<p>Reading through the book brought to light many personal travels through my own peaks and valleys. My personal and business life has been a rollercoaster ride (highs and lows or peaks and valleys ups and downs). I never showed the pressure bearing down on me to protect my family.</p> <p>Now that I put the book down I realized how similar my experiences were and how I did ultimately benifit from the low points. It is refreshing to find out how alike many of really are without ever knownig it.</p> 8 2009-03-02T17:59:18+00:00 0 3 3 1 2009-03-02T17:59:18+00:00 5 0 <p>"Through 65 years of “Peaks and Valleys” I never thought before that they “are not just things that happen to you.” Looking back, I can see just how true that is.</p> <p>I got married young, and had my first child right after high school. My husband left me with three kids to take care of – ages 1 to 12 – and I have to tell you, it certainly seemed like something that “just happened to me”. I can’t even think about those first few months without losing it. For years I went back and forth between being furious at him, and blaming myself. I was worried the whole time that my children were going to be scarred for life.</p> <p>But a few years later, I started to come out of that Valley. With my own business, two daughters off to college and a new relationship, and really felt like my life had changed. But I see now that how I felt inside really got me from a valley to a peak. I could have lived in that valley forever if I didn’t learn to stop feeling like a victim.</p> <p>Then, years later my second husband was diagnosed with a terminal disease. He was always an active, fun person, but as he got more and more ill, his whole outlook changed for the worse. He was depressed and angry, and so was I. I thought my divorce was tough, but those ten years were the Grand Canyon of valleys for me.</p> <p>There’s no way you could tell me that didn’t “happen” to us, but I think that the point of the book is that valleys aren’t “just” things that happen to you. The way he felt did as much as the disease to make it a valley. He believed he was in an inescapable valley and heading deeper all the time. That was real - he just never got any better, even for a day. But he never saw the good in it. It could have been a time to connect with our children, friends and each other instead of focusing on work and other things. I don’t blame him, but I do think we lost a lot of time.</p> <p>I am back on a Peak again, and I plan to try to stay there as long as I can. I am in a relationship with someone who really is perfect for me, I have another business that keeps me busy, and my kids are doing so well. Things aren’t perfect – I worry about my mother and my aunts, my kids seem really stressed out, and I have had a couple of health scares. But I do see that these aren’t just things that happen to us. We can all get through our valleys and back up to our peaks.</p> 8 2009-03-02T17:59:18+00:00 0 4 4 1 2009-03-02T17:59:18+00:00 6 0 <p>I was lucky enough to have been lent an early copy of this book by a friend of mine who works for the board of ed.</p><p>I mention that my friend works in education because as it's fitting that the book she lent me taught me something important.</p><p>I've always been taught and taught my kids and grandkids to react responsibly and wisely to success because around the corner could be an obstacle that you need to navigate.  Putting money away fro a rainy day would be a simple way of explaining my philosophy.</p><p>But using those obstacles and "valleys" as a means to learn how to better manage your "peaks" was a concept I never could have come up with on my own.  It really was a "light bulb" experience for me.</p><p>Thank you Dr. Johnson (and you Lilian for putting this book in my hands) for giving me new philosophies to instill in my family and new ways to teach them to excel in life.</p> 8 2009-03-02T17:59:18+00:00 0 8 8 1 2009-03-02T17:59:18+00:00 10 0 <p>I thought this book had a simple but very positive message.  And just recently, the husband of a good friend of mine died suddenly and unexpectedly -- he wasn't even 50 years old.  I gave my copy of Peaks and Valleys to my friend and told her that, when she was ready to read it, she might find some comfort in the story.  It was nice to be able to give my friend something that could really help her in such a terrible time.</p> <p>I think Peaks and Valleys is one of those books that you will find something different in every time you read it, depending on what is happening in your life at that particular time.</p> 8 2009-03-02T17:59:18+00:00 0 10 10 1 2009-03-02T17:59:18+00:00 11 0 <p>My brother recently rushed himself to the hospital. Just like most men, I knew that it had to really bad for him to go see anyone the medical profession. I received the call and rushed to emergency immediately. When I arrived, his blood pressure was 205 over 215. I didn’t even know that they went that high! He greeted me with the same smile that he has for my entire life. I am the younger sibling and you would never want to upset the younger kid. We spent the entire evening with the hospital staff trying profusely to bring his blood pressure down. After failing with all their attempts, he was admitted</p><p>I of course was starting feeling sorry for myself. Never mind the fact that it was he that was ill. What would happen to me if something were to happen to him? Who would be there for me? He had always been there for me. He always told me in every situation that everything will be alright. He was the reassuring older child.