Book Review: The Seven Primal Questions - Take Control of the Hidden Forces That Drive You by Mike Foster

I picked up this book at the end of last year and was struggling at the time with an undercurrent of anger in my life and a lot of low-level frustration. Most of it, I realize now, was driven by an endless work cycle and not taking enough time off. I began to feel like I had no purpose. Ironically, my primal question I found out after taking the Primal Question Assessment, was "Do I have purpose?" I have learned over the years that doing the same old thing over and over again does not work well for me. It makes me feel like I don't have a purpose and that is where I was stuck at the beginning of 2024.

Waking up to the fact that I needed to be doing something outside of work that gave me purpose, this blog was born. It was something I had been thinking about for two years or more. I was needing an outlet to write but had not figured out what it would look like. I was also nervous about putting myself out there to the world. As always, my wife was a great encouragement in this endeavor. She helped me brainstorm it one evening and that same night, this blog was born. This blog gives me purpose. It allows me to get my thoughts and feelings out onto a page and into the world and just maybe it can help someone else. I think that is exactly what Mike Foster is hoping to achieve out of this book. He wants people to find healing in their lives so they can help other people find healing. The Primal Question framework introduced in this book is a great way to get started on your journey of healing.

Premise

The premise of the book is that we all have a primal question that is seared into us when we are young that when answered with a "yes" makes you feel that life is good. You are in your sweet spot. If answered with a “no” it puts you into a scramble to turn the "no" into a "yes" in ways that can sometimes harm us. Mike has a website with an assessment on it where you can determine your primal question and a series of emails that follow up on the assessment to help you begin your healing journey. The questions include: Am I safe? Am I secure? Am I loved? Am I wanted? Am I successful, Am I Good Enough, and Do I Have a Purpose. 

Key Takeaways   

The primal question assessment was very helpful to me because it was a good reminder of how God uniquely designed me. Because within all of us, this primal question points to our pain point from the early development years in our lives but it also points to our superpower. The thing that God put deep within you before you were even born that makes you the best you. The thing that makes you great. The thing that people know about you and marvel at. If your primal question is, Am I Safe? Your superpower is making sure other people are kept safe, physically, financially, etc. If your primal question is, Do I have purpose? Like mine is, you are in your sweet spot when you are helping other people find their purpose.

Author

Mike Foster is an author, speaker, and executive coach who's purpose in life is to empower people to reach their full potential by overcoming the set backs that all of us experience at times in our lives. He is the creator of the Primal Question Framework which he uses to people move beyond the areas of their lives where they find themselves stuck. His work has been featured on several top network television shows.

The Seven Primal Questions

Rating

★★★★

I give this book four stars. The book is broken down into easy to read sections so you can quickly find your own primal question issue after taking the assessment. I feel like the book is enough to open your eyes to your issues, but there is some homework that needs to be done after determining your primal question. You will need to work through it for the best results. However, Mike does send a series of emails to you each week to help with the process and I feel he genuinely cares about helping people and not just keeping his best stuff behind a paywall. His emails are great, and he's a very encouraging coach.

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