How to Be a Bitch With Style: Being in Total Control of Herself

By Vikki Ashley

The author of "Alan's Song" presents a comprehensive program, covering most areas of life, for developing inner authority. This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0966949307
• ISBN13: 9780966949308
• Release Date: January 1999
• Publisher: Atalaria Publishers
• Length: 480 Pages
• Weight: 1.54 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.8" x 6.0" x 8.8"

Customer Reviews

A book packed with useful information for life

Dr. Vikki Ashley presents a comprehensive program covering most areas of life, for developing inner authority. Men as well as women can profit from Dr. Ashley's distillation of wisdom gained through life experience. The author likes acronyms, and BITCH stands for Being In Total Control Of Herself. This may sound like a denial of spiritual influences. It isn't. It is an assertion that within this energy-field called the universe, earth, and us, it is our job to develop the potential of our personality in this incarnation, and to take responsibility for htis self. Vikki gives us specific keys for doing just that. Dr. Ashley wears many hats, including a beautiful red one on the cover of her book! As the oldest of 12 children, she developed multiple skills at an early age. She is now a psychologist, entrepreneur, musician, and coach to executives and managers. She has been a university executive and adjunct professor, a program developer and politician, as well as a single mother. She believes that the glue that holds us all together is communication, and she practices what she preaches. I shared her San Francisco opeing with her, and found her a loving, delightful person. Vikki's book is sprinkled wtih autobiographical vignettes. It begins with the gripping story of her intercession for compassionate care for her son as he was wasting away of AIDS. Alan recovered, and had three more years of quality living. She writes of that experience: "Love is the only thing. Love of self that brings self-esteemand the courage to do what you think is right in spite of everyone and everything...And a tough kind of love that allows others to be where they are, whether I agree or not, so that there is no hate, only allowing." Vikki covers everything you need to know to grow yourself. She arranges her book in twelve chapters, and each chapter subtly includes a sign of the zodiac. (Vikki is an astrologer also.) Chapter 1, for instance, is about self-discovery (Aires) and Chapter 2 is entitledI Have What It Takes!(Taurus). Chapter 12(Pices) is called Holding the Hand of God! Vikki offers many helpful and inspirational quotes throughout her book. In Chapter 12 she says, "Self-acceptance is Self-realization. Now that I know who I am, I no longer worry about what being on this earth is all about. I know I am a spirit having an earthly experience!...designed for my soul to come to an understanding of its powers for use in moving toward integration and unity with the Universe and for me to come to an understanding that all is Mind and all is One...Energy and consciousness do indeed create the nature of reality." This is a rich book, packed with information, guidelines, and sharing about the nature of being human. Vikki's honesty about her own life lends drama, poignancy, and personality to her message. The lessons which she is passing on become very real as she tells us how she learn

Not for women only

In late summer of 1998, the 150th anniversary of women's rights was celebrated at Seneca Falls, New York. During the last century and a half, women gained the right to vote, to own land and work in professions that were formerly open solely to men. While great strides have been made, glaring inequities between the sexes still abound in the workplaces, courtrooms, schools and homes of our society. These differences are so deeply ingrained that upon close examination maybe we haven't come such a long way, baby, after all. For instance, most everyone has noticed that when a man speaks his mind frankly and doggedly pursues his goals he is admirably assertive; when a woman does so, she is a ruthless bitch. Attitudes like this don't seem to be going away any time soon, but rather persist despite the efforts of many people. In such a climate, the prospect of surviving and thriving optimally feels bleak to most of us. What's a woman to do? In her ground breaking workHow to Be a Bitch* with StyleDr. Vikki Ashley provides not only creative answers to this question, but also many in-depth strategies for transformative action. Subtitled "*Being in Total Control of Herself", the material she provides in the book extends far beyond the now dime-a-dozen assertiveness training manuals which focus mainly on the conscious use of language. What she has written is nothing less than an exciting and inspiring autobiographical spiritual odyssey as well as a compendium of valuable metaphysical information and tools for self awareness and metamorphosis. The format of "Bitch with Style" is twelve chapters which, unlike the familiar 12-step recovery programs, introduce us to an innovative12-step discovery process based in the ancient astrological principles of Being: I am; I have; I think; I feel; I create; I choose; We are; I desire; I seek; I build: I see; I know; the exploration and integration of which leads to "therefore I am". Dr. Ashley's style is at once street savvy and sophisticated. Each segment contains an illustrative anecdote from her life which reveals how she has effectively applied these seemingly lofty principles and practices in times of failure and success, pain and joy, tragedy and ecstasy. In addition, this well researched book contains a Bitch's Book Bag, an informative toolkit to help us along as we join her on this meaningful and magical journey toward authentic Selfhood, incorporating the mundane and mystical as we create our realities. The good news is that when all is said and done, How to Be a Bitch with Style is ultimately not for women only, but rather for all of us who sincerely desire to enhance our own lives and that of others. I highly recommend this book and feel that it will be among the finest offerings of inspirational literature in the year 1999. (This review originally appeared in the journal "silent messages".)