</p><p>To make a long story short, they ran all kinds of tests and found loads of problems. He had congestive heart failure and a kidney that needed to removed. My world was crumbling. For the next 3 weeks I was at his side every evening in the hospital. One evening when we were all alone the he looked at me and smiled and started to talk. He told me how lucky he was. Lucky! I thought. I wanted to scream and he felt lucky? He stated that if they had been able to lower his blood pressure in emergency that night, he would have been sent home thinking everything was ok. He would have never realized he had other problems that needed immediate attention. At that point I realized that these were actually his genuine feelings. He had had two surgeries. One removed a blood clot from his heart and one to remove a kidney. But he still felt like he was the luckiest man alive. He saw the glass half full as I saw it half empty.</p><p>All is well in both our worlds now. We have taken the experience and learned from it. There is truly good in every situation. You just have to look.</p> 8 2009-03-02T17:59:18+00:00 0 13 13 1 2009-03-02T17:59:18+00:00 14 0 <p>My life has resembled an EKG reading. Both of my parents died from cancer. Devastating losses for me. My son contemplated suicide from pressure and stress during his college years. Love got us through it. My daughter is living with her boyfriend for a few years and is not married yet. This has not been sitting well with me for some time. I recently had a change of heart - started looking at the situation differently. Accepted the good parts of it and let go of what I've been seeing as the bad. I am so fortunate to have a husband who is "the old man on the mountain" for me. We both love, help, support each other through good times and bad. I've been in the depths of many a valley and able to rise to a new and better peak. May all who read this book identify with its message. I feel blessed to be on a very peaceful peak right now.</p> 8 2009-03-02T17:59:18+00:00 0 15 15 1 2009-03-02T17:59:18+00:00 16 0 <p>There is an amazing serendipity to reading this book at this time. I can relate this to a very personal situation. I am an actor and artist. I had been caring for my mother for years and the caretaking became acute at the death of my father and brother. Since both parents are deaf – I was their “voice in the world.” My “valley” – the time and effort to care for her – was transformed by help of my mentor and acting coach into an unbelievable “peak” when I engaged in, completed and performed my own one woman show about what it was like growing up with deaf parents.</p> <p>Now – she has passed away and while I miss her – I am free of a lifelong burden.</p> <p>And the economy went south and I find myself in early retirement and very frightened. My sign posts are gone – a mother that I cared for – a job I really hated. So now what? She is gone and now I am free but with no income? How to see this? As total fright? Anger? Now, I’m free but with no money?</p> <p>But that is not the truth of the situation. The first “rope” I threw out was to get early social security. And the truth is – I have savings to carry me through.</p> <p>And now I have something more important than a job I hate. I have a wondrous and “sensible” vision! I am free to pursue my acting career – and what I learned from this book was to feel joy in doing the things I thought I hated – like follow up letters and all the detritus of the “Business side” of acting. I am happy to do it and follow my vision.</p> <p>And I have the time to spend in my art studio and to create pieces that will sell and support my vision of being self supportive through my artistic life. “Enjoy what it takes to get there” – Yes, this is very important. Love! Trust! There is so much good in this “bad” time. I’m going to make it work.</p> 8 2009-03-02T17:59:18+00:00 0 18 18 1 2009-03-02T17:59:18+00:00 19 0 <p>I was able to use something I learned in Peaks and Valleys to help a colleague who was going through a really tough time. I work for a media company and our PR director sat down in my office the other day and said she was feeling completely overwhelmed by a special project that our boss had asked her to handle -- she had been put in charge of planning a huge, star-studded event with all sorts of logistical headaches and details. This fell outside of my colleague's realm of expertise and she was on the verge of quitting.</p> <p>I thought about what it says in Peaks and Valleys: To turn a valley into a peak, find and use the good that is hidden in a bad time. I suggested to my colleague that she try and see that the skills she was learning putting this big event together had the potential of completely opening up her career in a new direction, allowing her to reinvent herself and take on new responsibilities. In other words, this project that seemed like a nightmare could actually be the foundation of an exciting new phase in her career, as long as she recognized everything she was learning from it. The skills she would possess after pulling this off would make her stand head and shoulders over her peers, and she'd be able to position herself as someone with extraordinary experience.</p> <p>I suggested she read Peaks and Valleys herself to get more insights. Long story short, the event went off without a hitch and my colleague was a hero and now that she has this experience under her belt, I've noticed that she seems more confident and assured in meetings and it won't surprise me if she gets promoted soon.</p> <p>Thanks to Peaks and Valleys, I felt like I was able to offer some really simple yet constructive advice to a colleague who needed it! I guess that's what the author means by "Share It With Others." Thanks.