But when I sought to use the advice of hundreds of gurus, authors, experts, advisors and therapists to effect real and lasting change in my life, my skills were no match for all the invisible barriers in my way. I was not lacking project management skills. I was lacking a means of lifting the invisibility cloak that kept these hidden barriers enshrouded. Exasperated, I finally got real. I got ruthless. I got simple and metrics-oriented. WTF was in my way? Why could I not see it? By documenting everything I made the goals real and the hijackers even more so. A loved one said he loved me. Organizations said they supported me. Yet by documenting the truth of everyday events, I saw another story was being told. Words are tricksy disguises. Empirical data unveil the truth.