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James Hollis, PhD – What Matters Most: Living a More Considered Life*** elib exclusive ***Quote:Why are we here? What is the meaning of existence? What truly matters the most in life? To even begin to answer these questions we must start by exploring our own internal ideals, values, and beliefs. Presenting the unique perspective of respected analyst and author James Hollis, Ph.D., What Matters Most helps readers learn to appreciate (even be amazed by) events unfolding within, even as the external world creates constant struggles.Taking a fresh look at the concept of happiness, Hollis uses a warm, accessible tone to encourage readers to learn to tolerate ambiguity, embrace growth rather than security, respect the power of Eros, engage spiritual crises, and acknowledge the shadow of mortality. Providing inspiring wisdom and personal reflections to address our deepest worries, What Matters Most yields far more than mere self-help clichés. Instead, Hollis guides readers in uncovering the heart of the matter, discovering what it means to truly live life to its fullest, most meaningful state–as fully engaged citizens of the world.Open for everyoneNumber of pages: 288Year of publication: 2009Url: https://www.amazon.co.uk/What-Matters-Most-Living-Considered…Amazon rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars (16 reviews)Amazon 5 star review wrote:James Hollis gets it. This book is aimed primarily at those who have suffered a mid-life crisis, but I read it as a troubled 22-year-old man, and it has undoubtedly had a positive effect on me. Ignore the self-help packaging of the cover: there is genuinely sound advice within. Hollis’s generally negative view of existence is refreshing. The essential piece of advice he has is for us to recognise ourselves as meaning-creating creatures, and to see our symptoms as the product of failing to live up to what our souls demand of us. Of any choice that lies before us, we should ask, ‘Does this choice make me larger or smaller?’ When you begin to think in those terms, the fundamental choices of your life become much clearer (if not any less challenging!) Another important, if perhaps more obvious, piece of advice is to understand our lives as a constant process of failure – even if you become President, you are doomed to persistent failure! – and growth, and that at times of crisis we are asked to let one part of ourselves die in order that a better self can grow again.While I fundamentally agree with Hollis’s worldview, I did not find his arguments to be prescriptive. The book’s most striking anecdote is of the widow who, when told by Hollis that she would be the one to walk herself to the bathroom at night, “she got up and walked out of therapy forever”. This book should be treated in the same spirit: as a guide that not only heals the wounds of your past, but shows you the way out of the door to a much richer life. After reading it, you may never need such help again.Amazon 5 star review wrote:Jung says that most of our lives we walk around in small shoes, hemmed in by habits and stories that shrink our selves and our lives. Jungian analyst Hollis looks at how, in second half of life, we can break the symbolic chains that have imprisoned our creativity and values, come to understand why we are here, and what a meaningful life really entails. Part brute common sense, partly mystical, he concludes that there are no answers to life’s big questions, but that it’s the journey of exploring these questions that enlarges our lives and our humanity in immeasurable ways. Inspiring book for the dedicated reader, it’s long and sometimes hard to follow. But it all comes together at the end. I feel I have been significantly enlarged by reading it.Amazon 5 star review wrote:Hollis is a wonderful writer, his style flows easy and he has got the gift of making complex ideas, easy to understand. Plus his wisdom and clarity of thought make his writing important for people who are on a journey of understanding. He is furthermore amazingly well read and brings to the table the wise thoughts of sages and other who have through millennia contributed to our knowledge of what it means to be human! I have read a number of Hollis’ books and find that the contents are always true to the title. Having finished them, I always feel enriched. This one is no exception!May you find the LOVE and LIFE,Aeon