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How Life Works

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How Life Works is about:
Why the same things keep happening to you
Why bills come in bunches

It is about:
How to find the love of your life
How to find the work you love
Why some people always fall on their feet – and how you can be like them.

How Life Works explains why:
It’s not WHAT you know
It’s not WHO you know

It’s all about how you FEEL.

144 pages, ebook

First published January 1, 2014

140 people are currently reading
968 people want to read

About the author

Andrew Matthews

45 books462 followers

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5 stars
481 (59%)
4 stars
199 (24%)
3 stars
88 (10%)
2 stars
31 (3%)
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15 (1%)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 89 reviews
Profile Image for Kirsty ❤️.
923 reviews57 followers
April 29, 2018
I found this book a little too basic. I liked that it was easy to read, had colourful cartoons and had some interesting elements but I think there are plenty of books that give the same message but in a much more interesting and in-depth way. It’s not bad a starter book for making changes but this one just didn’t have enough in it for me.

Free arc from netgalley
Profile Image for Peivand.
108 reviews18 followers
November 29, 2023
رسالت هر انسانی در این جهان هستی ، پذیرفتن مسئولیت کامل زندگی خود از طریق کنترل اندیشه ها و احساسات خویشتن است
Profile Image for Damaskcat.
1,782 reviews4 followers
August 21, 2015
I've been a fan of Andrew Matthews' writing ever since I first read 'Be Happy' many years ago. He is so full of enthusiasm that he can't help but influence your mood and how you look at life. This book is all about how your feelings influence what you get in life. Everyone has had days where they get up in a grouchy mood, the car won't start or the bus is late, everyone at work is grumpy and then it rains and you've forgotten your umbrella and a car splashes you with the contents of a large a muddy puddle.

It seems, in short, that life and the universe has it in for you. But how much of this is your mood attracting those events? What would have happened if you'd gone into work smiling, regardless of how many problems you'd had already that morning? Would your co-workers have been different? If you hadn't been so wrapped up in your bad mood you'd have spotted the potential problems with that large puddle and taken evasive action in time.

Basically this is about how you feel affects what sort of life you have. If you change your thoughts and feelings then your external life changes to match. You're cheerful - people suddenly become helpful and cheerful. That big bill comes in and you get a bonus at work which is enough to pay for it. Don't concentrate on what you haven't got - concentrate on what you have.

Yes all this is described at length in many different self help books but with self help it's a case of finding an author who lights up something in you and for me Andrew Matthews does that. I love his 'in a nutshell' summaries after every point he makes. I like the little cartoons - which display very well on a Kindle - as they often make the point even better than words can do.

There is a list of further reading at the end of the book which many people will find useful This book won't take you very long to read and it just could change the way you look at life.
Profile Image for Laura.
532 reviews36 followers
February 26, 2018
This book looked like a great self-help book from the outset - one which wasn't 'airy fairy', and which I hoped would give some good, solid, practical tips. I'll admit it contains some great truths and some straight-talking, such as the idea that positivity breeds positivty and negativity breeds negatvity, as this is something I greatly believe myself. But Matthews talks a lot about how what is in your sub-conscious will come to frution. Now the mind is a powerful thing and by changing the way we think we can acyally make a big difference, but if everything in our sub-cinscious came true we'd all be walking around with wallets full of £50 notes and not needing to work a single day of our lives. Matthews simplified things too much and it really irked me. What really put me off this book was reading about how a Japanese researcher conducted an experiment whereby he freezes water; if he talks positively to the water before they form ice crystals, the ice crystals supposedly respond, and form beautiful crystals like jewels, as opposed to the water he spoke negatively to which became 'ugly blobs'. Apparently he has also demonstrated that you don't even have to talk to the water, as you can think a word and send that thought to the water, and subsequently the ice crystals will reflect your thoughts. (I would be happy to be shown the evidence-base for this and be proven wrong...)

The rest of the book continued in much the same vein; some practical no-nonsense advice but interspersed with some quite fantastical stuff, which just meant that this book was not for me.
Profile Image for Ангел.
195 reviews7 followers
January 17, 2021
Жанра на книгите, попадаща и тази, е много разногласен и създава предпоставки за безсмислени спорове между различните хора. Добре! Приемам, че има такива търсещи просветление и такива, които търсят други неща. Без цинизъм е последното. Целта в края на крайщата е всеки сам да намери щастието, било то с помощта на друг или не.

