Summary of Barbara Sher & Barbara Smith's I Could Do Anything If I Only Knew What It Was

By IRB Media

Please note: This is a companion version & not the original book.

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#1 We all have a silent message about what’s expected of us. We may never say it out loud, but we always know what it is. And it has a powerful effect on how we live our lives. The ideas we receive may contradict each other and be wrong for us, but they are part of our first world.

#2 The expectations that others have of you can be extremely negative and hurtful, and it can be difficult to escape them. You may be constantly thinking about what you’re not supposed to be doing, instead of what you want to do.

#3 If you’re not sure if you’re from the one family in a thousand who really means Do what you want, just try telling your parents that you’ve become a happy striptease artist or that you’re happily leaving medical school.

#4 Take a blank sheet of paper and list everyone you know in your family and extended family. Under each person’s name, write down what they wanted you to do with your life. Your misinterpretations have influenced you as much as your insights.

• Language: English
• Publisher: IRB Media
• Release date: Apr 2, 2022
• ISBN: 9781669381464

IRB Media

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Insights on Barbara Sher & Barbara Smith's I Could Do Anything If I Only Knew What It Was

Contents

Insights from Chapter 1

Insights from Chapter 2

Insights from Chapter 3

Insights from Chapter 4

Insights from Chapter 5

Insights from Chapter 6

Insights from Chapter 7

Insights from Chapter 8

Insights from Chapter 9

Insights from Chapter 10

Insights from Chapter 11

Insights from Chapter 12

Insights from Chapter 13

Insights from Chapter 14

Insights from Chapter 1

#1

We all have a silent message about what’s expected of us. We may never say it out loud, but we always know what it is. And it has a powerful effect on how we live our lives. The ideas we receive may contradict each other and be wrong for us, but they are part of our first world.

#2

The expectations that others have of you can be extremely negative and hurtful, and it can be difficult to escape them. You may be constantly thinking about what you’re not supposed to be doing, instead of what you want to do.

#3

If you’re not sure if you’re from the one family in a thousand who really means Do what you want, just try telling your parents that you’ve become a happy striptease artist or that you’re happily leaving medical school.

#4

Take a blank sheet of paper and list everyone you know in your family and extended family. Under each person’s name, write down what they wanted you to do with your life. Your misinterpretations have influenced you as much as your insights.

#5

We often get conflicting messages from our family members about what they want from us. We are supposed to do things that we’ve been told not to do or that we can’t do. Meanwhile, our minds are never where they’re supposed to be: on developing our own unique gifts.

#6

Family bashing is a waste of time. You can’t move forward if you’re constantly berating yourself for things that happened in the past. You must stop blaming yourself and find the source of your supposed-to problem.

#7

When you’re not doing what you love, don’t feel like you’re not doing what you’re supposed to be doing. When you’re doing what you love, you’ll be great at it, and you’ll last longer in your profession.

#8

You must draw a picture of a person who would incorporate every last thing your family wanted from you. Make it good. Use cutouts from magazines for extra fun, and then put their perfect child up on the wall where you can see her.

Insights from Chapter 2

#1

The most important thing is whether you’re willing to tolerate necessary discomfort. If you become too good at avoidance, you never start living.

#2

There is a more subtle form of planning than the one where you set goals and pursue them. It involves making decisions about anything, and choosing what goes toward what you want. This is called following your nose, and it is wiser than you think.

#3

Jessie, a 45-year-old woman, wanted to race sled dogs in the winter race at Bear Grease. Her team was flabbergasted. They asked her why, and she said she didn’t know. She just wanted to do it. She ended up loving it.

#4

You can trust desire. Do some