Do It Scared : Finding the Courage to Face Your Fears, Overcome Adversity, and Create a Life You Love - by Ruth Soukup (Hardcover)

First, if you're looking for some answers in coping with fear and anxiety issues, you'll find amazing tools that will help greatly in Ruth's new book. With research gathered from over 4,000 people, I found many insightful ways to shrink problems down to a manageable size. Without a doubt, I moved forward to reaching some of my goals with the gifts and talents that I have. It's definitely a process in understanding our fears that go with some pretty deep issues. The writings in the book have stretched my faith. What helps is to learn the archetypes of fear and know what truth is to help move you forward through the hard times. At first, you feel quite vulnerable but it's liberating to have the freedom (to give yourself permission) to try something new! You just do it! So, discover your purpose, your dreams, and goals by doing it scared!

I was SO excited for this book's release! I got up early and went to Target the morning this book came out just to see it on the shelves and get my own copy! And it did NOT disappoint! I've been listening to Ruth's podcast since it came out and this was all of her wisdom (and so much more) distilled down into an easy-to-reference book I can keep handy. I've always been a pretty fearful person -- very shy, fairly timid, just generally scared of the world. I am aware of this and have tried hard to overcome it, with some successes and many failures. But it really wasn't until I met Ruth a little over two years ago that I began to truly take on my fears. She taught me how to "do it scared" and use that fear to actually push and motivate myself to overcome it ... and it SO works. My life has done a complete 360 and it's almost unrecognizable (in all the good ways). Not everyone has access to Ruth the way I do, and that's why this book, "Do It Scared," is PURE GOLD. It's got all the good stuff, all the actionable tips, and all the real-world experience distilled down into an easy and enjoyable read that can truly change your way of thinking. When I'm letting my "People Pleaser" tendencies run the show, I can go right to her book and get genuine help for working around it and pushing through it. Thanks to this book, her podcast, and her STELLAR fear archetype assessment, I now recognize my fears and make them work to my advantage! Get this book and listen to Ruth -- it could change your life!

I have been following Ruth Soukup for many years and I love her genuine authenticity, her passion and drive to help others, and the wisdom, expertise, and inspiration she shares. I love her newest book, Do it Scared, which is an inspirational and practical application guidebook that helps the reader face their fears to overcome adversity to achieve their dreams and create a life they love. Do it Scared shares a wealth of valuable real-life examples and experiences, research, (more than 4,000 people were surveyed) wisdom, inspiration, encouragement, passion, and practical tools that guide the reader through the actionable and doable steps to achieve the dreams we have been fearful of going after. It allows us to see the possibilities and that it’s more than okay to dream big and have missteps along the way. Do it Scared challenges and motivates you to move forward in the ways fear shows up in your life. Ruth walks the reader through identifying your fear Archetype (the unique ways fear can show up in your life), the Principles of Courage, and Courage in Action. Within each of the 7 fear Archetype’s Ruth uses real life struggles, positive attributes, habits and behaviors, the voice of the particular archetype, how it holds you back, strategies to overcome the fear and take action, create accountability, and moving past the fear Archetype. She offers a quiz that defines your Archetype and I think it described me to a tee! Ruth took a passion project and turned it into a successful business and created a life she loves. She overcame a lot of adversity along the way. She beat the odds. She put in the hard work and didn’t give up and achieved the dreams and goals she set out to reach. Her words are motivating, inspiring, convicting, encouraging, logical, practical, doable, and achievable. We can push past being stuck, isolated, and paralyzed by fear and achieve the dreams we are so afraid of going after! After reading Do it Scared, I feel energized, excited, hopeful, inspired, motivated, encouraged, and believe that I can and will achieve the dreams of my heart! Ruth Soukup shares, “Remember, action is the antidote to fear, and at the end of the day the only thing stopping you is you.” I love Ruth’s vulnerability, raw honesty, and how she bravely bares her soul in Do it Scared and I find her to be enormously courageous! Despite and because of the difficulties she has faced, she says, “Every wrong turn has somehow led me to where I am right now. Every misstep has led me to what eventually became the right step. And I have faith that the current rough patches in my life will be the future lessons I’ll be eternally grateful for.” I love this powerful truth! I’ve personally been stuck and paralyzed for years in my own passion project. Ruth’s amazing book, Do it Scared, opened my eyes to possibilities I hadn’t considered and allowed me to see I am more than capable to go after the dreams that lay upon my heart and soul. The actionable steps provided in Do it Scared give me hope and a new found passion to run after the dreams I’ve placed on hold because of the fears that held me hostage. I loved Do it Scared and I feel it can be for anyone that has allowed themselves to dream but didn’t take action out of fear, or the person that never allowed themselves the possibility to dream, and the person that has tried and given up, or doesn’t know the next steps to achieve their dreams and goals. I think you’ll love Ruth’s no-nonsense approach and writing style, the stories she shares, and the wealth of wisdom and expertise that is contained within the pages of “Do it Scared.” I’m so grateful to Ruth Soukup for writing this book, her inspirational podcast, and the awesome products she creates to remind us all that we can Do it Scared!

