Was Sabotage written for me? Ouch.

I told my therapist last Friday how deeply, Sabotage by Emma Gannon, changed my outlook on life.
Released in late September by Andrews McMeel Publishing, this non-fiction title fit my description of the perfect self-help book.
My perimeters? It helped.
I dislike those self-help authors who appear to think that filling my head with their lengthy resumes will somehow convince me to swallow their message hook, line and sinker.
Perhaps that is why I am seeing a therapist. Hmm.
But this author was "asingin' my song," as my mother once said.
Gannon is a self-described woman and works as a "creative" in the fast-paced world of filmmaking, writing, marketing, and speaking.
Hopefully, she won't be speaking about me. Oh wait, this book could have been written for me. Bummer.
Gannon is ultra-experienced in the "Interaction-With-Jealous-Coworkers-And-Friends-Who-Are-Girls-Or-Cads," department. Gannon has dished and been dished enough to realize that she too, actively engaged in self-sabotage. So active in fact, she could write a book.
Hmm. I feel that experienced too. What would my book be titled? How to Ensure You Destroy Your Own Day, Everyday? Accurate. I wonder how many people would read it?
Here are a few questions intended to identify toxic relationships in your life, according to Gannon:
Are you scared to tell them good news?
Well, that eliminates most of my nuclear family.
When you tell them good news, do they look pleased or pained?
Seriously? Some of my relatives try to stop my good news from happening.
Do they try to hold you back from trying new things:
Ever heard of the word GUILT?!
You feel yourself becoming less and less confident around them?
Are you supposed to feel confident after being with them?
Gannon's book is so readable, or in this case, listen-to-ale, because she pegs the human tendency to set oneself ablaze with thoughts and actions that burn our own self-worth and desire to keep climbing toward our potential straight to the ground.
Hey, you commuters!
Sabotage is an audiobook, easy to access, and quick to understand. It's cheap therapy from someone whose been there, (remember, you are NOT alone,) and a much more fulfilling choice for tolerating bad driving and For-No-Reason-Traffic, than listening to your favorite shock jock; imbibing yourself silly before you hit the road - figuratively or literally; or in California at least, finding … ah … OTHER ways to ease your tension in life.
WARNING: If you dare listen to Gannon's Sabotage, you might just find all those "friends" and "helpmates" in your past life were actually right about some pretty unfortunate things and that after all your fighting, the root of your problem … is you.

I'm not usually into self help type books but I couldn't resist when I read the description. Really good topic, and a good read for people like me who tend to doubt themselves.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with an advanced audio copy in exchange for an honest review.

I really enjoyed this book - it has lots of very valuable and important parts in, and I think it is a perfect self help book for anyone.

I did find the audio to be quite slow for my personal preference - I listened on 1.75x and that was better for me. This did mean that the book was very short.

This was an interesting read about the ways we stop ourselves from succeeding, and I picked up a few tips I'll definitely try to put into practise. I read Emma Gannon's novel, Olive, this year, so it was also interesting to hear her talking about her fear of failure with it. I enjoyed the short, easy-to-digest chapters and the positive tone of the book overall.

Emma Gannon’s pamphlet-sized text Sabotage is a great short read/listen that challenges readers to examine the various ways we might sabotage our own successes.

I’m very skeptical of self-help narratives that blame our problems on some fundamental personal flaw—we don’t want something enough, we don’t think positively enough, we aren’t sending the right energies into the aether, etc. By contrast, Gannon acknowledges right away that many problems we may experience individually are in fact rooted in broader oppressive social systems and structures. I think this is a really important foundation to lay, as it can help us to introspect without so easily stumbling face-first into the chasm of self-blame.

One particular passage that stood out to me is this: “A little bit of fear keeps us on our toes. It means we are moving forward, and not staying stagnant. It’s possible for us to change our relationship with fear, or even adjust the lens through which we view it, and realize feeling fearful might mean you really want something. It might just mean you’re on the right track.”

I think of Sabotage as a "pocket-sized” audio pick-me-up that can just as easily help you process a bad day as prepare for an interview. It’s a refreshing take on a self-help text that I’d recommend keeping close-at-hand for when you need an impromptu pep talk.

