Hot tips from a ’badass bitch’
WHEN thought leaders speak of millennials it’s usually in unflattering terms: they are lazy, irresponsible and they want everything to happen in an instant.
Although a few 20-somethings reinforce the stereotype, most of us are stumbling through the crazy years, looking for something that will keep our interest for longer than 10 minutes, and trying to avoid a quarter-life crisis. We need a little guidance — but not from Oprah or Robin Sharma. Rich Dad, Poor Dad is outdated, and who the heck is Tony Robbins?
Tattooed and sporting a black bob worthy of a Pulp Fiction poster, Sophia Amoruso, 30, is the CEO of online store Nasty Gal. Hers is the kind of story headlines are made of: she was a shoplifter before starting a small eBay vintage store that became a major fashion empire.
Her book, #Girlboss (so Gen Y), is partmemoir, part-motivational manifesto. It’s a “How I did it” tale: Amoruso tells us her story while offering gems of advice along the way. (“There’s no AutoCorrect in life — think before texting the universe.”) She puts herself out there, sharing anecdotes that can be as hilarious as they are cringe-worthy.
The fact that a once-directionless drifter and thief now appears on Forbes lists is pretty neat, but she doesn’t spend 240 pages telling us how amazing she is. #Girlboss is a very conversational book. It’s as though you’re sitting next to Amoruso on the Gautrain and she’s just telling you about what she’s done as a way to pass the time. She shows that there isn’t any one path to success — and that there isn’t only one way to be a boss.
In one chapter, she writes: “At a recent meeting . . . someone asked an assistant if it would be difficult for her to relate to me if I were older. ‘ No,’ she replied. ‘ Sophia’s a badass bitch and she’ll always be a badass bitch! ”
#Girlboss is brilliant and brave. Amoruso is definitely a “badass bitch” (a compliment, by the way) and she has written a badass book.
— Pearl Boshomane