" Щастието е смисълът и целта на живота, върховният стремеж на човешкото съществуване" - Аристотел
Profile Image for Ankita Shah.
144 reviews7 followers
January 22, 2023
Loved the cartoons.

This is a unique book. Its dealing with the heavy topic like Life and still one can breeze through it happily. The language and the presentation are beautiful. And it surely has a power to transform your thoughts and to make you lead a better/happy life.
Its the best gift I have received on my birthday. Thanks to my lovely friend Nikita. 🤗
I recommend it to everyone. 🙂
Profile Image for Nga Dao Quynh.
42 reviews30 followers
November 16, 2014
First, I'm obviously lucky enough to read this book in hard cover copy rather than ebook as stated here. So thank you a lot, to some who introduced me this book and let me spread it to others who I love.
This book is amazing and mind-blowing! I never really thought self-development kind of book is my type - they all sound so distant all the same to me - but How Life Works made a lot of difference in what I will then perceive and think of the outside world, and may as well as the inside.

Sometimes the terms and ideas established here still appear unconvincing - well, given 20 years I have been accustomed to the opposite thinking - but I sensed that if we just blindly believe and do and feel like it suggested, we would be greatly happy. And happiness is the start and the motive of almost everything :)

Look forward to get my hand to "Follow your heart" of Andrew Matthews :x Thanks life, you are great ^_^
Profile Image for Paloma.
8 reviews1 follower
February 20, 2022
The most easy optimists and basic book that you can read to improve your life and the way you think. It’s a summary of many books that I have read that were complex and difficult to understand because I’m not in the field of science. And this book is to have a better and happier life and improve your work, relationships and things that can be bad in your life.
Profile Image for Abdulkhalek Zohbi.
328 reviews78 followers
September 6, 2021
My favorites book for Andrew Matthews so far, very simple, brings peace to your life. I'm not big fan of self improvement books but this book is different where you can reflect every chapter in your life and learn how to feel toward things.

Reading it was a great experience and I benefitted alot.
Profile Image for Jenny Houle.
894 reviews10 followers
June 23, 2020
I have a very hard time, as someone with chronic illness, believing that the subconscious is what creates all of the issues in my life. I am 110% sure on the day my mother died, my brain was saying "It's so awesome that she is up and talking. I can't wait for her to get out of the ICU." If this book is to believed, it appears that my "can't wait for her to get out of the ICU" is what killed her.

I have a similar issue with people who say that every shitty thing in life happens because they didn't pray hard enough. Some days, shit happens.

Maybe you'll find something better in this book.
Profile Image for JJ.
35 reviews4 followers
July 6, 2014
I am a big fan of Andrew Matthews. Every book he writes is simple, clear and full of wisdom.

His latest book, "How Life Works," has published a few days ago. Many contents in this book has already been mentioned in his previous books, but he also included the idea of yoga philosophy in this book.

"Thought" is real. Thought changes situations.
Now you can find the evidence of this concept through the study of water by Dr. Masaru Emoto.
I love the quote, "The thought in your head becomes a feeling in your heart."

If you are interested in this book, you can get the ebook with 20% discount now.

http://andrewmatthews.com/products/ho...
Profile Image for Litborne.
203 reviews44 followers
August 4, 2014
If there is one person I need to thank for having taught me how to live my life other than my mother, it is Andrew Mathews. I became a big fan of his ever since I was a teenager. The first 20 pages of this book made me shift my way of looking at life tremendously. How Life Works is all about one deep notion--If you want to see it happen, you need to "feel" it happen. Andrew Mathews, as always in a very simple understandable way, explains that it’s not what happens to us that matters, it’s how we feel about what happens to us.
Profile Image for SA®A .
317 reviews384 followers
August 11, 2016
This is the book of whole life,really motivating, inspiring,awesome and at the same time so simple to understand!give it a shot!
Profile Image for Karina Doynova.
5 reviews5 followers
June 11, 2019
Невероятна книга - интересна, забавна, позитивна, но и много поучителна в същото време. Със сигурност ще я препоръчам на всеки, интересуващ се от личностно развитие. ❤
Profile Image for Saja Zeaiter.
98 reviews2 followers
July 6, 2020
a good fast and light read, very repetitive though
Profile Image for Ellie Nguyen.
68 reviews
July 15, 2025
Another book by Andrew Matthews amazed me! I believe this book came to me at the perfect time. Throughout my life, I was controlled by negative thoughts, doubts, and anxiety — to the point where I couldn’t even leave my room. It felt like my family and I were trapped by invisible borders, believing we would “die” if we stepped outside our comfort zones, our neighborhood, or our habits — everything!

