We all want to be happy, but how do we achieve it?
This unique workbook blends spiritual wisdom with evidence-based psychological practices to help you achieve lasting fulfilment. Most of us are searching for happiness in one form or another, but the happiness we've been conditioned to pursue is often elusive and fleeting. When we base our happiness on what we have--such as material possessions or status recognition from others--our happiness is no longer in our control. This workbook will show you that happiness is not about accumulating and consuming, or even achieving some deep state of spiritual bliss.
Instead, you'll find a fresh perspective on how to achieve authentic happiness rooted in spiritual values and actions. Written by two best-selling authors in the field of psychology (The Dialectical Behavior Therapy Skills Workbook), this guide blends mindfulness-based spiritual practices with evidence-based acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) to help you develop your own spiritual action plan. Using the practical guidance and exercises in this guide, you'll create a set of principles and behaviors aligned with your deepest values and sense of purpose, and learn to make decisions with a wise mind. Every moment of your life is an opportunity to make choices based on your own personal, deeply held spiritual values--why not start now? This workbook will give you the hands-on tools you need to get started.
About the Author
Matthew McKay, PhD, is a professor at the Wright Institute in Berkeley, CA. He has authored and coauthored numerous books, including The Relaxation and Stress Reduction Workbook, Self-Esteem, Thoughts and Feelings, When Anger Hurts, and ACT on Life Not on Anger.
He has also penned two novels, Us and The Wawona Hotel. McKay received his PhD in clinical psychology from the California School of Professional Psychology, and specializes in the cognitive behavioral treatment of anxiety and depression. He lives and works in the greater San Francisco Bay Area.
Industry Reviews
“This is an uplifting and valuable book for anyone who has been wondering how they might create more happiness in their life. The authors’ ingeniously practical advice is to identify a life purpose and start a practice of engaging in simple spiritual practices. From the onset, it is very clear that this is not a book about spiritual beliefs or a particular belief system. Instead, the book uses new and proven psychological principles to help seekers identify a unique life purpose for themselves, live from the heart with intention, and deal with barriers to spiritual practice with compassion. Although the book is very practical, it is by no means superficial. It does not shy away from ‘deeper issues’ such as impermanence, finding a state of grace––that beautiful state of calm contentment––and bringing spirit into daily life.
By focusing on practice rather than theory or philosophy, the authors endeavor to help readers achieve a goal that many readers might have always viewed as too lofty or unachievable. This book provides hope and gives actionable advice in a personally meaningful area where really concrete and useful information is often hard to come by. I agree with the promise at the end of the book that the practices learned in this book will help readers keep Spirit alive—‘in you and through you.’”
—Georg H. Eifert, PhD, Chapman University professor emeritus of psychology, and coauthor of The Mindfulness and Acceptance Workbook for Anxiety
