The Backpack Hardcover - 2019

Self-awareness is like a backpack. The questions are, do we know what's in it? Do we know what we need to take out or put in? Do we take full responsibility for it? And, do we know and, just as importantly, care about how it is impacting others? Are we whacking them with our backpacks as we encounter them, or are we considerate and kind? Do we choose to love them well? The complete understanding of our backpacks is essential for a successful journey towards living our best lives. When it comes to our backpacks, we have choices--there are always choices.

The Backpack: How to Understand and Manage Yourself While Loving Others Along the Way is a moving, relatable, and humorous story that stresses the critical importance of personal self-awareness, which includes a strong, healthy sense of other-awareness. Jon, Sofia, and Buddy, three unique travelers on life's journey, all end up on the same flight. Jon is a hurried, judgmental, and angry traveler who lacks self-awareness; he is completely unaware of his backpack. His unintended journey of discovery will show him just how many problems his backpack has caused him. . . and others. Sofia is the wise flight attendant who packs her backpack carefully, understands how to take care of herself, and lives by a clear set of core values. And then there is Buddy--the kind, experienced, wise, and down-to-earth cowboy who is a genuine friend to all he encounters on his journey. Buddy has learned that self-awareness is about understanding himself and others, taking full responsibility for his life, loving others well along the way, and taking time to "enjoy the ride."

With a fully loaded plane, Jon takes off on the transformational flight of his career, finally realizing that true self-awareness--the kind that leads to the most fulfilling and successful life--is, well, like a backpack.