The Next Right Thing: A Simple, Soulful Practice for Making Life Decisions

by Emily P. Freeman

Nothing gets our attention like an unmade Should I accept the new position? Which schooling choice is best for my kids? How can I support my aging parents? When we have a decision to make and the answer isn't clear, what we want more than anything is peace, clarity, and a nudge in the right direction. If you have trouble making decisions, because of either chronic hesitation you've always lived with or a more recent onset of decision fatigue, Emily P. Freeman offers a fresh way of practicing familiar but often forgotten simply do the next right thing. With this simple, soulful practice, it is possible to clear the decision-making chaos, quiet the fear of choosing wrong, and find the courage to finally decide without regret or second-guessing.Whether you're in the midst of a major life transition or are weary of the low-grade anxiety that daily life can bring, Emily helps create space for your soul to breathe so you can live life with God at a gentle pace and discern your next right thing in love.

Genres: Nonfiction, Christian, Self Help, Faith, Personal Development, Christian Living, Audiobook

220 pages, Kindle Edition

First published April 2, 2019

Reviews

[Rachael Marsceau · Rating 2 out of 5]

Very conflicted here. I loved Emily's two books Grace for the Good Girl and Simply Tuesday, but her voice is changing and I don't think we're really headed in the same direction anymore.

I liked her advice on saying no to things, and getting quiet enough to really figure out what's going on in your thoughts and desires. I love her emphasis on God's work being done in the right-now, mundane moments, just as it's being done in the huge, life-altering ones.

But throughout the whole book any kind of scriptural backing is severely lacking. She uses ALL the hip, new-age phrases that really are just too vague to be called Christian. I disagree with her repeated saying that we can hear God's voice within our own. I don't see that in the Bible at all. In fact, I need to TUNE OUT my own self-talk so I can dwell on God's voice through His Word. That is the only Truth. Also, after the rare Scripture passage, she put, "This is the Word of the Lord. Thanks be to God." Are we Catholic now??

I just got weird vibes through the whole of this, and will be sticking with more solid, Bible-based books on decision-making.

[Laura Tremaine · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love my friend Emily P. Freeman’s podcast and her new book. She speaks such truth and wisdom into my life.

[Megan Ericson · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have made more than one life-changing decision reading The Next Right Thing, and I just finished the book yesterday! Emily gives clarity about how to make a decision that does not include checklists or pro/con lists but gives you a path for making decisions at the soul level that you can carry throughout your whole life.

I expected to find a step-by-step process. However, instead of a one-size-fits-all solution, I found many spiritual practices to try and practical advice that would help lead me to MY next right thing, giving me the skills to find my own path to peace and wholeness.

I recommend this book to anyone who has a decision to make (which is you because that's everyone on the planet😉). I will be keeping this book near to reference again and again!

Note: I received an advanced reader's copy of this book via NetGalley.

[Sarah · Rating 1 out of 5]

*Blinkist* DNF

I had to stop listening because of how much the author talks about god. I have no use for a self-help book that de-emphasizes my role in making decisions and guiding the course of my life and trusts instead in “god’s” unseen plan. Maybe if I were omniscient, I’d be able to make decisions better than just what feels like the “next right thing,” but since I’m not, the title tells me all I need to know and I don’t need to waste my time reading further. If you’re religious, this review is not for you and maybe you’ll get more out of it than I did.

[R.F. Gammon · Rating 3 out of 5]

I like the podcast more, but I loved the way this book’s principles frame the more specific moments of the podcast.

[Kate Moore Walker · Rating 4 out of 5]

“You (God) never promise clarity. But you always give a hopeful vision. And you always promise presence.”

I read this book slowly and quietly over the better part of a year. It reads easily but asks for intentional slowness. Emily P. Freeman creates breathing room for the soul that leaves room in our lives to hear the voice of God and see God’s fingerprints.
She doesn’t give a formula for how to make decisions. She guides you on how to be still and listen even during busy seasons or moments. She encourages steady forward motion, prioritizing trust in God’s goodness and guidance way more than pausing until we can make the “correct” decision. We’ll wait our whole lives for that. And we aren’t called to a stagnant life.
This books has helped me a lot over the past several months of transition and hard decision making. Giving me tools I need to breathe and keep making on decision at a time.
It’s a gift I’ll recommend and return to myself for a long time.

