The Dance of Fear is a transformative book that will teach you how to respond to the three key emotions that, according to the author, make us unhappy: anxiety, fear and shame.

Sharing her experiences, her patients’ experiences, and other people’s experiences, Lerner teacher us how to make anxiety our friend, how to deal with the fear of not being good enough, how to manage shame and much more.

One of my favorite chapters of the book is ?Your Anxious Workplace: Staying Calm and Clearheaded in a Crazy Environment?. Her advice is effective not only for dealing with a toxic workplace but also for dealing with toxic family members: stop blaming, Hang out rather than hide out, no gossip, know when to stop, and many other skills and tips one can use to deal with external negativity.

The message is that we all face fear in spite of our education, knowledge, courage, or any other characteristic that supposedly makes a person fearless. When we accept fear as a natural occurrence in our lives, we learn to deal with it better.

Lerner quotes the words of the late poet Audre Lorde: ? When I dare to be powerful, to use my strength in the service of my vision, then it become less and less important whether I am afraid.?

I am using this book both in my own life and with my clients. I always encourage myself and others to ?think big?, to ?dream big.? This book will help you to release the anxiety, fear and shame that might stop you from getting to where you want to be.