Excuses Begone !

by Dr. Wayne Dyer

Book Review by Sam Menahem Ph.D.

Wayne Dyer has always been cognitively oriented. Even in his first book, published in the early
1970s he wrote about changing your beliefs to change your life. This is the province of cognitive
psychology. However, Dr. Dyer has grown considerably since his first book. Although he still writes about
changing beliefs, he now backs this up with eternal truth-we are, by nature, spiritual beings having a
human experience. Yes, we have bodies and egos-but our true source is spiritual. Thus, when upgrading
and changing our beliefs, we are relying on the spiritual source, which he often calls the Tao-or the flow
and becoming more like it! He has been developing this theme, through the last few books-but this book
cuts to the chase of obstacles to healing your life-excuses!
From the outset, Dyer explains that beliefs protect each of us from fear. The ego creates
negative beliefs to retain control of our being, to make us think that we actually are nothing but an ego
living in a body. In other words, we are edging God out. We then develop an elaborate series of excuses
to maintain the status quo-which is perceived as safety. He calls this the excuse way of life. By
dropping all excuses and changing beliefs we change who we are. We are now identified with the
Source, The Tao, God.
The excuses run the gamut from biology to psychology and cultural conditioning. Many people
believe that they are genetically damaged. They cannot do what they want to do because of bad genetic
inheritance. Other people blame childhood conditioning or an uncaring society that tells us we are not
good enough unless we are rich, famous and powerful. Dyer says that this is all nonsense. We have to
make a basic choice between joy (God) or excuses (the ego). If we choose joy, we can overcome any sort
of biological inheritance or conditioning.
As every psychotherapist knows, there comes a moment in therapy when the patient sees this
choice. He sees that beliefs must be changed for a better life. The question is then, how do I change my
beliefs? Dyer suggests using affirmations and meditations. He outlines many of the popular excuse and
how to mindfully approach changing them. To paraphrase Jerry Seinfeld, he tells us to switch teams.
Drop the excuses and become our God selves. The popular excuses are all outlined. Whatever we have
to do is; too hard, too risky, will take too long, or is too expensive. I am too old, too young, not smart
enough, lack the energy. I am too busy or too overwhelmed by my life. It is a very comprehensive list.
For each excuse, Dyer gives us an antidote-or affirmation- that relates to dropping the excuse and
turning to Source energy. For example, It is too difficult is replaced with, With God, all things are
possible. There is a wonderful comprehensive chart on page 237, outlining the excuses and antidotes.
Finally, Dyer has seven principles that we can follow to initiate and maintain the changes in our
beliefs. He suggests awareness, alignment with God, being in the present, contemplation, willingness to

take responsibility, and developing both passion and compassion. By following these steps, we can
easily change from ego driven beings with severe limitations to joyful beings, passionately living our
lives, dedicated to being who we really are and helping others! It is a wonderful, comprehensive book
which is both readable and practical. Students of A course in Miracles, Seth, Abraham, Taoism,
Buddhism or any spiritual path will gain a lot from this book.
Sam Menahem Ph.D. is a spiritual psychotherapist, utilizing the principles of a Course in Miracles and
other metaphysical material in psychotherapy. He practices in Fort Lee, NJ. He is also Adjunct assistant
professor of psychology at Columbia University, past president of the Association for Spirituality and
Psychotherapy (ASP) and the author of two books, When Therapy Isnt Enough: The Healing Power of
Prayer and Psychotherapy and All Your Prayers Are Answered. www.drmenahem.com.