“Space Around Me Where My Soul Can Breath”

 

I don’t think I’ve ever read a “self help” book before. It’s not that I don’t think I could do with some improvement. I often find their advice to be overly simplistic or that they take a “one size fits all” approach to many of life’s problems. Ms. Olsen’s book has some of these issues but is generally easy to read. She divides her books into small, easy to digest sections making it easy to read before bed.

I would say one of the biggest issues with this book is that a lot of the information has become old news in the 15 or so years since it was first published. We all know that introverts get their energy from quiet time spent alone and that extroverts are just the opposite and that we prefer substantive conversations to small talk. On any given day one can find approximately 50 memes about being an introvert on their Facebook feed. I also found that she tended to view people in very black and white terms with regard to introverts and extroverts. That being said, there were some helpful tips on getting along in a society that seems to be built for the extrovert. She gives advice for relationships, the workplace, meeting people, social obligations and many other situations (I skipped the chapters on parenting).

Overall, this book is helpful if not particularly groundbreaking in 2017. I am already utilizing some of her advice at my job and it seems to be working.