I've long enjoyed Ruth's books, blog, emails, e-courses, and podcasts, so I jumped at the chance to read "Do It Scared." This book has been an absolute catalyst for change in just a few short days, helping me realize patterns that were holding me back, and getting me excited about taking back my life in many ways. The "Fear Archetypes" section was very informative. I was able to identify traits and habits of mine that are found in each archetype, not just my top two or three. The "Principles of Courage" section was helpful, particularly the chapter on accountability (because I'm a Procrastinator and Rule-Follower). In the "Courage in Action" section, I got all sorts of inspiration to tackle my goals and improve my life in just about every area. I'm currently working on creating an action plan (time blocking is such a game-changer!) for a couple of key goals and looking for an accountability partner (or two) to help keep me on track. I know that the insights I gained from this book will help me in all facets of my life, and I can't wait to get to work!

I've always read about finding your WHY. But honestly, the aha moment for me came only happened when I read; Do It Scared. Ruth explained how knowing your why is only the beginning to going after your dreams. Understanding what's at stake if you don't, is what makes your WHY that much more important. As she shared her journey of discovering her why and what was at stake, it resonated so much with my heart and mind that it literally brought me to tears. That alone was worth the read, because it started a paradigm shift in mind.

Wow! Do It Scared is a game changer! Ruth writes in a conversational tone that leads you through her Do It Scared process which includes: learning your Fear Archetype(s), overcoming your specific Fear Archetype with the seven Principles of Courage, and outlining the steps to accomplish your Big Goals with Courage in Action. While the Fear Archetypes have names that usually invoke negative connotations ("The Procrastinator," for example), Ruth describes the root of each Fear, provides productive ways to correct the associated behavior, and points out that all the Fears have positive attributes. The Principles of Courage then guide you beyond your fear to take action, even when it's scary. The first Principle is Dare to Think Big - identifying a stretch goal - "one that pushes us past our comfort zone or one we might not fully believe is attainable." Finally, Ruth urges you to put your Courage in Action and pursue your Big Goal. Anyone can follow the strategies she outlines, if you’re willing to pull up your sleeves and get started. After reading Do It Scared, I have a better idea of why I’ve never stretched myself to achieve something big because my primary Fear Archetype is “The Outcast” and one of my top three Fears is “The Procrastinator.” Ruth’s Principle of “There are No Mistakes, Only Lessons” is very liberating to me; I can take a leap of faith and try something new. Even if I miss the mark, at least I’ve learned something. I now believe I can overcome my Fears, incorporate the Principles of Courage, and put my Courage in Action to accomplish my Big Goal! Favorite quote, “… the secret to success … as long as you keep taking small steps in one direction, you’ll get there eventually.”