Collection: Self-Development

A perennially popular book by a beloved author--now in an updated package with a new preface--sheds light on what the next life may have in store.

"A book about living that will help readers see more beauty, feel more power, and know more love."
-- don Miguel Ruiz, international best-selling author of The Four Agreements

If the dead could speak, don't you wonder what they would say to those of us they've left behind? What would they tell us to soothe our sorrow for their loss, calm our fears of what happens when we die, and fire us up to live the best possible lives we can right now?

These are the questions New York Times best-selling author Mike Dooley seeks to answer in The Top Ten Things Dead People Want to Tell You--and ten years after its initial release, it's still one of Mike's most popular and beloved books. In pages filled with wisdom, humor, and, yes, joy, Mike explores our most pressing and profound questions about the afterlife--and this life--by adopting the perspective of those who have made the transition to the next phase. Among the revelations and insights they share:
- We were ready; you are not.
- There's no such thing as a devil or hell.
- We're sorry for any pain we may have caused.
- Your pets are just as crazy, brilliant, and loving here as they were there.
- Nothing we say can prepare you for the beauty of the moment you arrive.

New readers are discovering The Top Ten Things Dead People Want to Tell You all the time--and this anniversary release gives the book a fresh new package and new preface from the author to frame its invaluable insights for the times we live in now.

"Mike Dooley lifts the veil between our perceptual world and the world beyond our physical sight. [He] reminds us that we're always being guided. . . . Read this book and reconnect with the love that is all around you."
-- Gabrielle Bernstein, #1 New York Times best-selling author

Stop just thinking about earning more money and start making it happen!

In We Should All Be Millionaires, Rachel Rodgers--Black woman, mother of four kids, and self-made millionaire--shared her personal story. How she climbed from crushing debt and financial stress to wealth and abundance, running a multi-million-dollar company, and owning a blissful 57-acre horse ranch.

Her book inspired thousands of readers to construct a new attitude about money, claim their power, and build the financial security that we all need and deserve. Now comes the companion guide to help take that attitude and turn it into action.

This one-of-a-kind guide:

• Summarizes the most important concepts from We Should All Be Millionaires in a brief, succinct way, so these concepts stick firmly in your mind.
• Shifts the focus from "knowing" to "doing," by giving you small action steps that you can start taking immediately.
• Provides checklists so that you can complete steps, tick things off as you go along, and track your progress.

The goal for completing this workbook is to help all readers develop a new attitude about money, get more cash flowing into their bank account, and realize more emotional riches, too: hope, peace, power, and joy.

"Henry Oliver is a rare talent: smart, funny and insightful. SECOND ACT showcases his wide reading, deep understanding and playful prose style. Read this book to discover why it's never too late for a second act in your own life."
HELEN LEWIS, author of Difficult Women

Our society tells us over and over that if we're going to achieve anything, we'd better do it while we're young. We fixate on stories of prodigies; we put our children in piano lessons or language classes as toddlers, hoping to give them the best shot at success we can. As for ourselves, too many people feel it's too late to change the course of their own lives. Whether we are at the start of our careers and sense we're on the wrong path, or feeling unsettled in our late or middle years, we all wonder how we can reinvent ourselves? Is it too late?

This book has answers. Late bloomers - individuals who experience significant success later in life - offer lessons for people who feel frustrated. This book encourages people to think about themselves as potential late bloomers and to discover and encourage and advocate for late blooming in others. After all, it's never too late to discover our hidden talents and our accomplish our goals - the road to success is never as straightforward as we are lead to believe. Julia Child didn't discover that she loved to cook until she was thirty-seven. Vera Wang started her design business at forty. And Michelangelo painted The Last Judgment in his sixties.

This inspiring, passionate book combines wonderful storytelling with fascinating new research, to shift expectations around our life trajectories. You'll discover a range of blueprints for self-reinvention, pairing the newest insights from psychology and neuroscience with late bloomers' remarkable life stories, from Penelope Fitzgerald to Samuel Johnson, from Frank Lloyd-Wright to Malcolm X.

