Atria Books Making Hope Happen: Create the Future You Want for Yourself and Others

I was able to hear Shane Lopez speak at a recent event, and am looking forward to reading this book and sharing it with others in my organization. The book arrived in good time, and was in excellent condition.

The psychology of hope saved my life. After the sudden death of my first wife, I experienced despair like never before. I needed a way to move forward and to live this new existence that had been thrust upon me. I had been researching the psychology of hope before Anne's death, but now it became an obsession. I had come to a deep appreciation of Rick Snyder's research and writing on the psychology of hope. It was clear that hope was a set of choices and actions, not some warm and wishful feeling. I needed those concrete steps and a schema for moving forward. In that research, Shane Lopez's name appeared and reappeared. I was living in Lincoln, Nebraska, at the time. So I was struck by the fact that Dr. Lopez was on the faculty of the University of Nebraska at Lincoln and a project scientist with the Gallup organization. I read a number of his research articles and found his work to be incisive, practical, humble and humorous. When I saw that this book was about to hit the shelves, I knew I needed to have it in my collection. It is equal parts personal testimony, research report, and guide for action. Lopez writes early on, "I realized that how we think about the future--how we hope--determines how well we live our lives." That was and is my experience as well. The book continues the body of work launched by Snyder and his colleagues. It is deeply rooted in the Positive Psychology movement and rightly sees optimism as one element of the larger psychology of hope. I use this book in my personal life, my pastoral ministry, and my mediation and coaching practice. Buy it and enjoy!

Too superficial and self-help-y! It's as if the author was trying to dumb down his knowledge for a mass audience! Much preferred 'Hope in the Age of Anxiety', though a very different approach to the theme.

"Hope is not just a personal resource. It's one of the most important ways we create our families, our communities, and our society." I love that this book talks about hope for ourselves but also explains how we can spread hope to our family and to the community. The stories in the book make hope personal and achievable, giving us the courage to dare to hope while looking realistically at the challenges we may face. As a parent and a therapist, I believe this is the greatest lesson we can teach; balancing reaching for what we want and planning for setbacks (not as failures) but as learning opportunities. Dr. Lopez provides a wealth of research about hope and wonderful examples of how that research can be applied. "The Hope Cycle" illustrates how having hope can build momentum and more hope. Chapter 12 "Leading with Hope" discusses how leaders can motivate "followers" by practicing three tactics. 1)Create and sustain excitement about the future. 2)Knock down existing obstacles to goals and don't put up new ones. 3)Reestablish goals-regoal-when the circumstances demand it. This book is wonderfully researched and wonderfully written in language that is easy to understand. I highly recommend reading this book and keeping it handy (on the coffee table) for easy reference and perhaps to "spread hope to others."

"Making Hope Happen" is a refreshing demonstration of thoughtful research-based evidence articulated in an approachable and applicable way. Dr. Lopez's work is incredibly exciting to me, mainly because at its core - no matter which way you flip it - it just makes sense. Of course maximizing our personal strengths will give us more energy, excitement, and confidence as we work toward the future we want for ourselves! Dr. Lopez shows us that "Hope" is no longer an ambiguous or arbitrary idea about the future. Rather, it is an active process that connects our present and our future through our behaviors. "Making Hope Happen" in many ways is a paradigm shift of how we think about our lives, what motivates us, and how we can sustain our own well being at home, in our communities, and at work. Last week, Dr. Lopez gave a presentation about his book to the youth-serving non-profit I work for in Boston. During his presentation, I saw my staff light up like I haven't before. They were excited to be exposed to evidence-based research that validates the work we already do so well. I am confident that his presentation and research will have a ripple effect throughout our entire organization and the way we approach management, training, and our work with the students we serve.