Who is Tony Robbins?
If you haven’t heard of Tony Robbins by now you must have been living under a rock for the last decade. Tony is the best-selling author of titles such as Inner Strength, Unlimited Power, and most recently MONEY Master the Game. He is considered by many to be the most successful business and life coach in the entire world.
In this book, Awaken the Giant Within, Tony gives us practical ways to take control of all areas of our life.
I first read this book about four years ago, it was actually the very first book I had ever read from Tony Robbins, and I was immediately struck by how powerful Tony’s words are. He has a way of inspiring you that I cannot put into words, you have to experience it for yourself.
I am now a huge fan of Tony Robbins and I believe that he is one of the best teachers on personal improvement, personal empowerment, and motivation.
The Importance of Making Decisions
In Awaken the Giant Within Tony shares some amazing tips about how to take action on decisions that we make.
Many people believe that it takes a long time to change, however Tony does a great job of dispelling this myth. He points out that change happens in a moment, and that it is the process leading up to the change that can take a while.
The reason it can take us so long is not because of the change itself. It is because we fear making decisions. Many times we think we have made a decision, but it is more a wish then an actual decision.
This is an area that I’ve struggled with for a long time, but many of the tips that Tony gives have helped me over the last few years to become better at making decisions.
Pain and Pleasure
Another topic that Tony covers in this book is the connection between the decisions we make, and whether they are connected to pain or pleasure.
Tony says:
“Everything you and I do, we do either out of our need to avoid pain or our desire to gain pleasure.”
He points out that many times we are far more motivated by avoiding pain than we are by gaining pleasure. However, it is useful to realize that these two things are the motivating factors behind every decision we make, and every action that we take.
The great thing that he points out is how we can use pain and pleasure to change our actions to create the results that we want to achieve.
He says:
“We must link unbearable and immediate sensations of pain to our old behavior, and incredible and immediate sensations of pleasure to a new one.”
Just think of all the ways you could use this principle to change your behaviors from old ones thats hurt your future, to new empowering behaviors that support and create the future you desire!
The Five Ares of Life Mastery
In this book Tony also covers strategies and techniques for mastering the five areas of your life:
- Emotions
- Physical Body
- Relationships
- Finances
- Time
Why Should You Read This Book?
It’s so common for us to read a book or listen to an audio tape, and then to put it down and never do anything it said. Tony does a great job of encouraging you to take action while reading the book.
There are so many great ideas, and techniques, that Tony shares in this book which can be put into action immediately to start moving you in the direction you want to go. That is my favorite thing about this book. It is not just a nice theory that you will never use. It is filled with solid actionable ideas that can be used to change your life.
If you haven’t read this book yet I would highly recommend you pick it up. Just like all of Tony Robbins other materials, this book is extremely inspiring and it will leave you with techniques to develop the life you desire, and become the person you want to be.
Here Are Some Quotes I Pulled While Reading
- “The only true security in life comes from knowing that every single day you are improving yourself in some way.”
- “Controlled focus is like a laser beam that can cut through anything that seems to be stopping you.”
- “If you truly decide to, you can do almost anything.”
- “Beliefs have the power to create and the power to destroy.”
- “Value guides our every decision, and therefore, our destiny.”
- “You don’t need any special reason to feel good – you can just decide to feel good right now, simply because you’re alive, simply because you want to.”