Wednesday, April 23, 2008

Are You Flawless?

I read a great book called Flawless: The Ten Most Common Character Flaws and What You Can Do About Them, by Dr. Louis Tartaglia.
We all have character flaws, it is an unavoidable fact. One of my own is the fact that I tend to be too aware of my character flaws!
But seriously, we all have idiosyncracies that hinder us at times, and sometimes downright debilitate us! Not only do these flaws make our own lives disappointing, but they make those around us wish that we were not around them!
Dr. Tartaglia shows us that these flaws tend to travel in clusters. They spin out of control and perpetuate themselves... "You only need to get one flaw going and the others automatically join. When they are all working in combination you are out of control. When they are out of YOUR control, your life becomes unmanageable."

The "flaws" he examines in this book are very... commonplace.
If you honestly ask yourself the 19 questions he places at the beginning of each chapter (why 19? I don't know), you will SURELY find yourself saying "Wow, hey, I do that all the time!" Or, conversely, you will say, "No, I have a lot of problems, but this is not one of them." Make a list. Take notes.
It's terribly interesting what you find out about yourself as you read this book. And it's so educationally beneficial and satisfying to place other people in those places that don't apply to you. "Oh, I know someone that is SO EXACTLY LIKE THAT!" etc. etc. Just think! You can photocopy those chapters and send them out as anonymous letters!

The chapters conclude with good practical pointers on how to overcome flawed behavior patterns. The author is witty and has definitely been around the block a few times in his observations about human behavior.
Flawless
did not strike me as being notably PROFOUND though... it was just a lot of well-organized common sense, and toward the end it was starting to bore me. But it is always good to be reminded of the importance of common sense, and this book is worth the time.

***********

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

I'm sure I have no flaws whatsoever. Everything that goes wrong in my life is someone else's fault ;)

Beth said...

One of my flaws is noting all my flaws.
I think this book might depress me unless it provides a sure fire way of getting rid of all flaws...
And even then, I might get even more depressed because I'd probably procrastinate (another flaw) in fixing my flaws.

Melwyk said...

I prefer the idea of sending chapters anonymously to those people who really need it...

Cipriano said...

Stefanie:
Ahhh..... see, Chapter 4 is just for you.... it's called Fixing Blame and Nurturing Resentments.
Just kidding.
I believe your first sentence!

Beth:
I am also much too self-defecating.
I mean.... self-deprecating!
And a champion Procrastinizer.

Melanie:
It's a great way to Lose Great Friends and Not Influence People.