Book Notes | You Are a Badass: How to Stop Doubting Your Greatness and Start Living an Awesome Life

Similar to 《The 4-Hour Workweek》, I picked up 《You are a badass》 because there are lots of discussions around the book and I’ve heard about it too much to not try it myself. Instead of focusing on achieving work and financial goals like the prior one does, 《You are a badass》 is written for the theme of self-help in a different area, reminding readers to believe in themselves and trust their own capabilities.

Basic Information

100 Words Summary

Through a sharp tone, several examples, and stories, this book breaks the excuses that make you think you’re not good enough. It tells you that you need to believe in yourself and that you are a badass from multiple aspects of life in a direct way.

Quotes, Notes, and Thoughts

I read this in the form of an audiobook. It is just so convenient that you can put on an audiobook while doing other chores, especially for this book which is suitable to read in this setting in my opinion. Plus, this audiobook is narrated by the author herself, so it’s easier to get the tone and parts she wants to emphasize better, which is a good thing.

To be honest, I am a little bit disappointed with this book. (After all, it is a #1 New York Times bestseller with a rating of 4.7 stars on Amazon – high expectation to begin with.) It reads more like a sharp version of Chicken Soup for the Soul, using a more straightforward way to tell you that “you are a badass”, but I didn’t learn many new things from it. If you are looking for books that can encourage you and push you forward, then this book is pretty suitable for flipping through it whenever you need a confidence boost, or you can use it as a morning podcast to start your day with a positive mindset. But if you are looking to learn something from a self-growth book, then be prepared because 《You are a badass》 doesn’t really provide a lot of tangible tips. In short, it is more like a book for leisure than growth.

Despite all that, there are still some interesting parts. Below I’ll quote a few lines from the book and serve it with my notes and thoughts around that paragraph to share with you.

Being around inspired people

“Being around inspired, visionary, enthusiastic people who are living their truths is one of the fastest ways to massively transform your life.”

Part III – Chapter 11, 《You Are a Badass》

There is a saying that you will be the average of your 5 closest friends. Those who you hang out with a lot will greatly affect you through every interaction. If you are surrounded by people who are full of positivity and enthusiastic about life, you might be inspired by them more or less.

Other than friends, family, and colleagues that you interact with face to face, when there are fewer people in your circle who are treating life with an attitude that you look up to, I think social media could be another channel that could be referred to. When the influencers you follow are all working hard and living their best lives, you might also get that positive vibe. On the contrarily, if social media always let you feel depressed, then it might be time for you to examine the accounts you follow and your relationship with social media.

Keeping the beginner’s mindset

“We only get to be in our bodies for a limited time, why not celebrate the journey instead of merely riding it out until it’s over?”

Part III – Chapter 12, 《You Are a Badass》

The author mentions that many people “grow up”, start to care too much about the result, afraid of failing, and worry about other people’s judgment, and gradually don’t dare to try new things. She says we should consciously overcome the critics, connect with the inner child, and always remind ourselves of the beginner’s mindset. Allow yourself to do something you like just because it’s fun, and don’t worry about the outcome. She also brings up some key points and practices, listing 3 of them below that I like the most.

1. Get rid of pressure and excuses. Simply do what you want to do.
2. Forget about time: enter “the flow”. Find the things which you enjoy so much that you will forget about time when doing them, and find more time doing those things by saying no to or outsourcing other things. (This reminds me of some concepts and tips from 《The 4-Hour Workweek》:-) )
3. Keep the beginner’s mindset. “Get really really really really good at what you do, but don’t lose the fun in the process.” – as the book says.

Interacting with others – Your expectation and others’ behavior

“Release all expectations, let everyone off the hook, treat people as a blank slate over and over again, expect only the best from them regardless of what they’ve done in the past.”

Part III – Chapter 15, 《You Are a Badass》

It is mentioned in this book that true forgiveness should be re-evaluating this person, instead of waiting and expecting them to make you angry again. The author says, “What you focus on you create more of.” If you keep expecting someone to annoy you, then they will not let you down. Instead, you should be focusing on their good behaviors which you want to see more of, then they will create more similar behaviors.

This reminds me of a book I love called 《The Yellow Eyes of Crocodiles》. When I first finished reading it, I was surprised to realize that how others treat you will partially depend on how you wish or let others treat you. Even though it won’t be spelled out loud, your relationship will gradually build up through your interactions.

Using your sad stories as an excuse

“… when you feel awful you don’t have to work hard or do the laundry or go to the gym. It also feels very familiar and cozy and comfortable. It gets you attention. People come in and check on you and sometimes bring you food. It allows you to not try too hard or move forward and face possible failure…”

Part IV – Chapter 17, 《You Are a Badass》

I think this might not apply to everyone. After all, every person has a different mental status and problems they are facing. But there is a part in this book that pokes through many people’s excuses sharply and directly: sometimes you are just using your sad stories as a shield to get away from working hard and facing potential failure, and also to stay in this relatively comfortable, familiar sadness bubble. If you feel like this sounds like your situation, you might want to practice getting out of the sad stories and learn to start moving forward. But I think this doesn’t mean that all the sorrow and downtimes are fake or just an excuse. If you really feel upset and depressed, you might want to consider talking to your therapist for some professional help.

Deciding your own value

No quotes for this part lol. Here’s the related chapter for your reference: Part V – Chapter 24.

In this chapter, the author mentions that your energy, frequency, and how you see your own value will affect the amount others are willing to pay you. For me, it’s easier to understand this concept with the content and quality of service one provides than using energy or frequency. For instance, if you can do things great and fast in the workspace or have some skills that others don’t, it will naturally put you better positioned to get higher pay. Pricing is subjective, and it is decided by both the demand side and the supply side. The author says you should make your income match with the value that you believe you have, and evaluate how much pay you should get according to your own value.

That’s all for my notes and thoughts on this book! Although I can’t say I will recommend it, there are still parts that inspired me. If you’ve read this book as well, please feel free to leave a comment and share your thoughts with you, whether you like the book or not! 🙂