I saw a quote from this book on twitter and instantly tracked it down. I am very grateful for this advanced audiobook.

I like a bit of self help. Not so much the woo-woo kind, but practical advice. I suffer from anxiety so I’m always looking for ways to help myself, not just to alleviate the symptoms.

This book is short and to-the-point and excellent on audio. She cites many professional and trustworthy sources and I found the advice at the end very helpful.

This is a quick read (or listen in case of audio) that makes the reader focus inward for validation and motivation.

The audiobook is read by the author, Emma Gannon. Emma is UK author that many in the US may not be familiar with. Of course she has a heavy British accent, but once you are accustomed to her voice, the message of the book is very beneficial.

Ms. Gannon explains why we sabotage ourselves as a means of self-defense and preservation, how to overcome those obstacles, and embrace all of the feelings that come with living life. I enjoyed this audio and it gave me a lot to think about in my own life. Some self protection is fine, but others is very detrimental to achieving everything within our capabilities.

I recommend this book to anyone experiencing one of the four major self-sabotage categories: low self esteem, internalized beliefs, fear of the unknown, control issues, Procrastination is my big down fall, and this read certainly helped me to analyze my reasons behind my delays.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for my review copy in exchange for an unbiased opinion.

I recommend that everyone reads or listen this book. This book actually make me take notes and trying to follow them. Everything from how to deal with toxic friends to how to stop procrastinating is covered in this book. I absolutely love this book and I feel that it's quite helpful.

EVERY SINGLE PERSON NEEDS TO READ THIS BOOK! I've actually listened this twice in a day because I couldn't believe what I was hearing. This book talks all about how we each self sabotage ourselves in our everyday lives without even realizing it. It has truly opened my eyes in a way I never though a book could. I will absolutely read/ listen to this book again whenever I feel like I need a pick me up or if I'm having a pity party. This book has made me feel more confident and wanting to figure out what it is exactly thats holding me back from truly doing what I love to do most. I'm OBSESSED!

Having loved Emma Gannon’s “The Multi-Hyphen Method” I was very eager to read Sabotage when it was released. I feel like this book really hit home with me and put into words feeling and actions I couldn’t necessarily explain in my own life.
I listened to the audiobook and I think that really helped to hear Emma talk from a place of frustration at her “inner critic”. It’s a quick listen/ short read but it really packs a punch and gives you a good reminder to show up for yourself and to stop procrastinating.
I would very much recommend this if you feel like you aren’t making progress with your projects/ at work as it might just highlight where you might be sabotaging yourself.

A really easy to access self-help and guidance book.

I didn't anticipate to love this as much as I did. This book is a self-help book through the perspective of someone taking their own advice. You see the ups and downs, the shining moments and the moments you wish to pretend never happened. I love her brutal honesty at times as with self-sabotage, sometimes you simply need someone to tell you "you're getting in your own way, you only have yourself to blame and only you can fix it'" However, with each hard hitting moment, there were moments reminding you to be kind and gentle on yourself, that sometimes the mind reacts irrationally because we are simply human. For such a quick listen I cannot think of any excuse as to why someone shouldn't pick this up.

It’s as if Emma can read my mind!
Very good description of what sabotage does on us and I love her tips in order to overcome them, yourself.
A must read and a book that will definitely stay on my self help shelf!

This is a wonderful short novel about self-sabotage. I feel we can all take something from it, I have to say I did really enjoy it and it made me think about how I personally self-sabotage.

The narrator was really good, I enjoyed the audio as a whole.

This audiobook is about sabotage and self-sabotage and how we can know that we are doing it or that someone else is doing it to us. There are some important facts exposed here and some useful suggestions on what to do to avoid self-sabotaging that we are not usually aware of.

This audiobook is short and easy to listen to. Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the opportunity to listen to this! All opinions are my own.

This was my first Audiobook and I also thought that listening to Audiobooks compared to reading physical and eBooks might be different because as a reader I would never enjoy it as much as I enjoy reading words in lines. But it seems like even Audiobooks have their quality, I enjoy listening to this Audiobook, and not for a second, it felt any different from reading usual books. Emma Gannon's narration was very soothing and she has that encouraging and relaxing voice that made me feel matter to everything that she discussed.

