Prisoners of Our Thoughts: Viktor Frankl's Principles at Work

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Title Prisoners of Our Thoughts: Viktor Frankl's Principles at Work
Publication Type Book
Pub Year 2004
Authors Pattakos, A.
Number of Pages 224
Publisher Berrett-Koehler Publishers
Keywords humanness, psychic prison
Abstract This timely book expands on Viktor Frankl's seminal Man's Search for Meaning, examining the book's concepts in depth and widening the market for them by introducing an entirely new way to look at work and the workplace. Alex Pattakos, a former colleague of Frankl's, brings the search for meaning at work within the grasp of every reader using simple, straightforward language. The author distills Frankl's ideas into seven core principles: Exercise the freedom to choose your attitude; Realize your will to meaning; Detect the meaning of life's moments; Don't work against yourself; Look at yourself from a distance; Shift your focus of attention; and Extend beyond yourself. By demonstrating how Dr. Frankl's key principles can be applied to all kinds of work situations, Prisoners of Our Thoughts opens up new opportunities for finding personal meaning and living an authentic work life.
Notes humanness"In some ways, our technological advances have redesigned work to better accommodate human factors. What we need now is a way to elevate the human spirit at work." (p. 6) psychic prison"Physician Deepak Chopra, in the audiotape of his book Unconditional Life, says 'We erect and build a prison, and the tragedy is that we cannot even see the walls of this prison.'" (p. 4)
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