Nobody wants to be caught dead reading a self-help book. 

Well, that’s the way I felt before I stumbled upon my copy of “You are a Badass – How to Stop Doubting Your Greatness and Start Living an Awesome Life,” by Jen Sincero, which was released in April.

Most self-help books I’ve come across have been extremely boring and so serious that I couldn’t bear to read them and apparently Sincero felt the same way. 

In her introduction, Sincero said, “What little I knew about the self-help/spiritual world I found to be unforgivably cheesy: it reeked of desperation, rah rah churchiness and unwanted hugs from unappealing strangers.” 

Luckily for us, she took it upon herself to do something completely different from the norm in her book. 

Sincero has probably written the most entertaining self-help book many readers will ever get in their hands on. 

Her past as a rock musician and sex columnist might have something to do with her straight-forward and hilarious style of writing. She definitely does not holding back at all in this book, which made it all the more interesting. 

The 254 pages may sound like a lot, but it was such an easy and clear read that I finished it during a five-hour road trip. 

The book consists of 27 chapters split into 5 parts: “How You Got This Way”, “How To Embrace Your Inner Badass”, “How To Tap Into The Motherlode”, “How To Get Over Your B.S. Already” and “How To Kick Some Ass”.  

Reading this book was like talking to a best friend – the one that will tell you like it is no matter the circumstances and that forces you to think outside the box.  

The line that instantly got me hooked was, ”What do you have to lose?” 

If you try getting through this book and decide it’s a bunch of crap, you can go back to your sucky life. But maybe, if you put your disbelief aside, roll up your sleeves, take some risks, and totally go for it, you’ll wake up one day and realize you’re living the kind of life you used to be jealous of.” 

Sincero did an amazing job getting her points across without sounding like some know-it-all. She made sure that we as readers realize she didn’t start off where she is and it took work for her to be in such a good place in life.  

What I admired most about this book is that Sincero realizes that not everybody has the same problems in life – so this book isn’t so much about solving any specific issue. 

Her gut-busting stories and examples are so perfect that they’ll entertain you, make you reflect on the situation and help you think about ways you can apply it to your life.

At the end of this book readers will have laughed a ton and been able to reflect on their life journey thus far and figure out where you want to go next. 

If readers gain nothing at all after finishing this book at least they will have a bunch of  “meaningful quotes” to caption Instagram pictures with.

This is definitely a book that should be read several times over.

Anisca Miles can be reached at [email protected]