</p> 8 2009-03-02T17:59:18+00:00 0 19 19 1 2009-03-02T17:59:18+00:00 20 0 <p>Reading the book reminded me of a difficult time in my life when I was fortunate to be connected to a great spiritual support group (note to self: maybe it’s time to reconnect!)</p> <p>In the Valley: I had completed a challenging two year professional masters degree program in government, a field in which I was not particularly sure I wanted to work in the first place (I had previously tried to pursue a career in music and theater). After a couple of jobs in the city I had relocated to, I was offered what looked like a promising job in a large and prestigious government agency. I somewhat reluctantly relocated again to work at the new job, but it felt like a fresh start, and I was optimistic. What I wasn’t prepared for (among other things) was politics. Not two weeks after I started the job, the manager who had hired me got promoted and did not take me with him, the kiss of death, as I was to learn.</p> <p>I was then shunted around from manager to manager, finally reporting to someone who appeared to despise me. I received very little support in my job. I dreaded going in to work. Although I surreptitiously spoke to other managers and tried to get transferred to an area where I felt my talents would be better utilized, my efforts were in vain. I was involuntarily transferred to another unit at another location in the agency. (Oh, and I forgot to mention that there were constant threats of layoffs.)</p> <p>My reaction to these events was to feel like a failure, a victim, to beat myself up, and to be absolutely sure I was never going to make a living. Luckily, I was connected to a spiritual group at the time, and one of my friends there said something that kind of sounded silly: “I look at every job as if it’s a temp job”. Isn’t that really the truth – nothing is permanent, we just gotta show up every day.</p> <p>I wasn’t thrilled about the job I was transferred to – it was not what I was trained for, the people seemed to be very different than me. But with the help of the spiritual group I was involved with, I tried to see what the truth was in this situation, as Dr. Johnson says. Whatever I thought people thought of me was really not helpful, probably not true. I must have had a part in what had happened to me, but some of it was due to forces over which I had no control. In the meantime, I was in a situation where I had to see what was the truth of the situation and how I could best be of service – and that was by learning my new job, showing up without a chip on my shoulder and being open to new opportunities and my new colleagues.</p> <p>Climbing my way out: I had to go to an administrative building to fill out paperwork for my involuntary transfer. While I was there, I saw a posting for an interesting job in another division, where I knew a former classmate worked. I called her and made some inquiries about the position, and with her encouragement, I applied for it. Guess what? I eventually got the job (but this being government, it took quite a while), and it turned out to be a very demanding, but very rewarding opportunity where I learned and grew professionally.</p> <p>In the meantime, I was learning the job I was transferred to. My colleagues went to visit a former office-mate in her new job, and asked me to come along. It didn’t sound like the most fun lunch hour I would ever spend, but I thought – ok, hang out, get to know them (politics = people). I met their former office-mate, and she introduced us to the people she worked with, one of whom was this guy who seemed really sweet and had a nice sense of humor. Guess what again? Three years later I married this guy! We’re still married some years later, and he has been a most supportive partner in helping me deal with the peaks and valleys, and encouraging me to pursue my interests in the arts, but that’s another story…..</p> <p>I definitely agree with Dr. Johnson’s book – in my case, working hard to change my attitude helped me to survive an uncomfortable and challenging time, to feel better about myself, and helped me to be open to other opportunities.</p> 8 2009-03-02T17:59:18+00:00 0 21 21 1 2009-03-02T17:59:18+00:00 22 0 <p>For the past 25 years I have always been the rock of support for my friends and family.  I have helped many a person become successful a the expense of my own career.  I tried to make changes even reinvent myself, but I seem to always have made the wrong choices.  The rest of my life has been fine but it has always bothered me that someone who has a masters degree and able to do a broad spectrum of things could not settle into a successful career pattern.</p> <p>Peaks and Valleys has made me evaluate these choices and rethink my actions.  Perhaps it has been too much fear and other people's opinions that have held me back.  At times, I feel as if most people don't really know me and my abilities.  They pigeonhole me into neat and convenient categories that don't reflect my interests nor demonstrate my strengths.</p> <p>Your book has taught me that perhaps changing one small step at a time will change the outcome.  That I should not fear failure but at least make an effort and not sit back and just wait for a lucky break.  I need to take a proactive and positive stand even at age 57.  I never have been given much support just been made to feel guilty for having my own ideas. I now know a lot of this is that I have been surrounded by selfish people.  I know I lack confidence but I can work on it. I am not dead yet! I want and need to be fulfilled!</p> <p>Thank you for this book.  Keep on writing!!