• Why Good People Do Bad Things

  • By: Debbie Ford
  • Narrated by: Debbie Ford
  • Length: 8 hrs and 7 mins
  • 4.2 out of 5 stars (143 ratings)

Prime logo Prime members: New to Audible?
Get 2 free audiobooks during trial.
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
Premium Plus auto-renews for $14.95/mo after 30 days. Cancel anytime.
Why Good People Do Bad Things  By  cover art

Why Good People Do Bad Things

By: Debbie Ford
Narrated by: Debbie Ford
Try for $0.00

$14.95/month after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Buy for $22.49

Buy for $22.49

Pay using card ending in
By confirming your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and Amazon's Privacy Notice. Taxes where applicable.

Editorial reviews

The idea that good and bad aspects of self have equal worth is a difficult concept to accept. Not so after Ford explains her point of view, using poignant images, a Cherokee story, examples for the worlds of celebrity and politics, and anecdotes from her own life and the lives of others. She goes on to describe shame and self-sabotage and explains how to change the "masks" we've all adopted to survive. Ford reads her own words with the confidence of a teacher who knows the depth of her material. Her voice expresses the neutrality and understanding of a counselor used to awkward subjects. She offers the compassion of friend who can comfort a wounded soul and suggests specific ways to transform internal negatives into hope.

Publisher's summary

Why Good People Do Bad Things exposes the pervasive and often hidden impulses that influence our everyday decisions. The headlines are full of stories of good people gone astray. They show up on the evening news and are splashed across the weekly tabloids.

In many ways, these sad stories have become a national obsession. Yet countless other acts of self-destruction and sabotage take place in our families, in our communities, in our circle of friends. Despite good intentions, "good people" do very bad things - often without understanding why.

New York Times best-selling author Debbie Ford guides us into the heart of the duality that unknowingly operates within each one of us: the force that compels us to live by our values, give and receive love, and be a contributing member of the community; and the force that holds us back, sabotages our efforts, and repeatedly steers us toward bad choices.

Ford begins with an examination of what she calls the Beach-Ball Effect - the way in which suppressed emotions eventually rise to the surface - revealing the origins of self-destructive behavior. By describing the never-ending battle between our light and dark sides and then identifying the signposts for potential disaster, Ford helps us understand how we end up damaging the lives we've worked so hard to create. She then breaks new ground by helping us recognize the masks we wear to protect ourselves, including the People Pleaser, the Victim, the Bully, Mister Cool, and the Jokester. Understanding these masks and what they cover up allows us to go beneath the surface, wake up from denial, and become the person we always intended to be.

With Why Good People Do Bad Things Ford has created her most enduring, expansive, and powerful work to date. Providing the tools to unlock the patterns of self-sabotage, Ford ultimately knocks down the facade of the false self and shows us how to heal the split between light and dark and live the authentic life w...

©2008 Debbie Ford (P)2008 HarperCollins Publishers

What listeners say about Why Good People Do Bad Things

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 4 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    84
  • 4 Stars
    23
  • 3 Stars
    17
  • 2 Stars
    13
  • 1 Stars
    6
Performance
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    48
  • 4 Stars
    8
  • 3 Stars
    11
  • 2 Stars
    1
  • 1 Stars
    2
Story
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    50
  • 4 Stars
    7
  • 3 Stars
    6
  • 2 Stars
    5
  • 1 Stars
    4

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.