Book Review: "#GIRLBOSS" by Sophia Amoruso

The time has come for the first book review!  And what better book to kick things off with than Nasty Gal CEO and Founder's inspirational, brand-spanking-new, girl-power memoir, #GIRLBOSS?!  In it, she traces her rise from slacker teen to fashion maven, highlighting hard-learned lessons, and outlining the ethos of the "girlboss," a girl who marches to the beat of her own drum, believes in the beauty of her dreams, and perhaps most importantly, works her ass off in pursuit of them.*

31-year-old Sophia Amoruso explains that even those early, hourly wage jobs had something to teach her about showing up and working hard.  By far her biggest breakthrough, though, was in working long hours for herself, selling vintage through her eBay store.  She searched the thrift racks of San Francisco, painstakingly crafted the photoshoots that gave her products an edge, built relationships with her customers through social media, and built something great from the details up.  Now she leads a of one-of-a-kind, multi-million dollar fashion brand.  

Amoruso has a little preaching to do to the shopaholic.  She's a huge proponent of saving.  And she's not in favor of emotional shopping.  This was hard for me to hear.  I essentially shop with an imaginary currency called "like."  Whether or not I purchase something has historically had less to do with financial considerations, and more to do with the quantity of "like" it engenders, but I am a recovering shopaholic.  Listen to this girl, and keep some money in the bank!

"...[E]ach time you show up to work and work hard and do your best at everything you can do, you're planting seeds for a life that you can only hope will grow beyond your wildest dreams.  Take care of the little things--even the little things that you hate--and treat them as promises to your own future.  Soon you'll see that fortune favors the bold who get shit done." (121)  I like the idea of thinking of responsible decisions as promises to one's future.

As I was reading this book, it had my baby sister written all over it.  She has always lapped me in having her shit together.  She is the most natural, bad-ass girl boss I know.

Some of the proceeds of the book go to Amoruso's #GIRLBOSS Foundation, which funds the efforts of up-and-coming girl bosses.

Despite gearing her book toward young, female entrepreneurs, boy bosses can get on this train too!  Hard work and dreams are for everyone!

The name "Nasty Gal" comes from this same-titled Betty Davis song and album.


*I borrowed from:

"If a man does not keep pace with his companions, perhaps it is because he hears a different drummer.  Let him step to the music which he hears, however measured or far away." -- Henry David Thoreau, Walden

"The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams." -- attributed to Eleanor Roosevelt