Change Anything

The New Science of Personal Success

By: Al Switzler, Ron McMillan, David Maxfield, Joseph Grenny, Kerry Patterson

Narrated by: Joseph Grenny

Length: 6 hrs and 32 mins

Publisher's summary

A stunning new approach to how individuals can not only change their lives for the better in the workplace, but also their lives away from the office, including (but not limited to) finding ways to improve one's working relationship with others, one's overall health, outlook on life, and so on.

For example, why is it that 95% of all diet attempts fail? Why do New Year's Resolutions last no more than a few days? Why can't people with good intentions seem to make consistent and positive strides in the way they want to improve their careers, financial fitness, physical fitness, and so on?

Based upon the latest research in a number of psychological and medical fields, the authors of Change Anything will show that traditional will-power is not necessarily the answer to these strivings, that people are affected in their behaviors by far more subtle influences. Change Anything shows how individuals can come to understand these powerful and influential forces, and how to put these forces to work in a positive manner that brings real and meaningful results.

The authors present an array of everyday examples that will change and truly empower you to reexamine the way you go about your business and life.

©2011 Kerry Patterson, Joseph Grenny, David Maxfield, Ron McMillan, Al Switzler (P)2011 Hachette Audio

As useful as it is inspiring

This book was the missing link I've been looking for. It's full of great stories and the data to back it up.

Great examples from real life situations

Easy to implement for your own need for change.
Change yourself for better life, not others.

excellent book

loved it - especially the case studies. I highly recommend this book to anyone looking to change a behaviour or make something better in their life.

A lot of great things but...

There's a lot of great things in this book to help you move forward... a lot of great ideas and ways to wrap your mind around what one needs to consider to make serious, permanent changes in their life. I can't fault it for that. But, it's also an infomercial for their website, no longer changeanything.com, but cruciallearning.com and most of the courses they offer are quite expensive and are aimed at developing people for business, not simply personal improvement. The personal improvement side is completely gone. While the book has lots of great info, after researching their website, it left me with a bad feeling about the whole thing to be honest.

You can do this

I have read a lot of self-help books and this one is among the best, if not the top one. The writing is simple, clear and witty. The narrator does it justice and doesn't get in the way of listening to the content. The main reason why this book stands out for me is that it tells you you're going to screw up and, more importantly, how, when, and what to do about it. They authors make you feel completely normal for having tried and failed before -- you see yourself in their examples throughout the book. Then then show you specific fixes for what to do when you're in that emotional/behavioral place again. I haven't actually tried this yet (just finished listening) but if I (and you) can't follow the plan in this book, no one can change.

The book is based solidly on science and research, but retains a real-world view of the challenges of chaging our behavior. The authors provide a special access code for their website where you can see the experiments and get more help than is on the regular part of the website.

There really isn't a negative thing I can say about this book. It's definetly worth a listen no matter what it is you want to change about yourself. Listen to it even if you think someone else really is the one that needs to change (they talk about that in the book).

Definitely worth a list

Like their earlier book, Influencer, Change Anything is an interesting and somewhat actionable self-help book that, if I were seriously committed to changing something about myself, I would probably find more useful. They do make change sound like a lot of work, and there's nothing I currently feel that desperate to change to make it worthwhile. That said, I've listened to this book several times and will probably re-listen to it periodically (although I might be better off just keeping notes from it on an index card- the basic tenets could definitely fit on one). I do have to take a few points off for the interview at the end. While it's an interesting summary of the book, it's also a somewhat saccharine circle-jerk, and that's an unfortunate final impression for an otherwise motivating and occasionally inspiring (if periodically melodramatic) book.

Researched advice on making difficult personal chg

Would you listen to Change Anything again? Why?

I have listened to Change Anything several times and will listen again because it gives helpful, step-by-step methods for successfully changing ingrained habits. The book emphasizes practical application of scientific research to show WHY certain approaches to changing are effective, and others are not.

What did you like best about this story?

The scientific research was related to the examples for making behavioral changes in a way I could make sense of and have confidence that if I follow the approach described, I would be successful in making the changes I want.
The examples of people making difficult personal change, the

What does Joseph Grenny bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

The narrator brought appropriate enthusiasm and dramatic flair to the reading and presenting of the material. In some places, it could come off a little cutesy or smarmy, but overall I think the narrator did a great job.

What did you learn from Change Anything that you would use in your daily life?

So many things... to make change plans that use all six sources of influence. Specific strategies for engaging others in supporting me in making changes. Specific strategies for arranging my environment to support me in successfully making the changes I want. Specific examples of people who have made changes I want to make for myself, and ideas I could steal from those examples and apply to my own life.

Any additional comments?

If you are serious about making changes in areas that have been difficult, this is a great book to get and work through. Just be prepared to put in the work and to keep trying, keep going back to the model, adjusting your plan, involving others, getting the needed skills, changing your environment, and doing what it takes. If you expect the book to do the work for you, you've come to the wrong place. It does give you a great roadmap, and if you do the work and follow it, you can't help but be successful in making whatever change you are trying to make.

Keys to successful change

If you're true to yourself and want to make changes this is the right book for you to reach your goals.

good sound method for change

What made the experience of listening to Change Anything the most enjoyable?

the narration - the content - none of this was new but it was presented in a thoughtful and well organized manner

Have you listened to any of Joseph Grenny’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

This was my first listen and I thought he did a great job.

What did you learn from Change Anything that you would use in your daily life?

the idea of thinking about a "default future".

Life changing and liberating

Of course this book is life changing as that is its purpose. Having majored in psychology, I am drawn to self help and behavioral science books. This book is liberating because it downplays personal motivation, which I have been considering as faulty reasoning before but didn't understand why until I read this. I really do believe I can change my problems and the world, in a sense. Who doesn't want to change the world?