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Разреши себе мечтать: Как воспитать смелость в себе и своих детях
та книга вдохновит вас выйти из зоны комфорта и изменить свою жизнь. Размышления автора в сочетании с удивительными историями из реальной жизни десятков женщин способны убедить любого скептика в том, что мечтать не вредно, а, наоборот, полезно. В ней рассказывается, что нужно делать, чтобы мечты стали реальностью
259 pages, Kindle Edition
First published September 13, 2011
49 people are currently reading
972 people want to read
About the author
Whitney Johnson
36 books127 followersWhitney Johnson was named one of the world's fifty most influential management thinkers by Thinkers50 in 2017.
She is the author of the forthcoming Build an A Team (Harvard Business Press, 2018) and the critically-acclaimed Disrupt Yourself: Putting the Power of Disruptive Innovation to Work (2015). Publisher's Weekly described it as "savvy...often counter-intuitive...superb" while the Boston Globe called it the "'What Color is Your Parachute?' career guide for the entrepreneurial age."
Through writing, speaking, consulting and coaching, Whitney works with leaders to retain their top talent, to build an A team, and to help them earn the gold star–be a boss people love.
She formerly was the co-founder of the Disruptive Innovation Fund with Harvard's Clayton Christensen, where they invested in and led the $8 million seed round for Korea’s Coupang, currently valued at $5+ billion. She was involved in fund formation, capital raising, and the development of the fund’s strategy. During her tenure, the CAGR of the Fund was 11.98% v. 1.22% for the S&P 500.
She is also formerly an award-winning Wall Street analyst. She was an Institutional Investor-ranked equity research analyst for eight consecutive years, and was rated by Starmine as a superior stock-picker. As an equity analyst, stocks under coverage included America Movil (NYSE: AMX), Televisa (NYSE: TV) and Telmex (NYSE: TMX), which accounted for roughly 40% of Mexico's market capitalization.
Whitney is a frequent contributor for the Harvard Business Review, she has over 1 million followers on Linkedin, and her LinkedIn course The Fundamentals of Entrepreneurship has 1 million+ views.
She is a member of the original cohort of Marshall Goldsmith's #100 coaches.
She is the author of the forthcoming Build an A Team (Harvard Business Press, 2018) and the critically-acclaimed Disrupt Yourself: Putting the Power of Disruptive Innovation to Work (2015). Publisher's Weekly described it as "savvy...often counter-intuitive...superb" while the Boston Globe called it the "'What Color is Your Parachute?' career guide for the entrepreneurial age."
Through writing, speaking, consulting and coaching, Whitney works with leaders to retain their top talent, to build an A team, and to help them earn the gold star–be a boss people love.
She formerly was the co-founder of the Disruptive Innovation Fund with Harvard's Clayton Christensen, where they invested in and led the $8 million seed round for Korea’s Coupang, currently valued at $5+ billion. She was involved in fund formation, capital raising, and the development of the fund’s strategy. During her tenure, the CAGR of the Fund was 11.98% v. 1.22% for the S&P 500.
She is also formerly an award-winning Wall Street analyst. She was an Institutional Investor-ranked equity research analyst for eight consecutive years, and was rated by Starmine as a superior stock-picker. As an equity analyst, stocks under coverage included America Movil (NYSE: AMX), Televisa (NYSE: TV) and Telmex (NYSE: TMX), which accounted for roughly 40% of Mexico's market capitalization.
Whitney is a frequent contributor for the Harvard Business Review, she has over 1 million followers on Linkedin, and her LinkedIn course The Fundamentals of Entrepreneurship has 1 million+ views.
She is a member of the original cohort of Marshall Goldsmith's #100 coaches.
Ratings & Reviews
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 52 reviews
September 17, 2012
I waffled on my rating for this book. I liked the topic and really appreciated Johnson's enouragement that we, especially as women, look beyond the lives of those we love and reach for dreams of our own. I need to be better at that. I wanted to feel driven to change. I appreciated some of the stories from other women's lives that were shared -- but that also brought on the problem for me. While I thought the stories were nice, it seemed to be a book about people's stories. I didn't feel like there was much structure to the theme. It felt like as I read we glanced from topic to topic without delving into the how or why of anything. It all sort of fell apart for me. The idea is good, many of the insights are good, but I didn't feel the book was particularly compelling or inspiring and I really hoped it would be. I did like it alright, but is kind of fell flat for me.
Read
December 21, 2015Not my cup. I liked a lot of what she had to say, but it felt really superficial. I suspect part of my feeling that way comes from having actually explored the "how" rather than just the "why."
That said, I was also super put off by the religious angle and how Johnson suggests it's a vital part of living your dreams and daring to do those things. I disagree. I think there's a major difference in putting your faith into the universe vs a religion, and that, paired with how focused this is on weirdly institutionalized beliefs about women and their roles (which she believes is fundamental, rather than socially constructed and says as much) just rubbed me wrong. Maybe also the praise to Ronald Reagan and the quoting of Ayn Rand, too, played a role.
In other words, I brought my own liberal hippie biases to this. Her message isn't bad or wrong; it's simply not delivered in a way that means much to me personally. That's how these books work.
That said, I was also super put off by the religious angle and how Johnson suggests it's a vital part of living your dreams and daring to do those things. I disagree. I think there's a major difference in putting your faith into the universe vs a religion, and that, paired with how focused this is on weirdly institutionalized beliefs about women and their roles (which she believes is fundamental, rather than socially constructed and says as much) just rubbed me wrong. Maybe also the praise to Ronald Reagan and the quoting of Ayn Rand, too, played a role.
In other words, I brought my own liberal hippie biases to this. Her message isn't bad or wrong; it's simply not delivered in a way that means much to me personally. That's how these books work.
May 11, 2012
I picked this book up as a tribute to Whitney, whom I knew when I lived in New York. I was interested in hearing what she had to say and frankly, curious to read the included stories of other New York friends. Very soon, however, I was appreciating the book and ideas for their own sake. I love the honest and respectful discussion of the many paths women take with their lives, coupled with the encouragement to keep dreaming and doing even as we find the right path for ourselves. My reaction to the book? I pulled out my violin and played JUST FOR FUN for the first time in years.
May 11, 2012
A few weeks ago when my friend suggested that I read this I had no idea what I was signing up for. I thought reading this book was little more than a simple favor for a friend. I assumed that it would be an easy, quick read. I assumed that I would write a nice, safe, blog review and then move forward with my life. I was wrong. Dare, Dream, Do has proven to be anything but a quick, easy favor for a friend.
Dare, Dream, Do has invaded my life and messed with my head.
