You are a Badass by Jen Sincero
Summary
If you’ve always wanted a coach to start pushing you to pursue your goals but you’re not yet sold into the whole “I can live the life I want” idea, then this book is for you! This book will make a point and try its best to convince you just how important it is for you to start getting your ducks in a row. The author speaks in a very casual tone, is quite funny, and offers specific strategies to help you reach your goals. Perhaps a better statement would be that the author helps you to understand the difference between dreams and goals. Jen takes us through her own journey of all the self-help books she’s read, retreats she’s attended, seminars, etc. to present to you a handy personal coach in the form of a book that carefully and quite beautifully (and hilariously) summarizes the most well-known self-help and motivation strategies of our time. Believing in yourself and self-love are key patterns that are woven in the fabric of Jen’s message and she doesn’t shy from good old fashioned repetition to deliver a point.
As someone who’s a coach herself, working in the helping profession, and has read countless self-help books - I can say with confidence that Jen does a fantastic job of being your personal cheerleader. Many things that she’s mentioned have been strategies that I was already employing in my life and I can tell you that they work. It’s not magic, it’s not voodoo or the trite ramblings of a privileged woman (although it might feel that way sometimes - but keep reading, and try not to compare or veer off-topic by making it about privilege rather than determination); her message at its core, is sincere and simple. If you follow everything that Jen speaks about, you will be excited, you will be motivated, and you will want to work on your goals - but that’s the catch, you have to want it. If you’re not there yet, give this book a go and see if she can convince you. If you are there and need more of a boost, then this book won’t disappoint. Also, it’s an easy read and quite funny! Thanks, Jen!
My key Takeaways
You will get what you think you deserve - if you believe you can get better, then you will ultimately create a life where you work for your beliefs and goals, and eventually, you will get what you want.
It’s often easier to imagine you already have what you’ve been looking for all along. It’s out there and it exists - the hard part is for you to surrender yourself to uncertainty and adventure as you work hard on the things you can control (your action items - the hard work that you put in to make change). With your hard work and faith in the universe (whatever you believe in), things will fall into place.
It’s often better to be as specific as you can with money. How much you want it and why you want it, how will you spend it? You’ll get a better sense of what money represents or means for you. Money often gets a bad reputation but it doesn’t have to be negative if you can learn to treat it with respect and the same excitement we give to other areas of our life.
Surround yourself with people who excite you, motivate you, push you to be a better person. Company is contagious and it’s better to be around people who make you want to be a better person.
Even if you know exactly what you want, seek the people who have already achieved what you want and see how they got there. Learn from them.
Get a mentor or a coach if you have not already - if you hire a personal trainer to help you with your fitness goals, then why not a life coach or a mentor to help you with the big picture and start making sense out of your dreams. Oh..and remember me, your friend Sana - your future life coach.
I would recommend this book to
You are into self-help and non-fiction
If you’ve always wanted to go to those expensive fancy retreats filled with privilege but realized they were too expensive and stupid but then you also missed the good part of the retreat - yea, that’s what I am talking about. Just read this book. Jen’s got you covered and has presented you with everything you could learn on any motivational seminar you’ll ever attend/watch. Seriously.
You are always dreaming but never acting on anything
You need a nice gentle, kick in the rear when it comes to someone telling you to go achieve your goals