Reviewed by Ann H. (Munro 2009)

I was visiting my older sister Lyn in Barrie three months ago and I noticed this book on her coffee table. I picked it up and perused it. I could not put the book down.  I read it like a novel, and was up at 6:00 a.m., consuming the entire book in a day flat.

This book has had a huge, grandiose, stellar, amazing impact on my essence, soul, behaviour, happiness, love of others and myself.  I see people in a totally different light. Also astonishing, I don’t see colour in people any more, just people.

Lending the book out is a bit of a challenge to me. So I put inside the first cover: “This book explodes if you don’t return it!”

The author, Dr. John Izzo, interviewed a huge number of people from all over the world, ages 60 to 102, and received over 15,000 suggestions on the subjects of purpose, happiness, and having a calling. He then narrowed it down to 235 people “who had found it.” Here’s a summary of what this great book covers:

The First Secret: Be True to Yourself

Three questions that really matter:
*  Am I folllowing my heart and being true to myself?
*  Is my life focused on the things that really matter to me?
*  Am I being the person I want to be in the world?

* Choose to live life awake
* Is your life missing the mark
* Finding your destiny
* Following our hearts requires courage
* Sometimes the universe makes us listen

The Second Secret: Leave No Regrets

* A life of no regret means risking more
* The secret to no regret
* Choose the path that makes the best story
* Living as if your time is short
* Regrets are best let go

The Third Secret: Become Love

* Love is a choice
* First, love yourself
* Make love a priority
* Choosing to see others with kindness
* Do good if you can, but always do no harm

The Fourth Secret: Live In The Moment

* Choosing to be in every moment
* Every day is a gift
* Living as if it was your last sunset
* The present moment is the only moment
* Training our minds for happiness

The Fifth Secret: Give More Than You Take

* Ten-minute funerals and ten-hour funerals
* Ask what life expects of you
* The great task of life: lose yourself
* Learn to cry for the world, not yourself

The Last Chapter: When You Know You Have To Go

* Knowing is not the problem
* Natural learning:  how we make changes in our lives
* What we pay attention to grows
* Change begins with the first question
* We change best when we change together
* What are the rituals of your life?

“The Five Secrets You Must Discover Before You Die” by John B. Izzo, Ph.D. Available at amazon.ca.