Key Messages
How Sophia Amoruso Used Her Wild Youth and Creative Genius to Find Success and Inspire a Generation of Women
In the #GIRLBOSS book, Sophia Amoruso shows that it doesn’t matter where you come from or how much (or how little) education you have, what matters is your passion and creativity.
She dropped out of high school but was able to use her experiences – dumpster-diving, shoplifting, working a chain bookstore – to build one of the most successful fashion companies in the past decade.
Having a dream and letting it guide your actions are essential elements for success according to Amoruso.
Through her story, she shows that taking risks and finding creative solutions are key to achieving your own personal goals.
It’s also important to understand what motivates you and focus on developing those skills in order to reach success.
By following these steps, you can find your passion and make it drive you towards success.
Accepting Yourself is the Key to Succeeding in Life
If you want to be successful in life, it’s important to discover what your true strengths are and make the most of them.
This is something that Sophia Amoruso has proved time and time again.
She had a knack for finding great deals on vintage clothing, and she parlayed that talent into a successful business venture.
By accepting her own strengths and weaknesses and embracing them, she was able to focus on what she was good at, thus driving her success.
It doesn’t matter if you’re an introvert or an extrovert; each type of personality can excel in different places, depending on their natural talents.
For example, extroverts tend to do well in fast-paced environments like Wall Street where they have to interact with others to get the job done.
Meanwhile, introverts thrive when they can engage in meaningful conversations through social media – something that played a huge part in Amoruso’s success.
At the end of the day, success is all about knowing who you are and using that knowledge to your advantage.
Don’t let anything stop you from embracing your unique skills; instead use them as motivation to reach your goals!
Embrace Unexpected Opportunities and Failure on Your Journey to Greatness
The #GIRLBOSS message encourages us to take an unconventional path and try odd jobs in order to uncover what really drives us.
This means looking beyond our own limited view of success, and being open to new opportunities.
For example, if you aspire to be an astronaut but during your first zero-gravity test flight, you discover that you have severe motion sickness that would make it impossible for you to be successful, you need to reassess where your true passions lie.
Similarly, Sonya Amoruso took a job at a commercial bookstore despite her anti-capitalist views and discovered important customer service skills that would later become invaluable for her own startup business.
Even if things didn’t go as expected, don’t fear the failure – own it!
It could show you the answer to your true calling in life.
Even Amoruso didn’t realize the effect of all those failures until she started finding success by collecting clothes and selling them on eBay – something that drove her inner passion and came effortlessly once she found it.
So don’t be afraid of taking an unconventional path or trying something different – you never know where it may lead you!
Succeeding at Anything You Love Takes Expertise, Adaptability, and Building a Community
When it comes to succeeding in the business world, having a solid understanding of your field is key.
To become an expert, you need to learn as much as you can.
The best way to do that is through experience.
Amoruso discovered this when she built her own company from scratch.
She did every single task herself – buying clothes, packing, and shipping them to customers – so she would gain knowledge about the entire business inside and out.
This enabled her to be adaptable and make changes based on what her customers wanted from the product – such as changing text or images on her website.
She even styled all her fashion shoots which not only sold clothing but also provided an immersive experience for young women that they appreciated and wanted to replicate.
All these efforts gave NastyGal a huge advantage over other vintage retailers on eBay who had dull visuals and poor marketing tactics.
But it didn’t end there: Amoruso’s success was driven by the loyalty of her customers who shared NastyGal with their friends, creating word-of-mouth marketing viral content with exponential growth in numbers of customer base.
Don’t Be Afraid to Ask for What You Want – But Trust Your Intuition on Which Laws Should Never Be Broken
The #GIRLBOSS book teaches us an important lesson: ask and you shall receive.
If you want something, you have to start by asking for it.
Just as Amoruso learned one day when she was stuck in a rainstorm and needed a ride, asking is the best way of getting what you want.
At the same time, being more flexible and creative will also help you get what you want.
Don’t be afraid to break some rules and cross lines to make something new; this is how successful businesses are built.
However, don’t waste your time breaking the law; learn from Amoruso’s experience that not all rules are meant to be broken!