Instead of inspiring a nice, safe blog review, this book and its ideas have engaged my mind and my heart. Suddenly I'm dreaming about my future. All of sudden I'm dreaming about a career and not just a job. But what's more terrifying is that I'm sharing those dreams with other people. I'm talking about them. Out loud. And just as Johnson promised, remarkable things are happening.
This book and I met at just the right time in my life and I couldn't be happier about it.
Dare, Dream, Do has invaded my life and messed with my head.
Instead of inspiring a nice, safe blog review, this book and its ideas have engaged my mind and my heart. Suddenly I'm dreaming about my future. All of sudden I'm dreaming about a career and not just a job. But what's more terrifying is that I'm sharing those dreams with other people. I'm talking about them. Out loud. And just as Johnson promised, remarkable things are happening.
This book and I met at just the right time in my life and I couldn't be happier about it.
August 26, 2018
До розуміння своєї мрії я так і не приблизилась. Ця книга-це збірка історій успішного здійснення мрій жінок. Блог пости зібрані в книгу. Книга не дає тих інсайтів, яких ти виправдано від неї чекаєш. Це не гайд як мріяти і досягати мрій. Це книга-виправдання мріям. Як вони змінили чужі життя. Чесно кажучи, неочікувано низькопробна книга, надрукована в Манн, Иванов и Фербер. А ще найцікавіше, що всі історії жінок - з вищого бекграунду з бізнес світу, до кого зовсім не приблизитися по можливості втілення задуманого.
June 18, 2025
This is kind of just a compilation of women's ideas about how they dared to dream and then made their dreams happen. It's a good reminder. Here are some of my favorite quotes:
"Although I now had a job, I still didn't know what I wanted to be when I grew up... I was intrigued by a law degree, but dismissed it as... I wasn't sure I was smart enough or that it was my right to even try... Without the skills, a relevant degree, or, most importantly, confidence, I was starting from behind. But I threw myself into my sales assistant job, took business courses at night, and in early 1992, three years after arriving in New York, my big break came (p. 2)."
"I began to see that dreaming was a process (p. 3)."
"I had to do something--and that something was creating the Dare to Dream blog, a safe space where intelligent, articulate women could explore their dormant dreams (p. 4)."
"Most of us don't dream well in isolation (p. 4)."
"'Instead of praying that you'll find people, pray that they'll find you' (p. 5)."
"If we show up, our dreams will too (p. 5)."
"A dream is a dare (p. 6)."
"When we dream, remarkable things can happen (p. 6)."
"'Do not dare not to dare' (C.S. Lewis, p. 7)."
"Unfortunately, as adults we often put our dearest dreams away, as life hands us unexpected challenges or circumstances and the harsh realities of economic necessity whittle away at our energy and our hopes (p. 7)."
"When we dream, we make meaning of life, discover the essence of ourselves, truly grow up, and most importantly, model for children how to dream (p. 7)."
"When we dream, we begin to make meaning of these challenges (p. 10)."
"When there's something we want to accomplish, the power to achieve that dream often comes from facing our most wrenching sadness (p. 10)."
"'The miles of quiet along the river were a sanctuary for my searching prayers... My training schedule gave routine, energy, and sustaining friendship to my uncertainty' (p. 12)."
"'Realizing that many women lack a support structure when they need it most, I set out to build the beta for Honestly Now--a digital platform to help people get honest feedback from their friends--delivering the advice, affirmation, and warm hug I used to get from my mom' (p. 13)."
"Tereza turned one of the most difficult moments of her life into an opportunity to support other women in their struggles (p. 15)."
"'There is a power in storytelling that can transform our lives' (p. 16)."
"My effort to grow closer to my mother through cooking became another dream waiting to be fulfilled, through a book called 90 Miles 90 Recipes... While learning how she orchestrated these flavors, I began to understand my mother as a woman with many gifts (p. 18)."
"'Our personal narratives guide behavior in every moment, and frame not only how we see the past but how we see ourselves in the future' (p. 19)."
"'Our stories need to be told. Our stories help us connect' (p. 20)."
"What are the sorrows in your life? Can you build dreams that help make sense of your sadness? (p. 21)"
"'God calls you to the place where your deep gladness and the world's deep hunger meet' (Frederick Buechner, p. 21)."
"'Voice is everything we are, all that we have observed, the emotional chords that are uniquely ours--all our flaws and all of our strengths, expressed the words that best reflect us. Voice is like a snowflake--complicated, beautiful, and individual. It is essence of self, distilled and offered in service to the world' (p. 23)."
"'I love being my children's mother. However, after a few years of being at home full-time, I realized something was missing. I did not feel heard' (p. 23)."
"'As I listen and try to understand my children's emerging voices, their attempts to listen back enable my own voice' (p. 25)."
"'I knew that my personal work fed my creative spirit, but the roar of a hungry tummy was more audible' (p. 26)."
"We all have something to say, but many of us simply need to learn how to speak... 'Use your words!' (p. 28)"
"Would the Berlin Wall have fallen without President Reagan's 1987 speech challenging Mikhail Gorbachev to 'tear down this wall'? Probably, but not as quickly (p. 29)."
"The only safe harbor is our convictions. Safe not because it proves we are right, or guarantees our popularity, but safe because it ensures we are honest to our core values. Articulating our beliefs tars down walls of all our own insecurities and clears the way for others to change (p. 29)."
"Although speaking from conviction might require us to say something others don't want to hear, it's not unkind (p. 29)."
"'If you move through the world with both intellect and compassion, then you have wisdom' (p. 30)."
"We each have a single life, made up of finite seconds that tick inexorably away (p. 32)."
"In learning to use our words, we believe what we say matters, that our opinions are as important as our encouraging words (p. 33)."
"Our names, our identities, our figuring out 'This is who I am' are a huge part of discovering our dreams (p. 35)."
"'The human voice is the most beautiful instrument of all, but it is the most difficult to play' (Richard Strauss, p. 36)."
"What if you had words to describe your dreams and to advocate for your dreams and the people you love? Would being able to articulate your thoughts--verbally or in writing--help your dreams come true? (p. 36)"
"If you speak a foreign language, are you bolder in that second tongue? (p. 36)"
"'Throw down your pom-poms and get in the game!' (p. 39)"
"'Have I done any good in the world today?' (p. 39)"
"Sifting through possibilities and establishing personal priorities in the face of conflicting feelings and competing loyalties requires a sorting of the seeds (p. 44)."
"'Turns out my eighteen-year-old self couldn't see the whole picture' (p. 44)."
"'Be the change you wish to see in the world' (Mahatma Gandhi, p. 47)."
"How does putting yourself at the center of your life help you to dream? (p. 52)"
"'What is wrong with me? Why can't I stay put? Confusion and self-doubt have been a part of every transition' (p. 57)."
