THE CYCLE OF FULFILLMENT

A success manual with a self-help focus designed to bring about outward success through inner awareness.

In quick, concise chapters, Shuja and Khawaja primarily concentrate on personal realization, the kind of mental and emotional experience that, according to them, involves experiencing positive emotions while diminishing negatives like jealousy, hatred, or anger. Throughout, they quote generously from such self-help gurus as Tony Robbins, including his classification of four types of experiences (fulfilling, challenging, escapist, and wasted), and Wayne Dyer, who proffers the odd contention that you should care about other people without caring about what they think of you. Throughout, the authors comment on a broad spectrum of self-improvement topics—from financial advice to overviews of good eating and exercise habits—and always include pragmatic reminders: “Knowing what to eat and how to exercise is essential,” they remind their readers, “but doing it is even more critical.” Like many self-help writers, the authors occasionally lapse into clichés or non sequiturs. “If you don’t love yourself, you can’t love others,” they write at one such point, though readers might vehemently disagree. Another unhelpful note: “If your first goal is to become a better person who has excellent qualities and moral values and the capability of managing more significant enterprises,” they write, “then the money will take care of itself.” Many will be able to testify to the contrary. These bromides weaken the overall optimistic momentum of the narrative, but they don’t destroy it completely. The guide’s main strength comes from its compartmentalization of inner improvement: concentrate first on addressing relationships with other people (and one’s god), move on from there to improve job satisfaction, which will improve productivity, which in turn will improve “financial health.” The clear presentation of these stages will probably be a boon to readers looking for such organization.

An energetic, if sometimes stale, self-improvement guide.