Ask and be creative, but remember to stay within legal boundaries if you want to get something out of life without ending up in jail.
The Power of Staying Positive: How to Overcome Challenges Using the Golden Rule and Sigils
When it comes to achieving your goals, the #GIRLBOSS book suggests that you should always follow the Golden Rule: do unto others as you would have them do unto you.
This means that by putting positive energy out into the universe and sticking to what you like rather than harping on what you don’t like or trying to get revenge, you will be able to direct all your energy towards your passions.
Moreover, this book also conveys that worrying about what others think of you is a waste of time and energy.
As Amoruso learned in high school, getting paralyzed with fear when worrying about the thoughts and opinions of those around her is something she doesn’t want anyone else to experience.
Instead, creating sigils- small words containing goals of hers that no one else can comprehend- has proven useful in helping her stay focused and motivated while allowing her to ignore the noise and people surrounding her from taking away from accomplishing her vision.
For entrepreneurs looking for success, it is highly encouraged to not dwell on what other people think or say about them because at the end of the day, it’s only their opinion meaning it wouldn’t impact our goal too much.
Rather than letting judgement keep us down, we have to have faith in ourselves and work hard in order for us reach success – staying positive throughout our journey!
Combining Creativity and Business to Reach New Heights
If you have creative aspirations, channel them into your business for the ultimate recipe of success.
Setting yourself apart requires a combination of entrepreneurial insight and creativity.
As NastyGal exemplifies, this is how you can make smart business decisions that create options and generate revenue.
When it comes to creativity in the business world, don’t just focus on the more imaginative aspects of your work – spread your energy across both practical and creative sides equally.
GIRLBOSS author Sophia Amoruso excelled at marketing, making sure that she considered the customer’s experience from their point of view while ensuring aesthetics were consistent and unique across her website.
That’s how you successfully connect your entrepreneurial side and creative passions to set yourself apart.
Remember, creative people are often great at marketing so use that knowledge to boost your success.
Negativity will only bring failure, so start accepting yourself as an artist who is also a savvy businessperson and enjoy charting your own path!
The Importance of Assembling the Right Team to Achieve Success
It’s critical for entrepreneurs to find the right employees and investors as part of their team.
With honest, hard-working, loyal workers you can rest easy knowing that your business is in good hands.
The author learned this the hard way when one year the NastyGal’s warehouse chief quit during the crucial Black Friday shopping period, leaving the entire programming in danger – yet motivated employees came in and went above and beyond their job descriptions to make sure orders were fulfilled.
A leader should be lucky enough to have such a devoted staff.
Likewise, like-minded investors are instrumental in helping you grow your dreams, not serving their own interests.
As Amoruso personally experienced first-hand, some potential investors were so out of touch with modern business ideals.
One investor even had the nerve to question her financial management skills based on her gender – an embarrassing attitude towards someone who built an iconic company from nothing without a single business loan!
It’s important to keep hold of your values when finding an investor or employee and don’t let them compromise your vision for any amount of money.
It may seem tempting for quick profits but it’ll end up hurting you more in the future.
The Power of Confidence: How to Enhance Your Personal and Professional Glow
Confidence is the best accessory, both in business and in life.
When you have it and show it off, there’s nothing more attractive than that.
With NastyGal, the author learned the importance of exuding confidence when representing a brand–being able to talk to anyone confidently and having the courage to form your own opinions.
Never be afraid to delegate decisions to someone with more knowledge or experience because no one knows everything; stay humble and confident instead.
Having this attitude means you can be naturally attractive to everyone you come across.
And if you show off that confidence with an amazing outfit? You’ll take their breath away!
Wrap Up
#GIRLBOSS is a must-read for anyone looking to become a successful entrepreneur.
The key message is that succeeding doesn’t depend on school performance, but finding what you’re passionate about and letting it drive your journey forward.
To reach your goals and stay motivated, the author suggests creating a sigil which is a small word encoded with your dreams.
This book offers actionable advice that can help anyone become the #GIRLBOSS they’re aiming to be – be confident, ask for what you want, connect your entrepreneurial side with creative talents, and use enchanted words to keep yourself motivated in times of doubt!
