Author: Matt O'Neill
Publisher: Advantage Books
Publication Date: December 17, 2024
Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
Matt O'Neill's book promises to turn happiness into a learnable skill, focusing on eight primary bad moods—shame, guilt, hopelessness, sadness, fear, desire, anger, and pride—and offering strategies to overcome them. Then focuses on eight primary good moods—humility, responsibility, confidence, acceptance, gratitude, love, joy and peace—and showing how we often lie and self-sabotage, then providing a truth to counter and overcome each lie. The author's approach of contrasting each negative mood with its positive counterpart provides an intriguing perspective on emotional management.
O'Neill's writing is direct and accessible, making emotional concepts digestible. The book's brevity is both a strength and a weakness. Concise chapters provide quick, actionable guidance, but readers seeking deep psychological insights might find the treatment superficial. The God-centered approach adds a spiritual dimension that will resonate differently with various readers.
The most valuable aspect is its emphasis on personal agency. O'Neill reinforces that we are active creators of our internal emotional landscape, offering techniques for cultivating confidence and breaking free from negativity. However, the book doesn't break significant new ground in the self-help genre, with many concepts feeling familiar to seasoned personal development readers.
"Good Mood Revolution" serves as a solid primer for individuals beginning their journey of emotional self-improvement. It's a quick read that provides practical lessons and a framework for understanding and managing one's emotional state. The book's greatest strength lies in its accessibility and its core message: happiness is not something to be chased, but something to be consciously created using the tools (and downloadable exercises) he provides.
A big thank you to Advantage Books and NetGalley for providing an advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review.
