And, she returns! And, yes, it really did take two weeks for me to read this damn book. Why? Because I probably had one of the most exhausting two weeks of my post-collegiate life.
But, that being said, it was probably the perfect time to read A Place of Yes because in my exhaustion I definitely had a couple “screw this, I quit” moments with my job, my workouts, my blogs, my personal life, etc. Each day; however, I’d read a little more of Bethenny’s book and it would strike a chord with me.
Her rules are not rocket-science by any means, in fact, I’d be willing to bet most people know these “rules” or have been told them in another way before. What Bethenny does differently is that she puts it all on the line to show how she has applied the rules to her life. Here are her 10 rules in order (with a brief description by me):
- Break the Chain (You don’t have to be your parents.)
- Find Your Truth (Only you know what is right and true for you, nobody else. The hard part is figuring it out.)
- Act On It (Always be working towards something.)
- Everything’s Your Business (Do everything in you life to the best of your ability and learn, learn, learn.)
- All Roads Lead to Rome (If you are working and learning, you’re going to get there. Trust the process.)
- Go For Yours (Give it your all to make things move faster.)
- Separate from the Pack (Play up your individuality and market it.)
- Own It (If you say it, think it, eat it, crap it, admit it. Have personal integrity.)
- Come Together (The world is not a vacuum, you must get along with others to make life work.)
- Celebrate! (When something good happens, take the time to enjoy it. Life is good.)
See, not groundbreaking stuff. But, like I said, her stories about her low- and high-points are what draw the reader into the book. For me, reading about her mistakes with men and careers as a young women, most of which were caused by “normal noise” and “money noise” (noise, Bethenny defines, is the nagging chatter in your brain that can take you from your path) really helped me realize, at 29, my life isn’t over. The fact that her professional life really didn’t take off until her 30’s somehow made me realize I don’t have to settle because my life isn’t done!
And, I needed to hear that because in the last two weeks, among my life being crazy busy, I also turned 29. And I cried about it. Not because I think I’m old, but because I thought I should be in a better place in my life. Her book helped me reframe my situation so I could remind myself that my life is really just beginning and, let’s face it, 29 is pretty young.
So, maybe I owe a quick “thank you” to Bethenny Frankel for her candidness and wit and ability to help me through my quarter-life crisis. I’m sure I’ll still have days where I won’t want to get out of bed (and she admits she still does this too), but I now realize it’s okay. I just have to keep on keeping on and I’ll eventually have a pretty darn good life.
Jac-In-A-Book 