What do you think?
Rate this book
The IF in Life: How to Get Off Life's Sidelines and Become Your Best Self
As a kid, Rashad Jennings dreamed of one day playing in the NFL, but the odds were stacked against him: he was an overweight kid with glasses, asthma, and a 0.6 GPA. Today, Rashad is a record-setting running back who has played with the Jacksonville Jaguars, the Oakland Raiders, and the New York Giants. In The IF in Life, Rashad writes transparently about the decisions that shaped his destiny. From overcoming injuries and setbacks to reaching goals, Rashad's journey inspires, imparting practical wisdom and encouraging listeners to follow their dreams.
Audio CD
Published May 8, 2018
34 people are currently reading
248 people want to read
About the author
Rashad Jennings
12 books11 followersNew York Times bestselling author and retired NFL running back Rashad Jennings is an impactful influencer, inspirational speaker, and nationally recognized personality. Throughout his successful eight-year career in the NFL, as well as during his championship-winning Season 24 Dancing with the Stars, Rashad gained the love and support of fans throughout the country. Today, Rashad is driven to make a national impact and lasting legacy through The Rashad Jennings Foundation, established in 2013. This award-winning foundation is dedicated to inspiring youth through the foundation’s Flagship Literacy program which is currently successfully implemented in 12 of the 32 NFL cities, in addition to providing mentorship and promoting health and fitness nationwide. Rashad has also authored The If In Life: How to Get Off Life’s Sidelines and Become Your Best Self. Follow Rashad on Twitter, Instagram, Snapchat, and Facebook.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 36 reviews
January 7, 2020
Fantastic! I listened to the audiobook. To be honest, I did not know who Rashad Jennings was before I started this book. I don’t watch football and I don’t watch Dancing with the Stars.😂 I chose this book because I like to listen to biographies.
Rashad has a great story of overcoming and persistence to tell. I enjoyed his many anecdotes. His message of making right small choices to determine your outcome and not listening to anyone telling you that you can’t really resonated with me. It was a self-help book but it was enjoyable and motivational. One of my favorite anecdotes was about his English term paper citings. Literally, laughed out loud at that.
Great story . Totally recommend.
Rashad has a great story of overcoming and persistence to tell. I enjoyed his many anecdotes. His message of making right small choices to determine your outcome and not listening to anyone telling you that you can’t really resonated with me. It was a self-help book but it was enjoyable and motivational. One of my favorite anecdotes was about his English term paper citings. Literally, laughed out loud at that.
Great story . Totally recommend.
March 11, 2019
This book was AMAZING. I didn't think it would hit me this hard, but it did. I cried in two spots and it inspired me to look up his Dancing with the Stars routines. And they were also amazing. You can SEE what he says in the book, about all of his hard work to be the best, because his performances with Emma were flawless.
The parts with his dad made me cry. So good! Highly recommended!
5, this is the sleeper book you didn't know you needed to read, read it now, stars!
The parts with his dad made me cry. So good! Highly recommended!
5, this is the sleeper book you didn't know you needed to read, read it now, stars!
May 12, 2018
Thank you NetGalley for the copy of The IF in Life: How to Get Off Life's Sidelines and Become Your Best Self By Rashad Jennings that I read and reviewed.
I will admit that I am a huge football fan but Rashad Jennings stayed under my radar until I watched him on Dancing With The Stars and I fell in love with him as an athlete and a dancer. He was great on that show and I was hoping an NFL team would give him another chance but that is not what happened so when I saw this book I had read it to learn more about the man behind the that charming smile.
This book opened my eyes to the complex life that Jennings lived and what he gave up and and all that he went through to reach his dreams. If you have a child or know a child that needs a bit of motivation to reach his dreams and not let anything hold them back this would be an excellent book to hand them and have them read. There are a few athletes that you can say are true role models and Rashad Jennings is one of them. He used his family and his faith in God to get where is today and he is proud to give the credit where it belongs. He is a great leader for youth today and this book showing his journey is a great tribute to the man he has become.
The IF in Life gets five out of five stars from me.
I will admit that I am a huge football fan but Rashad Jennings stayed under my radar until I watched him on Dancing With The Stars and I fell in love with him as an athlete and a dancer. He was great on that show and I was hoping an NFL team would give him another chance but that is not what happened so when I saw this book I had read it to learn more about the man behind the that charming smile.
