Try free for 30 days
-
Do As I Say
- How Cults Control, Why We Join Them, and What They Teach Us About Bullying, Abuse and Coercion
- Narrated by: Sarah Steel
- Length: 9 hrs and 7 mins
Failed to add items
Add to basket failed.
Add to Wish List failed.
Remove from Wish List failed.
Follow podcast failed
Unfollow podcast failed
Buy Now for $26.99
No valid payment method on file.
We are sorry. We are not allowed to sell this product with the selected payment method
Listeners also picked
-
Uncultured
- A Memoir
- By: Daniella Mestyanek Young
- Narrated by: Daniella Mestyanek Young
- Length: 13 hrs and 49 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Behind the tall, foreboding gates of a commune in Brazil, Daniella Mestyanek Young was raised in the religious cult The Children of God, also known as The Family, as the daughter of high-ranking members. Her great-grandmother donated land for one of The Family’s first communes in Texas. Her mother, at thirteen, was forced to marry the leader and served as his secretary for many years. Beholden to The Family’s strict rules, Daniella suffers physical, emotional, and sexual abuse—masked as godly discipline and divine love—and is forbidden from getting a traditional education.
-
-
CHILLS!!!
- By Anonymous User on 10-01-2024
-
Scarred
- The True Story of How I Escaped NXIVM, the Cult That Bound My Life
- By: Sarah Edmondson, Kristine Gasbarre
- Narrated by: Sarah Edmondson
- Length: 7 hrs and 43 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The shocking and subversive memoir of a 12-year-NXIVM-member-turned-whistleblower, and her inspiring true story of abuse, escape, and redemption. "Master, would you brand me? It would be an honor." Scarred follows actress Sarah Edmondson's account of her recruitment into the NXIVM cult, founded by Keith Raniere. It narrates in detail the 12 years she spent within the organization, during which she enrolled over 2,000 members, chronicling her breaking point and her harrowing fight to get out, help others, and heal.
-
-
Informative and Personal Story
- By Anonymous User on 11-01-2024
-
In Bad Faith
- Inside a Secret Ultra-Orthodox Sect and the Brutal Betrayal It Tried to Hide
- By: Dassi Erlich
- Narrated by: Dassi Erlich
- Length: 10 hrs and 49 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
As a young girl growing up in a strict ultra-Orthodox family, Dassi's life was preordained - marry young, live a devout life and raise children within the Adass community's religious rules. This righteous path would keep her safe from the immodest, secular world just a few blocks away in suburban Melbourne. But the Adass community was not safe for Dassi. She was fifteen when her revered school principal, Malka Leifer, started to single her out. Dassi's cloistered and harsh upbringing meant she didn't have the words for what was happening to her, but she knew it was very, very wrong.
-
-
Tragic but so important.
- By Liscard on 18-04-2024
-
Cultish
- The Language of Fanaticism
- By: Amanda Montell
- Narrated by: Ann Marie Gideon
- Length: 8 hrs and 21 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
What makes “cults” so intriguing and frightening? What makes them powerful? The reason why so many of us binge Manson documentaries by the dozen and fall down rabbit holes researching suburban moms gone QAnon is because we’re looking for a satisfying explanation for what causes people to join - and more importantly, stay in - extreme groups. We secretly want to know: could it happen to me? Amanda Montell’s argument is that, on some level, it already has.
-
-
Inspiring
- By Anonymous User on 18-09-2023
-
Combating Cult Mind Control
- The #1 Best-Selling Guide to Protection, Rescue, and Recovery from Destructive Cults
- By: Steven Hassan
- Narrated by: Daniel Greenberg
- Length: 13 hrs and 35 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
This essential guide explores the methods by which groups and individuals can manipulate people's minds and behaviors in a subtle and covert manner. Hassan combines his personal narrative with extensive psychological research to provide strategies for protection, intervention, and healing for those affected by destructive cults.
