Caught in the Headlights

From the press release:

July 7, 2008 Springville, UT--Cedar Fort, Inc. is pleased to announce a new book by author Barry K. Phillips with foreword by Glenn Beck.

Caught in the Headlights is a frank, insightful look at 10 key goals most of us think we want – only to discover our eyes are on the wrong prize. Barry K. Phillips not only entertains, but also examines common values and enlightens us to the goals we should seek, and what to do differently now that we know better.

From goals such as happiness, self-esteem, protecting our pride, or the perfect physique, Phillips takes a closer look at those aims prized by society and explores how we can pursue higher goals. A thoughtful, funny, and at times profound look into the real reasons we all have for the things we do, this book will entertain, enlighten, and inspire.

“I really enjoyed the great insights Barry has on the things many of us pursue in life, only to find out that’s not what we’re really after. His humor and wit make this book hard to put down.”
- Jason F. Wright, New York Times best-selling author of Christmas Jars and The Wednesday Letters

“I really love this book, Barry discusses the core values that we all would do well to live by. If he can figure these things out, you’d think my colleagues in Congress could! We’d all be a lot better off if they’d get caught in the headlights once in a while’”
- Christopher B. Cannon, United States Congressman

“Funny, insightful, and honest.”
- Pat Gray, radio talk show host, Houston, TX

About the Author
Barry loves to write and has been editor-in-chief of a national magazine and has written for Glenn Beck’s Fusion Magazine. He has also written for a political website. Barry has spent most of his professional career in the high-tech arena, and is currently creating an online learning system for a major corporation.

Each chapter of this book is prefaced with a little cartoon that sums up the chapter beautifully. The one for the chapter on pride has a woman and man standing at the water cooler chatting. The woman says, "I used to think I suffered from too much pride.... But then I discovered that I'm just better than everyone else."

The author then tells us what it is that he thought he wanted. Chapter 4, the chapter on freedom, he thought he wanted to have the independence to watch t.v. all day and not be nagged to do chores. He thought that he wanted to be able to do what he wanted when he wanted to and not have to answer to the consequences of those choices. What he learned, the next part of the chapter, is that freedom comes from doing what needs done whether it is fun or not, like cleaning the house. He figured out that he could let his wife do it all, all the time, but he also figured out that it would not take long for her to no longer love someone that does nothing. He learned that freedom is not a sense of entitlement, but freedom of opportunity, not the guarantee of success. He then gives us a few ways to learn the lesson in our own lives. Mr. Phillips then closes out each chapter with a poem, a hokey poem he admits at the beginning of the book, but one that sums up the chapter none-the-less.

Barry Phillips is a very funny man. This book is written the way he speaks. He gets sidetracked and wisecracked, and will make you laugh. But then you take a step back and look at your self and re-evaluate where you are on the scale of lessons learned or not. This book is also a very easy read. So many self-help books take themselves too seriously or get lost in psycho mummble-jummble " and leave you feeling helpless and lost in the impossibility of change. Not "Caught in the Headlights". It is quick, entertaining, and fun.

Caught in the Headlights
Trade Paperback: 116 pages
Publisher: Cedar Fort (June 2008)
ISBN-10: 1599551675
ISBN-13: 978-1599551678
Website: http://www.barrykphillips.com/
Blog: http://www.barrykphillips.com/blog

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Indeed.