Taming Your Gremlin (Revised Edition): A Surprisingly Simple Method for Getting Out of Your Own Way

Very good book which helps to understand better yourself and your bad thoughts about yourself and the world. The idea of a gremlin is very powerful as it helps without going to much into the theory, even though it is solidly based on psychology, to win the peace of mind and tame baded thoughts appearing in one's head. There are some repetitions in the book which are slightly anoying, however finally they help to easy remember key messages. I struggled a bit with the vocabulary since I am not a native English speaker. Even though I often read books in English I found some of the wordings in that book difficult. Excellent material for coaches. I used it in the sessions and clients appreciated the idea of gremlins, even though discovering that your life is populated by creatures not necessarily nice, is itself an unpleasant surprise. Working to tame the gremlins (they usually come not individually) is a lot of fun and at the same time hard work. I definitely recommend the book to everybody!

Rick did a wonderful job covering most of the negative chit chatters in our mind. The book is a great ally to put in your arsenal of fighting equipment and tools for the good life. As rick said, do not grapple with your gremlin. Just ignore it and move on with your life. The best summary I could give is what the last and final messenger said: “Satan gives thought to the son of Adam (i.e. the human), and the angel also gives thought to the son of Adam. As for the thought of Satan, it is by his threatening with evil repercussions and rejecting the truth. As for the thought of the angel, it is by his promise of good and believing in the truth. Whoever finds the latter, let him know that it is coming from God and let him thank God for it. Whoever finds the former, let him seek refuge – with God – from Satan”. For me personally whenever I get the "you suck, you are done, things will never go your way...etc etc just about any negative feeling about the future , the past or the present" i simply say "I seek protection with God from Satan" and I happily move on with my life. You are not alone we all have gremlins and we are all in this together. Embrace faith and life is beautiful. Whoever you are reading this right now. I love you and I wish you a life of contentment and invigorating victory against your gremlins. SMASH HIM lol

Three Keys to Taming your Gremlin 1. Simply notice. • Show up, relax and gently pay attention. • I free myself not by trying to be free, but by simply noticing how I am imprisoning myself in the very moment I am imprisoning myself. • Simply notice the natural order of things. • Work with it rather than against it. For to try to change what is only sets up resistance. • Simply notice how you are—not why you are how you are, but how you are. • Awareness is a tool - you can choose to focus your awareness on any one of three realms: o Your Body o The World Around You o The World of Mind 2. Choose and play with options. • Breathe and fully experience o If you take the time to relax and simply notice what you are feeling, reminding yourself that you do not have to do anything with your emotions and that emotions are not dangerous, you will experience a sense of relaxed power. o This sense has been described many ways, including feeling self-actualized, integrated, whole, happy, loving, centered, in the zone, high, good, and hunky-dory. • Change for a change o On occasion, you might make decisions/experiment in ways that are totally out of character for you. Play. Fool around. o If you tend to be timid when complimented, next time someone so much as implies it’s good to know you, deeply breathe, enjoy the moment, say, “That feels good! Tell me more.” o If tempted to suppress anger, consider honestly describing your current experience - try out these statements:  “There is something that I want to say to you, but I’m afraid that you will throw a fit. Are you willing to hear me out?”  “I’m angry with you. What is also true is that I respect you and value our relationship.”  “You’re important to me and I want us to remain friends, and there are some things you’re doing that are driving me nuts.”  “I’m hesitant to talk with you about a certain sensitive issue, but I don’t like feeling what I’m feeling and would like to clear the air. Are you open to a frank discussion?”  “I’d like you to hear all of what I am about to say to you and really consider it before you respond.”  “I want to really listen to you and I want you to listen to me.”  “This may be a tough conversation for us because my tendency may be to talk ugly and yours may be to give me that sneer of yours. As we have this conversation, let’s make an effort to treat each other with love and respect.” • Accent the obvious o The brighter the light you shine on old fears, outdated ideas, and cumbersome habits, the better you can detect the absurdity in them. Gestalt Therapy. • Just imagine it o Listening to your gremlin feels a helluva lot worse than affirmative self-talk. And it’s a damn sight worse for you. Shattering old concepts and replacing them with affirmative inner talk and images toward the goal of sweetening your very own life not only feels good, but is good for you. Used in conjunction with common sense and planning and doing, it can make for a noble transformation. • Revisit and re-decide o Stay conscious of what part you want the characteristic to play in your life. o Simply notice the characteristic as it pops up in your own personality. o Be at choice and play with options. • Center yourself, remembering that special place behind your heart and making use of your “I’m taming my gremlin” mantra. 3. Be in Process. • See your Gremlin-Taming™ as an ongoing adventure that will be forever in process Four simple questions to diagnose fear: • What’s so? o Separate what you know with absolute certainty from what you imagine. • So what? o Notice your catastrophic expectation. • So what? o If your catastrophic expectation comes true, what’s the worst that will happen? o Get to your bottom-line fear, which will always have something to do with severe pain, abandonment, or death. • What now? o The options are infinite. The Basics of Pleasure 1. Make being centered and feeling good a top priority. 2. Remember that doing so is primarily an inside job. 3. Remember where you end and all else begins—that miraculous sheath known as your skin. 4. Breathe, dammit, breathe. 5. Relax your pact to keep your act intact. 6. Establish the here and now as home base from which you consciously direct your spotlight of awareness. Other Tidbits: The soul cannot rest so long as the identity denies it. Anxiety is the gap between now and then. Entering a potentially risky conversation: • “I have an idea I want to share with you and I’m not sure how open you would be to my suggestion. Would you like to hear it?” • “I have an idea I’m considering sharing with you. When and how would be the best way to do that?” • “I have an idea I’d like to share with you and get your thoughts on. It needs some refinement. I think it might benefit the company in the long run if you will apply your expertise to it.”