Unleash your creativity and learn a whole variety of hand embroidery techniques with Clare Albans from Hello! Hooray!. The Modern Embroidery Handbook is a perfect guide for stitchers of all levels, and is something you'll want to pick up from your bookshelf to refer to time and again. Inspired by vintage sewing companions, the follow up to colorful Fun Embroidery contains step-by-step instructions for 72 different hand embroidery stitches, plus a large-scale sampler, alongside 20 brand new projects. Start with the basic ones most commonly found in embroidery designs, before experimenting with stitches for borders and edging, decorative stitches and motifs, as well as textural stitches and knots. The 20 modern projects give you an opportunity to try out all the stitches, and each one includes full step-by-step instructions, beautiful photos, and templates for you to create them yourself at home. The Modern Embroidery Handbook will encourage and inspire you to go beyond the embroidery hoop, get out of your comfort zone and be bold in trying different techniques. If you've ever wanted to experiment with watercolors on fabric, stitch unique customized pieces to wear or use in your home, or even to create 3D effects with hand embroidery, then look no further. This colorful and informative book will give you the confidence to experiment and help you to find joy in taking time out to be creative!

Master the art of carving expressive people--with just one knife! Charles Banks, professional carver, longtime instructor, and author of Learn to Whittle Fascinating People in Wood reveals how to take a single blank and turn it into literally hundreds of different characters, both male and female. With illustrated techniques for achieving everything from different hairstyles and facial expressions to painting impressive details without fear, you have everything you need to create showstopping characters with just a knife and a hunk of wood. It includes 12+ projects with full-size patterns featuring various human characters with a separate tutorial section on carving facial features and clothes. Great for beginners and advanced carvers who want to solidify their whittling skills.

The fourth edition of Theoretical Models of Counseling and Psychotherapy provides a comprehensive overview of a variety of major counseling theories and focuses on the integration of different theoretical models. With new information on multiculturalism and diversity, the book offers a detailed description of the philosophical basis for each theory as well as historical context and biographical information on each theory's founder. Chapters include new case excerpts and clinical examples, and each chapter follows a consistent structure in its exploration of each theory's features, including its approach to and ideas on personality development, human nature, the role of environment, the change process in therapy, and contributions to the mental health field. Theory-specific information on diagnosis, psychopharmacology, spirituality, and gender issues is also discussed, and there is an added emphasis on diversity and social justice issues. The book is accompanied by instructor and student resources where professors and students will find exercises and course material that will further deepen their understanding of counseling theory and allow them to easily bridge classroom study to future practice.

Available for free download for each chapter: PowerPoint slides and a testbank of 25 multiple-choice questions.

Discover more than 60 quick, easy, and stylish decorating ideas to add cozy Christmas cheer to your home. Seriously, these projects are so easy--you can do these!

KariAnne Wood, author of 10-Minute Decorating Ideas, is back with a new collection of simple projects to help you make holiday magic at home. You don't have to be an expert or carve out a lot of time to add some festive touches to your spaces. If you have ten minutes, you can try one of these quick and easy ideas for Christmas. . .

Decor--enjoy helpful how-tos on decorating with cookie cutters, mini-houses, Christmas pillows, and so much more.

Trees--from toppers to skirts, you'll discover some unique ideas to take your tree decorating to new heights.

Wreaths--welcome well-wishers with a one-of-a-kind wall or door decoration that says, "Season's Greetings."

Wrap--Add extra personality with clever, customized gift-wrap ideas that will bring a smile even before the presents are opened!

If you've wished you could make beautiful, homemade decorations for Christmas but felt like you don't have the time or talent, this book will give you the inspiration and encouragement you need to go from dreaming to doing!

Do you want to be more engaging when you talk? Are you tired of people not paying attention, misunderstanding, or even wandering away from you? Have you told yourself you just don't have "the gift of gab?"

Do not talk yourself out of success; stop feeling dull, shy, or boring, and take action to develop those skills which seem so out of reach. Speak up and be noticed. Never before have so many conversational skills been analyzed, broken down into easy-to-understand lessons, and gathered in one place. Extroverts and introverts can both learn a thing or two within this guide.

You need excellent speaking skills in this world, as well as the ability to listen and respond with substance. There are few facets of the human experience that do not benefit from more assertive communication skills. Without the risk of hyperbole, improving inter-personal communication can mean the difference between surviving and thriving. Once you acknowledge that who you know is at least as important as what you know, the importance of learning to befriend people with reasonable regularity becomes clear.

Here, in this guide, is the key to one of humankind's greatest strengths. Excellent conversation skills used to be the exclusive domain of those charismatic, radiant people who just seem to have a knack for inspiring or influencing entire groups. It does not matter if you are introverted or extroverted and wanting to be better; you do not have to wish and wonder because we no longer have to accept a shy or awkward nature if we do not want to. These 7 EASY STEPS are your ticket to deep, meaningful conversations, easy-breezy chats, and everything in between.

