Dr Robert Anthony is an American self-help author known for The Ultimate Secrets of Total Self-Confidence and Beyond Positive Thinking. [1] [2] With a background in psychology, NLP and clinical hypnosis, he calls himself a “Change Artist” whose aim is to help people step out of the “hypnotic trance” of old beliefs. [1]
Who is Dr Robert Anthony?
Dr Robert Anthony says he has spent more than 30 years studying what he calls mind power development. He describes an academic background in psychology and master certifications in Neuro-Linguistic Programming and clinical hypnosis. [1]
He has said his interest started young. In a recorded talk he explains that as a child he preferred reading about the power of the mind to sports and comics. His early reading included Napoleon Hill’s Think and Grow Rich, Claude Bristol’s The Magic of Believing and Joseph Murphy’s The Power of Your Subconscious Mind. [3]
In his late twenties he met the writer and lecturer Anthony Norvell, who became his mentor for two years. Anthony later studied psychology and trained in hypnosis, becoming a certified hypnotherapist. He has said what he learned in hypnosis training “really paralleled” what Norvell had taught him about the subconscious. [3]
His best-known books are The Ultimate Secrets of Total Self-Confidence and Beyond Positive Thinking. Penguin Random House also lists him as the author of Dr. Robert Anthony’s Advanced Formula for Total Success and Doing What You Love, Loving What You Do. [2] He has also created audio programmes, including The Secret of Deliberate Creation. [1]
On his website, he says Rhonda Byrne acknowledged him as an inspiration behind The Secret. He also says he has worked with entrepreneurs, students, authors, athletes and performers. [1]
He is open about his style: “I am not everybody’s cup of tea.” Some people find him too direct, he says, and some peers call his approach simplistic. He takes that as a compliment, explaining that his approach is “intentionally simplistic” so it can bypass the part of the mind that resists change. [1]
His approach in brief
- Own it. Live on the cause side, not the effect side.
- Spot the trance. Notice beliefs you’ve never questioned.
- Work with the subconscious. It runs habits, so change starts there.
- Focus on the end result. Set the goal and let the how follow.
At a glance
Known for: Total Self-Confidence, Beyond Positive Thinking
Topics: Self-confidence, beliefs, the subconscious, hypnosis
Style: Direct, simple, provocative
Background: Psychology, NLP, hypnosis
Website: dranthony.com
Good fit if
You like direct, no-nonsense advice on confidence and want to understand how hidden beliefs shape your habits.
Our take
A plain-speaking writer on self-confidence and the subconscious. Start with his short talk on cause and effect, then read Beyond Positive Thinking.
Dr Robert Anthony’s key ideas
These ideas come from his books, his website and his recorded talks. Tap a card to read more.
Cause and effect
In a short talk on his own channel, Dr Anthony sums up self-confidence with a simple formula: “C is greater than E. Cause is greater than effect.” [4]
Each of us, he says, lives on one side of this formula. On the cause side you see yourself as a “deliberate creator.” On the effect side you believe life just happens to you. [4]
He’s careful about what that means. If something terrible happens, such as an accident, “you didn’t necessarily cause that to happen but you do cause your reaction to it.” Taking ownership doesn’t mean feeling guilty. It simply means owning where you are. [4]
His warning is that blame drains you: “every time you blame something or someone else for your situation you get weaker and weaker.” [4]
The captain and the crew
Dr Anthony describes “one brain, two minds”: the conscious and the subconscious. [3]
The conscious mind is good at planning, reasoning and deciding what you want. It also lets you appreciate life, such as a beautiful view or a job well done. The subconscious stores memories, emotions and habits, and runs many things automatically. [3]
His analogy is a ship. The captain, the conscious mind, sets the direction. The crew, the subconscious, does the work. “One gives directions, the other follows orders.” [3]
We’re already in a trance
People sometimes ask Dr Anthony to put them in a trance. His reply: “you’re already in a trance.” It might be a trance of happiness or one of struggle, but “we’re always in a trance.” [3]
He defines a trance as “a narrow focus of attention,” or more practically, our habitual way of filtering information and reacting to it. [3]
So he describes himself as more of a “dehypnotist.” His job, he says, is to help people dehypnotise themselves from habits and beliefs that aren’t working, and to shift their focus to one that works for them. [3] His website puts it this way: his life’s work is to help people get back to their “natural state of inner wisdom” where they can see clearly. [1]
