Who am I to disagree with a guy who has sold 500 million books?

That is not hyperbole.

Not only has Jack Canfield — the personal growth & self-improvement author behind The Success Principles* and the wildly popular Chicken Soup For The Soul* series — actually sold that many copies of his many books, a full 47 of them have graced the New York Times bestseller list. In fact, Jack holds a Guinness World Record for having 7 books on the NYT list at the same time.

I don't know how that's even possible. I do know he's recently pulled focus on alcoholism, tackling addiction in his most recent offering, The 30-Day Sobriety Solution: How to Cut Back or Quit Drinking in the Privacy of Your Own Home*.

I almost backed out of doing this interview. You may think I'm a New Age California hippie, but I'm actually a relatively skeptical guy. I'm not easily romanced by the latest in self-help. I can be stubborn and my perspective on long-held beliefs can be difficult to shake.

I'm also someone with extremely strong, experience-based opinions about sobriety — not only what's required to achieve it, but more importantly what's essential to properly maintain it.

To be frank, part of me feels it's somewhat ostentatious for Jack — not himself a recovering alcoholic — to publish a book that purports to resolve alcoholism by virtue of a 30-day program. In my experience, sobriety just doesn't work that way. Moreover, I'm far from convinced that you can successfully combat addiction from the privacy of your own home. Let me rephrase — I couldn't do that. Thus my conscience struggles to ratify or validate an author who supports such a methodology.

I’m a 12-step guy through and through – I can say without reservation or exaggeration that it saved my life. My participation and service in recovery is and remains my #1 priority. But as they say in the rooms, contempt prior to investigation keeps a man in everlasting ignorance. So in good faith, I read Jack's new book with an open mind. I can't say I agree with everything it proposes. But I can say it does contain more than a few valuable insights — more than enough to merit a spirited exchange with it's acclaimed author.

Moreover, I couldn’t resist the opportunity to tackle this conversation. It's not everyday you get invited up to Santa Barbara to visit the home of a man revered for a life devoted to serving the personal growth of others.

So needless to say, here we are. I haven’t listened to any other interviews with Jack, but I think its fair to say – and by Jack’s own admission — this conversation is not your normal fare.

I'm not saying it was contentious (it wasn't at all). Jack was a great sport and I think my dubiousness made for a fun and engaging meeting of the minds.

Enjoy!

Rich