-
-
Essential reading
- By Naomi Brewster on 21-12-2018
-
Conspirituality
- How New Age Conspiracy Theories Became a Health Threat
- By: Derek Beres, Matthew Remski, Julian Walker
- Narrated by: Matthew Remski
- Length: 13 hrs and 56 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic, a disturbing social media trend emerged: a large number of yoga instructors and alt-health influencers were posting stories about a secretive global cabal bent on controlling the world’s population with a genocidal vaccine. Instagram feeds that had been serving up green smoothie recipes and Mary Oliver poems became firehoses of Fox News links, memes from 4chan, and prophecies of global transformation.
-
-
A fever dream antidote
- By Anonymous User on 29-01-2024
-
Uncultured
- A Memoir
- By: Daniella Mestyanek Young
- Narrated by: Daniella Mestyanek Young
- Length: 13 hrs and 49 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Behind the tall, foreboding gates of a commune in Brazil, Daniella Mestyanek Young was raised in the religious cult The Children of God, also known as The Family, as the daughter of high-ranking members. Her great-grandmother donated land for one of The Family’s first communes in Texas. Her mother, at thirteen, was forced to marry the leader and served as his secretary for many years. Beholden to The Family’s strict rules, Daniella suffers physical, emotional, and sexual abuse—masked as godly discipline and divine love—and is forbidden from getting a traditional education.
-
-
CHILLS!!!
- By Anonymous User on 10-01-2024
-
Scarred
- The True Story of How I Escaped NXIVM, the Cult That Bound My Life
- By: Sarah Edmondson, Kristine Gasbarre
- Narrated by: Sarah Edmondson
- Length: 7 hrs and 43 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The shocking and subversive memoir of a 12-year-NXIVM-member-turned-whistleblower, and her inspiring true story of abuse, escape, and redemption. "Master, would you brand me? It would be an honor." Scarred follows actress Sarah Edmondson's account of her recruitment into the NXIVM cult, founded by Keith Raniere. It narrates in detail the 12 years she spent within the organization, during which she enrolled over 2,000 members, chronicling her breaking point and her harrowing fight to get out, help others, and heal.
-
-
Informative and Personal Story
- By Anonymous User on 11-01-2024
-
In Bad Faith
- Inside a Secret Ultra-Orthodox Sect and the Brutal Betrayal It Tried to Hide
- By: Dassi Erlich
- Narrated by: Dassi Erlich
- Length: 10 hrs and 49 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
As a young girl growing up in a strict ultra-Orthodox family, Dassi's life was preordained - marry young, live a devout life and raise children within the Adass community's religious rules. This righteous path would keep her safe from the immodest, secular world just a few blocks away in suburban Melbourne. But the Adass community was not safe for Dassi. She was fifteen when her revered school principal, Malka Leifer, started to single her out. Dassi's cloistered and harsh upbringing meant she didn't have the words for what was happening to her, but she knew it was very, very wrong.
-
-
Tragic but so important.
- By Liscard on 18-04-2024
-
Cultish
- The Language of Fanaticism
- By: Amanda Montell
- Narrated by: Ann Marie Gideon
- Length: 8 hrs and 21 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
What makes “cults” so intriguing and frightening? What makes them powerful? The reason why so many of us binge Manson documentaries by the dozen and fall down rabbit holes researching suburban moms gone QAnon is because we’re looking for a satisfying explanation for what causes people to join - and more importantly, stay in - extreme groups. We secretly want to know: could it happen to me? Amanda Montell’s argument is that, on some level, it already has.
-
-
Inspiring
- By Anonymous User on 18-09-2023
-
Combating Cult Mind Control
- The #1 Best-Selling Guide to Protection, Rescue, and Recovery from Destructive Cults
- By: Steven Hassan
- Narrated by: Daniel Greenberg
- Length: 13 hrs and 35 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
This essential guide explores the methods by which groups and individuals can manipulate people's minds and behaviors in a subtle and covert manner. Hassan combines his personal narrative with extensive psychological research to provide strategies for protection, intervention, and healing for those affected by destructive cults.
