Just ok. I am kind of over the whole idea that everyone needs to be AWESOME. What about humble servanthood? Doing the unseen? Yeah, just ok for me.

The author was a guest on the podcast I listen to, and I loved his exuberant and upbeat attitude. That is something that definitely comes through in this book -- his energy just leaps off the page! Acuff is a great writer with lots of great stories that kept me engaged through the whole book.The mediocre rating, then, is more of a reflection of me as a reader -- I just had a hard time applying a lot of what he said to my own life. While Acuff claims this advice applies to everyone, most of the e...

Wow,wow,wow.Have you ever read something and felt the author's enthusiasm jump off the page? That's what I got from Jon Acuff.He wants to help people not just start, but succeed. He wants to help them go from average to awesome. I think he does it really well.When I read the title, I thought, "Oh, oh (hand raised in the air) I want to START." But how?That's the big question. How?I think we all know we need to start if we want to get where we want to go. We just don't know how. Or for that matter...

Can I just share the dozens of quotes I copied and say, “It was good, read the rest?” I did appreciate the balance presented by Acuff, and his humor is on target.In short, this book gives you a lot to think about in regards to dreams and moving forward. I love the concept of continually starting—which doesn’t mean never finishing something, but rather, never stalling when you have reached a certain point.Certain concepts are very easy to grasp—like “do a rep” (basically, small progress in your g...

I really didn't like this book. I feel like he took Dave Ramsey's work and just put it into his own words and experiences. I felt like he talked a lot about himself….(i did this, and I did that) there were a lot of "I's" IT DROVE ME CRAZY, I don't know why I kept going and finished it! WAY OVER RATED! IMO!

Jon Acuff has a super-casual writing style, which implies that he has a super-casual speaking style. It worked for me, generally. You can feel energy coming off the page at times, which is fun and unexpected. From a content perspective, he makes a reasonable argument for 5 stages of life: Learning, Editing, Mastering, Harvesting, and Guiding. At the end of the book, there is a section on how to earn your spouse's support amidst an abundance of enthusiastic ideas (many of which may never come to

Through his witty but wise words, Acuff challenges readers to make their life awesome. Starting is our choice. We have dreams and ideas. This book will make you want to get them from your head, onto paper, and into your life. At least it did me. It's a practical approach to a topic that is hard to wrap words around. Jon Acuff tells some his own failures that led to successes and the people who helped him along the way. Of course, not everybody you meet will want to help you, but that's to be exp...

I like Acuff. He's hecka funny and a great speaker. This book, however, felt like a light snack and not a serious meal. Too many cliches or hallmarky-type phrases that would be more at home on a coffee cup than in a life changing book. I would have preferred more reference to facts and proven trends than Acuff's personal experience. He's lived a remarkable upswing and uses his fortune as the foundational approach we should all follow. Not all of us can be selected by a national radio host to hel...

I would put this book into the hands of anyone who is wanting to be more and do more. If their day job isn’t their dream, or if they have a bigger dream with more people to connect to, more awesome to put on canvas.Far from just being about positive affirmations or pie in the sky thinking, Jon will make you appreciate your stumbles and setbacks, and let you know you are not alone on the road to awesome. It isn’t easy, but if you are game, Jon is inviting you to walk the path with him.

Really enjoyed this book. * In 2011, 20% of new entrepreneurs were between the ages of 55 and 64. * You have to be: a realist and a dreamer; practical and impractical; logical and illogical. You have to be brutally realistic about your present circumstances and wildly unrealistic about your future circumstances. * General Stockdale: You must never confuse faith that you will prevail in the end -- which you can never afford to lose - with the discipline to confront the most brutal facts of your

Jon Acuff has an amazing book in Start. Not just a self-help book for those who feel 'stuck' and want to start a new chapter in their lives, this book offers both practical advice and an honest discussion of the barriers that everyone faces when trying to become greater than what they are now.More than that, however, Jon clearly wants to impart a new vision for the lives of everyone- that of escaping the average and embarking on a journey to awesome. It is his passion for this goal, for the reca...

I won an advance copy of Start from author Robin O'Bryant's blog, and I'm so glad I did. This is a motivational book packed with great insights, presented with a light, easy-to-read writing style. Acuff shares his ideas in an upbeat, modern, often funny way that breathes new life into all the old truths we know to be true and tend to forget in the day-to-day grind (or, maybe, even truths you never knew to be true).My copy is seriously dog-earred and highlighted, and I plan to buy a handful of ne...

I find myself going around saying "Jon Acuff says..." He started out as the funny guy who writes the satirical blog "Stuff Christians Like," but now he's a dream-encouraging, hope-making, fear-busting author and speaker. Of course he's still funny too :-)Outside of close friends, family and God, Acuff has probably been the biggest influence in my life the last two-years. I read "Quitter: Closing the Gap Between Your Dream Job and Your Day Job" two summers ago right after my book came out and I r...

Even if you’ve never read any of Jon’s writings before, if you have—or ever had—a dream or purpose (and if you’re reading this, you’re alive and you have a purpose), you’ll be interested in reading Start.Start is a bit like a travel guide on the best adventure you’ve ever taken (you know, life) through the lands of learning, editing, mastering, harvesting, and guiding. Everyone travels through these lands, though each of our journeys looks different than the next person’s. We also can be in mult...

What do you fear?Do you fear commitment? How about spiders? Perhaps it’s failure? I can tell you what I fear, I fear starting. If you have ever had a dream, some unfulfilled vision, then my friends, Jon Acuff’s book START might be up your alley. If you have ever wanted to do something exceptional, but find that sometimes life is either too demanding or your dream scares the heck out of you, then you should consider picking this book up. START is written by the incredibly funny Jon Acuff. Not onl...

I received this book as a birthday gift from my brother. I am a 38-year-old journalist/newspaper-type that has been laid off twice in the past five years (as a copy editor for a large former daily and editor of a small bi-weekly paper, both for financial reasons), so seeking another career has definitely crossed my mind.Wow. If you need a kick in the pants, this is the book to do it. Other reviewers have commented that only a couple main points have stuck with them from the book, and I would agr...

What can I say; this book is “Awesome”! It made me think, gave me a sense of encouragement and most of all pointed me to those areas in my own journey that may need a few more hours of attention. Maybe even another 10,000 hours!Jon does a great job of bringing home real examples of how to escape “average” and become “awesome” and the stages each must go through on this journey. No shortcuts, no magic bullets, just a lot of hard work, sacrifice and paying your dues to achieve your life purpose an...