[B Johnson · Rating 2 out of 5]

I think my opinion will not be popular. I have seen several friends give this 5 stars. I would give some where between a 2 and a 3.
For this reason. This books seems like a mix of self-help mumbo-jumbo & watery theology.
So much about trying to figure out who you are...so you can figure out your hopes and dreams.(imo...we need to focus on who we are in CHRIST.) There is a Marie Kondo-esque evaluation technique of asking yourself if this activity is "life-giving" or "life-draining"...I hold the view that we need to do many things in life that are hard and potentially life-draining...and that's not bad. #hardisnotthesamethingasbad example: parenting, homeschooling, living overseas.
I should not have been surprised by my feelings of this book as I have read "grace for the good girl" by the same author and truly disliked it.
Basically, there were some good quotes and some things I highlighted to remember...but I told Brian to skip the book and just read the few things I highlighted.
I am tired of so called Christian books that read like worldly self-help with weak Christian spiritual writing thrown in...and occasionally a good thought.
As a side note...on the last chapter I read some lines aloud to Brian and they were so ridiculous that we were cracking up.

[Rachel | All the RAD Reads · Rating 5 out of 5]

I nearly ran out of flags reading this one — it’s THAT good. I’ve had this one for months but it needed to be read right now, and I’m grateful for it. I savored this one (as it should be) and resonated deeply with her wise, warm way of inviting us all into a truer and better way of living, one grounded in Jesus and guided by love as we take little steps forward day by day. Hear me when I say that none of that is how I naturally live, but it is truly a gift to be reminded that such a way is not only possible, but actual doable. This book is a balm to weary and worn out souls, and it’s a gift I’ll treasure for years to come. (Chapter 8 alone was worth every penny!!)

[Hannah Moerman · Rating 5 out of 5]

i was soothed + comforted by this book. i read it slowly, which isn’t always my thing — but it was a gift to pause in between. there were sentences that took my breath away and i know it’ll be a book i return to annually. thankful for the gift of beautiful words + practical exercises to work towards doing our next right thing. 💖

[Valerie Woerner]

Highly recommend! The topic will make you think about things we don’t naturally slow down to think about in our busy worlds. Also Emily is so poetic, I found myself wanting to highlight lines just because they were so stinkin beautiful.

[Sam Slager · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is great for seasons of change and big decisions! I appreciated the reminder to slow down, the author talks a lot about being a “soul minimalist” aka decluttering your mind and heart and spirit. Definitely been feeling convicted to get off my phone recently and she touched on what that looks like when we invite Jesus into the quiet moments. I don’t normally consider myself an anxious person but this book made me realize a lot of my worry comes from thinking about the future and why are we doing that when we can only live in the present moment! How can I act in love today? For the next ten minutes? Good stuff.

Didn’t feel like there was a ton of scriptural backing and her stories all felt the same to me, but a great message nonetheless. This would be a good book to have physically so that you can come back to it and do some of her practices.

One quote that felt like a sucker punch was: “Could it be possible that the person I’m competing with most is an idealized version of my self that is impossible to achieve?” OUCH! We’re human! Only God is perfect :) Okay that’s all from me thanks!

[Jackie Fussner · Rating 5 out of 5]

10/5. Poetic, yet practical. Chances are, if you receive a book from me this year, this is it. Emily’s voice has been a guiding light for me over the last few years and I can’t recommend this book and her podcast enough. Such a helpful spiritual guide. Will certainly keep this one on repeat.

[April-Sterling Mills · Rating 5 out of 5]

Whew. Not only helping me see the BIG decisions more clearly, but just the day to day moments of my life. A great read. 👏🏼

[Christy Ryan · Rating 5 out of 5]

First, I'd pretty much listen to her read the phone book (if those were still a thing.) And second, since I'm the girl that is constantly thinking of lists, plans, tomorrow, efficiency, and multi-tasking, I love her message of slow, pause, reflect, listen and ponder. In honor of that, I took a (wild) step and listened to this entire book on 1.0 speed. Message received.

[Maggie Suplee · Rating 5 out of 5]

shoutout to my mom for telling me to read this one!! not to be dramatic but it has kind of changed my life.

