Life's Greatest Lessons: 20 Things That Matter

Another book everyone should read!It can make a huge, positive difference in your life!

I found this to be one of the most inspirational self-help books that I've ever read. The majority of books that I've read on the subject were written by long winded authors, who come across as preachers on the subject of what matters in life, and thus end up writing a book that's so lengthy, the average reader would be hard pressed to get through it all. Hal Urban has succeeded in doing just the opposite. In a very readable and at times humorous style, he provides us with the 20 things that are most important for a happy and successful life. He starts out by stating that life isn't fair, so you need to get over this fact and get on with things. He talks about humor and laughter and how important these can be to a happy life. He provides numerous examples of lousy situations that we find ourselves in, and how to get out of them with relative ease. He readily admits that life is hard, but with the right attitude and willingness to change, anyone can learn to become happier and more successful. It does take work to achieve your goals, but with the guidance of the author, he makes the job so much easier than it would otherwise be. This is a book that gets to the point. There is no rambling, preaching, etc. Hal Urban uses many examples from his own life to get across the point that we all need help at times. Throughout the book, he provides us with the help that we need, and does so in a fashion which makes it so much easier than reading through hundreds of pages of psychobabble which is often the case with other well known authors.

Perfect to handoff to another

Hal Urban is a San Francisco Bay Area educator who focuses on teaching character education. In Life’s Greatest Lessons he covers “20 Things that Matter” in chapters with titles such as “Life is hard…and not always fair,” Attitude is a choice—the most important one you’ll ever make,” and Honesty is still the best policy.” All of these ideas are ones that most of us are aware of and largely support, but often fall short when it comes to doing them. Urban also provides examples of exercises he has done with students that teachers can emulate. He writes in a simple, practical way and cites numerous quotes and famous people to make his points. For example, on the topic of failure he quotes Ernest Hemmingway’s famous line in A Farewell to Arms, “ The world breaks everyone and afterward many are strong at the broken places.” The book is a quick read and has been very popular with over a quarter million copies sold to date.I rate this book at four stars rather than five because Urban does not consider the complexity of some of his points, but rather presents them as universal and unerring truths. For example, in chapter nine he talks about the importance of honesty. Yet there are times when being honest and truthful can hurt others. If your wife or girlfriend has a new hairdo and asks your opinion of it, should you tell her your true feelings (that it looks awful) or say something positive, if not exactly the truth? In this relatively short (162 pages) book, I suppose it is not possible to go into all sides of an issue. At the same time Urban comes off as a moralist who does not appreciate the complexities of modern life. A better, and deeper, approach to character and moral values can be found in Professor Peter Singer’s book, Practical Ethics, which I recommend along with Urban’s book.

What a great book! Very well written and very helpful. It is full of great advice on how to live a happy and meaningful life. I really enjoyed how easy to read it was. No wasted words and right to the point. I will definitely read this more than once. Very inspiring. Want to read more from Hal. Thank you for making my life better.

My daughter gave me this book years ago. I am not a reader, but I could not put this down till I finished it. It’s a great book. I just retired, and I bought it for my boss as a gift. One book everyone should read.

Absolutely love the life lessons and messages in this book. I’ve purchased it over 30 times to give as gifts to friends, moms, and graduates.

All ready owned the 1992 book. Did not realize I was just buying a retitled repackaged book.It has some decent thoughts and is worth reading over again and again throughout the yearsbut don't need to own two copies of same book with two different titles.

So much truth and value in it. I love that talks about every single are of our lives and provides very practical things to do

excellent reading .

Absolutely wonderful and inspiring book. The Greatest Truths of Life Dr. Urban talks about in his book are known to us, but they need to be reminded and the way Dr. Urban reminding them in his book is miraculous! Thank you for love and light which was felt through out the book in every single sentence. THANK YOU.

There isn't anything new or ground breaking in this book, but it's written in a warm, engaging way and is a good reminder of what's important in life. Easy to read and not too long

Great book to read. prompt delivery