"'Guilt has accompanied every life change I've made' (p. 58)."
"If by multitasking our dreams we can enable our children to keep theirs, isn't it worth doing? (p. 60)"
"Rather than living through our children, we can become witnesses to the lives they choose to live (p. 69)."
"How can learning to be Batman help us be a better Robin? (p. 69)"
"'What the mother sings to the cradle goes all the way down to the coffin' (Henry Ward Beecher, p. 69)."
"'Within your heart, keep one still, secret spot where dreams may go' (Louise Driscoll, p. 71)."
"You need to realign your dreams to fit your current circumstances, or you may find that your aspirations aren't yet in step with your genius (p. 71)."
"'I'm ready to dream. But I have no idea what my dream is!' (p. 73)"
"What did you like to do as a child? What makes you happy? What are some of your most difficult life experiences? How do your core beliefs help or hinder your dreams? Might your dream need some resizing--down or up? (p. 73)"
"I believed I had something to say... I wanted to find my voice. In finding myself and becoming the hero of my story, I hope to encourage other women to do the same (p. 75)."
"It's important that we hear women's voices. Unfortunately, so many women, even successful women, refuse to claim a central place in their lives and in their own stories that finding self-assured women within our circle of loved ones can be difficult (p. 81)."
"Discovering and 'doing' our dreams requires that we claim a central place in our lives, to accept not only a supporting role but also a leading role (p. 85)."
"'A hero ventures forth from the world of common day into a region of supernatural wonder: fabulous forces are there encountered and a decisive victory is won: the hero comes back from this mysterious adventure with the power to bestow boons on his fellow man' (Joseph Campbell, p. 85)."
"How does learning to become the hero help you discover your dream (p. 85)?"
"Clear the clutter and create a space where you can dream (p. 88)."
"Janika wisely recognized that she needed time and space to reconnect with herself in order to find her dreams, and she was brave enough to ask for the resources she needed (p. 92)."
"Why does making space for our dreams matter (p. 95)?"
"'Every time you spend money, you're casting a vote for the kind of world you want' (Anna Lappe, p. 95)."
"When we know what our strengths are, we have a better sense of self and self-confidence, and we are more likely to validate and encourage others (p. 98)."
"What makes you feel strong? (p. 99)"
"Look at yourself with new eyes. It's time you recognize just how smart and capable and competent you are... musical intelligence... spatial intelligence... bodily-kinesthetic intelligence... naturist intelligence... interpersonal intelligence... intrapersonal intelligence... existential intelligence (p. 103)."
"Do you feel a sense of accomplishment about finishing this task (p. 105)?"
"We become competent because we faced the challenge, walked through the fear, and developed strengths we had no idea we could or would (p. 106)."
"Learning to find my voice in Spanish has helped me find my voice in English (p. 106)."
"Full-time caregiving was not Amy's first choice... but she got good at what needed to be done and in the process developed a great compassion and appreciation for those who are full-time caregivers (p. 109)."
"The opportunity to develop competencies may be handed to us in the form of a crisis (p. 109)."
"'Luck is not chance--
It's toil--
Fortune's expensive smile
Is earned' (Emily Dickinson, p. 110)."
"We can get good at what we care about. We simply need the opportunity to practice (p. 111)."
"'Too many people overvalue what they are not and undervalue what they are' (Malcom Forbes, p. 112)."
"Identifying our strengths is key to defining our dreams (p. 113)."
"I am starting to think that the most effective preparation for a good career is religion (p. 119)."
"Doesn't dreaming involve figuring out the purpose of our lives and having the resolve to accomplish that purpose (p. 123)?"
"April is learning to set boundaries, to nurture herself so that she can nurture others--to make things magically work (p. 131)."
"It was only toward the end of my decade as an analyst that I began to believe I was good (p. 134)."
"'Motherhood is perhaps the greatest example of a long, long string of small things that, done with great love and extra thought, can have ripple effects that go on for generations' (p. 137)."
"'Taking treats to a lonely neighbor is just as important as sending money to a lonely orphan' (p. 137)."
"Learning to trust our judgment is one of the first skills we must learn, to truly grow up. Determining priorities may require that we 'sleep on it,' letting our subconscious mind, a repository of our deeply held principles and beliefs--work things out. As we learn to trust our intuition, providential guidance comes and clarity on how to properly size our dreams emerges (P. 141)."
"Do you have any dreams that are currently intersecting? How are you prioritizing them (p. 155)?"
"Make things happen--that's what women do (p. 157)."
"Dreaming is a discovery-driven process (p. 159)."
"The wonder of a voyage of discovery is that you don't know where it will lead (p. 167)."
"I became involved in public affairs for my church, which included launching the Know Your Neighbor website, meant to encourage members of my church to be more civic-minded (p. 167)."
"What kind of support might I need as I pursue this possibility? (p. 171)"
"Dreaming is ultimately about feeing our way toward what we were meant to do (p. 175)."
"It's important to trust our collaborators. If we're micromanaging, we may just need to stop (p. 187)."
"'You are the sum of the five people that you spend the most time with' (p. 191)."
"Start doing what you can do (p. 197)."
"Learning to bootstrap our way to a dream requires us to do more with less, to get creative to get things done (p. 200)."
"The only real failure is letting the dictates of perfectionism debilitate us, leaving us forever waiting for all the 'necessary' resources to arrive before doing our dreams. Bootstrapping teaches us to use what we have, even if it doesn't seem like much, and to begin now (p. 203)."
"We have so many commitments, that we want and need to keep, to God, family, friends, community, work, and most importantly, to ourselves (p. 218)."
"Sometimes our children can be our greatest examples, and in this case, Christina is teaching her mother how to try on a dream (p. 221)."
"'Always be a beginner at something' (Bill Buxton, p. 221)."
"Dreaming requires courage. Taking on our dreams is a bit like walking into a tunnel. As we contemplate the entrance to a dream, it may be unnerving, but while we are still surrounded by the known, there is a surge of armchair-dreaming adrenaline. Once inside the tunnel, we can be shrouded by second-guessing and self-doubt (p. 231)."
"'My dream has always been to make a difference--in a big way. In what way wasn't clear at the beginning, but I knew I wanted to work in another country. I wanted to learn about other ways of doing things. Learn what mattered. Learn why people do what they do. Most of all, I wanted to learn what my place in it all would be' (p. 232)."
"Whether our dream is to parent, paint, write a book, produce a film, or start a business, sometimes we'll achieve what we set out to do, sometimes we won't. Almost always what we do achieve will be different than what we originally envisioned. But ultimately, it's the aspiring not the actual achieving, that most matters (p. 240)."
"'Dreams may call for a leap of faith, a trusting that Providence will be our net, but they set our soul soaring' (p. 240)."