Little by little, Andrew’s books started to sink in. They motivated me to make new friends, start exercising, meditate, think positively, and go with the flow. He is right! Life isn’t that serious — it’s a mysterious world full of joy. Life existed long before human beings. So why do we have to live in misery? Why do we worry about things we can’t control? Life isn’t that bad!

We’re like magnets — attracting whatever we focus on, whether good or bad. So instead of thinking negatively, why don’t we choose thoughts that lift us up and make us happy? We’re going to think anyway — so why choose the ones that drag us down?

I feel deeply grateful that I had the chance to read this amazing book. I’m thankful that Andrew Matthews has written so many incredible works that helped me let go of the negative beliefs and habits that imprisoned me for so long.

Best wishes to Andrew Matthews — I truly love your works of art!
45 reviews7 followers
March 31, 2019
Mình thích sách của Andrew Matthews! Mình đã đọc hết bộ "Đời thay đổi khi chúng ta thay đổi". Chúng đã mang lại cho mình những thay đổi tốt đẹp.
Cách viết của Andrew Matthews luôn đơn giản, dễ hiểu. Minh họa dí dỏm và đơn giản khiến người đọc không cần phải ngẫm nghĩ nhiều cũng có thể hiểu được nội dung ông muốn diễn đạt. Sách đề cập đầy đủ và chi tiết các vấn đề và cũng đưa ra giải pháp một cách cụ thể và dễ hiểu nhất. Đây là điểm mình thích ở sách ông.
Cuốn sách này cũng vậy, cùng giọng văn nhưng nói về vấn đề khác. Khi đọc thì mình nhận ra ngay cái cách diễn đạt quen thuộc. Rất đỗi đời thường và giản dị. Không phức tạp và không cần bất cứ kiến thức nền nào để hiểu điều ông nói.
Nội dung chủ yếu trong sách nói về mối liên hệ giữa cảm nhận của con người và cuộc sống của họ. Những minh chứng cho mối liên kết đó. Mọi thông tin đó để thuyết phục chúng ta tin vào mối liên kết đó. Chỉ vì khi ta tin thì mới có phép màu xảy ra.
Mới đọc lần đầu tiên, không cảm nhận được và hiểu sâu sắc lắm. Cần đọc để hiểu sâu thêm. Nhưng mình biết, niềm tin và cảm nhận là yếu tố quan trọng của cả cuốn sách. Ta cần tin và thay đổi cảm nhận để được hạnh phúc hơn.
-Người ta tin rằng " Thành công làm bạn hạnh phúc"
Sự thực là : hạnh phúc làm bạn thành công! -
Profile Image for Sarah Chan.
13 reviews6 followers
January 21, 2019
The subconscious mind accepts information as facts, takes instructions literally.
When you plant a thought, your subconscious delivers.
We each attract- and create- our life experiences through our subconscious programs.
Before the plague starts spreading, ask yourself, 'what's good about this?'
Everything around you is consciousness, and how you think and feel determines what you get.
The universe is an energy system, constantly bringing itself into balance. Every time you have a thought, you shift the balance.
To get what you want, you first need to have the feeling of what you want - as if it has already arrived.
What you have seen is what we do to create the feeling in our bodies. Feeling is the prayer!
See and feel your goals achieved and let them unfold in their own time.
When we give, we feel wonderful. When we feel wonderful, we become a magnet for good things. When we give, we create a flow.
Meditate. Express your intention and then you have to get your mind out of the way.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Profile Image for Soham.
5 reviews4 followers
June 23, 2019
This is a book which one cannot understand in a single read. Though I really like the writing style of Andrew Matthews - simple, relatable and very engaging with real-life examples, but "How Life Works" needs multiple reads...not to understand the concepts, but to understand how to apply the concepts in your life. This is my 2nd read and I still feel I need another read! :)

The power of feeling and how feeling influences the subconscious mind to drive and shape life up is a very complex topic which has been presented in multiple books in multiple forms. But the scientific studies backing up the Law of Attraction and how everything in the universe is connected is something which I learnt for the first time.