YOU'LL LEARN:

• How to attract people and keep their interest
• Remaining receptive and reflective, even mid-conversation
• The enormous power of small talk
• Adjusting your words to match your audience without changing your message
• Master the art of difficult conversations
• Tools and tricks for you to practice alone
• Make sure you have something worth talking about
• And so much more!

By exploring those topics in their entirety, a complete curriculum of interpersonal communication is created. We assume nothing, and every skill is explored with both too much and too little of the ability applied. As interactive as it is thorough, every chapter is jammed full of easy-to-understand and quick to apply advice. What you will find is a conversational playground you will come back to again and again, full of timeless insights and proven exercises. No matter your objectives, you can use the 7 EASY STEPS to grow, explore or just contemplate.

It does not matter if you already have a dazzling, engaging personality or are just beginning to unlimber your tongue. The time to improve your interpersonal communication skills has never been better. So don't waste another minute holding up the wall, and break away from isolation into a more prosperous, more rewarding life. You have only isolation and a fumble-tongue to lose with a lifetime of social contacts to gain.

Let's get started!

An award-winning journalist tells the inspiring story of her unlikely midlife journey to master the daunting sport of obstacle course racing--a powerful, science-based account of the change possible at any age when we push limits.

In her midforties, Gwendolyn Bounds attended a dinner party where someone asked a little girl: "What do you want to be when you grow up?"

It struck Bounds: In middle age, no one asks you that anymore. So she put the question to herself. The answer set her on an unexpected five-year path of transformation from an unathletic office executive glued to her screens to an age-group medalist and world championship competitor in obstacle course racing--a demanding military-style sport requiring speed, endurance, mobility, and strength.

In Not Too Late, Bounds explores how tackling something new and hard upended her expectations for middle age--while also helping her reconcile regrets of her youth. Her story takes us from playgrounds and gyms, where Bounds relearns childhood movements (swinging from monkey bars, climbing a rope); to far-flung Spartan Race courses, where she strives to master running in difficult terrain and to conquer challenges such as scaling tall walls, crawling under barbed wire, and carrying heavy loads of rocks up mountains.

Bounds's journey offers inspiration and a road map for anyone craving more out of life. Woven through Not Too Late are insights from scientists, longevity doctors, philosophers, elite athletes, and performance experts on how to reimagine our limits and who we think we are. Through Bounds's story, as she changes her body and mindset, we learn about humans' capacity to tap inner reserves, face fears, locate intrinsic motivation, and push boundaries at any life stage.

Ultimately, one message prevails: When unleashing our full potential, age can be a secret weapon.

Find healing and move on from the past in the face of loss, confusion, and pain

"If only I could get some closure..." If you've found yourself saying these words, you're not alone. When you've lost a relationship, a job, or a loved one, closure can seem as elusive as it is necessary. Psychotherapist and relationship coach Gary McClain says it's one of the most common--and important--issues his clients bring up.
In this empathetic and insightful guide, Dr. McClain explains why the promise of closure is so appealing--and why it's not always all it's cracked up to be. He walks readers through what closure is (and isn't), the reasons we want it, how to seek it in healthy and productive ways, and ways to move forward when we don't get the closure we're looking for. Learn how to find peace and leave regret behind when you can't stop obsessing about a fight with a friend, when your world has been turned upside down by a breakup, or when a loved one has died. Whether you're dealing with the pain of loss or are simply feeling the need to tie up a loose end, big or small, in a relationship, The Power of Closure will help you let go of the past and embrace the future.

A renowned climber and National Geographic photographer shares his incredible adventures--and the early trauma that drove him to seek such heights--in a vivid memoir that spans the summit of Everest to the darkest corners of the soul.

"In order to escape madness, I will live madly. I will risk my life in order to save it."

Growing up in the mountains of Utah, Cory Richards was constantly surrounded by the outdoors. His father, a high school teacher and ski patroller, spent years teaching Cory and his brother how to ski, climb, mountaineer, and survive in the wild. Despite a seemingly idyllic childhood, the Richards home was fraught with violence, grief, and mental illness. After being diagnosed with bipolar disorder and dropping out of high school, Cory subsumed himself in the worlds of photography and climbing, seeking out the farthest reaches of the world to escape the darkness. Suddenly though, in the midst of a wildly successful career in adventure photography, a catastrophic avalanche changed everything, forcing Cory to confront the trauma of his past, evaluate his own mental health and learn to rewrite his own story.