"Making a dream happen involves risk: risk of failure, risk associated with change. Taking on that risk requires facing our fears and courageously moving ahead with determination. Part of saying yes to ourselves is learning to say no to detractors. Part of saying yes is simply saying yes. I dare to dream (p. 240)."
"Although I now had a job, I still didn't know what I wanted to be when I grew up... I was intrigued by a law degree, but dismissed it as... I wasn't sure I was smart enough or that it was my right to even try... Without the skills, a relevant degree, or, most importantly, confidence, I was starting from behind. But I threw myself into my sales assistant job, took business courses at night, and in early 1992, three years after arriving in New York, my big break came (p. 2)."
"I began to see that dreaming was a process (p. 3)."
"I had to do something--and that something was creating the Dare to Dream blog, a safe space where intelligent, articulate women could explore their dormant dreams (p. 4)."
"Most of us don't dream well in isolation (p. 4)."
"'Instead of praying that you'll find people, pray that they'll find you' (p. 5)."
"If we show up, our dreams will too (p. 5)."
"A dream is a dare (p. 6)."
"When we dream, remarkable things can happen (p. 6)."
"'Do not dare not to dare' (C.S. Lewis, p. 7)."
"Unfortunately, as adults we often put our dearest dreams away, as life hands us unexpected challenges or circumstances and the harsh realities of economic necessity whittle away at our energy and our hopes (p. 7)."
"When we dream, we make meaning of life, discover the essence of ourselves, truly grow up, and most importantly, model for children how to dream (p. 7)."
"When we dream, we begin to make meaning of these challenges (p. 10)."
"When there's something we want to accomplish, the power to achieve that dream often comes from facing our most wrenching sadness (p. 10)."
"'The miles of quiet along the river were a sanctuary for my searching prayers... My training schedule gave routine, energy, and sustaining friendship to my uncertainty' (p. 12)."
"'Realizing that many women lack a support structure when they need it most, I set out to build the beta for Honestly Now--a digital platform to help people get honest feedback from their friends--delivering the advice, affirmation, and warm hug I used to get from my mom' (p. 13)."
"Tereza turned one of the most difficult moments of her life into an opportunity to support other women in their struggles (p. 15)."
"'There is a power in storytelling that can transform our lives' (p. 16)."
"My effort to grow closer to my mother through cooking became another dream waiting to be fulfilled, through a book called 90 Miles 90 Recipes... While learning how she orchestrated these flavors, I began to understand my mother as a woman with many gifts (p. 18)."
"'Our personal narratives guide behavior in every moment, and frame not only how we see the past but how we see ourselves in the future' (p. 19)."
"'Our stories need to be told. Our stories help us connect' (p. 20)."
"What are the sorrows in your life? Can you build dreams that help make sense of your sadness? (p. 21)"
"'God calls you to the place where your deep gladness and the world's deep hunger meet' (Frederick Buechner, p. 21)."
"'Voice is everything we are, all that we have observed, the emotional chords that are uniquely ours--all our flaws and all of our strengths, expressed the words that best reflect us. Voice is like a snowflake--complicated, beautiful, and individual. It is essence of self, distilled and offered in service to the world' (p. 23)."
"'I love being my children's mother. However, after a few years of being at home full-time, I realized something was missing. I did not feel heard' (p. 23)."
"'As I listen and try to understand my children's emerging voices, their attempts to listen back enable my own voice' (p. 25)."
"'I knew that my personal work fed my creative spirit, but the roar of a hungry tummy was more audible' (p. 26)."
"We all have something to say, but many of us simply need to learn how to speak... 'Use your words!' (p. 28)"
"Would the Berlin Wall have fallen without President Reagan's 1987 speech challenging Mikhail Gorbachev to 'tear down this wall'? Probably, but not as quickly (p. 29)."
"The only safe harbor is our convictions. Safe not because it proves we are right, or guarantees our popularity, but safe because it ensures we are honest to our core values. Articulating our beliefs tars down walls of all our own insecurities and clears the way for others to change (p. 29)."
"Although speaking from conviction might require us to say something others don't want to hear, it's not unkind (p. 29)."
"'If you move through the world with both intellect and compassion, then you have wisdom' (p. 30)."
"We each have a single life, made up of finite seconds that tick inexorably away (p. 32)."
"In learning to use our words, we believe what we say matters, that our opinions are as important as our encouraging words (p. 33)."
"Our names, our identities, our figuring out 'This is who I am' are a huge part of discovering our dreams (p. 35)."
"'The human voice is the most beautiful instrument of all, but it is the most difficult to play' (Richard Strauss, p. 36)."
"What if you had words to describe your dreams and to advocate for your dreams and the people you love? Would being able to articulate your thoughts--verbally or in writing--help your dreams come true? (p. 36)"
"If you speak a foreign language, are you bolder in that second tongue? (p. 36)"
"'Throw down your pom-poms and get in the game!' (p. 39)"
"'Have I done any good in the world today?' (p. 39)"
"Sifting through possibilities and establishing personal priorities in the face of conflicting feelings and competing loyalties requires a sorting of the seeds (p. 44)."
"'Turns out my eighteen-year-old self couldn't see the whole picture' (p. 44)."
"'Be the change you wish to see in the world' (Mahatma Gandhi, p. 47)."
"How does putting yourself at the center of your life help you to dream? (p. 52)"
"'What is wrong with me? Why can't I stay put? Confusion and self-doubt have been a part of every transition' (p. 57)."
"'Guilt has accompanied every life change I've made' (p. 58)."
"If by multitasking our dreams we can enable our children to keep theirs, isn't it worth doing? (p. 60)"
"Rather than living through our children, we can become witnesses to the lives they choose to live (p. 69)."
"How can learning to be Batman help us be a better Robin? (p. 69)"
"'What the mother sings to the cradle goes all the way down to the coffin' (Henry Ward Beecher, p. 69)."
"'Within your heart, keep one still, secret spot where dreams may go' (Louise Driscoll, p. 71)."
"You need to realign your dreams to fit your current circumstances, or you may find that your aspirations aren't yet in step with your genius (p. 71)."
"'I'm ready to dream. But I have no idea what my dream is!' (p. 73)"
"What did you like to do as a child? What makes you happy? What are some of your most difficult life experiences? How do your core beliefs help or hinder your dreams? Might your dream need some resizing--down or up? (p. 73)"
"I believed I had something to say... I wanted to find my voice. In finding myself and becoming the hero of my story, I hope to encourage other women to do the same (p. 75)."
"It's important that we hear women's voices. Unfortunately, so many women, even successful women, refuse to claim a central place in their lives and in their own stories that finding self-assured women within our circle of loved ones can be difficult (p. 81)."