-
-
Essential reading
- By Naomi Brewster on 21-12-2018
-
Conspirituality
- How New Age Conspiracy Theories Became a Health Threat
- By: Derek Beres, Matthew Remski, Julian Walker
- Narrated by: Matthew Remski
- Length: 13 hrs and 56 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic, a disturbing social media trend emerged: a large number of yoga instructors and alt-health influencers were posting stories about a secretive global cabal bent on controlling the world’s population with a genocidal vaccine. Instagram feeds that had been serving up green smoothie recipes and Mary Oliver poems became firehoses of Fox News links, memes from 4chan, and prophecies of global transformation.
-
-
A fever dream antidote
- By Anonymous User on 29-01-2024
-
Freedom of Mind
- Helping Loved Ones Leave Controlling People, Cults, and Beliefs
- By: Steven Hassan
- Narrated by: Steven Hassan
- Length: 10 hrs and 12 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In the post-9/11 world, people are more susceptible than ever to charismatic figures who offer simple, black v. white, us v. them, good v. evil, formulaic solutions. The rise of the internet; increasingly sophisticated knowledge about how to influence and manipulate others; and the growing vulnerabilities of people across the planet-make for a dangerous, potentially devastating combination.
-
-
Great information, delivered by a robot!
- By Anonymous User on 05-04-2024
-
Daughter of Gloriavale
- My Life in a Religious Cult
- By: Lilia Tarawa
- Narrated by: Sarah Mollo-Christensen
- Length: 9 hrs and 10 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In this personal account, Lilia Tarawa exposes the shocking secrets of the cult, with its rigid rules and oppressive control of women. She describes her fear when her family questioned Gloriavale's beliefs and practices. When her parents fled with their children, Lilia was forced to make a desperate choice: to stay or to leave. No matter what she chose, she would lose people she loved.
-
-
Powerful and eye-opening
- By Anonymous User on 15-09-2023
-
Hey, Hun
- Sales, Sisterhood, Supremacy, and the Other Lies Behind Multilevel Marketing
- By: Emily Lynn Paulson
- Narrated by: Emily Lynn Paulson
- Length: 10 hrs and 58 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
She signed up for the sisterhood, free cars, and the promise of a successful business of her own. Instead, she ended up with an addiction, broken friendships, and the rubble of a toppled pyramid . . . scheme. Hey, Hun: Sales, Sisterhood, Supremacy, and the Other Lies Behind Multilevel Marketing is the eye-opening, funny, and dangerous personal story of author Emily Lynn Paulson rising to the top of the pyramid in the multilevel marketing (MLM) world, only to recognize that its culture and business practices went beyond a trendy marketing scheme and into the heart of white supremacy in America.
-
-
A must read for any Anti-MLM enthusiast
- By Dededexter on 08-10-2023
-
Blown for Good
- Behind the Iron Curtain of Scientology
- By: Marc Headley
- Narrated by: Marc Headley
- Length: 11 hrs and 56 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Marc Headley provides an insider's view of life as a member of Scientology's "Sea Organization". Marc worked at Scientology's secret desert compound, which houses all Scientology management, for 15 years. The 500-acre property is located deep in the California desert. The local townspeople were told lectures and films were made there. But is that all that was happening? It is the location of a multi-million-dollar home for L. Ron Hubbard, built two decades after his death. It is the home of Scientology's current leader, David Miscavige.
-
-
This book is great!
- By Steven on 31-03-2019
-
When Religion Hurts You
- Healing from Religious Trauma and the Impact of High-Control Religion
- By: Laura E. Anderson PhD
- Narrated by: Laura E. Anderson PhD
- Length: 6 hrs and 59 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Dr. Laura Anderson takes an honest look at a side of religion that few like to talk about. Drawing from her own life and therapy practice, she helps listeners understand what religious trauma is and isn't, and how high-control churches can be harmful and abusive, often resulting in trauma. She shows how elements of fundamentalist church life—such as fear of hell, purity culture, corporal punishment, and authoritarian leaders—can cause psychological, relational, physical, and spiritual damage.
