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Friday, April 01, 2011

april online book club announcement


a very big thank you for your enthusiasm around the launch of our online book club with living your yoga. i appreciate your contributions to one another's comments and support of our online community. when pondering which book to choose next, i decided to go with not so big life. as you may know, i interviewed sarah last year and went on a retreat with her last december. i found this book to be transformative, inspiring, and truly life changing. i hope you, too, will be moved. 

i've pulled questions from her reading groups page for our discussion:

1. What chapter or section from the book stood out for you, and why?
2. What Exercise or Your Turn stood out for you?  What did you experience in engaging it?
3. Did you have an “aha” while reading the book?  Explain.
4. What exercise(s) or principle(s) from The Not So Big Life were you already practicing in your life before reading the book?
5. How did the book help you understand on a new level something you already knew?
6. Which exercise(s) or principle(s) did you find most difficult?  How did you work with this difficulty?
7. Did the book catalyze any changes in your life, or give motivation for change?  If so, explain.
8. If you could take one tool from the book and give/teach it to others, what would it be?  Why?
9. How do you typically handle stress?  How has that changed since reading the book?
10. What impact, if any, has the book had on your relationships?


let the reading, learning, and inspiration begin. you are beautiful. x


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18 comments:

Globetrotting Cacti said...

I hope to join in the discussion. I have this book on my Kindle but have not read it yet. looking forward to getting started....

Anonymous said...

Looking forward to this. I had actually looked at this book a long while back, did not much with it then after catching up on all of your podcasts and hearing you mention it and interview her it made me want to get it! So I did, I too have it on my kindle ( well kindle app) and started it but I am not that far into it yet! Even if we don't all get to connect a lot on these it's nice to know that there are other people reading the same thing at the same time!

kimberly wilson said...

i think you will all enjoy this book. great to read and reread for reminders on how to live life fully without all the everyday drama. amen! x

Aicha said...

I've had this book sitting in the stack on my nightstand. Now I'm motivated to get it done. Good pick Kimberly!

monique said...

awesome! i have this book, but haven't cracked it open. thanks, kimberly!

Wandering Minstrel said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Kimberly @ kimberussell.com said...

Eep...above was my comment under my guy's login. I just grabbed the book for my nook. This'll be my first time participating in a book club!

kimberly wilson said...

so glad you all are excited. this book is truly transformative. i look forward to rereading it with you! x

Marian Ostrowski said...

I'm very excited to be part of the discussion. I have the actual book & have been listening to the audio version of it as I get ready for work in the morning. It's very insightful! Love it!

Jen Hughes said...

I am really enjoying this book. Bought it this past weekend-a used autographed copy and it is powerful. Excited to participate :)

Ellen said...

I think I'll have to join in - need to purchase first!
I definitely need some 'not so big'.

Bronwyn said...

I'm excited to get started with this. The book just arrived, and so far, I've read thru the end of Chapter One, and just finished setting up my notebook. I'm enjoying the architectural metaphor, and the fluid intelligence of her writing. I'm excited about the idea of making more space in my life - which is already lovely but sometimes can feel crowded... I'll check back in after Chapter Two!

Bunnysan said...

Just got this from the library today! Or at least I think I did-it's an older edition I think. Now I have a little over half a month to get through it! I opened it up while standing in line today and was already hooked! :) I am looking forward to considering the questions above!

Jenni said...

Hi everyone,
I just finished reading the 2nd chapter and the paragraph about doing things to be engaged in the process and to find out who you are instead of just completing the project really appealed to me. She said the results of the project contain the type of energy you put in to it, so I really want to think about that each time I'm involved in something.
Really good thoughts to ponder.

Globetrotting Cacti said...

Jennifer - I agree. It made me think about my studies and that it can be much more than a process.

Reading on my Kindle but feel like I need to buy a paperback version of this book as I have highlighted and added notes all over the place but it is difficult to review them on an e-reader (love my Kindle for fiction, autobiographies though).

The section that has scared me/made me think the most is the skeleton description of living a life (born, go to school, work, retires, die etc). It made me acutely aware of how important all the other add-ons are to distinguish between just functioning and really living.

kimberly wilson said...

ladies, are you loving the book? i found it to be truly transformative. wondering how the questions are unfolding for you! x

Jenni said...

I love the book ,there are a lot of things in this book that i've never read anywhere else. So many new ways of thinking about life.
I liked "Engaging fully in every experience that comes your way"
and "Follow the synchronicities"
It's all really inspiring, Thanks

Bunnysan said...

Alright, so I just finished the book yesterday and it definitely is going to require a "purchase" rather than a library borrow! So many of the above questions are going to take time to sink in and I think time will tell how transformative it will be for me personally. A lot of things I have read in other books, but it was so neat to read from the perspective of an architect and I loved the parts at the beginning of each chapter that related home design with the designing of our lives. Since I got this book kind of late, I haven't had time to do all the exercises, although I've read through all of them. The ones that have spoken to me the most personally have been about mindfulness and I am making a conscious effort to more mindfully engage myself with each activity I do during the day, no matter how mundane. This has been something I have been practicing with washing the dishes but I want to work on this more with eating and savouring each bite and removing myself from the television/sofa during meals. An ongoing battle! (Experiencing Presence, Chapter 7)

I had a great "Aha" moment while reading a particular passage of the book, and this was in Chapter 2 (on my edition Page 25), the paragraph that begins: "Once you make the unequivocal internal commitment to do something-when you absolutely know this is the time and place to act-the world around you will shift in all sorts of apparently miraculous ways to make it happen". This passage spoke to me in particular because of some huge moves I am currently making to follow my dreams and passions. After working in an office for almost 3 years, after returning from travelling and being away from my country for another 3 years, I just quit my job to do more travelling and persue a business of my own. I don't know exactly how this will all materialize and I don't have it all worked out. All I know is the feeling that if I don't do *something* and if it I just stay in the same place doing the same thing every day, nothing will happen. I'm taking some huge leaps of faith that things will meet me along the path and this passage reinforced everything I have been believing and hoping for myself!

Those are all the questions I will tackle on here for now as I have written quite a bit, but I am interested to see if anyone else has been touched by these chapters/passages and if anyone else has found "events mov[ing] to support them and expand the ripple effects of your efforts". I also really recommend Chris Guillebeau's book: "The Art of Non Conformity" which really echo many of Sarah's sentiments on getting out there and living the life you want. Thanks for reading guys!