The Laughing Guide to Change: Using Humor and Science to Master Your Behaviors, Emotions, and Thoughts

The motto of this book is smarter through laughter. The Laughing Guide to Change combines humor and science to make you happier and healthier. To improve your well-being you need to master your behaviors, emotions and thoughts. These are important drivers of change that can be learned and practiced every day. To reinforce the learning, the scientific part of each chapter is followed by funny stories. In the Behaviors chapter you will learn how to set a goal and create positive habits. In the Emotions chapter you will study the secrets of cultivating positive emotions and managing negative emotions. After reading the Thoughts chapter you will be able to master the art of challenging negative assumptions and writing a new story about yourself. The Laughing Guide to Change is a user friendly manual for tackling different aspects of well-being, from psychological to interpersonal to physical well-being. If you are interested in improving your personal, family, or occupational life, this book is for you. The book will motivate you to take action through a series of achievable steps. The humor will keep you entertained, while the science will keep you engaged.

Table of Contents:
Preface Acknowledgments Chapter 1- Drivers of Change The Learning Side Changing Naturally The Laughing Side Neurotic Life Male Emotional Brain Found In Garage Existential Worries Chapter 2- Behaviors The Learning Side Set a Goal Create Positive Habits The Laughing Side Change: Pros and Cons Happier, Healthier, Wealthier, Sexier If You Can Do It, You Can Overdo It. Chapter 3- Emotions The Learning Side Cultivate Positive Emotions Manage Negative Emotions The Laughing Side Love Often, Laugh Often Messianic Times Chapter 4- Thoughts The Learning Side Challenge Negative Assumptions Write a New Story The Laughing Side Catastrophizers and Minimizers Miami, it’s Ok; I’m Still Here Notes About the Authors

About the Author :
Ora Prilleltensky earned her doctorate in counseling psychology at OISE at the University of Toronto and has taught at Victoria University in Australia, Vanderbilt University and the University of Miami. She has also practiced in university counseling centers, schools, and rehabilitation settings in Canada and Australia. Isaac Prilleltensky is the former dean of the School of Education and Human Development at the University of Miami, where he is currently professor of educational and psychological studies and vice provost for institutional culture. He is the author of ten books and the recipient of awards by the National Newspaper Association for his humor writing; and from the divisions of community and counseling psychology from the American Psychological Association for his scholarly work.

Review :
Ora and Isaac Prilleltensky have found an innovative way to merge cognitive and behavioral transformation with humor. The Laughing Guide to Change introduces scientific methods of controlling your mental and physical responses when doing something differently, yet the language is hardly dry. The authors add a twist to the self-help book by incorporating serious fun throughout. Can you have your cake and eat it too? Probably not. Can you gain muscles without some experience of pain? I doubt it. Can you significantly and positively change your life while having fun doing it? Most definitely yes. Read this Laughing Guide and learn how you can enjoy every step of the way to lasting change. Be warned, though, that muscle pain (and gain) in your stomach due to excessive laughter may ensue as you read this book. Be warned, too, that for your personal health as well as the hygiene of those around you, you should not have cake in your mouth while reading this book. We hear a lot about setting “SMART” goals to achieve desired change in our lives but not nearly enough about how to pursue them wisely—until now. The Laughing Guide to Change teaches that, on the path to meaningful change, identifying specific, measurable goals is just the beginning. Don’t let the light-hearted title fool you: While the book filled with stories that made me chuckle and reminds us not to take ourselves so seriously, it also is packed with science-backed strategies that embrace the holistic framework needed to achieve our dreams. Through science and stories, Isaac and Ora Prilleltensky show us how our emotions, habits of thoughts, relationships, and environmental cues strongly influence our behavior and support or undermine our well-being. The book expertly weaves solid research with practical advice to help move us from wishing for a better life to finally achieving it. I’ve already begun using some of the book’s strategies and recommend it to anyone trying to change their lives for the better (and who isn’t?)! The Prilleltenskys have authored a highly engaging, down-to-earth, research-informed volume on how to enhance the quality of your life. If you follow their advice – and you should – you will also enhance the lives of those around you. And did I mention that The Laughing Guide to Change is funny? It is, often in laugh-out-loud fashion (though the Miami Chamber of Commerce might not agree). By the time I finished this book I very much wanted to meet Isaac and Ora in person; their story exemplifies the psychological resilience they write about. I laughed by myself, I laughed with myself, I laughed at myself - the Prilleltenskys gave me great insights and great laughs. This is how learning should be. I highly recommend this book, as a gift to yourself and those you love - and maybe even some people you don't like, because you might get to like them after they read this book and laugh more.