"Discovering and 'doing' our dreams requires that we claim a central place in our lives, to accept not only a supporting role but also a leading role (p. 85)."
"'A hero ventures forth from the world of common day into a region of supernatural wonder: fabulous forces are there encountered and a decisive victory is won: the hero comes back from this mysterious adventure with the power to bestow boons on his fellow man' (Joseph Campbell, p. 85)."
"How does learning to become the hero help you discover your dream (p. 85)?"
"Clear the clutter and create a space where you can dream (p. 88)."
"Janika wisely recognized that she needed time and space to reconnect with herself in order to find her dreams, and she was brave enough to ask for the resources she needed (p. 92)."
"Why does making space for our dreams matter (p. 95)?"
"'Every time you spend money, you're casting a vote for the kind of world you want' (Anna Lappe, p. 95)."
"When we know what our strengths are, we have a better sense of self and self-confidence, and we are more likely to validate and encourage others (p. 98)."
"What makes you feel strong? (p. 99)"
"Look at yourself with new eyes. It's time you recognize just how smart and capable and competent you are... musical intelligence... spatial intelligence... bodily-kinesthetic intelligence... naturist intelligence... interpersonal intelligence... intrapersonal intelligence... existential intelligence (p. 103)."
"Do you feel a sense of accomplishment about finishing this task (p. 105)?"
"We become competent because we faced the challenge, walked through the fear, and developed strengths we had no idea we could or would (p. 106)."
"Learning to find my voice in Spanish has helped me find my voice in English (p. 106)."
"Full-time caregiving was not Amy's first choice... but she got good at what needed to be done and in the process developed a great compassion and appreciation for those who are full-time caregivers (p. 109)."
"The opportunity to develop competencies may be handed to us in the form of a crisis (p. 109)."
"'Luck is not chance--
It's toil--
Fortune's expensive smile
Is earned' (Emily Dickinson, p. 110)."
"We can get good at what we care about. We simply need the opportunity to practice (p. 111)."
"'Too many people overvalue what they are not and undervalue what they are' (Malcom Forbes, p. 112)."
"Identifying our strengths is key to defining our dreams (p. 113)."
"I am starting to think that the most effective preparation for a good career is religion (p. 119)."
"Doesn't dreaming involve figuring out the purpose of our lives and having the resolve to accomplish that purpose (p. 123)?"
"April is learning to set boundaries, to nurture herself so that she can nurture others--to make things magically work (p. 131)."
"It was only toward the end of my decade as an analyst that I began to believe I was good (p. 134)."
"'Motherhood is perhaps the greatest example of a long, long string of small things that, done with great love and extra thought, can have ripple effects that go on for generations' (p. 137)."
"'Taking treats to a lonely neighbor is just as important as sending money to a lonely orphan' (p. 137)."
"Learning to trust our judgment is one of the first skills we must learn, to truly grow up. Determining priorities may require that we 'sleep on it,' letting our subconscious mind, a repository of our deeply held principles and beliefs--work things out. As we learn to trust our intuition, providential guidance comes and clarity on how to properly size our dreams emerges (P. 141)."
"Do you have any dreams that are currently intersecting? How are you prioritizing them (p. 155)?"
"Make things happen--that's what women do (p. 157)."
"Dreaming is a discovery-driven process (p. 159)."
"The wonder of a voyage of discovery is that you don't know where it will lead (p. 167)."
"I became involved in public affairs for my church, which included launching the Know Your Neighbor website, meant to encourage members of my church to be more civic-minded (p. 167)."
"What kind of support might I need as I pursue this possibility? (p. 171)"
"Dreaming is ultimately about feeing our way toward what we were meant to do (p. 175)."
"It's important to trust our collaborators. If we're micromanaging, we may just need to stop (p. 187)."
"'You are the sum of the five people that you spend the most time with' (p. 191)."
"Start doing what you can do (p. 197)."
"Learning to bootstrap our way to a dream requires us to do more with less, to get creative to get things done (p. 200)."
"The only real failure is letting the dictates of perfectionism debilitate us, leaving us forever waiting for all the 'necessary' resources to arrive before doing our dreams. Bootstrapping teaches us to use what we have, even if it doesn't seem like much, and to begin now (p. 203)."
"We have so many commitments, that we want and need to keep, to God, family, friends, community, work, and most importantly, to ourselves (p. 218)."
"Sometimes our children can be our greatest examples, and in this case, Christina is teaching her mother how to try on a dream (p. 221)."
"'Always be a beginner at something' (Bill Buxton, p. 221)."
"Dreaming requires courage. Taking on our dreams is a bit like walking into a tunnel. As we contemplate the entrance to a dream, it may be unnerving, but while we are still surrounded by the known, there is a surge of armchair-dreaming adrenaline. Once inside the tunnel, we can be shrouded by second-guessing and self-doubt (p. 231)."
"'My dream has always been to make a difference--in a big way. In what way wasn't clear at the beginning, but I knew I wanted to work in another country. I wanted to learn about other ways of doing things. Learn what mattered. Learn why people do what they do. Most of all, I wanted to learn what my place in it all would be' (p. 232)."
"Whether our dream is to parent, paint, write a book, produce a film, or start a business, sometimes we'll achieve what we set out to do, sometimes we won't. Almost always what we do achieve will be different than what we originally envisioned. But ultimately, it's the aspiring not the actual achieving, that most matters (p. 240)."
"'Dreams may call for a leap of faith, a trusting that Providence will be our net, but they set our soul soaring' (p. 240)."
"Making a dream happen involves risk: risk of failure, risk associated with change. Taking on that risk requires facing our fears and courageously moving ahead with determination. Part of saying yes to ourselves is learning to say no to detractors. Part of saying yes is simply saying yes. I dare to dream (p. 240)."
Read
June 9, 2013Disclaimer: This might be a little more about how I've been approaching gender issues than it is about the book. BUT this line of thinking was prompted by the book, so I think it's relevant.
I've been following Whitney's articles / Twitter for a while, so when she mentioned the book was on sale for Kindle, I decided it was a good time to pick up a copy. I was expecting a book that was typical-HBS press - studies saying "well, if you focus on high level aspirational goals in your organization, etc," some practical advice, and some surprise twist.
This book is not that.
I was not the intended audience. I spent a good first half of the book seething about how the book felt patronizing and regressive. It seemed to start from the assumption that women want to have families, and are convinced they can't be fulfilled as individuals while doing that. This felt irrelevant to me, as all other choices aside, I've never felt as though self actualization is impossible.
