I have always been fascinated by human behaviour since going to a school where we were told there was a right and a wrong way to do everything. That never felt right to me – human beings are much bigger than that! I studied Counselling and Therapy at Norwich City College in the 1990s and later specific courses on Transactional Analysis. Many years on, I am still learning…
This is the classic book on "mind-games" by the great Eric Berne. This really opened up a window to me on how people manipulate others – and how I had done this to other people, too.
Although its tone is a bit dated and can be irritating, the material remains as relevant and insightful as ever.
This book is based on the science of Positive Psychology, not just helpful tips from someone nice.
Since 1980, lots of serious research has been done on what behaviours and mindsets really make people happy – and the results are all here, in this clear, well-presented book. I dip back into this book regularly.
The key tenet of THE HOW OF HAPPINESS is that every human being has a happiness 'set point' which, depending on how high or low it is, can determine how positive or negative they feel. This book offers a practical approach to help readers increase their set point, and find a level of happiness above that which they would normally feel, and feel more satisfaction in life.
Based on scientific research and trials, this is a groundbreaking book that offers a practical plan to enable readers to achieve a more positive outlook at home, at work and in their personal…
Every picture tells a story, but it’s not always the one we expect or remember. Christmas Actually is a festive drama about family and forgiveness and a snapshot of modern family life, addressing Instagram to motherhood and everything in between.
Why Christmas? My publisher wanted my new novel to have…
Another classic from the Positive Psychology stable. "Flow" is that feeling of deep involvement in a task, especially one where our creativity and skill are challenged.
More generally, it is about clearing the mind of clutter and appreciating the moment. Another book I dip back into regularly.
“Csikszentmihalyi arrives at an insight that many of us can intuitively grasp, despite our insistent (and culturally supported) denial of this truth. That is, it is not what happens to us that determines our happiness, but the manner in which we make sense of that reality. . . . The manner in which Csikszentmihalyi integrates research on consciousness, personal psychology and spirituality is illuminating.” —Los Angeles Times Book Review
The bestselling classic that holds the key to unlocking meaning, creativity, peak performance, and true happiness.
Legendary psychologist Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi's famous investigations of "optimal experience" have revealed that what makes an…
Onto the darker side, now. This book outlines how narcissists behave but also posits an opposite force to narcissism (which is why I like it so much).
It’s written by a psychoanalyst, so Freud is lurking in the background, which I don’t always like, but Symington’s ideas are so interesting… Given the plethora of narcissistic politicians in the current world, this book is extraordinarily timely.
The author presents fresh insights into the subject of narcissism, drawing on his vast clinical experience of treating people suffering from this disorder.
The Curiosity Cycle is a book for parents and educators who want to teach their children to be active explorers of the world. Learning through curiosity leads to adaptive thinking because your child is continually trying to improve his or her understanding of the world, and new facts and ideas…
This isn’t the easiest of reads, but it is the Real Thing – the work of the man who discovered the Triangle itself.
I love its density and the fact that I can come back to it over and over again and find new ideas. Dr Karpman’s long experience as a working therapist speaks out from every page.
The Karpman Drama Triangle is a psychological model used in counselling, therapy, and management. It is simple but extremely powerful. It makes sense of a lot of the stuff we see going on around us and also of our own motivations, especially at stressful times.
In essence, the Triangle is about how we play the roles of Victim, Persecutor, or Rescuer and how we switch between them and rope other people into the drama. This book describes how the roles are learnt in childhood, why we keep playing them as adults, and how we can stop playing them, protect ourselves from other players, and move on to be bigger, better people.
We all want peace. We all want a life of joy and meaning. We want to feel blissfully comfortable in our own skin, moving through the world with grace and ease. But how many of us are actively taking the steps to create such a life?
Return to Hope Creek is a second-chance rural romance set in Australia.
Stella Simpson's career and engagement are over. She returns to the rural community of Hope Creek to heal, unaware her high school and college sweetheart, Mitchell Scott, has also moved back to town to do some healing of…
