Here is my second book in a series of twelve. Self-help books, coaching books, management books? Every now and then, they serve as the drainpipe of the book world. They promise a lot, and after reading them, woefully little or nothing changes. Fortunately, that is not always true. I decided to investigate which books have a strong influence on me. It has turned into a nice list of twelve books.

CREATIVE VISUALIZATION

After reading *The Celestine Prophecy* and starting to keep journals, I set my sights on Shakti Gawain’s books. Her worldwide bestseller *Creative Visualization* seemed like a good fit. After all, I worked at a very creative advertising agency. But Shakti meant something quite different by ‘creative’ than I thought it was. With the help of creative visualization, you learn to channel your energy effectively, how to boost your self-confidence, and how to experience deep relaxation. That appealed to me, but I kept putting it off. I signed up for a workshop with Shakti in London. I passed on that workshop as well. It was too busy at the advertising agency. I thought I was indispensable. I couldn’t even manage a three-day workshop. I felt too responsible. I just kept running, straight into burnout. Eventually, I learned creative visualization. From Shakti Gawain herself. Although I did have to travel to California and Hawaii for it (which, by the way, was no punishment). I studied with her for three years, and later with her teachers Hal & Sidra Stone.

Creative visualization is not a ‘vague’ or complicated method. Everyone can learn it; you can too. And it only takes fifteen minutes a day. With the help of her meditations, affirmations, and exercises, you will quickly be on your way to a more positive and relaxed life. You can safely place Shakti Gawain in the ranks of spiritual teachers like Eckhart Tolle, Deepak Chopra, and Louise Hay. I am grateful for what I learned from Shakti and that I was later allowed to work as a trainer on her team.

Most people know her most famous book by a different title: The Secret, written by Rhonda Byrne. This popular rip-off is an easy read, but it doesn’t come close to Shakti’s original.