Gutsy: Learning to Live with Bold, Brave, and Boundless Courage by Natalie Franke Book Review

 

In Gutsy, Natalie Franke guides readers on how to live courageously and to have the drive to go after what you want. She begins her photography business at 18 years old. She also used it as a way to help her make money during college. After she graduated, instead of following in the degree she got she kept pursing her photography business. She explained how others viewed it is as simple hobby. She still chose to go after her business even when they judged her for doing so. She was riding high when the depression hit her. She shared how she dealt with the loneliness of entrepreneurship and she started to connect with others. They formed a community called Rising Tide Society. They would meet and connect and they grew to 75,000 members and help other businesses. She opened up about how she discovered the number one reasons business fail to begin is because of other people’s opinions. We all want to avoid criticism and the look of disapprove from others. This is meant to help readers to push past the fears of what others are thinking about us. She calls readers to become more gutsy and this means, “marked by courage, pluck, and determination”. This will provide us with the confidence to step out and become the person that we want to be. 

 

 

 

In the book, she also revealed her struggle with infertility and undergoing IVF. When trying for her second child, they tried three round and they all failed. She was tired of the disappointment they faced and all of the doctor visits and shots. She recalled how she asked herself if this failed would she still be able to live with that. It did end up working and she became pregnant. Throughout this process, she revealed how she had to learn how to be brave and handle all of the challenges. She provided some of the ways in which she learned to deal with the possible of failure. 

 

 

A powerful chapter she looked at was the thing about opinions. She used a fox story in her neighborhood to compare all of the posts her neighbors made on her community message group about the fox. Some thought it was dangerous and others not so much. She shared how popular the post was at first until it went into irrelevance. Everyone has opinions and they aren’t always facts. She used a helpful chart enclosed in the book to assist readers into writing down their inner circle. This is meant to help us understand why we care so much about what this person believes about us. She will help readers to discern what feedback we need to take inside our hearts and which to remove. Every year she encouraged readers to take an audit of the content around us. 

 

 

I would recommend this inspiring book to anyone is ready to live gutsy and be courageous to live their own lives. I really enjoyed the topic of center of attention and how people aren’t always thinking about us like we tend to believe that they are. It was interesting to read about the different studies regarding the spotlight effect. We think they are constantly thinking about our imperfections, mistakes, and flaws and judging. I enjoyed the study of Tom Gilovich and how one person wear an embarrassing shirt and how only 25% could even remember the shirt. I especially loved how she explained in detail about how she was embarrassed in school and looking back at it today. No one but her would remember it. Memories tend to fade. I also liked the discussion on easing the word, “just” and changing the way that we talk about ourselves. This book is an awesome resource to use to break free from seeking the approval of others and their validation. 

 

 

 

 

"I received this book free from the publisher, Hachette Book Group/Faithwords for my honest review.”

 

 

 

 

 

If you would like to purchase a copy, check it out on Amazon.com:

 

 

 

https://www.amazon.com/Gutsy-Learning-Brave-Boundless-Courage/dp/1546015469/

Built to Belong: Discovering the Power of Community Over Competition by Natalie Franke Book Review

In Built to Belong, Natalie Franke has written a new book about we were all created to be a part of a community and to help one another out. She begins the book by discussing how even before we were born, we were all created and designed to belong. She also shared how we struggle with balancing between cooperation and competition. She opened up about how she started her own photography business. She realized that she also had to rely on others and how she wanted a true community that would support each other. She revealed how she battled loneliness and how being isolated can lead to depression, dementia, cognitive decline, and even suicide. She shared how she dealt with it and how she started to build her own community around the globe and this paved a way for her to connect with others. In the book, she goes into detail about how she was able to kick the comparison wheel to the curb. She helped found the Rising Tide Society in 2015 with three other people and this is a group of entrepreneurs that have a goal of cultivating communities. She faced some backlash from other people saying how other businesses won’t help one another because the business field is supposed to be competitive. She looked at how being so competitive can have major disadvances and they lose the sight of serving their customers and they stop focusing on forming meaningful relationships. She explained how success builds upon success and how much more we can benefit, if we would work together as a collaboration.

 

 

She also in the book shared how when she was newly married that they discovered that she had a tumor in her pituitary gland. She shared about how she was afraid to tell people because she didn’t want to be treated any different. Most of all she was struck in the denial phase. She explored how the changing times have also allowed us to hide behind a screen and how easier it is to put up a mask about how we are feeling. In 2017, after five years from being diagnosed, the doctors finally recommend that they perform surgery to remove it. She decided to tell people and she wrote about it on her blog. This taught her the importance of vulnerability and how others were also living their own lives in silence and they began to take their own masks off. She also opened up about her struggle with infertility and how she was eventually blessed with having a son. 

 

 

I would recommend this life changing book to anyone who is ready to build a community and they are seeking a place to belong. I immensely loved the principles she included and how she encouraged readers to start with themselves. She taught readers how to get past our own insecurities and to learn to love yourself. Then we can focus on discovering and identifying what community we need. One of my favorite areas, she discussed was how to overcome first time phobias and how critical and life impacting it is to remember people’s names. I liked how she shared the whole story about how she started her own photography business and how she was able to also start another business that has helped over seventy thousand small businesses to also choose community over competition.

 

 

 

 

"I received this book free from the publisher, Hachette Book Group/Faithwords for my honest review.” 

 

 

 

 

 

 

If you would like to purchase a copy of Built to Belong, check it out on Amazon.com:

 

 

 

https://www.amazon.com/Built-Belong-Discovering-Community-Competition/dp/1546017682/

 

 

 

 

Check out Natalie Franke’s Website:

 

 

 

https://nataliefranke.com/book