[Rachel · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great book to kick off a New Year! Oftentimes it is the timing of a book that makes it most meaningful, yet it was also the calm tone of the author, the wise but practical insights, and the soulful writing found within the pages of The Next Right Thing that all carried its encouraging message to my heart. This book isn’t a how-to manual on decision making, but rather a reflection on what it is that my soul is seeking in the waiting and in the deciding; this book held exactly what I needed to hear and read at this particular moment in my life, and I’m confident that it’s a book I’ll revisit often, perhaps annually.

“Fear works both ways, keeping you from doing things you might want to do and convincing you that you have to do things you don’t want to do. Am I being led by love or pushed by fear?”

[Kaycee Owens · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked much of what she had to say and this book did help me think through a few upcoming decisions in light of doing “the next right thing.”

I feel overall, however, that the book lacked cohesion - each chapter seemed like a short and separate thought. I wanted her to go deeper on different ideas she addresses. I realized recently that each chapter was probably a podcast episode and that I might have enjoyed the book more if I had been a listener.

Also, if you’re going to bring up “friend Jesus”, I think at some point you must also address sin and his atoning work that made us able to call him friend! Just a thought 🙃

[Joan · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is unlike any other I have read on making decisions. It is more about why we decide and who we are when we decide rather than the decision making process itself. Rather than a technique, Freeman helps us know ourselves, finding what we really want, and establishing soul clarity before deciding.

Her concept is that decision making is part of our spiritual formation experience. She writes about being a soul minimalist, helping us get rid of soul clutter. We are reminded of the importance of stillness, a key to decision making. She helps us stay in the present. She asks us to evaluate who we listen to. She has a great teaching on critics.

You'll not find a practical technique in this book for making decisions. You will find encouragement to uncover who you really are, to determine when you feel most yourself, when you feel most peaceful, and more. Freeman provides an exercise at the end of each chapter to help you in those pursuits.

This is a very readable book. Freeman's writing style is personable. She tells lots of stories on herself to illustrate her teaching. It is a good book for people who want to understand who they are in relation to the decisions they make.

I received a complimentary egalley of this book from the publisher. My comments are an independent and honest review.

[Aryn · Rating 5 out of 5]

**I received an advanced reader copy on netgalley

You know how sometimes a book comes along and meets you where you’re at?! This book is THAT book for me, for 2019.

I’ve been following Emily P. Freeman for a few years now and recently discovered her podcast and it met me at such a deep place. Imagine my excitement when I found out she’s writing a book based on her podcast #thenextrightthing

If you have a decision to make, or if you will-because who doesn’t-pick this book up. Preorder it, actually, for loads of bonuses, including a free audio book, visit Thenextrightthingbook.com for more info.

Emily gives a voice to the process of decision making. She lays it out, step by step. She talks about why decisions might be hard to make, and/or why we might not like making decisions. It’s a practical and soulful guide to decision making, it’s beautifully written and easy to read. I’ve read it through once and will be diving in again for some good, honest study.

Check it all out at www.NextRightThingBook.com

[Kaytee Cobb · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really loved two chapters in here and thought the other 22 were well written but not revolutionary. Perhaps I'd like it more if I were a listener of her podcast?

[Kav · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ha! Love the author's dedication -- "To anyone who's ever made a pro/con list in the middle of the night." With terms like 'chronic hesitation' and 'decision fatigue' I knew this book might have been written just for me. :-)

This quote really grabbed me -- I had to read it a couple of times before I got it. "It doesn't matter what the specific decision is. Unmade decisions hold power. They pull, they push, they interrupt where they aren't wanted and poke us awake at night." (p 12) Reading this book was like getting a huge, comforting bear hug. What sweet relief!

Because I'm surrounded by those annoyingly decisive types who sail through life making the right snap decision every time. Meanwhile I'm the waffler floundering in ambiguity. Always worried that whatever decision I make will be the wrong one and that leads to our friend procrastination which leads to putting off the inevitable decision making and just goes to prove that point about unmade decisions holding power. Now you see why I need this book. :-)

Love the way the author brings prayer into the decision making process. Each chapter ends with a kind of prayer starter/guideline that really helps me focus my intention and brings clarity to wayward thoughts that thwart my decision making efforts.