Emma Gannon's 'Sabotage' covers all those aspects that people find themselves holding back; either it's self-criticism, toxic perfectionism, self-worth issues, or being highly self judgemental, the author brilliantly explains their effects and provides tips to deal with it. I see it as a practical guide to get ourselves to deal with the obstacles and problems that we create for us and find ourselves stuck and helpless. The author suggests a few ideas and suggestions remove such hurdles and make our path clear that could lead to a happy and satisfying life.

As my first Audiobook, I see it flawlessly and very helpful. I will highly recommend it to people dealing with self-worth issues and seeking ways to deal with it. Emma Gannon's examples and practical approach can be effectively implemented and above all, must listen to it for her calming voice and soothing narration.

Sabotage is well paced and easy to follow. The suggestions are realistic and widely applicable. Discussions of personal issues with and solutions for self-sabotage move from the general to the specific and are delivered clearly and without condescension.

Sabotage by Emma Gannon really came into my atmosphere at the perfect time. I'd been having a difficult week with general anxiety and with the added pressure of applying to graduate school, I'd been pretty hard on myself.

I'm a new fan of self-help books, so I was delighted to see this as an available option with NetGalley. The audiobook is short, concise, and full of some really insightful tidbits that definitely struck a chord with me. I actually listened to the entire book (it's just under two hours long) in the span of one afternoon and I found it so enjoyable that I went back and re-listened to several chapters later on in the week,

Gannon does a great job of reiterating how self-sabotage can take different forms, and how it doesn't come down to you being weak or lazy...it comes to you being human and being fearful at times. I've struggled with procrastination so much in my own life and plenty of times I've worried that it stems from some deep and terrible character flaw that I'll never be able to shake.

But Gannon describes how self-sabotage actually "is actually us trying desperately to prevent ourselves from getting hurt—it's a maladaptive way that we try to care for ourselves".

And you know what? I see that! I actually sat up on the couch and had a little "light bulb going off" sort of moment when she said that.

So many times I've delayed doing something or working on things because I was worried I would end up failing or embarrassing myself. So many times, I've told myself that it wasn't worth getting started because I wasn't smart enough, or good enough, or didn't deserve it enough.

Above everything else, Gannon also points out how crucial it is to be KIND to yourself when trying to recognize and work on your self-sabotaging tendencies. If a friend came to you and told you that they were struggling with it, would you be harsh or unkind or nasty to them?

No! So try to be gentle with yourself (I say this as much to myself as to everyone else).

All in all, such an interesting read! I will definitely check out some of her other books.

What a little gem! I loved this book- it was clear and easy to understand with practical tips and suggestions to help yourself be your own best resource, rely less on outside validation and learn to have not only self-compassion but self-determination. This book was the perfect length and I absolutely loved the narrator (and that she is the actual author)- she was clear, spoke at a good pace and the lovely accent was a bonus! This is a good one to listen to again and again as we all could use the reminders on how to get to know ourselves better and recognize we deserve good things! Thank you to NetGalley and Andrews McMeel Audio for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This a short book that is absolutely packed with helpful advice. I chose it because I know I'm guilty of self-sabotage, but I had no idea how much I was truly doing it! The biggest thing I got out of this one is the awareness as to when the sabotage is happening. I found this particularly relevant during this time of COVID because it is so easy for me to bail on things and not push myself, and blame the pandemic. I listened to the audio book read by the author. Her voice is soothing and listening was like getting a pep talk from a friend. Her writing is honest and straightforward. Because it's so short, I think I'll listen to it again soon to make sure it all sinks in. I highly recommend this book for anyone who suspects they need to make some changes in life.

Sabotage is a short and easy self-help read that addresses how we get in our own way. It's full of great tips and research-based insights that everyone will find useful.

Some of the topics covered are perfectionism, imposter syndrome, and self-help vs. self-care - which I thought was interesting.
 
My copy was an audiobook which is read by the author, who does a great job. This helps make the insights feel more personal was overall like a pep-talk with a friend.