The Color of Everything is a thrilling tale of risk and adventure, written by a man who has done it all: he's stood at the top of the world, climbed imposing mountain faces alone in the dark and become the only American to summit an 8,000-meter peak in winter. But it is also the story of a tumultuous life--a stirring, lyrical memoir that captures the profound musings of a brilliant and unquiet mind grappling with the meaning of success, the cost of fame, addiction, and whether it is possible to outrun your demons. With exquisite prose and disarming candor, accompanied by stunning photos from his career, Richards excavates the psychological roots and effects of trauma and shares what it took for him to climb out.

From the fashion mogul and entrepreneur behind Babes, an empowering memoir about turning what makes you different into the foundation of your success

Ciera Rogers is known for being an "Outsider"--and she likes it that way. As the founder and CEO of a multi-million-dollar brand that caters to curvy women of all shades, worn by the likes of Kim Kardashian and championed by Beyoncé, Ciera has rallied the very women the fashion industry is designed to ignore around the radical idea that what makes you different is actually your superpower.

The Outsider Advantage is for Outsiders like her: the dreamers, doers, and go-getters that society continuously overlooks and underestimates, but who are uniquely equipped to achieve glass-shattering success.

In this bold and inspiring memoir, Ciera shares the moments in her life that left the biggest impact--being kidnapped at a young age by her estranged father, running hustles in strip clubs, living in her mom's red Jeep, daring to post her first outfit for sale on Instagram, hitting seven-figures, and buying a home--and unearths the powerful lessons she has taken away from her past and her unorthodox rise, like how to harness what you already have and how to use your trauma as a motivator. She also speaks to feelings of millennial rage, as on her journey, she came to realize that the American Dream is a lie. But she didn't allow that to stop her from outmaneuvering the system to finally live the life she wanted.

Arguing that what the world calls limitations--lack of connections, resources, fancy degrees, or even the "right" look--are actually our biggest competitive advantages, Ciera teaches anyone who has ever been overlooked, ignored or underestimated how to embrace their Outsider status to find unstoppable success.

How does a feeble Cubchoo evolve into a fearsome Beartic? Why do some Pokémon like Eevee have eight Evolutions, while Pokémon such as Mimikyu have none at all? What exactly does an Evolution Stone do? Find out all these answers and more in this colorful, fact-packed book.

(c)2023 Pokémon.

From mother-daughter team Hillary Clinton and Chelsea Clinton comes a celebration of gardens, family and tradition, and an ode to mothers, grandmothers and the children they love. Now an abridged board book for the tiniest gardeners.

A celebration of family and flowers, gardens and greenery that shows readers how sharing the things we love with the people we love can connect us.

Praise for Grandma's Gardens

"A deeply affectionate tribute to the bounty of nature and the love of gardening." --Publishers Weekly

"Filled with mindfulness, the story inspires children to reflect on family and keep memories alive." --Booklist

As the rate of children with anxiety climbs steadily, teachers and parents need ways to help children manage their anxiety while at school. In Helping Children Manage Anxiety at School, author Colleen Wildenhaus uses her experience as a parent and teacher to help parents and teachers understand anxiety, create a classroom environment that supports positive mental health, and offers a guide for creating a plan for the anxious child.

How do you help the child who refuses to go to school, sits alone rather than with peers, or defies all requests to complete assignments? While these situations often lead teachers and parents to identify their child's reactions as misbehavior, the truth is anxiety is often the root cause. Using real-life scenarios, easy to implement strategies, and hands-on exercises, parents and teachers will learn that anxiety is treatable with the right tools, allowing them to provide the necessary guidance and support to children who need it most.

Using the information in this book, parents and teachers will have the knowledge to help an anxious child increase their confidence and independence, reestablish peer relationships, improve their emotional well being, and see a rise in their academic abilities. With the purchase of this book, you gain access to over 20 free printable PDFs focused on supporting the anxious child.

Backed by years of personal experience and success, Helping Children Manage Anxiety at School gives parents and teachers the strategies and information they need to positively support the mental health of children in the classroom.

Cross-stitch your cottage life!

Whether you live in a cottage or an urban apartment, if you daydream of a simple life in a little house on a hill or near the sea, this book is full of designs that will inspire and feed your love of all things homey and sweet. The 20 stitchings feature a variety of tiny homes--from cabins with beautiful gardens to hobby farms and even a little camper home--and the relaxing rituals of cottage living, such as baking, gardening, and enjoying wildlife and sunshine.

Every project includes chart, finished photo, materials, and full instructions. Find your peace as you make each stitch, and then display your work where you can be transported to your cottage dream every time you see it!