-
Cults Inside Out: How People Get In and Can Get Out
- By: Rick Alan Ross
- Narrated by: Daniel Adam Day
- Length: 16 hrs and 20 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
You’ve seen them in movies and on TV, but cults are more prevalent than you think - and they’re armed with strategies that can brainwash and persuade even the most unlikely of candidates. But how do individuals get involved with cults in the first place, and what steps can be taken to “deprogram” and heal those who have been drawn into these damaging groups? These questions and more are addressed in Cults Inside Out, written by leading cult expert Rick Alan Ross.
-
-
You can make it even better
- By Kindle Customer on 04-07-2022
-
Look What You Made Me Do
- Fathers Who Kill
- By: Megan Norris
- Narrated by: Ella James
- Length: 15 hrs and 16 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
One Australian woman is hospitalised every three hours and two more lose their lives each week as a result of family violence. But for some women there is a punishment far more enduring than injury or their own death. Look What You Made Me Do is a timely exploration of the evil inflicted by vengeful fathers who have killed their own children simply to punish partners for ending unrewarding, often abusive relationships.
-
-
Tragic events and brilliantly written
- By Anonymous User on 13-04-2024
-
Selling the Dream
- The Billion-Dollar Industry Bankrupting Americans
- By: Jane Marie
- Narrated by: Jane Marie
- Length: 6 hrs and 14 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
When factories close, stalwart industries shutter, and blue-collar opportunities evaporate, MLMs are there, ready to pounce on the crumbling American Dream. MLMs thrive in rural areas and on military bases, targeting women with promises of being their own boss and millions of dollars in easy income—even at the risk of their entire life savings. But the vast majority—99.7%—of those who join an MLM make no money or lose money, and wind up stuck with inventory they can’t sell to recoup their losses.
-
-
Excellent Exposé
- By Kathryn on 27-03-2024
-
The Teacher's Pet
- By: Hedley Thomas
- Narrated by: Hedley Thomas
- Length: 18 hrs and 20 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
If you thought you knew the story of The Teacher's Pet, get ready to be shocked. Hedley Thomas takes you behind the scenes with a blow-by-blow account of one of the most intriguing and enduring murder mysteries of our time - the crime, the podcast investigation, the sexual exploitation of teenage students, the courtroom drama - and how justice was finally delivered.
-
-
What a journey!
- By Anonymous User on 12-11-2023
-
Bad Mormon
- By: Heather Gay
- Narrated by: Heather Gay
- Length: 7 hrs and 47 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Straight off the slopes and into the spotlight, Heather Gay is famous for speaking the gospel truth. Whether as a businesswoman, mother, or television personality, she is unafraid to blaze a new trail, even if it means losing family, friends, and her community.
-
-
Huge RHOSL fan! Loved it
- By Natasha Dighton on 05-03-2024
-
Waco
- A Survivor's Story
- By: David Thibodeau, Leon Whiteson, Aviva Layton
- Narrated by: Robert Fass
- Length: 13 hrs and 20 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
When he first met the man who called himself David Koresh, David Thibodeau was drumming for a rock band that was going nowhere fast. Intrigued and frustrated with a stalled music career, Thibodeau gradually became a follower and moved to the Branch Davidian compound in Waco, Texas. He remained there until April 19, 1993, when the compound was stormed and burnt to the ground after a 51-day standoff. In this book, Thibodeau explores why so many people came to believe that Koresh was divinely inspired.
-
-
A very unbalanced account...
- By Rachael M on 27-03-2020
-
The Schoolgirl, Her Teacher and His Wife
- By: Rebecca Hazel
- Narrated by: Natasha Beaumont
- Length: 10 hrs and 48 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Teacher and former rugby league player Chris Dawson appeared to have it all - a loving family and a beautiful home in Sydney's Northern Beaches. But in the summer of 1982 his wife Lynette disappeared and not long afterwards Dawson married a much younger woman, a former student. Less than a decade later this young woman escaped the marriage and went to the police to record her suspicions that Dawson had been involved in Lynette's disappearance. A homicide investigation followed but got nowhere until 1998, when Detective Sergeant Damian Loone was handed Lynette's file.
