I started reading Living an Examined Life: Wisdom for the Second Half of the Journey by James Hollis on the recommendation from Lemuria’s owner, John Evans. 
At 27, I would’ve shied away from a title targeting readers in the second half of their life without a recommendation, and I’m glad I took this one. Hollis offers a wealth of practical wisdom to understand how we are affected by our backgrounds, what is holding us back in the present, and how the choices we make are shaping our future.
Living An Examined Life is broken down into chapters that individually address a topic for personal development, e.g. “The Choice Is Yours,” “It’s Time to Grow Up,” or “What Gift Have Been Withholding from the World?” The chapters are on different topics, but the themes are recurring. Every individual holds the power to direct their life; whether they go down the path they are called to, stepping beyond the comfort zone in the pursuit of growth, or choosing a life of comfortable complacency, where the ache of the unlived life is found.
I was expecting (maybe hoping for) a fairly quick read, but I got stuck a time or twelve, acknowledging truths about myself that I would generally prefer to avoid. The premise of many of the topics revolves around the pursuit of growth, or ‘unstuckness.’ Hollis would identify life’s two biggest threats as: fear and lethargy. At face value, I’m not a readily identifiable candidate to identify with either. I have had a chronic tendency as an adult to constantly leap into new things, at a rather dizzying pace. I was hit hard when he discussed our attempts to outrun our issues. Here I uncomfortably found myself, and I will be sitting and mulling on my subconscious decision making tendencies for quite a while.
Living An Examined Life is a book I would highly recommend for any adult. There is much to be gleaned for everyone in Hollis’ work. I cannot promise you your most comfortable read, but I can promise you one of your most powerful!
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