Professional Troublemaker: The Fear-Fighter Manual

Written by Luvvie Ajayi Jones

Narrated by Luvvie Ajayi Jones

INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER
 
From the New York Times bestselling author of I'm Judging You, a hilarious and transformational book about how to tackle fear--that everlasting hater--and audaciously step into lives, careers, and legacies that go beyond even our wildest dreams

Luvvie Ajayi Jones is known for her trademark wit, warmth, and perpetual truth-telling. But even she's been challenged by the enemy of progress known as fear. She was once afraid to call herself a writer, and nearly skipped out on doing a TED talk that changed her life because of imposter syndrome. As she shares in Professional Troublemaker, she's not alone.

We're all afraid. We're afraid of asking for what we want because we're afraid of hearing "no." We're afraid of being different, of being too much or not enough. We're afraid of leaving behind the known for the unknown. But in order to do the things that will truly, meaningfully change our lives, we have to become professional troublemakers: people who are committed to not letting fear talk them out of the things they need to do or say to live free.

With humor and honesty, and guided by the influence of her professional troublemaking Nigerian grandmother, Funmilayo Faloyin, Luvvie walks us through what we must get right within ourselves before we can do the things that scare us; how to use our voice for a greater good; and how to put movement to the voice we've been silencing--because truth-telling is a muscle.

The point is not to be fearless, but to know we are afraid and charge forward regardless. It is to recognize that the things we must do are more significant than our fears. This book is about how to live boldly in spite of all the reasons we have to cower. Let's go!

• Language: English
• Publisher: Penguin Audio
• Release date: Mar 2, 2021
• ISBN: 9780593395066

Reviews for Professional Troublemaker

[booklovergirle43 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Must Read for the Girlies and Entrepreneurs ❤️ … Dope Book

[reader1009-863136 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

nonfiction (standing up for your principles and your worth in the workplace and beyond)

I don't often give out all five stars, but this book is so necessary and true! Even if you don't work, even if you don't think you have principles, everyone should read this. Luvvie's audio is fantastic too--it is an easy book to listen to and one that you'll want to own.

[mrstreme · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I knew as soon as Luvvie Ajayi Jones announced the release of her new book, Professional Troublemaker, I had to get my hands on it. Any book subtitled The Fear-Fighting Manual is for me! I preordered the book as soon as I could, and I cleared my calendar to read it.

As always, Luvvie never disappoints.

Dedicated to the memory of her grandmother (and the “good trouble” she caused), Professional Troublemaker shares truth bombs about how we must move through our fears to accomplish what we want in life. The book is divided into three parts:

1. Be – how to work through the internal stuff so you can move forward, despite your fears
2. Say – how to advocate for yourself and others using your voice, even if it trembles
3. Do – how to do the things that scare the crap out of you

Luvvie sprinkles in stories about her grandmother, as well as her own life, to illustrate how one can bust through fear (and why it’s important to do so). I think you’ll love Luvvie’s humorous approach, side-eyes, and tell-it-like-it-is style. I know I did.

My big takeaways:

#1: “We fear having too much hope.”

Right there on page 43, Luvvie dropped a truth bomb, which felt like a 2x4 to my forehead: “When we are afraid of having too much hope, we’re actually afraid of being disappointed.”

Damn, she’s right.

I don’t dream big enough. Or at least I didn’t use to. Now I dream of being a New York Times bestselling author. I am not focused on disappointment; I am focused on my dream. For even if I never make that bestseller status, I know I tried. And that’s worth the journey.

#2: You will fuck up on your journey.

I don’t like to fail. I have come a long way in reframing failures as lessons, but a big part of me still fears failure.

Luvvie shared a story of how she failed miserably – and very publicly – and how this one failure stopped her from growing and sharing her gifts. I appreciate her story because it’s one I fear I may go through. Well, guess what? It’s inevitable I will fail loudly too, so instead of avoiding it, maybe I should just accept it and move on.

How about you? Can you stop avoiding failure? Can you accept that you will make mistakes on your journey?

How Professional Troublemaker relates to entrepreneurs:

Luvvie is an entrepreneur, and every lesson in this book will help entrepreneurs. Professional Troublemaker can be your primer on how to do things, despite the fear. Because if you want to succeed in your business, you will have to do things that scare the shit out of you. If you need someone to cheer you on and to show you how it’s done, grab Professional Troublemaker.