Book Review: 523 Ways To Be Awesome

I wasn't exactly sure what to expect when I picked up 523 Ways To Be Awesome by Kathryn Thompson, but I liked the Drops Of Awesome post the author did on her blog a long time ago, (you can read that here) so I wanted to read the "follow-up" if you will.

It starts out with a fun introduction to the Drops of Awesome concept. That sometimes, when we are doing good things, we beat ourselves up that we should be doing more. That's when we apply the Drops of Awesome concept and focus on the positive---the little drops of awesome that make up our Bucket of Awesome. Then, when we realize our awesomeness, it will also increase at a rate that will surprise us.

The author tells us twenty Feats Of Awesome she would like to accomplish in her life and the rest of the book is going through each of those Feats and breaking it down into drops. For example, one of her feats is to achieve world peace. That's a pretty tall order. But when you break it down into drops, like stopping to just "be" sometimes. Or to speak softly, let someone else be right, and so on. Just small little drops of awesome that will lead to peace. Maybe not world peace, but peace in your world. I loved that idea!

There are a lot more Drops of Awesome that can lead to Feats of Awesome like invent a technology, win an Olympic medal, arrest a criminal and more. And the author's ideas were fun and doable. And that's the thing--sometimes I am contributing to my Bucket of Awesome, but discount it because it wasn't big enough. This book reminds me that I can count all those drops and it's going to lead me to a more positive place in my life. So many voices in our society today are negative and loud and this is a book that quiets those with positivity and a quiet assurance that I am enough. I thoroughly enjoyed the reminder.

This is a quick read and one that you can glance at and make personal goals from to fill your own Bucket of Awesome.

You can get your copy here:

Here's the back copy:

Have you ever wanted to write a symphony, explore the galaxy, or save a life? With 523 Ways to Be Awesome, you will learn how you are already doing those and other amazing things . . . a bit . . . and how you can do them a bit more, one Drop of Awesome at a time. For example, you may not achieve “world peace,” but you can:

Choose to forgive.
Let someone merge in front of you.
Listen when you really want to talk.

Based on the viral blog post that inspired Drops of Awesome: The You’re-More-Awesome-Than-You-Think Journal (2014), this book is for anyone who listens to the negative voice inside her head, telling her she’s not good enough and that her best efforts are insufficient. Author and blogger Kathryn Thompson returns with her signature wit and wisdom intact to help readers keep tally of the small victories that mean everything in life and discover their inner AWESOME