Freeman has an easygoing writing style which is helpful to reluctant nonfiction readers like me. Easy to understand, inviting to read and lots to ponder. I've read it through once so that I could write a review but now I'm going to start over, using this book as a kind of devotional with specific decision making goals in mind. I'm actually kinda excited at the thought of ...dare I say it...making a decision!

Book provided courtesy of Baker Publishing Group and Graf-Marting Communications Inc.

[Sarah Sedlacek · Rating 3 out of 5]

I feel torn rating this book. As a happy consumer of Emily P. Freeman’s podcast, “The Next Right Thing,” I thought her subsequent book by the same name would be all the more rich. However, I didn’t find this to be the case. Yes, it says “simple” and “soulful” in the subtitle, and it was just that, but it felt untethered? Too “simple”and “soulful”? I don’t know. This book seemed to occupy a strange place, as many spiritual-practice books do, where it wasn’t research-based or inherently theological (maybe I need that challenge coming off of graduate school).

ALL THAT TO SAY, I really respect Emily P. Freeman’s ministry and contribution to the field of liturgy and discernment. She is gentle, poetic, and committed to mystery in a field of decision-making. Maybe my consumption of her “quiet collection app” and podcast set me up here.

My torn-ness has torn me up enough to write my first ever review. I’m torn.

[Susy C. *MotherLambReads* · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was able to be on the launch team for this gem! Love the story behind the book and readers must listen to her Podcast---> The Next Right Thing.
I love how Emily speaks and writes. Her voice is just so calming. She reads her own book too. All of her books have resonated with me.
The biggest thing I've learned from her and the podcast and this book is "soul minimalism" and the need for "soul white space" in such a digital clutter works. Also just keep.doing.the.next.right.thing!
I need physical copy of this book to be able to mark up and reread!

[Marly · Rating 5 out of 5]

Much needed reminders & powerful truths… I’ll definitely be going back to read over some of the practices and prayers !!!

“What I’m finding to be most helpful more than any list, question, or sage advice is simply to get quiet in a room with Jesus on the regular, not for the sake of an answer but for the sake of love.”

[Heidi · Rating 5 out of 5]

Accessible. Down-to-earth. Inspiring. Reassuring. It’s not just about discernment for “big” decisions; it’s about living a discerning life.

[Liz Wine · Rating 5 out of 5]

(Disclaimer: I received an advance review copy, all opinions are my own).

I was thrilled to get my hands on Emily P. Freeman's newest book. In a world of loud, often angry people, it is great to hear from a quieter soul who speaks lovingly and encouragingly. Her book is full of practical strategies that the reader can implement immediately.

Her book makes remarks on the decision making process that I continue to ruminate over such as: "We make better decisions by making decisions, not by thinking about making decisions." Freeman also gently nurtures the reader to listen to their own voice and God's voice, before turning to other voices, which is important to consider in this digital age.

For me, the most helpful question she posed is one I want to remember to consider the next time an opportunity comes before me: "If you were in a room of people and this was called out into the crowd, would you raise your hand to volunteer for this?"

[Ada Tarcau · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book has had an overall welcomed impression on me, I could relate very well to many ideas and movements of the soul described and a lot of it rang true. I believe our lives are best lived by doing the next thing in step with the Spirit and I have enjoyed some of the practices (soul-minimalism, naming the unnamed, checking if we act by love or by fear, quitting something to do the essential, staying in today, choosing your absence, having co-listeners and partly the life-giving list). I have treasured some insights. I have also been pleased by the writing-style.

Yet, I do have mixed feelings about some parts that perhaps where not sufficiently nuanced, that is they sounded more like pop-culture than timeless truth: be true to yourself, do what your heart tells you, discover you inner self and go with it (the books doesn’t say the exact above things, but it feels like moving in that direction for time to time).

Problem is, what if I find in my inner-self deeply-engrained addictive tendencies or long-harbored resentment or perverse desires? Or perhaps i find something less clear. How do I know which to cut and which to go with? What if doing the right thing feels life-draining and I feel I cannot bloom next to my husband and my children? Do I just move where I am free do be me? After all, “The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it?”

