“Why Didn’t Anybody Tell Me This Sh*t Before?” is the book you wish you had already read. A collection of more than 60 letters from female leaders of multimillion dollar companies, solopreneurs and every kind of woman in between, these stories are both a lifeline and a roadmap for women navigating our increasingly complex world. From being the only woman in the room in ‘old boys’ club’ businesses, to making the impossible choices between cherished work and family, to dealing with loss, anger and fear, these stories have hard-earned lessons to teach all of us. But it’s not all battle scars and suffering—like all good stories, these pages are shot through with laughter, growth and triumph too. So if you’ve felt alone, or wondered when the right mentor or community is going to appear, you can stop searching. This book is your invitation to learn from the experience of women just like you—to borrow from their strength, courage and fierce will to succeed, and to take your place in this community of women who, day by day, are quietly changing the world.
I started reading the book with really high expectations, hoping to get some actual lessons-learned value out of it.
Of course, there were some really good letters with valuable wisdom and motivation to do what you really want to do in life and not to wait 30 years to start with it. Many of the stories start from a really hard childhood or young adult years, and leave you with a generic promise that it will get better later on. The general idea I got out of the book, was not to burn out and find what you love, do that, and then find another love if that doesn't excite you any more. (Speaking of businesses and verticals). Keep yourself excited and challenged - only then will you grow. But... I think many of us know that already.
Overall it was an easy and positive read, but I was quite dissapointed with the fact that most of the stories were about female marketers or copywriters, or entrepreneurs who somehow all were also into marketing and copywriting. I wish I had known that before. The value still remains but was really hard to relate when you are not in that business. What about all the other businesses we can get female wit and wisdom from, in tech and politics etc? I would have hoped for more variety.
I loved the concept of this book and there were some stories that REALLY resonated with me, but some of them got a little repetitive to some extent. However, maybe thats the point. That everyone struggles and its how you respond to those challenges and believe in yourself that matters.
Overall, a good read i'm glad I picked up. But I wish there were almost fewer stories with more context on each one so I could cheer along for each of the women as they overcame their adversity