Many of these beliefs, he says, were picked up in childhood from parents, teachers and peers, and we’ve never examined them. [3]
The gatekeeper and willpower
Between the conscious and subconscious mind, Dr Anthony says, sits a filter that hypnotists call the critical factor. He likes to call it “the gatekeeper.” [3]
The gatekeeper’s job is to keep things the same and to reject information that doesn’t fit your existing blueprint. That’s useful when it stops you doing something foolish. It’s unhelpful when it keeps you stuck in a habit you want to change. [3]
This, he argues, is why willpower so often fades. Willpower is really conscious attention overriding a habit. It works until you get distracted, then the old pattern takes over. “It’s not that we’re weak willed,” he says. “You’re using the wrong part of your mind to make the change.” [3]
Self-acceptance and ending dependence
A summary of The Ultimate Secrets of Total Self-Confidence highlights one of its key themes: dependence. We are born relying on others, and many people carry that habit into adulthood, so that their happiness and sense of security depend on how others treat them. [5]
The book’s answer, as the summary explains, starts with self-acceptance. When you accept yourself as you are, you can look at both your strengths and your mistakes more neutrally. Self-esteem then rests on your own view of yourself, not other people’s. [5]
The summary also lists habits the book links to feelings of inferiority, such as blaming others, a constant need for approval and self-pity. [5]
Beyond positive thinking: focus on the end result
The title Beyond Positive Thinking makes the book’s point. As one reviewer quotes it, “it is not a question of going from negative thinking to positive thinking, it is a matter of moving toward right thinking.” [6]
One memorable image from the book is the River of Life. Some people go to it with a teaspoon, others with a cup, a bucket or a barrel. “The abundance of the river is always there,” but our beliefs decide what we bring. [6]
Another theme is approval: “you’ll never get the approval you seek. You simply can’t please everyone, so learn to please yourself and enjoy who you are.” [6]
He also advises focusing on the end result first. You don’t need every answer up front. Set the goal, and the information you need tends to come into view once your mind has locked onto it. [6] For more on this, see our guide to visualisation.
Videos with Dr Robert Anthony
Dr Anthony’s own channel has only a few talks, so this list adds book summaries and reviews by other creators, checked one by one. We’ve left out full audiobook uploads.
Start here
Total Self-Confidence
Beyond Positive Thinking
Articles about Dr Robert Anthony
Dr Robert Anthony’s books
These are his best-known books. [1] [2]
Find his books in your country: US · UK · Canada · Australia · India.
Where to learn more
Dr Anthony offers audio programmes through his website, including The Secret of Deliberate Creation. [1]
What the Research Shows
Dr Robert Anthony writes for a general audience rather than from his own studies, but two of his favourite themes, belief in your own ability and picturing the result you want, have been studied by psychologists.
- Self-belief. Believing you can succeed at something, known as self-efficacy, shapes how much effort you put in and how long you keep going. [7]
- Imagining your best future. Writing about your best possible future self was linked to better mood and wellbeing. [8]
Frequently asked questions
Who is Dr Robert Anthony?
An American self-help author known for The Ultimate Secrets of Total Self-Confidence and Beyond Positive Thinking.
What is his background?
He describes a background in psychology, with master certifications in NLP and clinical hypnosis.
What does cause is greater than effect mean?
His idea that you take ownership of your reactions instead of seeing yourself as a victim of events.
What is the gatekeeper?
His name for the critical factor, the filter that keeps old habits and beliefs in place.
What is Beyond Positive Thinking about?
Moving from positive thinking to right thinking by examining your beliefs and focusing on the end result.
Why does he call himself a Change Artist?
He says his gift is combining different approaches so people can experience change.
Where should I start?
His short talk on cause and effect, then Beyond Positive Thinking.
Sources
- Dr Robert Anthony: About Dr. Robert Anthony
- Penguin Random House: Robert Anthony author page
- Robert Anthony with Lance Hood (recorded talk)
- Dr Robert Anthony: Increase Your Self-Confidence (video, his channel)
- BooksxBits: The Ultimate Secrets of Total Self-Confidence summary (video)
- Jason Gray: Beyond Positive Thinking book review (video)
- Bandura, Self-efficacy: toward a unifying theory of behavioral change, Psychological Review 1977
- King, The Health Benefits of Writing about Life Goals, Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin 2001
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