This book opened my eyes to the complex life that Jennings lived and what he gave up and and all that he went through to reach his dreams. If you have a child or know a child that needs a bit of motivation to reach his dreams and not let anything hold them back this would be an excellent book to hand them and have them read. There are a few athletes that you can say are true role models and Rashad Jennings is one of them. He used his family and his faith in God to get where is today and he is proud to give the credit where it belongs. He is a great leader for youth today and this book showing his journey is a great tribute to the man he has become.
The IF in Life gets five out of five stars from me.
December 4, 2020
This is a MUST READ!!!! ❤️
What a powerful, motivating and inspiring book! If you enjoy Rashad Jennings as a football player, dancer and person you’ll thoroughly appreciate the messages behind his bestseller. :)
Even if you don’t know anything about him but are looking for a story that will encourage you to live out your life and dreams to the fullest, you should give this a try. You won’t be disappointed. :)
I loved it and I highly recommend the audiobook! It has undoubtedly one of the best narrations I’ve listened to!
What a powerful, motivating and inspiring book! If you enjoy Rashad Jennings as a football player, dancer and person you’ll thoroughly appreciate the messages behind his bestseller. :)
Even if you don’t know anything about him but are looking for a story that will encourage you to live out your life and dreams to the fullest, you should give this a try. You won’t be disappointed. :)
I loved it and I highly recommend the audiobook! It has undoubtedly one of the best narrations I’ve listened to!
January 3, 2019
An excellent book for older kids through young adults. It’s a great story of Rashad’s Jennings career but more importantly, a book meant to inspire readers to take hold of their life and live with purpose. There aren’t a lot of books about life purpose for young people that are entertaining while inspiring, so it fills an important void. It seems equally appealing to young men and women, in my opinion.
It’s a faith based book but a “soft sell” at times. I held back on giving this a 5 star rating because a few times, Rashad leans too much on individual hard work, neglecting to mention Gods power overall. It’s inconsistent on that point. I appreciate the fact that getting “too preachy” is easily a turnoff for a non Christian reader or someone early in their faith. I’m assuming the publisher rather go easy on the faith narrative to spark an interest in God rather than come on too strong and turn off a reader completely. Unfortunately, on page 192 Rashad writes, “ When I look at the successes I’ve been blessed with, I can only point to one thing: a strong work ethic. That’s why I want to remind you that you can be enough.”
I think I know what he’s getting at here, that you are enough, WITH GOD, But as written, this contradicts the Christian teaching shared elsewhere throughout the book.
My recommendation for Christian parents is to read the book to and talk about it with your young person. (Even if they are in their 20’s!)
Back to the positives, I wish I had this book in my junior high years. It would have been like the reassurance of a big brother!
It’s a faith based book but a “soft sell” at times. I held back on giving this a 5 star rating because a few times, Rashad leans too much on individual hard work, neglecting to mention Gods power overall. It’s inconsistent on that point. I appreciate the fact that getting “too preachy” is easily a turnoff for a non Christian reader or someone early in their faith. I’m assuming the publisher rather go easy on the faith narrative to spark an interest in God rather than come on too strong and turn off a reader completely. Unfortunately, on page 192 Rashad writes, “ When I look at the successes I’ve been blessed with, I can only point to one thing: a strong work ethic. That’s why I want to remind you that you can be enough.”
I think I know what he’s getting at here, that you are enough, WITH GOD, But as written, this contradicts the Christian teaching shared elsewhere throughout the book.
My recommendation for Christian parents is to read the book to and talk about it with your young person. (Even if they are in their 20’s!)
Back to the positives, I wish I had this book in my junior high years. It would have been like the reassurance of a big brother!
May 18, 2018
The Read That Gave Me Life!
This book literally gave me LIFE! Not only did it give me insight into the LIFE of someone I truly admire; it gave me just what I needed spiritually to continue to fight through the many challenges I face everyday that are very much similar to the ones Rashad faced in his life! Being that I was able to read and see that I take a lot of the same approaches to overcoming hardships as Rashad, it has given me the confirmation that I'm on the right path to attain the inevitable with GOD at the front! I will forever carry the things learned from this book in my heart as I'm determined to reach my GOALS! Being that my PERSONAL relationship with GOD is one of my most TREASURED, seeing RASHAD be so transparent in sharing about his FAITH and giving back has really BLESSED me as a lot of STARS don't care to share about these things! I can't wait to see what GOD has in store for RASHAD next! Thanks RASHAD!