Given that was the main conclusion, nothing in the book felt radical. In fact, it frequently felt like a compromise to me - rather than discussing how to help change the system to allow women to have careers, it was more about "fitting in." There were many many anecdotes about how to stay home with children and then manage to fit back in after. For me, it was scary to read something that seemed to rationalize and justify staying home, and then went as far as to make it sound like it would be a career asset, rather than a cost. (As an aside, I do believe there are lots of things people learn from parenting, and especially from parenting full time. But right now the statistics seem to show that on the whole, it's a detriment for most people).
I got so angry about all of this rationalization that I almost stopped reading. I kept going because I decided if something was going to make me that uncomfortable, there was something I needed to get out of it. On the upside, I was right about that. Eventually, my perspective started to shift. It was around then that it dawned on me that "this book isn't for really for me, but it is for a huge set of people who think this way."
This next part will sound naive, but I'd unconsciously held the belief that people who wanted to stay home with kids just didn't care about the other parts of life. It hadn't occurred to me that they probably did want to do other things too, but didn't feel like they could achieve them without compromising their family. Reading the stories showed me that for many, the limitation being faced isn't laziness or complacency - it's fear or anxiety of all the things that could go wrong when trying to add other things to having a family.
Given that, I realized I've been approaching some gender issues incorrectly because I've been addressing the wrong issues all together. I knew my usual approach of getting frustrated and saying "noooo, but people SHOULD work, so they have an individual identity" was far from ideal, but in reality it’s worse than useless. It turns out yelling "be self actualized, dammit!" really won't convince anyone.
I'm pretty sure what I should actually do is be more conscious of helping people to take realistic steps towards pursuing their passions and goals, in ways that fit with their circumstances (instead of seeing those steps as "not enough.") Then, as future generations see more self actualized women (fulfilling many paths), they'll have a better idea of what they want, too.
Anyway, it's entirely possible that other people don't hold the same biases I did, at which point the book wouldn't be helpful for you. But given the state of arguments about gender in the media, I think at least some other people feel the way I do. So... if you're generally the type of person who gets frustrated / confused when women want to stay home with kids full time, you might want to read this book. It's not really targeted at you, but it might help you to better understand some of the things your peers are thinking/feeling, and how you could be more helpful.
I've been following Whitney's articles / Twitter for a while, so when she mentioned the book was on sale for Kindle, I decided it was a good time to pick up a copy. I was expecting a book that was typical-HBS press - studies saying "well, if you focus on high level aspirational goals in your organization, etc," some practical advice, and some surprise twist.
This book is not that.
I was not the intended audience. I spent a good first half of the book seething about how the book felt patronizing and regressive. It seemed to start from the assumption that women want to have families, and are convinced they can't be fulfilled as individuals while doing that. This felt irrelevant to me, as all other choices aside, I've never felt as though self actualization is impossible.
Given that was the main conclusion, nothing in the book felt radical. In fact, it frequently felt like a compromise to me - rather than discussing how to help change the system to allow women to have careers, it was more about "fitting in." There were many many anecdotes about how to stay home with children and then manage to fit back in after. For me, it was scary to read something that seemed to rationalize and justify staying home, and then went as far as to make it sound like it would be a career asset, rather than a cost. (As an aside, I do believe there are lots of things people learn from parenting, and especially from parenting full time. But right now the statistics seem to show that on the whole, it's a detriment for most people).
I got so angry about all of this rationalization that I almost stopped reading. I kept going because I decided if something was going to make me that uncomfortable, there was something I needed to get out of it. On the upside, I was right about that. Eventually, my perspective started to shift. It was around then that it dawned on me that "this book isn't for really for me, but it is for a huge set of people who think this way."
This next part will sound naive, but I'd unconsciously held the belief that people who wanted to stay home with kids just didn't care about the other parts of life. It hadn't occurred to me that they probably did want to do other things too, but didn't feel like they could achieve them without compromising their family. Reading the stories showed me that for many, the limitation being faced isn't laziness or complacency - it's fear or anxiety of all the things that could go wrong when trying to add other things to having a family.
Given that, I realized I've been approaching some gender issues incorrectly because I've been addressing the wrong issues all together. I knew my usual approach of getting frustrated and saying "noooo, but people SHOULD work, so they have an individual identity" was far from ideal, but in reality it’s worse than useless. It turns out yelling "be self actualized, dammit!" really won't convince anyone.
I'm pretty sure what I should actually do is be more conscious of helping people to take realistic steps towards pursuing their passions and goals, in ways that fit with their circumstances (instead of seeing those steps as "not enough.") Then, as future generations see more self actualized women (fulfilling many paths), they'll have a better idea of what they want, too.
Anyway, it's entirely possible that other people don't hold the same biases I did, at which point the book wouldn't be helpful for you. But given the state of arguments about gender in the media, I think at least some other people feel the way I do. So... if you're generally the type of person who gets frustrated / confused when women want to stay home with kids full time, you might want to read this book. It's not really targeted at you, but it might help you to better understand some of the things your peers are thinking/feeling, and how you could be more helpful.
July 15, 2012
This is a book for women, the same women that have, most of the times, a lot of difficulties to have a career, a family and kids. The author try to help with suggestion, real life stories and her story too and at the end she says that if you dare to dream your dream and do something about it, good things happen to help you fulfill it, but you really have to do something about that, which is way more better than "The secret" and the law of attraction, in my opinion anyway.
Questo è un libro scritto da una donna per le donne che, la maggior parte delle volte, hanno delle difficoltà a conciliare una carriera con una famiglia e dei figli. L'autrice cerca di "aiutare" con suggerimenti, storie di vita vissuta da altre donne e il suo personale esempio e alla fine sembra che se una donna ha un sogno e osa portarlo avanti cercando di soddisfarlo, accadono cose ed eventi che possono aiutarla in tal senso a patto che lei ci s'impegni parecchio, che secondo me è un atteggiamento di gran lunga più produttivo di quello esposto in "The secret" e la legge dell'attrazione.
THANKS TO NEGALLEY AND BIBLIOMOTION FOR THE PREVIEW
Questo è un libro scritto da una donna per le donne che, la maggior parte delle volte, hanno delle difficoltà a conciliare una carriera con una famiglia e dei figli. L'autrice cerca di "aiutare" con suggerimenti, storie di vita vissuta da altre donne e il suo personale esempio e alla fine sembra che se una donna ha un sogno e osa portarlo avanti cercando di soddisfarlo, accadono cose ed eventi che possono aiutarla in tal senso a patto che lei ci s'impegni parecchio, che secondo me è un atteggiamento di gran lunga più produttivo di quello esposto in "The secret" e la legge dell'attrazione.
THANKS TO NEGALLEY AND BIBLIOMOTION FOR THE PREVIEW
March 2, 2013
A previous reviewer captured precisely my sense of this book- it may be a wonderful thing for people who have very different lives than mine (in particular, married with children and devoutly religious).
