Dr. Phil McGraw is a life strategist and host of the nationally syndicated series, Dr. Phil. He is also known as the human behavior expert from The Oprah Winfrey Show. With 25 years of experience in psychology and human function-ing, Dr. Phil deals with real issues in his signature “tell-it-like-it-is” style. He is the author of many New York Times best-sellers.
Dr. Phil grew up in Oklahoma and Texas and was awarded a football scholar-ship to the University of Tulsa. He then finished his degree at Midwestern State University in Wichita Falls, Texas. Later, Dr. Phil earned his doctorate in psychology at the University of North Texas and in 1979, opened a practice with his father, who got his psychology degree at the age of 40.
After years of practicing, Dr. Phil realized that traditional therapy was not his calling. In 1989, he co-founded Courtroom Sciences, Inc. (CSI), a company that assists the legal profession by conducting mock trials, behavioral analysis, jury selection, and mediation. Dr. Phil met Oprah Winfrey when she hired CSI to help with her case against cattlemen who claimed she defamed the beef industry on one of her shows.
After five weeks of testimony in her “Mad Cow” case, Dr. Phil helped Oprah Winfrey show the world that she was merely hosting a public debate about the beef industry’s role in a deadly medical mystery. Dr. Phil’s other clients at Courtroom Sciences, Inc. have included Exxon, ABC, The New York Times, and other Fortune 500 companies.
• Sometimes it’s hard to see your face without a mirror!
• Instead of asking whether the way you are living, behaving, and think-ing is “right,” I want you to ask if the way you are living, behaving, and thinking is working or not working.
• You cannot play the game of life with sweaty palms.
• You must demand nothing less than the best of yourself and for yourself. You must tell yourself that it is not wrong to want it all.
From Life Strategies: Doing What Works, Doing What Matters:
• Life Law #1: You either get it, or you don’t.
Strategy: Become one of those who gets it.
• Life Law #2: You create your own experience.
Strategy: Acknowledge and accept accountability for your life.
• Life Law #3: People do what works.
Strategy: Identify the payoffs that drive your behavior and that of others.
• Life Law #4: You cannot change what you do not acknowledge.
Strategy: Get real with yourself about your life and everybody in it.
• Life Law #5: Life rewards action.
Strategy: Make careful decisions and then pull the trigger.
• Life Law #6: There is no reality; only perception.
Strategy: Identify the filters through which you view the world.
• Life Law #7: Life is managed; it is not cured.
Strategy: Learn to take charge of your life.
• Life Law #8: We teach people how to treat us.
Strategy: Own, rather than complain, about how people treat you.
• Life Law #9: There is power in forgiveness.
Strategy: Open your eyes to what anger and resentment are doing to you..
• Life Law #10: You have to name it before you can claim it.
Strategy: Get clear about what you want and take your turn.
Dr. Phil McGraw has created a dynasty. If I told you five years ago that Dr. Phil was an important part of the Self Improvement Industry, you would have probably responded in complete disbelief, asking, “Who is Dr. Phil?” Yet in a short time, he has become a household name.
One reason for Dr. Phil’s success is his stint on The Oprah Winfrey Show. Oprah gave him the opportunity to shine, and he did so with his wisdom, skills, and personality. Dr. Phil provides a practical, no-nonsense type of self-help that is truly effective for those listening.
There are two ways to get started with Dr. Phil. One is to simply turn on your television and watch his show, which is both helpful and entertaining. The best way to understand his philosophy, though, is read his book Life Strategies: Doing What Works, Doing What Matters. Dr. Phil’s son, Jay McGraw, adapted his father’s book for teenage readers and published Life Strategies for Teens, which became a New York Times best-seller.
ADDRESS: Dr. Phil Show
P.O. Box 1902
5482 Wilshire Boulevard
Los Angeles, CA 90036
PHONE: 323-461-PHIL (to make reservations to attend a show tap-ing)
1-866-4-DRPHIL (to purchase a videotape/transcript of the show)
WEBSITE: www.drphil.com