I read this book on the recommendation from one of my favorite Youtubers, Ali Abdaal and honestly, I was pleasantly surprised that it was by the creator of CDBaby. As a musician, I’m very, very, very aware of the impact CDBaby had on revolutionizing my industry. So needless to say, I was super excited to hear what he had to say.
I found myself nodding at many points in this book, as someone whose entire life is one giant entrepreneurial adventure, I could hear the lessons I’ve learned echoed in his pages and in quite a few, lessons I have yet to learn.
One of my favorite lines in this book is “When you’re on to something great, it won’t feel like a revolution. It’ll feel like common sense.” This moment in the book made absolute sense to me. When one sits back and looks at the things that truly change our lives, it often feels as if we have no idea how we lived without them before!
Derek also speaks on the gift of saying no. Of leaving space for the things you truly love, the things that, as Marie Kondo so fondly said, spark joy. I really sat and pondered this idea, I have, in my life, had issues saying no, but as I’ve grown older have begun to understand the idea of keeping space.
Overall, this book wasn’t mind-blowing, but it was a reminder of the important things, the two points above are the ones that really stood out to me in a very real way.