Life Is Great, Even When It Sucks
What Makes People Do the Things They Do
by Ellen Nyland
A dairy farmer–turned–certified coach discusses how to realize your unique potential in this debut self-help guide.
Nyland, with her husband, owned and operated a dairy farm for more than 28 years, and they lived first in the Netherlands, now in Canada. She tees up her particular experience by noting that she has “lived with four generations on one farm” and that “Nothing fascinates me more than human interaction.” Now also a certified coach, having completed the “Co-Active” leadership program offered by California-based Coaches Training Institute, Nyland asserts that “we all are magnificent,” each with a special “toolbox/I am status,” yet “most of us don’t even know we have this great toolbox, let alone know that we need to cultivate it to experience a great life.” She believes that blockage occurs due to insecurities that arise from what she calls the five-point system “We have all been taught” via family, society, and media: “how to trust, how to handle conflict, how to be accountable, how to be committed, and what the results of these things are.” Nyland spends most of her book exploring these themes and offering several suggestions to help readers get a better picture of who they really are and what they really want in life. For instance, she says, journal and take her brief survey to assess your current views related to her five-point system. Nyland offers simple yet effective and thought-provoking tools to develop a cleareyed and affirmative approach to life. Her guide can get a bit off course, however, with too much discussion of autobiographical detail, including an odd aside about “stray voltage” causing problems on her farm. Still, Nyland generally presents a positive, uplifting tone in an encouraging guide. “You see, we all encounter difficult challenges in life, and yes, that sucks,” she says. “The thing is, though, with all those challenges we have the opportunity to cultivate and strengthen our toolbox, and how cool is that?”
Enthusiastic, embracing guide to self-actualization.