I'm starting to believe that I need a new shelf entitled "Abandon ship!" since this one was another that I was unable to finish. I was willing to give it one more chapter and hit the chapter on feminine identity. Instead of dealing with the robust set of issues surrounding women's culturally expected roles, or the impact of expectations and role models on women's achievement, the chapter focussed more than 80% on women's identity as a wife and mother. Well and good, but not the whole picture at all.
And that, my friends, ended my attempts to read this book. If you want a copy signed by Whitney Johnson, it will be available at my yard sale in early May.
I'm starting to believe that I need a new shelf entitled "Abandon ship!" since this one was another that I was unable to finish. I was willing to give it one more chapter and hit the chapter on feminine identity. Instead of dealing with the robust set of issues surrounding women's culturally expected roles, or the impact of expectations and role models on women's achievement, the chapter focussed more than 80% on women's identity as a wife and mother. Well and good, but not the whole picture at all.
And that, my friends, ended my attempts to read this book. If you want a copy signed by Whitney Johnson, it will be available at my yard sale in early May.
August 26, 2014
The book is encouraging and the idea of pursuing your dreams is a great topic. However, I prefer to read books that are more centered in the author's idea instead of a collection of other people's story. I agree with Jenny that the book is more like a blog.
June 18, 2022
TL;DR:
Discover the courage and motivation to define your dream.
Summary:
Author, Whitney Johnson, is a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, as am I, which is the primary reason why I read it. This book speaks to educated, capable women about the tension between living up to their professional potential while honoring their roles as wives and mothers.
In Dare, Dream, Do, Johnson shares her personal story as a Wall Street stocks analyst/trader turned homemaker. (Although, it's unfair to her to reduce her to just those labels because she is so much more.) While Johnson shifts her priority from work to elsewhere, mid-life, she never resigns herself to a single role. Her story serves as evidence that women (and men) can do much more than they believe they can do if they have the hope to dream. The rest of the book includes inspirational quotes, similar stories from women, and allusions to timeless works in support of her "can-do" theme.
Review:
Sadly, only 2 stars from me on this one, which feel generous. The book's message—Dare to Dream; Dream to do—lacked profundity for me. While evidently motivating for a specific demographic (other, 35-year-old+ women feeling trapped between their untapped professional aspirations and their strong family and religious values), I found the driving message unpersuasive. The title was puzzling. While the overlapping nature of the Dx3 verbs is well illustrated through the use of a Venn diagram, Johnson insists upon a specific order, which I had trouble getting behind. Overall, the book felt unnecessary. It seems like her publisher said to Johnson, "Hey, you haven't published a book in 9 months or so; why don't you cull together some ideas from your recent blog and Twitter posts and we'll bind it." Instead, just by a Spotify ad that says, "I've created a podcast community primarily starring women helping women identify their dreams and who offer helpful tips to get going. Check it out."
I hope her other books will offer more concrete business advice.
Smart Growth: How to Grow Your People to Grow Your Company
Build an A Team
Disrupt Yourself
Discover the courage and motivation to define your dream.
Summary:
Author, Whitney Johnson, is a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, as am I, which is the primary reason why I read it. This book speaks to educated, capable women about the tension between living up to their professional potential while honoring their roles as wives and mothers.
In Dare, Dream, Do, Johnson shares her personal story as a Wall Street stocks analyst/trader turned homemaker. (Although, it's unfair to her to reduce her to just those labels because she is so much more.) While Johnson shifts her priority from work to elsewhere, mid-life, she never resigns herself to a single role. Her story serves as evidence that women (and men) can do much more than they believe they can do if they have the hope to dream. The rest of the book includes inspirational quotes, similar stories from women, and allusions to timeless works in support of her "can-do" theme.
Review:
Sadly, only 2 stars from me on this one, which feel generous. The book's message—Dare to Dream; Dream to do—lacked profundity for me. While evidently motivating for a specific demographic (other, 35-year-old+ women feeling trapped between their untapped professional aspirations and their strong family and religious values), I found the driving message unpersuasive. The title was puzzling. While the overlapping nature of the Dx3 verbs is well illustrated through the use of a Venn diagram, Johnson insists upon a specific order, which I had trouble getting behind. Overall, the book felt unnecessary. It seems like her publisher said to Johnson, "Hey, you haven't published a book in 9 months or so; why don't you cull together some ideas from your recent blog and Twitter posts and we'll bind it." Instead, just by a Spotify ad that says, "I've created a podcast community primarily starring women helping women identify their dreams and who offer helpful tips to get going. Check it out."
I hope her other books will offer more concrete business advice.
Smart Growth: How to Grow Your People to Grow Your Company
Build an A Team
Disrupt Yourself
May 17, 2017
This is for men too
I almost didn't read this book because I saw that it was for women. Because this is about dreaming I chose to proceed. I'm so glad I did. This helped me to understand so much of what women go through with the pressure of wanting to become a wife, and mom, while also trying to pursue their career. It also helped me to seek and pursue my own dreams. Great book!
I almost didn't read this book because I saw that it was for women. Because this is about dreaming I chose to proceed. I'm so glad I did. This helped me to understand so much of what women go through with the pressure of wanting to become a wife, and mom, while also trying to pursue their career. It also helped me to seek and pursue my own dreams. Great book!
May 6, 2018
Inspiring! Im excited to date my dreams and see where they take me. This book challenges you to discover your dream, realize it will evolve and probably look very different than what you first think and that you can realize your dreams by starting small, investigating, trying and changing and learning who you are in the process. Read it!
March 17, 2019
Knowing that I am not fond of books full of people telling stories about their lives, I do tend to pick up a bunch of them. What I need is someone to make Cliff's Notes of these things that take out all of the "inspiring real life stories" and just give me the core advice.
January 19, 2021
The book is probably made for a certain lectors. It s inspiring by the different personal sacrifices but it sounds like a blog. Honestly I can only take a few learning from it and will not be a book I will recommend.
September 27, 2022
This book has many nuggets of wisdom and examples of women living that wisdom. It's as fresh in 2022 as it was in 2012. It's sent me on a quest to learn more about the myth of Psyche. It's the mark of an excellent author when a book makes me want to learn more.
February 18, 2019
Not earth shattering. Not terrible
August 7, 2020
DREAMS
-Dreaming is essential. Dreaming is how adults find meaning in their lives and come to understand who they really are.
-When faced with challenges, dreams can give hope.
May 29, 2023
Just didn’t speak to me the way I hoped it would.
