3 out of 4 stars
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"Happiness has nothing to do with the destination and everything to do with the journey. This is a fact that few understand. Enjoy the present moment." Guidelines for a Happy, Healthy and Successful Life by Rashad Hood provides readers with the understanding and tools for living life to its fullest potential.
As an author, researcher, and philosopher, Hood shares his experiences related to how the mind can guide and control life, restructuring the thought process, practicing the power of positive thinking, and the importance of keeping an open and loving heart. He also contrasts the differences between the soul and ego and addresses the necessity of learning from past relationships before pursuing new ones. Hood challenges readers to view life as a journey rather than a destination and explains the concept of emotions as energy, frequency, and vibration, that can impact our lives positively or negatively depending on our awareness.
This book is well-written, organized, and concise. With seven chapters and 67 pages, it's a quick read that I finished in one sitting. The content is presented in a straightforward and easy to understand manner. The chapters are consistently formatted; beginning with an introduction to the topic, followed by more in-depth but succinct teaching, and wrapped up with a summary. Though I didn't necessarily agree with all of Hood's viewpoints, he shared practical ideas and positivity that would prove beneficial to most anyone.
I found the fourth chapter's contrast between the soul versus the ego particularly insightful. Over the years, I've heard various teachings on the subject, but I appreciated Hood's clear and simplified approach. Basically, he stated that the things that make us feel good from within such as joy, excitement, love, and inspiration are related to the soul; while things such as fear, anger, insecurity, and greed are ego-related. Additionally, he described the soul as always discerning, in contrast to the ego, which is always judging. Hood also stressed the importance a peaceful mind plays in regards to being guided by the soul as opposed to an anxious mind associated with the ego.
On the other hand, there were a few issues that detracted from the book. First, while I appreciated Hood's passion for his beliefs, a few of his concepts were extreme and oversimplified to the point of being insensitive. For instance, "All you have to do to have perfect health inside your body is to have the feeling of love or happiness from your heart." In all fairness, he did further elaborate about how stress can weaken the immune system. However, I couldn't help but wonder how the former statement might affect a cancer patient. Additionally, while Hood referred to the principles taught in the book as "my solutions and guidelines," not all of the ideas were his. Consider this example: "Like the saying goes, you reap what you sow." The "saying" he refers to is actually an often quoted Bible verse, Galatians 6:7 and should have been referenced as such. He also mentioned visualization which is practiced among a number of religions. While I'm not saying it's wrong to draw from other sources, they should be cited as references.
The book was professionally edited as I noted only one error. However, due to the previously mentioned issues, I rate the book 3 out of 4 stars. I recommend it to readers who enjoy self-help books related to spirituality and positive thinking. I don't think one has to agree with all of the author's concepts to take away helpful advice. However, if you find the practice of visualization offensive, you will probably prefer to skip this one.
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Guidelines for a happy, healthy and successful life.
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