How to Ditch the How-to

Linda Allcock

With precision and skill, Tieler Giles identifies why self-help promises much but delivers little, and points us instead to the person of Christ in whom all things are done, not to-do. I appreciated her wealth of experience as a life coach; the acknowledgement of where self-help can have value; her honesty and her witty observations. This book is joyful, real, comprehensive and practical. Don’t just put it on your to-do list—read it!

Kristen Wetherell

Truth and grace mark the ministry of our Lord, and they also mark Tieler’s perceptive book on ditching the endlessly exhausting pursuit of self-help. Full of insight into the human heart, How to Ditch the How-to will expose your need—and Christ’s perfect, abundant grace.

“Great Reminder to Embrace Grace”

As someone who has jumped on the self-help wagon numerous times and still struggles to accept God’s grace, I found Giles’ both theologically and practically encouraging.

Giles shares openly of her search for self-help, even after coming to Christ. She is transparent in the ways she leaned on self-sufficiency rather than Christ’s work on the cross. With a conversational tone, Giles shares timeless truth in a friendly, yet, thought provoking way.

Each section ends with a final thought to embrace grace and memory verse. While I would recommend this book for any time- it is an especially good resource as we enter the new year and for many, begin to make plans and resolutions.

Perfect for self-study but would be really good for a small group study!

“great encouragement”

The concept of this book is fantastic. The amount of "self-help" books, podcasts, shows, etc. there inundate our wavelengths is astounding! And all of them, every single one of them, miss the most important step: Jesus. Yes, there are many Christian, Jesus-oriented self-help resources out there, but they try to take the Bible and sum it up in a 10 step process. That's impossible! That's disrespectful and dishonoring to the God we love and worship.

Giles structures her book with three parts and ten total chapters:

- Part One: Striving

- Part Two: Searching

- Part Three: Surrendering

Each chapter begins with a quote relating to the topic of that chapter and concludes with two sections: Embracing Grace and Memory Verse.

What I found most interesting about this book was Giles' inclusion of some of the more popular self-help strategies, her journey following these and her conclusion with each one: not enough. She was honest, raw, and transparent with her personal journey to discovering that only the Holy Spirit can give us the self-help we so desperately need and want.

She does a wonderful job of sharing her experience and encouraging her readers to skip the self-help strategies and go directly to seeking Jesus.

I received a copy of this book from The Good Book Company in exchange for an honest review.

“An antidote to New Year’s Resolutions”

I don’t know about you, but I never get my New Year’s resolutions done! I always feel really downhearted because I never achieve what I wanted to achieve. But, perhaps, it’s my perspective that’s wrong. Maybe I need to see myself from God’s perspective, realising the grace that he offers us is enough, and will enable us to see more gradual but lasting transformation. I need to pursue Jesus rather than just my list of immediate weight loss, exercise and reading more! My identity in Christ is what truly changes who I am and how I approach life!