This book literally gave me LIFE! Not only did it give me insight into the LIFE of someone I truly admire; it gave me just what I needed spiritually to continue to fight through the many challenges I face everyday that are very much similar to the ones Rashad faced in his life! Being that I was able to read and see that I take a lot of the same approaches to overcoming hardships as Rashad, it has given me the confirmation that I'm on the right path to attain the inevitable with GOD at the front! I will forever carry the things learned from this book in my heart as I'm determined to reach my GOALS! Being that my PERSONAL relationship with GOD is one of my most TREASURED, seeing RASHAD be so transparent in sharing about his FAITH and giving back has really BLESSED me as a lot of STARS don't care to share about these things! I can't wait to see what GOD has in store for RASHAD next! Thanks RASHAD!
August 17, 2018
My son is a big Giants fan and when Rashad was playing for them he would often show me the tweets and social media and see how close he was to God and how grounded and inspiring he is off the field. I started following him as well and when the book came out I bought it for my son. I am just getting around to reading it myself —it is a special book. I would love to meet this guy in person and not only because we share a birthday. this is the type of role model our kids need. His commitment to family, his faith and in whatever he chooses to do whether it is dancing with the stars or football or giving back to the community. He is driven not by money or fame but by the important things in life. Truly an inspiring story for every reader of any age.
November 26, 2019
The IF in Life is by Rashad Jennings. Rashad Jennings is a all pro NFL player and a winner of dancing with the stars, and nobody said he could or would. But he got there, even through all of the struggles. The if in life shows a lot of character and that working hard WILL pay off. Rashad had a abusive, alcoholic Dad who was against him. His Dad said he couldn’t do anything in life and he proved him wrong by saying he would never smoke nor drink his entire life and he kept that promise which lead him to where he got. I think mostly football players would want to read this but this book is a really inspiring book so I could say anyone reading it. I’ve never read an book like this nor from this author so I cannot relate to another book or series.
February 26, 2025
I didn’t know anything about Rashad or NFL before reading this autobiography, and yet it was an uplifting story about someone who overcome all the things stacked against him, I think we all just love a good underdog story right?! Featuring race; which I found unbelievably heartbreaking, the ebb and flows of parental relationships and love and the power of choice. Although it would have also been great to hear about how he treated or cured his eczema as he grew older, how he processed getting older and retiring from his one goal he dreamed and worked so hard for and how he negotiated having a new identity when he left
June 1, 2018
This is listed as a book for young readers but I think adults will find the info very motivating and uplifting. Rashad begins his book as a preteen and continues through his Dancing with the Stars season. He points out how very small decisions made a dramatic change in his life and how people telling him he couldn't do something motivated him to success. From school difficulties, family life, and self determination we view a man and how he directed his own destiny. I received a copy of this book in exchange for a fair and honest review.
June 12, 2018
I saw Rashad Jennings interviewed and knew I had to read his book. Am I a football fan? No. Am I a Dancing with the stars fan? No. What drew me in was his compelling story of overcoming adversity with the odds stacked against him. Way against. I highly recommend this book, particularly for teens and young adults looking for a role model or a hero. It's a short inspirational read about Rashad's early life through to his successful life today. It's all about commitment, dedication, desire and perseverance. Both of my darling grandsons will get copies for summer reading soon!
November 9, 2019
First, as a fellow writer and bookworm: effective writing is no easy task. The author is insightful and displays talent. This is as an auto-biographical narrative revealing the journey of an athlete, an artist and an advocate. The book covers his challenges from youth to adulthood with a practical, yet witty and reflective tone. The key elements for intriguing story-telling are all present: the hero to root for, the internal and external conflict. This in short, is a dynamic testimony that gives hope and a good, true story along the way.
June 27, 2020
The If in Life is an excellent memoir. I did not know of Mr. Jennings, yet as I listened to him read his memoir, I was drawn in and deeply moved by the story of love, compassion, struggles, family, and doing the most with what you have in life. His incredible strength and kind heart are touching. He is real, honest, open, and his life story is engaging and full of hope.
