Your Unfinished Life: The Classic and Timeless Guide to Finding Happiness and Success Through Kindness by Lawrence J. Danks

From the Publisher

Be the person you might never have become. There's still time left in "Your Unfinished Life"... Self help book germane to finding happiness and achieving success,motivation, inspiration,kindness,service to others and making the most of the rest of your life. Includes summaries of two classic works on kindness by Jean Guibert and Frederick Faber from around the turn of the 20th century, with author commentary. Contains dozens of inspiring quotes from Marcus Aurelius, Mother Teresa, The Dalai Lama, George Foreman, Joel Osteen, David Shipler, Martin Seligman, Stephen Covey, Eckhardt Tolle and many others. Further sources of reference on happiness,kindness and gaining personal insight. Provides revealing insights to lead you to your highest and most fulfilled self, so your unplayed music won't die inside you. An excellent source for personal and library use that can benefit individuals and their communities. For anyone seeking happines s and a fuller life for themselves or others. An excellent gift book.

Paige Lovitt - Reader Views

Your Unfinished Life offers both inspiration and insight into finding happiness and success. The author, Lawrence J. Danks, has discovered that the best way to find this is through living a life filled with kindness. In his book, he offers a discussion on how to live with kindness. I was elated to discover that there were many things that I was already doing and I felt I was on the right track. There are also many more actions I can take to further enrich my life by acting with kindness. By doing so, I can brighten the lives of others.

In addition to offering lots of inspiring quotes, Danks also offers a chapter on "40 Ways to Be Kind." He came up with a variety of ideas I felt would be fun to incorporate into my life. Some were as simple as offering to take a group picture so that the cameraman in a group doesn't get left out. Another one, which would bring an incredible amount of healing to me, would be to forgive others. It doesn't mean I have to let the wrongdoer off the hook and offer myself to be mistreated again, it just means that I let go of what happened and move on with my life. Danks points out that this is also healthier for us.
His ideas really resonated with me. It is very important to note that while Danks encourages us to be kinder to others, we are not encouraged to put ourselves in positions where we can be taken advantage of.

While reading Your Unfinished Life, I discovered that the more I thought about how I can be a kinder person, the less I thought about what I have missing from my life. I suspect that others will discover this as well. It makes sense, because I believe that the more that we are spiritually fulfilled the less need we will haveto fill our lives with material things. I encourage you to challenge yourself with this book. It will offer you tons of inspiration for your journal. One of the best gifts that you can give to yourself or loved ones is a copy of Your Unfinished Life by Lawrence J. Danks.

What People Are Saying

Gordon Livingston
"Larry Danks has kindly given us this valuable guide to the successful pursuit of happiness and meaning in our lives by suggesting many ways that we can cultivate the queen of virtues: kindness. All who read this book and reify its lessons will be ennobled thereby."--(Gordon Livingston, M.D., Psychiatrist and Writer Author of The National Bestseller: Too Soon Old, Too Late Smart - Thirty True Things You Need To Know Now)

Bill Cleary
"All of us have days that we go through life oblivious to our fellow man. I can honestly say after reading just a few chapters of "Your Unfinished Life" I found myself looking for Acts of Kindness to perform. I am more aware of the less fortunate.
A thought provocative book, Mr. Danks has compiled a number of encouraging quotes that will impact your life. A must read for young and old alike, I highly recommend "Your Unfinished Life."--(Bill Cleary, Publisher Emeritus - Gloucester City News, Gloucester City NJ and Editor of ClearysNoteBook.com)

Tom Butler-Bowdon
"This book shows that kindness is not 'soft', but a strength that makes life better and richer for all concerned. There can be few more important subjects to write on, and Danks elegantly and forcefully lays out the case for kindness with many great examples."--(Tom Butler-Bowdon: - Best Selling Author of: 50 Self-Help Classics, 50 Psychology Classics, 50 Prosperity Classics, 50 Spiritual Classics.)

"There are so many examples in this book which show how to spread kindness like the fragrance from a flower garden. Prof. Danks has done great service by bringing the concept of kindness in a lucid exposition. This book is a mirror of what life should be! It is well organized, easy to read and contains quotations which can guide us towards having a positive and fulfilling life. I will treasure this book and read it as often as possible to remind me constantly how to be kind to others and make my own life meaningful in the process."--(Dr. Raman Kolluri, Professor of Laser Technology/Fulbright Scholar)

Thomas R. Carpenter
In "Your Unfinished Life", a banquet of inspirational philosophies are laid out by author Larry Danks for personal choice. Kindness is a quality in life that this world could and should employ a great deal more.
An analogy of what is presented here makes me think of a Parisian flower booth and picking out the blooms that are personally meaningful. You make up a bouquet that will have a positive affect on the rest of your life if practiced. Congratulations to Professor Danks offering the readers an enhancement to their lives of both giving and receiving."--(Thomas R. Carpenter - AB, MEd)

Product Details

• Interviews & Essays

Interviews & Essays

The Lindenwold native's soon-to-be-released book, "Your Unfinished Life," collects some of humanity's common beliefs about kindness and the search for happiness.

Q: You write that you grew up in a funeral home (his dad was a funeral director), which taught you that life is short. What was it like to grow up in a place often filled with grief and sadness?

A: While I saw grief and sadness, our family life was good and secure.
My father used to say frequently that when it's our time, it's our time. For some, that is far earlier than we expect and it can cause great sadness. But at those times it's just important to realize that it may be for a reason, which sometimes we can't begin to fathom. Sometimes that becomes clear later. Sometimes it never does. At times like that, faith and trust in God, support of our friends and family, and believing that we will see our loved ones again can give us much-needed support.

Q: What makes you happy?

A: It makes me happy to be with my wife and people I care about, to go out to dinner and to travel. But what really counts is to be fulfilled by having close relationships with those who are important in our lives, to be able to do things to help people, even small things.

Q: You share stories of your parents and their kindness to others. Were your parents happy people?

A: My mother did a lot of charitable work and my father was in a unique position to help people at times of great loss in their lives. They were both very good and caring in what they did. . . . I think the greatest gift they gave us, however, was a real belief in faith.

Q: There must be a lot of opportunities to be kind to others now, given the state of our economy. Do you see any other silver linings in this cloud?

A: There are always opportunities to be kind, even when we have problems ourselves. Naturally, current conditions provide even more opportunities.
There are always silver linings. Even with something as tragic as 9/11, people were given unprecedented opportunities to step up to the plate to assist many others.

Q: You cite the teachings on kindness from a number of religious traditions, belief systems and authors. What struck you the most about their common call to be kind?

A: The Dalai Lama noted that kindness was a common element in all religions. There are many who don't believe in God or organized religion. However, kindness and the benefits of it are not limited to religious believers. Anyone of any faith, or of none, can share kindness with others and be the recipient of it.