Then there were some mentions on freedom. Freedoms sound all very nice but again, it is not as self-evident as the pop-culture may think. To quote N. T. Wright in a great book on the topic of authenticity versus legalism versus being a Spirit-led new creature in Christ: "It isn’t just that the freedom of my fist stops where the freedom of your nose begins. It’s that everything any of us does creates new situations which may, themselves, be a severe curtailment of freedom in all directions. If I do actually punch you on the nose, we are neither of us free, thereafter, to be the people we might otherwise have been with one another (and perhaps with others, too)”. The book is called After you believe (or Virtue reborn).

I rather incline (hopefully) that the author’s believes are not the same with the pop-culture’s cult of authenticity above all else, but rather that the ideas were not nuanced enough. It may also have been a reaction to the stifling unidimensional legalism found in the protestant subculture, perhaps desiring thus to bring to the table a more wholistic approach to life. After all God is the the Creator of our unbelievable diverse personalities and bodies and emotions and aptitudes and so on, surly His will for our lives and His commandments cannot be reduced to a checking list, or clear-cut to-dos, but rather we embody His truths in our own unique circumstances and it takes the whole of us and the whole of our lives to be in Him.

[Beth · Rating 5 out of 5]

Being an Enneagram 1, I have a very loud inner critic. I call her my inner hag. My inner hag uses a megaphone to remind me that my biggest weaknesses revolve around fear: fear of failure, fear of doing the wrong thing, fear of not being good enough, and fear of making the wrong decision.

In Emily P. Freeman’s latest book, she writes about how she was in an Uber with her bestie, and the driver told started to tell her a story about a difficult passenger she had driven. But instead of telling the two women about this passenger she said, “But we’re not going to give her words, ‘cause that’s exactly what she wants.’”

Each time I have tried to decide what my next right steps are, my inner hag bellows out all the reasons I’m choosing wrong: all the ways I can fail, all the things that might go wrong, and all the ways I’m going to disappoint not only myself but all those around me. It’s crippling and it keeps me from moving forward.

Emily’s book offers gentle and compassionate ways for you to consider what’s keeping you from making your next right step (and I resonate with almost all of them), as well as practical steps to help you to move forward.

This book came at a perfect time. I’m in a period of transition in my life, and my husband is getting ready to make a big decision that will impact our family in many ways. This is a book I will be reading again. Next time I’m going to go slower and take more notes. I highly recommend it.

[Jenny · Rating 4 out of 5]

It’s rare that a book in this space doesn’t feel condescending, too sensitive, or altogether cringe-worthy to me- but Emily P. Freeman’s book is full of practical reminders, timely insights, and gentle encouragement. A few times, I had to wonder if she had been camping out in my head. As someone who regularly doubts, second-guesses, and craves that gut feeling to drive her to the right decisions, I find Emily’s words a comfort and a guide. While some readers may not be looking for faith-based guidance, I think any reader in search of sure will benefit from and enjoy the advice and strategies in The Next Right Thing. It’s as though you sit down next to a good friend or therapist who nudges you to see the truth that’s been inside you all along, while reassuring you that you are not crazy. From major life decisions to seemingly minuscule choices, Emily recognizes the challenges and frustration. Her words cut through the overwhelm and the “shoulds” to guide you in moving forward with confidence. Fans of The Next Right Thing podcast will be pleasantly surprised at the amount of new content with the same peaceful, affirming, and inspiring voice they’ve come to love.

[Rachel · Rating 3 out of 5]

I think this book is a case of right book, wrong time. There was a lot of great wisdom and beautiful writing in this book that I really appreciated. However, it felt like it was written mostly for people making a career change and a little bit for people going through major life decisions. I’m not going through either at this time so it felt like a lot of the wisdom didn’t apply to me right now. I wanted to get more advice on the thousands of little decisions that I make every day, not just the major, life-changing ones. I think if I read this while going through one of these changes, I’d get more out of it and rate it higher.

The chapter on how our beliefs about God affect our decisions was convicting, challenging, and thought-provoking. The chapter on saying no really did not apply to me. I feel like I’m pretty good at knowing which opportunities are good for me and which aren’t. In fact, I’m probably too good at saying no and probably need a yes mentor. 😂

I’d definitely read this again if I was making a vocational change or major life decision and I think I’d really connect with it then.