Book Review: Chris Guillebeau's The Art of Non-Conformity

All this talk about The World Domination Summit made me realize I still hadn't read Chris' book yet.

So I did (long overdue).

The Art of Non-Conformity: Set Your Own Rules, Live the Life you Want, and Change the World is an inspiring read. It's a very personal and real book, a proposition for a new way of thinking and living. An unconventional one. I loved it.

In the very beginning of the book, Chris points out that when we're young, we're often told not to "jump off a bridge" just because everyone else is doing it. Yet at some point, the tables are turned and we're expected to do the very things everyone else is doing.

Chris goes on to describe his own personal journey, and offers great practical advice about overcoming fear and being true to yourself.  But not as a "Guru", more as a friend. This caring tone is what makes the book special.

Chris Guillebeau's 11 Ways to be Unremarkably Average:

1. Accept what people tell you at face value
2. Dont' question authority.
3. Go to colelge becaues you're supposed to, not because you want to learn something.
4. Go overseas once or twice in your life, to somewhere safe like England.
5. Don't try to learn another language; everyone else will eventually learn English.
6. Think about starting your own business, but never do it.
7. Think about writing a book, but never do it.
8. Get the largest mortgage you qualify for and spend 30 years paying for it.
9. Sit at a desk 40 hours a week for an average of 10 hours of productive work.
10. Don't stand out or draw attention to yourself.
11. Jump through hoops. Check off boxes.

And Chris' doesn't just talk.  He walks the walk. Anyone who has followed him, his blog, and his career over the last couple of years sees the benefits of the kind of thinking he preaches so passionately about.

His recent World Domination Summit is the perfect example.

I wholeheartedly recommend this book to anyone willing to stand out, stand up, or stand for something they believe in.

 

 

Comments

[pandora charms]

Thanks for sharing new art print,This is very amazing for me.Thank you for the inspiration!

[air jordan]

To see a world in a grain of sand，
And a heaven in a wild fllower，
Hold infinity in the palm of your hand，
And eternity in an hour.

[Michael A. Robson]

I just found this book super interesting, and very condensed, so it's a must-read. I'm not really big on the Travel around the world thing, but that doesn't matter. This book is genius.

[Onitsuka Tiger]

Don't worry too much about the ambiguous future, just make effort for explicit being present.Whatever is worth doing is worth doing well.

[Air Force 1]

Time management is really a misnomer - the challenge is not to manage time, but to manage ourselves.A good plan today is better than a perfect plan tomorrow.