September 17, 2016
I've read a book by a Dutch author named "Dream, Dare, Do". This title triggered me because the Dare is before the Dream. And I've learned this makes a huge difference. Because what is my dream? What is your dream? Sure, I have goals but a dream? I can't say it in one sentences. I have to Dare to Dream first. Johnson wrote a great book about dreaming and making your dream reality. There were a lof of stories from women to backup her theory. A great part of the stories I didn't read because there were so many and not all the stories were interesting to me. I did pay extra attention to the stories of women I could relate to. After reading this book I decided that I'm going to discover what my dream is and that means focusing on me.
March 1, 2017
It is full of platitudes. I never really connected with the material.
February 19, 2013
I first heard about this book via an interview Whitney did with Jonathan Fields for his Good Life Project. I loved everything about her from that interview, so I knew I had to read the book.
The idea of dreaming and doing actually echoes the ideas from some of the other books I've read recently, including The Icarus Deception and The Element. These authors must all be drinking from the same glass of Kool-Aid cause they all tell us essentially the same thing: figure out what you're good at, what you enjoy and then go do something about it.
In Whitney's book, the biggest downside for me (and it really isn't *that* big of one) is the prevalence of motherhood. Many of the anecdotes included in the book were written by women with children and talked about the role of motherhood in their dreams. I should've know that would be the case, in hindsight, because mothers make up the group most likely to NOT dare, dream, and do. But with that said, I enjoyed the stories and they really helped drive her point home.
The idea of dreaming and doing actually echoes the ideas from some of the other books I've read recently, including The Icarus Deception and The Element. These authors must all be drinking from the same glass of Kool-Aid cause they all tell us essentially the same thing: figure out what you're good at, what you enjoy and then go do something about it.
In Whitney's book, the biggest downside for me (and it really isn't *that* big of one) is the prevalence of motherhood. Many of the anecdotes included in the book were written by women with children and talked about the role of motherhood in their dreams. I should've know that would be the case, in hindsight, because mothers make up the group most likely to NOT dare, dream, and do. But with that said, I enjoyed the stories and they really helped drive her point home.
September 27, 2015
won this book in a literal rock paper scissors battle, so decided to read it while internet was down and I was too lazy to go to the library. it was very bootstrappy and repetitive, especially with all the mentions of psyche from greek mythology. it was also very geared toward moms, which I am not, so maybe I would have appreciated it more if I was? I was also kind of uncomfortable with the whole thing about women having specific personality traits (like empathy and being social and stuff) because that's not really how that works? also there was actual use of the word "sistergy" and I didn't know how that made me feel
I did enjoy reading the excerpts of stories from other people who wrote in to her blog, and it was nice that stories included a lot of small dreams (like becoming a mom) along with a few bigger ones relating to career and stuff.
I did enjoy reading the excerpts of stories from other people who wrote in to her blog, and it was nice that stories included a lot of small dreams (like becoming a mom) along with a few bigger ones relating to career and stuff.
September 19, 2014
I've been reading this book at work, little by little, so it's taken me forever to get through. I took three pages of notes, and I'm excited to go back and put together a succinct summary and action plan related to the ideas that stood out as most important for me. I like that this book isn't just about career dreams; it's about life dreams. Johnson acknowledges that there are other aspects of life that are important and sometimes focusing on achieving those dreams means that our career plans change. On the other hand, all of the advice and stories certainly are applicable to career dreams, making this a book that would be relevant to anyone, no matter what their stage in life is at the moment.
February 2, 2015
I’m kind of over it with books based on blogs, wherein the author cobbles together some old blog posts with a couple of sentences of filler in between. There are lots of limits to the blog post genre when it comes to deep thinking, and books made from blog posts tend to make that even more painfully clear. But this book takes it to another level by using posts not by the author, but by other people. And then the author sort of strung the posts together with asides and reiterations and strained use of Greek myth. (Example: “To make our dreams happen, we sometimes need an eagle, an eagle who has skills, connections, or knowledge that we need but currently don’t have.”)
{Read my full review here}
{Read my full review here}
October 1, 2012
I read the book and then had the opportunity to hear Whitney Johnson, the author, speak briefly at a luncheon I attended.
A few thoughts about the book:
1. I love the concepts, however, most are probably not a reality for many women.
2. The book, I believe, is more effective for women that are ready to focus on the next chapter of their lives after their first career ~ perhaps women in their 40s, 50s, or olders.
3. Being a woman in my 40s, I believe the author's concepts are solid.
4. If you are just starting your career and are in your 20s or early 30s, you probably will not find much value in the book.
A few thoughts about the book:
1. I love the concepts, however, most are probably not a reality for many women.
2. The book, I believe, is more effective for women that are ready to focus on the next chapter of their lives after their first career ~ perhaps women in their 40s, 50s, or olders.
3. Being a woman in my 40s, I believe the author's concepts are solid.
4. If you are just starting your career and are in your 20s or early 30s, you probably will not find much value in the book.
February 24, 2015
I was hoping for a lot more from this book in the way of self help/ instructions for how to fulfill your dreams. I don't know, I guess it just kind of fell flat for me. I am a stay at home mom of 3/ co-op homeschooling teacher for 2 other families so I have a lot on my plate already, but I still want to find space in my life for me. I was hoping this book would help me do that, but it just didn't. I wasn't too into the 1st and 3rd sections, but the middle was good. I liked the variety of stories from successful women/mothers. All in all it was worth reading, but I wouldn't pass it on to all my sisters and friends with tons of praise like I had been planing on originally...
November 1, 2015
As women often times we find ourselves living docile domestic lives and the message in this book: while you can honor your innate nurturer, you can also be the star of you life. Dare, Dream, Do encourages women to find their inner voice and be true to whatever it is it has to say. It includes some pretty inspiring quotes and awesome personal accounts from women around the world daring to dream. A very feminist friendly, girl power, read. Loved it! Are you the hero of your story? I am (well, I'm working very diligently to be)! I am also challenging myself to, more importantly than dreaming, do.
December 27, 2015
There are some things I really enjoyed about this book--like the questions she wrote at the end of each chapter. Great questions to really get you thinking about your dreams, goals, etc. I wasn't a huge fan of all the excerpts from other women. I felt like it was a good idea, but it felt a bit too much like I was reading a bunch of blogs and not a book by one author. I saw the author speak and that is the reason why I bought her book. I guess I just wanted to read more from the author and not other random women. Overall I am glad I read it, but not something that I would highly recommend anyone to read.
June 13, 2012
Nothing too revolutionary here on the self-help spectrum but this book is a good reminder that in order to achieve our dreams we have to remember what they are. This book encourages women, who can tend to put others first, to take the starring role in their own loves. Perhaps the best part of the book is all the stories written by women from all walks of life, sharing successes and frustrations. Lots of the stories were by wives and mothers looking to balance being a good mother with pursuing their own dreams.
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