Books · Confidence & Anxiety
Book summary and verdict
You Are a Badass
Jen Sincero can absolutely get you off the couch, and then she starts explaining that money can feel your attitude, which is where you should stand up, thank the Universe for its time, and quietly take back your wallet.
Should you read it?
Read it if you are stuck and respond well to blunt encouragement. Skip it if talk of the universe rewarding your thoughts makes your neck tighten, or if you need medical or financial advice from somebody whose office contains a license. If this is your seventh confidence book, motivation is not the problem. Shopping is.
L.Jen Sincero thinks fear, old beliefs, and a suspiciously comfortable ego are running your life. She wants you to love yourself, act before you feel ready, and trust the Universe with the paperwork. I tried the first two. The Universe is still on probation.
The ideas
I · Identity
Your oldest beliefs keep making adult decisions, even though they were formed by someone who thought a blanket made them invisible.
Sincero calls it the Big Snooze, the part of your ego that wants to keep you safe, comfortable, and exactly where you are. It is the voice saying, “Don’t apply for that job. You’re not qualified.” “Don’t start the business. You’ll embarrass yourself.” “Don’t go to the gym today. You went near one on Tuesday.”
The book’s first move is separating you from your fears and habits. They are not your personality. Most were picked up from family, teachers, and childhood, so some of the beliefs steering your career were formed when your qualifications included knowing four dinosaurs and crying because toast broke.
L.Your inner child has administrator access. This seems unwise.
Fear is useful when something is actually on fire, and that is why you should notice what set it off. But mine also shows up at lunch and acts like ordering turkey is how the police finally catch me.
II · Permission
You can want more money without acting like the police just found it in your trunk.
The rest of this idea is in the app.
III · Action
Nobody feels ready. Some people just panic while moving.
The rest of this idea is in the app.
IV · Energy
The book says positive thoughts attract good outcomes. Casinos have tested this on millions of volunteers.
The rest of this idea is in the app.
What to actually do
Pick one small thing you keep claiming you want. Write down the story that stops you, then name what staying stuck pays you: safety, sympathy, or the gorgeous fantasy that you would have been brilliant if circumstances had cooperated.
Smaller: One thing. One excuse. One hidden payoff.
L.It’s a beautiful arrangement. You remain an undefeated genius because nobody has seen you play.
Do one useful thing for ten minutes. Send the awkward message. Open the document and write one ugly sentence. Make the appointment. Put on the shoes.
Smaller: Do it badly enough that your vanity doesn’t get a vote.
L.Your standards have had months. They did nothing.
Put one blunt reminder where tomorrow’s version of you has to see it: on the door, beside the keys, or across the screen.
Smaller: Your brain remembers an insult from middle school and forgets the goal by lunch.
L.Make the reminder impossible to miss. You live with this brain. Label things.
Before spending money on your future self’s confidence, check your current self’s bank balance and read the agreement. Confidence can help you ask for a raise. It cannot make compound interest feel sorry for you.
Smaller: Take the courage. Leave the cosmic banking system.
L.Do not buy a car on a vibe.
Still in the app
- What happened when people tried them
- Bullshit?
- Where readers disagree
- The one thing worth remembering
The rest of this book is in the app.
Skip the Book reads the self-help books so you don't have to: what each one argues, what happened when real people tried it, which claims are exaggerated, and what to do tonight. 108 books and counting, new ones most days.
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