</p> 8 2009-03-02T17:59:18+00:00 0 25 25 1 2009-03-02T17:59:18+00:00 26 0 A terrific book. I guess the author has written this and has been realeased just at the right time when the things are going tough in the world and everyone needed some hope and strength to come out of the "Valley" and turn it into a "Peak". Kuidos Sir.. looking out another such book. Neville 8 2009-03-02T17:59:18+00:00 0 49 49 1 2009-03-02T17:59:18+00:00 125 0 I always love Dr. Johnson books. The story approach which can inspire and develop of new and difference of my perspective on business and life issues and challenges. Recent reading of John C Maxwell book - The Difference Maker found a similar principle wrote by Dr. Robert Schuller call Peak to Peak Principle with would like to share as follow: When you are on top of the proverbial mountain, that is the time to make decisions. Here's why: - You are see your situation more clearly. - You are moving to something, not just from something. - You leave those around you in a better position. - You decide using positive data, not negative. - You are more likely to move from peak to peak instead of valley to valley. On the other hand, when you're in the valley, the most important thing you can do is presevere. If you keep fighting, you'll likely to get your second wind, just as distance runners do. As it's said that only when runners are exhausted enough to reach that place do they find our what they can truly accomplish. If you keep presevering while you are in the valley, not only will you likely make it to higher ground where you can make better decisions, but you will also have developed character, which will serve you well throughout life. (Page 76) 8 2009-03-02T17:59:18+00:00 0 53 53 1 2009-03-02T17:59:18+00:00 139 0 This was by far the best book I have ever read. I checked it from my local library and couldn't put it down. Everything in it makes perfect sense, especially in these tough times. I would recommend this book to everyone out there. I promise that if you just read it and share it, you will find that you are on your way to higher peaks and less valleys. I am planning to put some of these ideas into a notebook of my own to help me stay focused. I plan to share this book with my husband. I think that once he reads this, things might not look so gloom and doom. Please find it and read it for yourself. I know it will help you. 8 2009-03-02T17:59:18+00:00 0 55 55 1 2009-03-02T17:59:18+00:00 149 0 Picking up the book yesterday in our book store, I read the first chapter and decided to get this book, as I am familiar with other books by the author. Recently we as family moved back to Melbourne, as my executive role was restructured. I knew I was in a valley, but struggling with the fear of my ego. I read the book in two sittings, part of it last night, and the rest this morning. Whilst the message is simple, the depth of this story and the peaks and valley approach is filled with layers of context and connection. Now I know that in previous times when I was in the valley, I did not fully understand how I got there and why I was feeling so disconnected. As I now continue on my journey, trying to get to the next peak, I know I will enjoy the journey more as I have developed a sensible vision of my next executive role. During my journey I also look forward to sharing with others how this book can make their career transition more positive. This book is about personal change and provides a practical framework to have more enjoyment as we travel through life! 8 2009-03-02T17:59:18+00:00 0 57 57 1 2009-03-02T17:59:18+00:00 162 0 I went to jail for a crime I did not commit. Instead of playing the victim and becoming angry I started a jail house ministry of helping those who could not read or write and began prayer groups in the morning and the evening as well as daily Bible studies.The size of the group grew from 5 men to 25 men and remained active for the four months I was there. I was refused an attorney for four months, but continued to be faithful helping others. Suddenly my charges were dropped, I received an attorney and was released from jail. As I am putting my life back together I realize the great impact this has made on my wife and my children as well as extended family. Gradually we are rebuilding our family and other relationships to be stronger and more loving than ever before. I thank God for this book and Spencer. Also for my precious wife who gave it to me for Christmas. Together we are turning our valley into a peak! 8 2009-03-02T17:59:18+00:00 1 67 67 1 2009-03-02T17:59:18+00:00 202 0 First of all, I have to say WOW! I loved this book! :) I am a BIG fan of Spencer Johnson's books...as I have listened to Who Moved My Cheese, The Present and Peaks & Valleys. I love that they are stories and you can relate them to your own life however it seems to fit at the time. I have gone back and listened to them and received different insights from them the second time around. I am a person who enjoys personal growth and has a philosophy to share with others. People tend to be drawn to me and I sometimes feel the pressure to be this "greatness" so I don't disappoint. Peaks and Valleys taught me that it's my own fear that gets in my way. Plus, when I get to a "comfortable" place...I tend to camp there! Which tends to be in a Valley. This book helped me to see that by helping myself...I can help others! Be the example...and know that life is about peaks and valleys. The difference is, how long you choose to stay in each place! This book came at the perfect time in my life, as I do believe in "when the student is ready the master appears"! :) I am starting a new chapter in my life and this is the perfect start to continue on my personal growth journey in life! THANK YOU!!!! :) 8 2009-03-02T17:59:18+00:00 0 71 71 1 2009-03-02T17:59:18+00:00 214 0