Reclaiming the Fire : How Successful People Overcome Burnout

Customer Reviews

The book has been written by an adjunct faculty member at Harvard Medical school. The academic level is - as far as I can judge - impeccable. The author quotes on many occasions from actual patient-cases which are common enough that many a reader will recognize some of his or her own headaches. One notices that an effort has been made to write a book that is accessible to the general public. However, the book does maintain a certain academic tone that will be off-putting to some people. There are no exercises, questionaires, or the like that would involve the reader a bit more with the subject matter.

Whoever thinks that reading this book and applying a few quick-fix exercises here and mental readjustments there is going to enable them to continue like before, just happier, is extremely mistaken. Dr. Berglas points out that a lot of the misery discussed is a direct result of some deeply engrained characteristics of our culture. For most people, following up on Dr. Berglas' suggestions will imply a drastic (but doable) change in lifestyle.

Being somewhat of an academic myself with a keen interest in psychological issues, I found the book extremely valuable. The value to you depends on how you personally feel about the above. However, my advice: if in doubt, buy it!

The book is an easy read and offers good advice for those who still have the psyche to listen and act. But the disturbing point is that many of the example patients discussed in the book are unable to pull out of their funk. Will this psychological malaise become an epidemic among boomers?

The book is definitely worth reading. "Self-handicapping" and "overextension" are significant concepts developed by the author. The book would be better with fewer cute terms such as "Supernova Burnout" "Goldilocks dilemma" and "sundae fallacy."

Similar Products