Hey everybody!
We are now one week into our March book: Why Has Nobody Told Me This Before? by Dr Julie Smith.
I don’t know about all of you, but we feel very mature reading this book. Mental health is such an important and key topic in all of our lives and this book is already providing so much value.
It has given the two of us a lot to talk about - and we’re only a small fraction of the way through!
Below you’ll find some valuable insights from our thriving community of bad asses as well as some actionable tips we’ve pulled out from the book so far.
Also, don’t forget to register for our book club call at the end of the month
Enjoy!
BTW - if you haven’t yet started on Why Has Nobody Told Me This Before - It’s not too late. The book is ~430 pages (but with big and generously spaced writing) and the audio version is 8 hours 40 minutes!
﹅ Community insights from Why Has Nobody Told Me This Before
Reflections and thoughts from members in our Discord Community
“I’ve just finished Section One of Why Has Nobody Told Me This Before? and what really stood out to me is how much we underestimate the foundational basics of mental health: sleep, exercise, nutrition, routine, and human connection. She makes a strong case that these “defence players” are often the first things we let slide when life gets tough, yet they are the very things that keep us resilient”
“Another point that really resonated was how poor sleep and stress create a vicious cycle: when we’re anxious or low, sleep suffers, and when sleep suffers, everything feels harder. Love the idea that with practical, small changes we can make to get back on track (morning light exposure, reducing screen brightness, and not fixating on sleep as something we can “force”)."
“I liked how she described mindfulness as a way to observe thoughts coming and going, almost as a third party, rather than trying to empty your mind completely.”
“To me (and I think she might have said this was well), it's not so much a book to read from cover to cover but start with the pieces that are relevant to you now.”
Hot tips so far from Why Has Nobody Told Me This Before
Here are a few of the key actionable take aways from the first few chapters.
Understanding low mood and how to turn bad days into better days
This chapter explores depression, explaining its causes and symptoms.
Dr Smith emphasises that depression isn’t just sadness but a state of numbness, hopelessness, and disconnection.
She discusses small, actionable steps to counteract depression, such as maintaining a routine, engaging in meaningful activities, and understanding the power of thoughts in shaping emotions.
She also highlights the importance of self-compassion and reaching out for support.
Understanding motivation and how to make big life changes
Dr Smith explains that emotional pain is inevitable but manageable.
She introduces practical tools for emotional regulation, including cognitive reframing (changing the way you think about a situation) and mindfulness techniques.
The chapter also discusses how suppressing emotions can make them worse and how acceptance and self-awareness can help individuals cope with distressing feelings.
What to do with emotions and how to harness the power of your words
Motivation isn’t something we should wait for, it’s something we create through action.
Dr Smith challenges the idea that motivation comes before action, emphasising instead that taking small steps leads to momentum.
She shares strategies to break tasks into manageable parts, use habits to make progress automatic, and shift focus from perfectionism to consistency.
How have you chosen to read Nobody Told Me his Before?
✷ Referrer of the month
Refer to win the next book of the month!
The top referrer for this month will receive a copy of next month’s Bad Ass Bookshelf book of the month!
If you enjoy being part of the Bad Ass Bookshelf and know colleagues, friends or family that would also benefit from being a part of it, invite them in!
There can only be on winner so start referring now!
● Additional resources
Here are some great resources that Dr. Smith has put out it to the world if you’re thirsty for more!
Dr Julie: Dr. Smith’s Youtube channel where she has an eye-watering 1.84m subscribers! She mainly produces short-form videos where she shares insights from therapy and psychology research that you can apply in your daily life.
Open When: Dr. Smith’s highly anticipated second book, Open When…, was released earlier this year. Designed for life’s unexpected twists and turns, it’s the book to reach for when being human feels complicated. In her words… it’s the book to turn to when you find yourself in the eye of the storm.
Modern Wisdom Podcast: Chris Williamson interviews Dr. Smith on the Modern Wisdom Podcast. They cover a range of topics including why emotions are so hard to understand, why people keep saying yes when they want to say no, how to deal with passive-aggressive people better and much, much more…
► Join the conversation
What Bad Ass Bookshelf members are saying
We’re building an incredible community over on our Bad Ass Bookshelf Discord channel where over 75 of you have joined in the fun (it’s free BTW).
Here are some of the chats we’ve been having:
A flurry of recommendations for non-fiction books on AI related topics (such as Irreplaceable by Pascal Bornet and Our Final Invention: Artificial Intelligence and the End of the Human Era by James Barrat)
We’ve also had some great recommendations for fiction books (such as Three Body Problem trilogy by Liu Cixin) which you has been turned into a TV series on Netflix. One to add to the list!
Lots of networking and introductions from people of all sorts of backgrounds and professions!
Feel like your missing out on all the latest chats? Join the conversation!
This week’s burning question
Have you disagreed with anything in the book so far?
Let us know by dropping a reply to this email - or better yet - heading over to share these thoughts with the rest of the Bad Assess on Discord!
♦︎ Next book club call
We're so excited to host our next Bad Ass Bookshelf bookclub call to discuss Why Has Nobody Told Me This Before at the end of March! Call details below:
Date: 27th of March
Time: 17:00 GMT (12:00 EST / 09:00 PST)
Register for the call here: https://us06web.zoom.us/meeting/register/PDV7Ef3qSeODT1NgwdMX2g
Cannot wait to see you all there!
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