Whether you are 19 or 90, I have to say this is a must read for everyone.

A beautiful quote from the book:

Your mission is to FEEL AS GOOD AS POSSIBLE EVERY MINUTE, EVERY HOUR, EVERY DAY. That is how life works.
Profile Image for Mina Jade.
53 reviews1 follower
May 16, 2018
I've been a fan of Andrew Matthew's writing since I was a teen. Most of the messages he writes are things we know it from people telling or TV characters. But the way he writes his books, his writings has an ease in delivering those messages to you like catching up with an old friend over coffee. It's all good vibes, simple and yet effective. I see a lot of Buddhist teachings in this book and I liked it because it is a small dose of reminder to practice what I have learned. The most important thing in knowing how life works is maintaining that good feeling: knowing what you want, feeling good, letting go, practicing gratitude, law of attraction etc. It's a good book to perk up once in a while when you're tensed from getting too focused on worked up in our jobs and responsibilities. I will re-read this one (just like all his other books) in the future again.
Profile Image for Neerja.
509 reviews2 followers
July 30, 2021
A joyful and optimistic book to read. This book was brilliantly written and I enjoyed it very much.

It was precise and covered only the important things. It had some wonderful illustrations too which enhanced the reading experience for me.

The topics discussed were not new but presented in quite an interesting way. This book was quite informative as it had many things which I didn't know about.

The book was engaging for sure and if you in need of short non fiction book to read, you should definitely pick it up.
Profile Image for Narinder  Bhatia.
83 reviews
January 15, 2019
Interesting, Entertaining, Engaging and Informative are the 4 words that best describe this book. The book addresses the theme of subconsciously in an extremely simple manner, supplemented by real life scenarios and scientific research. If you struggle with the basic life issues and wonder whether the power of subconscious could help in any way, then this is the go-to book for the same.

"good books make good company"
http://bookmantras.blogspot.com/
Profile Image for Dania Raed.
7 reviews26 followers
October 6, 2019
I really don’t know why I even read this I guess the only reason is that it happened to be the only book saved on my computer and I’d nothing to do being offline for a few days! I actually have read three of Andrew Matthews’ books when I was 12 or 13 which I liked very much at the time however even after all those years I found this somewhat recent book to be repetitive for those other books. It has some good, general, easy-to-understand-and-follow life reminders, though.
Profile Image for Petro.
156 reviews3 followers
December 15, 2021
"Thoughts are real things. Thoughts change situations."


I literally just lost one of my earrings. At first, I was panicked to looked everywhere I sat. Then I stop for a moment and took a deep breath, then say this to myself "Wait, let me practice what I just read. I mean, look on the bright side it's nearly Christmas anyway so my mom's gonna buy me a new pair." And just like, I wasn't looking anymore. I was gonna sit on the chair, and found it laying on the chair. 😅
280 reviews78 followers
May 11, 2022
This was great and interesting. I had a good time with what Andrew Matthews was trying to deliver. I can understand how he approached life problems, as well as how people can best react to them. Some parts of "How Life Works" seemed to be really in tune with my experience as well. For instance, how life can be contradictory, and a lot of dramas which may occur. Andrew Matthews left impression on me for how he mentioned these dramas and other situations from his honest experience. I liked that and I think this is something worthwhile.
Profile Image for Dessie.
357 reviews6 followers
May 29, 2017
I was extremely skeptical from the get-go, but this book surprised me. It's written in a very simple style and shares some very simple truths, and the choice is ours whether we want to believe them or not. I think it's a good book to read when you're feeling down and can't seem to see the light at the end of the tunnel. There always is one :)
Profile Image for Boo Thảo.
34 reviews1 follower
October 29, 2017
most of ideas from this book that i have read in many books before. but obvious the content 's so brief, easy to understand. i read it for 2 hours .
I think many people is sticking in their life that should read it when they need motivation to over bad things.
the sentence i really love is : " if you dont have a dream that it never come true"
10 reviews
September 8, 2018
I have read 'How Life Works' by Andrew Matthews a several months ago, and I had been super sure that my very positive view of the book is already online and that I posted my enthusiasm and warm recommendation, almost as soon as I completed the last page. I just wish there is more so properly summarized and illustrated. I am grateful for the opportunity to the publisher and NetGalley.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 89 reviews

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