Freya's Nook: A Comparison of F**k Books

As I briefly mentioned at the end of my last blog post, I am a musician - a violinist. As is very typical in one of these arty professions, I am currently going through that inevitable phase of looking for jobs, taking soul-eating audition after audition, dealing with rejection.... And wondering if I should just give up and get a 'normal' and well paying job. In light of this, I decided to invest in a couple of 'self-help' style, advice-giving books, that might help me get some clarity. The fact that both of the books that I chose contain the word f**k in the title is a little comical - it could reflect my state of mind at the time of purchasing... or maybe it's just a coincidence!

In any case, I found each book interesting and helpful in its own way, although also very different and each targeting a different group of people looking for help. I wanted to share a few of my thoughts and hope they could help any fellow lost souls out there.

It is clear that 'The Life-Changing Magic of Not Giving a F**k' was inspired by a (currently very fashionable) self help book by Marie Kondo, 'The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up'. Knight mentions this book often and suggests that while Kondo has some great suggestions for making your living space and your possessions tidy, here is a book that can make your HEAD space more tidy by simply saying 'I do not give a f**K'. Knight produces a step by step plan for you, to go through almost everything in your life - things, work, friends/acquaintances and family - and decide what you actually give a f**k about and what you don't. Once you have gone through everything, and she really means everything, you can go about actually not giving the f**k - i.e. saying no to things, getting yourself out of situations you don't want to be in.

I think Knight has made a very reader-friendly book here - it is so clearly structured, by steps and with many examples and personal touches. and space for yourself to write in the book itself. If you are someone who gets drawn into doing things you don't really want to do and don't know how to get out of them, who finds it difficult to say no or even to decide whether you care about something or not, this is a book for you. You can read it in a few hours, and with Knight's friendly and personal writing style it doesn't feel too much like a self-helpy type of read.

On the other hand Parkin's 'F**k it Do What You Love' is targeting a different group of people - a group that I felt I fit into and was therefore more suited to my particular situation. This book mainly focuses on the work problem, people who are in the wrong jobs for them, and how they can get out and start working on what they really love. Parkin dives straight into working out exactly what it is that you love doing, with lots of sub-sections on what you used to love doing/what you would love to do if money was no issue etc., and then working out ways to put it into practice and earn money from it.

Like Knights book, 'F**k it Do What You Love' is extremely well structured, and very personal. Parkin makes clear that he is coming on the 'F**k it' journey with us, and is constantly writing, in his very witty and humorous style, as if you were in conversation with him at the present moment. We therefore get to know a lot about his life and how he was able to change it with his 'F**k it' philosophy which can be inspiring. Certainly if you feel that you are in a dead-end job, or you are like me trying to make your passion into something real that can make money, I would recommend giving this a read. I can say that it has definitely opened up my mind to a lot of new ideas about how I can plan my own projects and even shed light on a few things I hadn't really thought about doing before. ..this blog for example!