I am not a reader. I don’t read books for fun. I stumbled upon this book because I was at a crossroads within myself. If you too, find yourself there, read this book even if you aren’t a reader. I get through some chapters and can’t wait to read on. I will say this to anyone willing to take the time to read from start to finish. You will understand this process and it will MOST CERTAINLY give you tools. Even the most basic. Like any tool you will have to use it and break it in .. but once that tool fits to your hand. It is your favorite tool to use. I cannot give this book a 10 review but if I could … I would give it a 20. My choice was only allowed a 5 star rating. If you find yourself reading this review, take the time to purchase, read and utilize this wonderous book!!!

I'm a systems-trained psychotherapist who straddles the line between a very Buddhist approach to self-development and a fairly cognitive-behaviourally-oriented one. Rick Carson never comes out and uses Buddhist terminologies, but his three-step approach to gremlin taming brings into play some very useful language for introducing mindfulness and choice to problematic historical patterns of emotional reactivity. I have personally put copies of this book into my clients' hands on more occasions than I can count, and my own copy is rapidly reaching the "lovingly tattered" state of constant use. "Simply observe", "play with options", and "be in process" reflect so closely on my own core tools and strengths, and it's always good to have different language around useful concepts for those who seem resistant to anything that smacks of more esoteric practices than what they expect from therapy (Buddhism to many is still seen as a religion or faith-based practice rather than a psychological or cognitive discipline, so for some clients, it's easier to give them different terminology to work with to avoid pushing too hard on triggers). Even for non-therapists, this easy-to read book puts hard concepts in accessible language, which always makes starting to one's *own* personal development a little easier. I would, and have, recommended this book to almost everyone I know, and will likely continue to do so.

I found Taming Your Gremlin by Rick Carson to be transformative. I journaled as I read this book. In doing so, I discovered much about myself, and as I followed the processes and exercises suggested, I found myself changing. It was not painful or arduous; instead I found the exercises and processes to be humorous and entertaining. I found myself having fun and enjoying the journey. And low and behold, I found myself feeling... Happy. I continue to utilize Mr. Carson's techniques, my favorite being: Breathing deeply and saying to myself, "I am simply taming my gremlin." I am suggesting this book to my friends and I am giving it as gifts. It is worth the time and worth the read.

The strategies to manage internal dialogue were clear, specific and helpful, the visualizations less so. I don’t anticipate reading it all the way through a second time, but my notes and highlights will go somewhere I can review them from time to time.

Since I was nineteen, I have perused, studied, analyzed, and read dozens of self-help books. I am now fifty which gives you an indication of my interest(obssession?) in this subject. Most of the books "talked at" me, telling me I should do this, that, and the other. In most cases, I always felt a rebellion against someone "telling me what to do" rather than helping me find my own inner knowledge,strength and courage. That is, until I read Taming Your Gremlin. In this slim book, I've learned how to identify and deal with my own gremlins and avoid as much as possible with "shoulds" and "oughts" and "needs". Rick Carson's down to earth style is entertaining and has taught me to bring out my genuine, self-honest self. Becoming self-aware and not self condemning makes the changes easier, much more of an adventure than forcing it. It is a work of True Love! Lauren Lagergren, South Bend, WA

Wenn ich nur ein Buch nennen müsste, was mein Leben so nachhaltig verändert hat, wie kein anderes, dann würde ich ohne Zweifel "Taming Your Gremlin" nennen. Habe vor mehreren Jahren mit den Methoden angefangen und übe sie heute noch und bin jedesmal glücklich erstaunt, wohin sie mich bringen! Ohne dieses Buch wäre ich nicht die glückliche und strahlende Person, die ich heute bin!!!!

I like the book a lot. No wonder its been a coach's reference and a classic for over 30 years. The book is written in a language that is easy to read and the author does an amazing job to put some complex concepts in a way that it is easily digestible and achieves the objective. I appreciate this book and would recommend it in my top 5 book self-improvement books I've read.

and at the same time puzzling. For me anyway. It gives a different perspective to coping.. In this case they are labelled Gremlins - It`s a quick read, it`s the practice that takes the time.. Relying on a second reading, and a third and so on.. The logic is sound, no complex ideas just sound thinking.. Maybe coping is that simple, we just make it complex.

Per carità, ognuno troverà ciò che meglio funziona per lui e può darsi che questo libro sia perfetti per alcuni individui. A me sembra l'ennesimo libro di auto-aiuto, modello americano, con qualche tecnicuccia per osservarsi ed evitare di sabotarsi o tenere a bada i pensieri. Non l'ho nemmeno finito, forse perché è appunto l'ennesimo libro che leggo con la stessa impostazione di altri.

Love it