Most of us want to feel empowered, like we have control of our own lives. We want to make the choices about how we go through life, how we work, how we play and how we relate to people. But sometimes our best intentions are torpedoed by a silent force inside all of us. It is our small, silent but powerful army of habits. Habits are the way we behave automatically, the things we do without thinking. We have learned how to do them but we do not control them. They crop up unexpectedly when we least want them and make us do what they want. Some of these habits are good and they help us get ahead...

We've all seen them. The people who walk to the beat of a different drummer. We've shook our heads and wondered just what they were thinking and why they do what they are doing. We've puzzled over their behaviors, questioned them and in some cases asked them to stop an annoying behavior but they quickly fall right back into the same patterns. It's great when we can watch from afar and not have to deal with these unusual people or we can just close up shop and walk the other way, but unfortunately, these people are a part of our world and cannot be avoided. These crazy people could be in our...