I'll admit that I already had a negativity bias toward a book subtitled "25 Microskills To Face Your Fears and Do It Anyway," but I was hoping my potentially reductive view would be contradicted in meaningful, useful content. I did mine a helpful nugget here and there, like "Feel your feelings without running away" and "Make values a verb." But even the useful strategy of recognizing "workable" vs. "unworkable" thoughts was framed by such an awkward and circuitous definition that many readers may miss the point entirely. And, the worst advice in the entire book brings me back to my initial impression. By the time the author triad of two PhDs and a licensed social worker recommend, "If fear is encouraging you to run away, run toward instead," I was vindicated. True courage rests in acknowledging fear, asking yourself what you're afraid of and why - and then making a choice from a place of awareness and authenticity that is best for you. It's NOT ignoring gut instinct and rushing forward toward something every fiber of your being is saying is wrong for you. And any mental health professional with integrity would know better than to counsel otherwise. I recommend avoiding this book, there are much healthier alternatives for people struggling with avoidance issues and feeling stuck.

I received a digital pre-publication copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I'm one of these people who can avoid stuff until forever. I know it's bad and I'm working on it, but it's hard to face up to my weaknesses or mistakes. So, I guess I am the perfect audience for a book such as this one - short and to the point. The micro-sized lessons are interesting, albeit a bit cliched, but that's fine because they work for most part. Sure, I still avoid stuff (I've managed to procrastinate writing this review, for example), but I'm a bit better than before.

This is a super fun read. I really enjoyed this one!

Many thanks to the author, the publisher, and Netgalley for my ARC. All opinions are my own.

A great little book if you have difficulties in this respect. A clear no nonsense approach with some great tips in to help with these kinds of issues.

This is practical self help guide. It tells us that it is not a solution to avoid the problem. We need to fave it and hit it right in the face. Every problem has a solution that can only occur if we start. Very practical book which is written in wonderful language that keeps the reader glued till the end. There is no dull phase and no use of unnecessary jargon.

This well written, easy to read book offers strategies on how to stop avoiding uncomfortable things. What it doesn't do effectively, in my opinion, is explain *why* you should stop avoiding uncomfortable things. Avoiding uncomfortable things seems like an important life skill. In fact, I'd go so far as to say that it's been one of the primary goals of my life. I do things I enjoy, and I don't do things I don't enjoy. Why is that a problem?

Growth requires leaving your comfort zone, and leaving your comfort zone requires essential pain. It requires trying new things that you're not necessarily skilled at. Avoiding discomfort means avoiding growth.

But maybe, legitimately, you're not seeking growth in a particular area. If the discomfort of the situation seems to exceed the potential enjoyment offered by it, then why not avoid the situation? For instance, some people are home bodies. If they don't want to go out and party, that's okay.

So, overall, while I think the authors offer good strategies, they didn't spend enough time talking about when you should use them. They talked about how avoiding things that bother you can actually make you feel worse, and sometimes that's true. But sometimes it's an incredible relief to let go of things that aren't serving you. If you're avoiding something, maybe it's because that thing is not for you.

If you feel like you've got a good handle on where you need to work on yourself, then this book is a good choice. You might end up consulting it over and over again as you work on different areas. If you need advice on how to determine what to keep and what to let go of, then that's beyond the scope of this book.

Thanks, NetGalley, for the ARC I received. This is my honest and voluntary review.

I saw the title and it was an instant request. I am a massive procrastinator and it is my most annoying trait. This book delves deep into why and how we can fix it. Little bite-size chunks of information that won't leave you overwhelmed.

This book was a mixed bag for me. I liked that it was straight forward and easy to read but I was hoping for something more geared towards everyday tasks.

Most of us are avoidant in some form or another, so when I saw the title I picked it— because there's always something to learn and room to improve. I liked how the book talked about the psychology of avoidance and the reasons behind why we act the way that we do. The book offers several exercises, techniques, and advice that I found really useful.

Thank you NetGalley for this e-ARC.

