Tag: 2020GOals

Lessons from YOU ARE A BADASS by Jen Sincero

“How to stop doubting your greatness and start living an awesome life.”

‘You Are a Badass’ promises to help you confront and change your self-sabotaging behaviour and creating a kick-ass life. Its chapters are filled with stories to inspire you and exercises to guide you through your badassery journey. She uses straight talk and humour to help you to get to understand yourself, improve the things that you can and accept those that you can’t change.

Here are some lessons I took away from the book:

  • “What you choose to focus on becomes your reality.”
  • Your faith should be greater than you fear.
  • “Growth ain’t for the weenies, but it is nowhere near as painful as living the life you’re living right now if you’re not really going for it.”
  • If you are able to have a fucked up perception of yourself, you are also able to have a brilliant one. Why choose the former?
  • “When we’re happy and all in love with ourselves, we can’t be bothered with the bullshit (our own or other people’s).”
  • Actions can reveal answers better than just sitting and thinking about them.
  • If you want to make changes in your life and get the things that you want, you’re going to have to take control of your thoughts.
  • When you live in a state of gratitude, it’s easy to believe that more great things are coming your way.
  • “So often when we say we’re unqualified for something, what we are really saying is that we’re too scared to try it, not that we can’t do it.”
  • “There is a big difference between walking around saying you want to make a million dollars a year, and having crystal clear intentions, fierce desire, and hell-bent action towards a specific goal.”

This book is a good reminder to us about our abilities to steer our lives in the direction we desire. If you usually have self-doubt, feel stuck or unable to see yourself in a place of success, wealth, happiness or thriving in whatever it is you want to do and have, it gives you a pinch to tell you to stop and tells you how to change and do better.

⭐⭐⭐⭐

Title: You Are a Badass: How to Stop Doubting Your Greatness and Start Living And Awesome Life

Author: Jen Sincero

Published: 2013, Running Press Book Publishers

Genre: Self-help

Review: The Art of War for Women by Chin-Ning Chu

“It’s About the Art, Not the War.”

After reading this book I had to admit that I had not understood Sun Tzu’s The Art of War at all. Could it be that the original text had been written for a male audience and I had failed to interpret it from a female point of view? Whatever the reason I’m happy to have read Chin-Ning Chu’s version.

Whether you want to move up the ladder, get that senior position you’ve been eyeing, break the glass ceiling, deal with a difficult colleague or boss, be a better parent or homemaker, or become a successful entrepreneur, this book will help address some of the things that are holding you back and help you with the way forward.

Before you think that this is some raging feminist book, stop. It’s certainly not anti-men and I think that men can also benefit from reading it. Chin-Ning Chu takes all the principles from ancient text and breathes contemporary life into it, and addresses it to women. Something we need more of.

This book is about effective strategies and how we women can see ourselves as leaders, which a lot of times we shy away from because throughout history we have been misrepresented in a lot ways – too emotional and not built for leadership. A good example of how Chin-Ning Chu applies Sun Tzu’s principles is how with regards to this misrepresentation of women she suggests the art of deception and how we can use this illusion of weakness to our advantage.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book, all of it. There are many gems she shares about repackaging womankind and selling the world a new image of womanhood. This encourages you to change the way you see yourself, how you see the roles you play in your personal life and in business. After reading The Art of War for Women you will change the way you think, the way you act and the way you manage yourself, people and situations.

I’d recommend this book to women who have been losing on the battlefield of career and home because they’re women and because they have been fed the lie that they can’t win. The book will teach you about taking a holistic approach to winning. I would also recommend it to people who, like me, have read the original The Art of War by Sun Tzu but couldn’t grasp it or apply it anywhere.

Title: The Art of War for Women

Author: Chin-Ning Chu

Publisher: Broadway Books, New York. 2007

ISBN: 978-0-385-51843-7

Genre: Business & Economics

2020: Time To Refocus

“Remember, nothing will change until you do.”

It’s a new year, filled with new goals, new beginnings and a drive to be and do better than last year. It happens every New Year, and a lot of times that fuel runs out quickly.

How can you make 2020 different? What challenges are you currently facing and how can you refocus and make better choices that you can stick to this time?

A while back, I read The Power of Focus by Jack Canfield, Mark Victor Hansen, and Les Hewitt. I’d like to share with you some of the ways that the book can help you refocus, reflect and rethink. The Power of Focus is about helping you hit your targets in work and in life. This is the perfect time to learn from this book, while you’re still excited about the new beginnings and starting afresh because the book can help you start building a stronger foundation for a different and more promising future.

This is not a quick-fix formula or a promise for instant change. It’s all a work-in-progress and will work if you do the work. It simply points out where people go wrong with a lack of focus and how that can be fixed, the steps to take, the commitment and consistently making choices that help you stay focused.

Without giving away too much from the book (it will help to get a copy), I will give you a summary of how it can help you with your 2020 Refocus Plan. Each chapter has a section for writing out your action plans. Some of the chapters are:

Focusing On Your Habits – This chapter focuses on identifying bad habits, finding out how they don’t serve you and developing better habits that will contribute to hitting your targets.

It’s All About Focus -Here you’re advised to focus on your natural talents and using your gifts to the fullest. I liked this chapter because it’s so easy to get caught up in what other people are doing that we can lose sight of our own brilliance.

Taking Decisive Action – You’ll learn how to break the habit of putting things off and about active decision making.

Overcoming Setbacks – the focus here is on forming a champion mindset. There’s a step-by-step guide to help you get the outcome you want.

Ask for What You Want – you will understand why you sometimes struggle when you have an opportunity to ask for what you want, and how to overcome that.

Other chapters focus on building great relationships, confidence, purpose and more. The Power of Focus is a good guide for facing and accepting challenges and taking up opportunities. I found it quite easy to read, straightforward and the strategies are easy to implement. I’d recommend it for anyone who is stuck, lacking focus, trying to follow their goals but not able to actually get there. When you go through the book, it would be wise to keep a notebook with you, because even though it has space for writing you’ll need more pages. (Also, I believe writing in books should be frowned upon.)

Here’s to building a healthier, happier and meaningful life.

Enjoy!