Mr. Jennings's book is well written. He is still very young, and I look forward to seeing what his next accomplishments are. This young man has the power to change lives, and I hope he continues making smart moves and sharing inspiration. This is one of my favorite memoirs. It is geared to the youth, but I felt every word's power and love. This is a book I would love to give to every young man in my life.
Mr. Jennings's book is well written. He is still very young, and I look forward to seeing what his next accomplishments are. This young man has the power to change lives, and I hope he continues making smart moves and sharing inspiration. This is one of my favorite memoirs. It is geared to the youth, but I felt every word's power and love. This is a book I would love to give to every young man in my life.
January 2, 2019
I highly recommend this book, particularly for young adults that have issues with self-esteem, family, athletics, and a school. It's a short read and is very inspirational. When you read about Rashad's early life it only makes his accomplishments that much more amazing. It's all about commitment, dedication, desire and perseverance. I will be rereading this book again whenever I am feeling low.
November 18, 2020
As a result of reading about this book in Guideposts, I checked it out of the library. Although I would not describe myself as Mr. Jennings' target audience, I thought he spoke volumes in a very forthright manner.
This gentleman set his goals in life and did the hard work to achieve them.
He then shared his life experiences in a very open and honest manner.
If my grandsons were teens, I would probably recommend this to them.
This gentleman set his goals in life and did the hard work to achieve them.
He then shared his life experiences in a very open and honest manner.
If my grandsons were teens, I would probably recommend this to them.
May 14, 2018
Rashad is a winner
From the beginning of this book , I knew Rashad had a winning recipe for life. Even as a child he knew his life would be special. With strength and commitment he has strived for excellence in every endeavor he's undertaken, and has succeded. An excellent feel good story anyone can benefit from.
From the beginning of this book , I knew Rashad had a winning recipe for life. Even as a child he knew his life would be special. With strength and commitment he has strived for excellence in every endeavor he's undertaken, and has succeded. An excellent feel good story anyone can benefit from.
May 24, 2018
Rashad Jennings talks about his rough start and how his perseverance and work ethic led to his football success.
I can't say that I care much for football autobiographies, but I can definitely see how this would appeal to some of my high school students. I didn't find it to be extremely well written, but it is definitely accessible to reluctant readers.
I read an ARC from NetGalley.
I can't say that I care much for football autobiographies, but I can definitely see how this would appeal to some of my high school students. I didn't find it to be extremely well written, but it is definitely accessible to reluctant readers.
I read an ARC from NetGalley.
August 15, 2018
After seeing Rashad on Dancing with the Stars I became a fan of his. He had been on my fantasy football teams thru the years but his rise to the NFL was something I had never known about. The struggle as an overweight child was part of what makes his story inspiring. Enjoyed having him read his story. I gained much respect for him and hope to see continued success for him.
April 21, 2019
a good motivational book about the obstacles that Jennings had to overcome. I think this is a good read for teenagers, as the book focuses more on Jenning's time in high school and college rather than in the pros.
would be nice if he wrote one for adults and more about his professional life.
nevertheless, a good read.
would be nice if he wrote one for adults and more about his professional life.
nevertheless, a good read.
July 12, 2018
Amazing story
This is is heart felt hook of one man's success. Very inspirational journey of what can be with determination and self direction. It will with personal example of what it means to !I've unconditionally. Great read.😇
This is is heart felt hook of one man's success. Very inspirational journey of what can be with determination and self direction. It will with personal example of what it means to !I've unconditionally. Great read.😇
March 18, 2019
I listened to the audio book. This is an easy to take autobiography of someone that clearly does not take their success for granted. A story of persistence and faith that will leave you wondering what excuse you're going to use. An uplifting story with lots of positive upsides. Enjoy!
October 11, 2018
I sincerely enjoyed this biography of Rashad Jennings. Very inspiring and helpful to all to read.
October 24, 2018
This guy has an amazing story
October 27, 2018
Great story. Enjoyed every page.
March 4, 2019
It had some some inspirational moments.
November 4, 2019
I liked the way Jennings shared details about his life and encourages the reader to reach for his/her best life.
January 4, 2020
Great insight into a godly, grounded man.
June 2, 2020
Great book! Very inspiring story. I recommend reading this truly inspiring book!
August 20, 2022
honestly soooo much better than i thought i would b. i could totally connect to what he was saying. i think any kids/football fan could learn from this book!!
November 4, 2022
A true inspiration for everyone.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 36 reviews