STOP AVOIDING STUFF by Matthew S. Boone, Jennifer Gregg and Lisa W. Coyne reviews "25 Microskills to Face Your Fears and Do It Anyway." The authors' credentials, a social worker, professor of Psychology at San Jose State, and a practicing clinical psychologist, are impressive. They bring much needed insight to overcoming fears with practical suggestions in sections designed to build awareness, feel your feelings, free yourself of fearful thoughts, shift your view, and take small steps. Noting that avoidance is about control, the authors use each of the 25 short chapters (e.g., take perspective or practice gratitude) to describe a microskill by using stories and scientific background. This means there are many words, but, unfortunately, few images or diagrams appear to be interspersed.

This personal development book is very practical. A summary of 25 microskills, clearly explained, are broken down, such that you can find something that will help you move forward. I bookmarked a lot of passages in the book to refer to again and again, and I have recommended it to many a friend and colleague when they feel stuck or resistant about doing something..

As a former therapist, helping clients combat avoidance was an ongoing challenge, especially for those with anxiety. What they want to do is avoid feeling anxious, when avoiding it is what makes it worse. This book explains concepts like secondary gain (what you are getting out of continuing the avoiding behavior) in a straight forward, easy to understand manner. It exposes the truth about some misunderstood concepts, like mindfulness. I like that it lists microskills that the reader can try to make progress without feeling overwhelmed. I could see some readers having resistance toward the message of the book and feel like it oversimplifies things too much, like how much a person actually has control over. But overall it's a book I would recommend and use with my clients if I was still practicing.

Not a book I would pick up again, there is something else out there for me. A quick introduction to a skill then geta "teeny tiny practice" for it. So some practical activities to do to help you out.

A fantastic motivational book to help any reader move past the mental blocks and obstacles that prevent us all from achieving success. Love having this one as a resource!

I really like what I've read in this book. Usually I find books of short chapters of sell-help advice frustratingly short and inadequate.

But the advice in this book is the straw that prods the camel into action. It prompts you to get into action and amazingly helps you remember things you've read in other books.

I especially like the chapter on working out small ways to live your values. Very good.

This book begins by discussing why we avoid stuff, and then delves into how to stop avoiding stuff. It’s a useful book with good information about how to avoid stuff and overcome one’s fears. This book allows the reader to pace themselves as they go through it, which allows the reader time to absorb the information and learn how to apply it. I would recommend this book to any reader.

* I was provided a free copy of this book via the publisher and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I enjoyed this book and found it really useful from a personal point of view. I found there were lots of great tips which have helped me already.

Thank you NetGalley for my complimentary copy in return for my honest review.

This book gives a lot of good advice on how to deal with avoidance as a coping mechanism to deal with the things we don't want to think about, or take care of. It's got a lot of tips related to mindfulness too, so if you've been meaning to try that but haven't managed to start yet, this is the book for you !
Overall, an enjoyable and interesting read, and a good self-help book.

This book gives the appearance and description as a self-help book. I guess to some it will be that for them. But, this is a book about mindfulness disguised as a self-help book. I was disappointed with each new section/microstep because they were all just different ways to discuss mindfulness. Every step is the same thing just worded differently.

I should have read the subtitle of this book more carefully, as it wasn't at all the kind of book I thought I was requesting. I really need to work on learning how to stop avoiding stuff in the everyday sense, like housework or yoga that I put off because I'd rather be writing, playing with my kids, working in the garden, reading books, etc. This is more about how to stop avoiding things like spending time with your ailing parent, leaving a bad relationship or standing up for yourself.

For that purpose, it's a pretty good book. It focuses a lot on things like mindfulness and paying attention to how you feel. It's written by three different authors and that gets confusing, as they put their names in parentheses as they talk ("I (Jen) had this problem with this client..."). I didn't find the book particularly useful for my own deep issues that I avoid, but I already practice mindfulness and my mother was a psychologist so none of this is really new to me. Still, it's a short and encouraging book for those who want to do the self inventory of 25 little exercises to help you get in touch with your feelings and start changing your behavior to better help yourself.

I read a digital ARC of this book for review.