-
-
Excellent account
- By jackie s. on 18-10-2023
Publisher's Summary
At the heart of being human is the desire to belong. It can make us unspeakably vulnerable to the manipulations of others. Cult leaders prey on this desire, but so do many unscrupulous operators hiding in plain sight.
Sarah Steel, the creator of the popular 'Let's Talk About Sects' podcast, has researched the cults you've heard of—and dozens you haven't. What strikes her most are not the differences between bizarre cult behaviour and 'normal' behaviour but the depressing similarities. Her work reveals that we are all susceptible to the power of cult dynamics.
In Do As I Say, Sarah Steel tells the human tale behind the sensationalism. Sharing deeply personal stories, gathered over years of interviews with survivors, and some shocking tales about the world's most famous cults, she sheds light on the high cost of unchecked coercive behaviours to individuals and communities at large.
Critic Reviews
"Sarah uses the stories of survivors to tease out the common threads of coercive control shared by cults and found in other parts of society. The result is a much-needed spotlight on the behaviours and personalities we are likely to encounter even if we never go anywhere near a cult." (David Gillespie, best-selling author and lawyer)
"In times of uncertainty when you long for simple answers and have a deep desire for community, you can find yourself incrementally handing over your agency to a charismatic but authoritarian and manipulative leader or group-think. In this book Sarah Steel has brilliantly charted how this happens in all sorts of ways and for all sorts of people; it provides an invaluable map to navigate this dangerous terrain." (Reverend Tim Costello AO)
"This book is a most comprehensive and studied look at cults, the leaders, and perhaps most importantly the survivors. Sarah Steel has given the world a real gem—one that will not only educate but also help to destigmatize those who have been harmed by cults and con artists. Bravo!" (Dr Janja Lalich, cult expert, academic and former cult member)
What listeners say about Do As I Say
Average Customer RatingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Jess
- 11-08-2022
Eye-opening
Worthwhile read/listen. Educational on the unexpectedly high prevalence of cultish thinking surrounding us in society.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
1 person found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Anonymous User
- 31-08-2022
Excellent!
This book is a natural progression from the excellent podcast ; Lets Talk about Sects. As expected well thought out, researched and written. Showing some possible talent for predicting the future, her chapter on the secrecy of the previous Australian Prime Minister is a good precursor to understanding the mind boggling act of taking on ministries without informing anyone. The authors empathy in addressing the issue of cults and the impact it has on individuals is evident. Couldn’t stop listening, and I went for a 4 hour walk just to finish it.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
1 person found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Madeleine
- 31-07-2022
Great read
Wonderfully written in-depth and considerate investigation in to cults and cult like behaviour in society. Interesting the whole way through!
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
1 person found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Lucy Nicol
- 29-08-2022
Talented Aussie author tackling a very tricky topic
Highly researched and makes some very interesting points. It’s really great to see the author helping to tackle such complex issues. As someone who has seen family members become engulfed in multiple cults, I really appreciate this book as it is helping me unpack my own experience with cultish thinking. The chapters on coercive control and feminism are my favourites so far. I hope we soon find a way as a society to stop people from being legally allowed to take away others rights to their own free will by undermining and manipulating vulnerable peoples thought processes.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
1 person found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Jennie
- 14-03-2023
Brilliant, Healing and Informative. Must read for ex cult members
Sarahs research over such a broad spectrum of cults is so informative interesting and incredible. Her passion and empathy come through her pages and words along with the facts. As someone who escaped an evangelical Christian cult and is still recovering, this was one healing book for me. I felt seen heard and like she gave me a voice that has been very much silent and misunderstood for years. Thankyou Sarah. Highly recommend!!
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
1 person found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Leah Morgan
- 01-06-2023
Excellent book
Thank you Sarah for writing a book that displays critical thinking and facts. Unlike slot of media these days.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Anonymous User
- 03-10-2023
Fantastic read!
Do As I Say is an interesting look at Cults and the tactics and tricks they use to suck people in.
I cannot recommend it highly enough!
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!