Start Right Where You Are: How Little Changes Can Make a Big Difference for Overwhelmed Procrastinators, Frustrated Overachievers, and Recovering Perfectionists

by Sam Bennett

Overview

What Are You Waiting For?

An overwhelmed procrastinator, frustrated overachiever, and recovering perfectionist herself, Sam Bennett knows all the ways we avoid pursuing our dreams and reaching our goals. She also knows how to “get it done.” Start Right Where You Are is an easy-to-read, easy-to-do guidebook for anyone who wants to change their life but doesn’t know where or how to begin. Of course, the process of getting out of your own way, raising your self-esteem, improving your relationships, and making better choices can be a bumpy road. But Bennett’s fun, original voice lets you know that you’ve got a friend along the way, a friend who offers a comforting cup of tea — or a bracing shot of whiskey, depending. Her gentle-kiss-on-the-cheek and loving-thwack-upside-the-head attitude gives us what we all need: inspiration, shortcuts, and breathing room.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781608684434
Publisher:	New World Library
Publication date:	11/15/2016
Pages:	256
Product dimensions:	5.40(w) x 8.40(h) x 0.70(d)

About the Author

Sam Bennett is the creator of the Organized Artist Company and the author of Get It Done. In addition to her multifaceted writing and performance work, she specializes in personal branding, career strategies, and small-business marketing. She grew up in Chicago and now lives in a tiny beach town outside Los Angeles.

Table of Contents

A Toast xiii

Introduction 1

1 How to Create a Miracle 9

2 The You in the Center of You 14

3 Buckle Up, Because I'm About to Get Deep Here, People 17

4 Rested, Fed, Meditated, Walked, Cuddled, and Creatively Satisfied 23

Paus: Daily Grind 27

5 Nothing Is More Important Than Your Well-Being 29

6 Six Ways to Take Control of Your Time 33

7 Quit Playing Overwhelmed Poker 40

8 You're Overwhelmed Because You Have Too Many Ideas 42

9 Completion Is Overrated 44

10 Feel Free to Leapfrog 46

11 Actually, You're Underwhelmed 48

12 Quit Buying Groceries at the Quickie Mart 50

13 Cantsayno Syndrome 53

14 Minimum Daily Requirement 55

15 Time Boulders 58

16 You're Not Overwhelmed, You're Overwrought 63

Pause: All I Have 65

17 Reimagining Well-Being 67

18 Activating Your Weil-Being 70

19 In Search of a Fainting Couch 72

20 HALTT 76

21 Getting Out of the Urgency Trap 78

22 Your Weil-Being 80

23 Delegation for Recovering Perfectionists 81

24 Hire Geniuses 84

25 Delegate It. Really. You Can Do This. 87

Pause: Another Person 89

26 You're Not Thinking What You Think You're Thinking 91

27 New Thought versus Old Tapes 95

28 How My Intuition Led Me to Live in Paradise 98

29 Ten Ways to Cultivate Your Intuition 102

30 The Intuition Killers 104

31 Values-Based Decision Making 106

32 Happy Grown-Up Naked Time 110

33 There's No More-Perfect You 114

Pause: The Desert 117

34 Nothing Bad Is Happening 119

35 Your Slightly Future Self 123

36 You're Ready Now 125

37 Set Good, Better, Best Goals 129

38 The Inevitable Backlash 131

39 The Inevitable Backlash, Part 2: The Inside Job 135

40 What Are You Afraid Might Happen? 137

41 New Pain Is Worse Than Old Pain 139

42 The Middle Way 141

43 Being Decisive 146

44 That Little Kid Looks So… 148

Pause: Too Much 155

45 Five Ughs and Three Ahhs 157

46 Consider Future Costs, Not Sunk Costs 159

47 The Seven Kinds of Clutter Nobody Ever Talks About 163

48 Clutter Dive 167

49 Clearing Out Your Dream Closet 170

50 A Few Remarkably Destructive Communication Habits to Stop Right Now 173

51 No More Rehearsing Conversations 176

52 Greet Your Mistakes with Grace 180

Pause: Not Exactly What I Had Planned 183

53 Test-Drive a Bigger Goal 185

54 Life Does Not Move in One Direction 187

55 You're Getting Paid in the Currency You're Asking For 189

56 Swatting Away Success 192

57 An Antidote to the Fear 194

58 Will Success Make You Selfish? 196

Pause: The Talent Box 199

59 Your Tribe Is Looking for You 201

60 Sam's Twenty Guidelines for Successful Tribe

Building and Management 205

61 Of Course You're Concerned about Not Fitting In 212

62 Be the Elusive Rainbow Sparkles Unicorn 215

63 Are You in the Right Tribe? 220

64 There I Am 221

65 You Can't Take Everyone with You 225

Conclusion: My Perfect Life 227

Acknowledgments 229

Index 231

About the Author 239

What People are Saying About This

From the Publisher

“If your dreams of success have been held hostage by procrastination, perfectionism, and disorganization, then it’s time to call in Sam Bennett. In Start Right Where You Are, she offers you practical tips to outsmart your bad habits instead of merely struggling with them, so that you can do your best work and be your best self.”
— Marci Shimoff, New York Times–bestselling author of Happy for No Reason

“Sam Bennett provides practical, actionable advice for anybody who wants to become more prolific, productive, and creative.”
— Srinivas Rao, author of Unmistakable and host and creator of The Unmistakable Creative

“Funny and warm, this book is like a big hug from a good, really smart friend. And it’s blazingly honest. Sam Bennett gives you the real story and the real-life tools you need to make your life and life’s work better, happier, and more wonder-full.”
— SARK, artist and coauthor of Succulent Wild Love

“This comprehensive book supplies a wealth of simple exercises that anyone can use to break out of an emotional quagmire and begin to live fulfilled.”
— Library Journal

“These ideas will help you make major headway, step-by-step.”
— SELF magazine

“Uses humor, clarity, deep insight, and sharing of her personal struggles and triumphs to make her ideas relatable….This is a book you’ll want to savor rather than rush through and it is one you’ll live rather than read once and put it on the bookshelf.”
— New Spirit Journal

Editorial Reviews

“If your dreams of success have been held hostage by procrastination, perfectionism, and disorganization, then it’s time to call in Sam Bennett. In Start Right Where You Are, she offers you practical tips to outsmart your bad habits instead of merely struggling with them, so that you can do your best work and be your best self.”
— Marci Shimoff, New York Times–bestselling author of Happy for No Reason

“Sam Bennett provides practical, actionable advice for anybody who wants to become more prolific, productive, and creative.”
— Srinivas Rao, author of Unmistakable and host and creator of The Unmistakable Creative

“Funny and warm, this book is like a big hug from a good, really smart friend. And it’s blazingly honest. Sam Bennett gives you the real story and the real-life tools you need to make your life and life’s work better, happier, and more wonder-full.”
— SARK, artist and coauthor of Succulent Wild Love

From the Publisher

11/15/2016
In her latest book, performer and author Bennett (Get It Done) offers an antidote to feeling overwhelmed. By making small changes such as turning complaints into requests, stopping imaginary arguments, and allotting time for creativity, people can engage opportunities for growth and happiness. Tackling the demons of clutter, fearful thinking, and more, each chapter concludes with motivating "Little Changes Action Steps." Verdict This comprehensive book supplies a wealth of simple exercises that anyone can use to break out of an emotional quagmire and begin to live fulfilled.

Library Journal