Present Over Perfect Book Review
“Present over perfect living is real over image, connecting over comparing, meaning over mania, depth over artifice. Present over perfect living is the risky and revolutionary belief that the world that God created is beautiful and valuable on its own terms, and that it doesn’t need to be zhuzzed up and fancy in order to be wonderful.”
Have you ever found yourself exhausted, lonely, and burnout from busyness, striving, and proving but longing for peace and connection? This is exactly how I felt when I picked up Present Over Perfect. The author, Shauna Niequist, experienced these exact struggles, and shares in her book how she was able to overcome them through realizing her worth and God’s love for her.
Plagued by busyness, exhaustion, and overwhelm, Shauna craved rest, peace, connection, and a deeper way of living. But like many of us, she was finding meaning in frivolous things -- work, meetings, traveling, and other people’s expectations of her. Her career was thriving, but Shauna realized that the most important things in her life (her family and well-being) weren’t being tended to.
It wasn’t until an almost prophetic encounter that Shauna realized that she had to remake her life from the inside out that she decided things must change. She realized that life wasn’t about time management, house-keeping, or to-do lists. It wasn’t about scheduling, speaking, or being everything to everyone. It’s about a more soulful way of living. A life of love, connection, meaning, and purpose. About loving and being loved by our Heavenly Father. About letting the soul feel its worth in the presence of our Maker. Present Over Perfect is her account and invitation to journeying from “exhaustion to peace, from isolation to connection, from hustling and multitasking to sacred presence,” and it invites us to go on that same journey.
Who’s this book for?
This book is perfect for anyone, like me, who struggles with striving and proving their self through their work or responsibilities. Anyone who feels like they’ve been neglecting their relationships, well-being, and desires to keep up with a “perfect” life.
What I’ve learned from this book:
I’ve learned that my busyness and workaholic tendencies stem from a place of fear of failure. I also learned that I was allowing these habits to define my worth. Present Over Perfect (+ my PowerSheets) have helped me to redirect my priorities by doing activities that are more life-giving, meaningful, and purposeful. Ones that aren’t solely focused on my business but fashioning a holistic and intentional life.
My favorite quote from the book:
“Present is choosing to believe that your own life is worth investing deeply in, instead of waiting for some rare miracle or fairy tale. Present means we understand that the here and now is sacred, sacramental, threaded through with divinity even in its plainness. Especially in its plainness.”
This quote serves a guideline for me to help me be more present in my life and relationships.
How I will apply what I learned:
One of my goals for 2017 is to focus on being more present. To make sure that I’m doing that and focusing on purposeful things, I'm using my PowerSheets to set goals to intentionally connect more with my friends, family, and in my relationship. I’m also using them to create healthier lifestyle practices.
Want to leave behind “frantic for a simpler, more soulful way of living” too? You can purchase Present Over Perfect here! The books I’ve been reading have really been helping me to flourish in this new year. That’s why I’m so excited to share them with you in this new series. To see what I’ve already read, you can check out my recommended reading list here.
What have you been reading lately? Leave me your book recommendations in the comments below!
Disclosure: This post contains Amazon affiliate links, meaning that if you purchase the book mentioned in this post, I will make an affiliate commission from Amazon. All products and resources I recommend have been vetted and used by me. If you decide to purchase the book, at no additional cost to you, you help support Fearfully Fashioned.
