was released by his slave-owner, to preach Extreme Stoicism to the masses.
- Dr Jim Byrne
Then why people are giving good reviews ?
because i do not think they have tested this book by applying it during tough times of their lives and yes i am writing this review after applying this book.
This book is based upon the premise that our feelings comes from our thinking and i think writer also says - "Past experiences do not define who you are unless you allow them too. You are free to change at any time." .This is the same premise on which Stoicism is based and CBT REBT etc therapies are based .
According to my own experience the premise on which this book and cbt,rebt etc are based is completely wrong our feelings do not depend on our thinking but our thinking do depends upon our feelings ,our feelings depends upon our genetics , our environment (current and past).
Then why some people claim that CBT and REBT have helped them ? i think it is due to confusing correlation with causation , when a person goes to a therapist he is changing his environment ,the talking ,going to a new place etc maybe these are the factors which cause the change not the premise of challenge your thoughts and your feelings will change ,if cbt or rebt or Future directed therapy or Bryon kt's method or any other whichcraft from cognitive psychology was true then people would have felt ok even without going to therapist after applying principles of these therapies but no that rarely happens ,on the other side there are many people for whom these therapies do not work at all in spite of the big claims by albert Ellis and other cognitive psychologists .
Our childhood impacts us very deeply , changing your thoughts doesn't do anything, redirecting your thinking doesn't erases the pain of the childhood .Writer of this book says "Past experiences do not define who you are unless you allow them too. You are free to change at any time." thats completely false ,our past experience impacts us and if the negative experience was really intense then it can leave a serious imprint on our brain and the pain can resurface during anytime our mind goes back to that situation .
Now if CBT,REBT or this therapy do not work at all ,yes i do think these therapies are like whitchcrafts like homeopathy and these therapies do not work at all ,so do we have something which works ? I do not know yet .But i will leave with a quote from ex student of Albert Ellis -
When important things go wrong in a person’s life, that person predictably and understandably becomes emotionally upset. This was a common-sense perspective until rational and cognitive therapy resuscitated an ancient Roman slave’s perspective which asserts (wrongly) that people are not upset by what happens to them!
And that is precisely the problem. Epictetus was a slave in ancient Rome. Not only was he a slave, but his mother, before him, was also a slave; and he was born into slavery. Imagine how low his expectations of life would be – the slavish son of a slavish woman! And then he was released by his slave-owner, to preach Extreme Stoicism to the masses.
- Dr Jim Byrne
Then why people are giving good reviews ?
because i do not think they have tested this book by applying it during tough times of their lives and yes i am writing this review after applying this book.
August 5, 2022
To Thrive or Not to Thrive.
In the modern days,
everything is asking for people attention,
during the torrent of information,
only very few them is truly good for our long time well-being.
Moreover, we have lost the ability to identify the good future.
This book brings us that, and give the tools to help us aware are we on the path to the things we want.
And help us to bring back ourselves back to the path from the distraction and negative emotions.
In the modern days,
everything is asking for people attention,
during the torrent of information,
only very few them is truly good for our long time well-being.
Moreover, we have lost the ability to identify the good future.
This book brings us that, and give the tools to help us aware are we on the path to the things we want.
And help us to bring back ourselves back to the path from the distraction and negative emotions.
April 25, 2019
This is the most useful book I have ever read. It is illuminating. It teaches you how to change your mindset about your life goals.
July 5, 2019
I read this for master's curriculum, strategic management. I hope to re-read it with colleagues at work some day. Great concept and good for personal and professional growth.
February 9, 2020
Absolutely brilliant book, the one to read in 2020
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews