You, Unstuck: You Are the Solution to Your Greatest Problem
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But you are also the solution to your greatest problem.
This book combats a destructive mind-set that we all sometimes fall into: I can't change. I am the victim of my circumstances, and I am confined by my personal limitations. This philosophy, though intangible, destroys more dreams and limits more lives than any actual, physical obstacle. To show us how to overcome this philosophy of fear, Smith draws on literature, history, and his personal experiences with chronic depression, as well as on encounters with remarkable “ordinary” people who've embraced a different philosophy: the belief that we possess the power to lift ourselves out of the abyss and into the light.
Smith inspires us to see that no matter how dire our circumstances may be, there is always a positive step you can take, however small it might be. He doesn't sugarcoat the difficulties or offer promises of overnight success. But he does promise that if you continue to see yourself as a victim you'll remain frozen and fearful. We may not be able to control what happens to us, but we can always control how we react.
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You, Unstuck - Seth Adam Smith
You, Unstuck
Other Books by Seth Adam Smith
Your Life Isn’t for You
Marriage Isn’t for You
You, Unstuck
You Are the Solution
to Your Greatest Problem
Seth Adam Smith
You, Unstuck
Copyright © 2015 by Seth Adam Smith
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law. For permission requests, write to the publisher, addressed Attention: Permissions Coordinator,
at the address below.
Ordering information for print editions
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at the Berrett-Koehler address above.
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First Edition
Paperback print edition ISBN 978-1-62656-346-9
PDF e-book ISBN 978-1-62656-312-4
IDPF e-book ISBN 978-1-62656-298-1
2014-1
Cover design: Leslie Waltzer / Crowfoot Design
Cover art: Jeevan Sivasubramaniam
Author photo: Dmitry Ternovoy
Interior design and composition: Leigh McLellan Design
Copyediting: Elissa Rabellino
Dedicated to
Boyd Adams, my grandfather,
and Lyn Adams Smith, my mother,
for their never-ending faith and support.
You are the reason why I insist on
going by my full name.
Contents
Stuck
1 By the Beating of Our Own Wings
2 Focus on What You Can Do
3 Can’t vs. Can
4 The Leningrad Symphony
5 Transforming a Curse into a Blessing
Unstuck
Guides
A Guide for Past Mistakes
A Guide for Physical Limitations
A Guide for Economic Limitations
A Guide for Educational Limitations
A Guide for Mental and Emotional Struggles
Liberation
Notes
Acknowledgments
About the Author
PART 1
Stuck
1
By the Beating of Our Own Wings
Over seven hundred years ago, an Italian poet by the name of Dante Alighieri wrote an epic poem entitled Divine Comedy—an allegorical representation of the soul’s journey to (or away from) God.
The first part of the poem contains a chilling description of the nine circles of hell. As Dante figuratively descends these nine levels, he details the torture and agony of the souls he witnesses along the way.
In the ninth circle, the very depth and center of hell, Dante encounters Satan: a massive, terrifying beast with six wings and three nightmarish faces of different colors. Upon his back rests the entire vestibule of hell—and surrounding him is an element that we all fear and dread.
Hellfire?
No, there is no fire in Satan’s level of torment.
According to Dante, instead of standing in the midst of fire, Satan is standing waist deep in a lake of solid ice.
If you think that’s strange, wait until you