A self-help book written for anyone who suffers from burnout, imposter syndrome - and that persistent yelling voice in their brain. Well-written and honest, just a little young for me at my stage of life - but I'd recommend it to others.

I really enjoyed this book. I thought it was very helpful in terms of using my anxiety to help me live a happier life. I feel like this is one that I will be reading again because I feel like I can get more knowledge out of it second time around.

Poppy gives tools on how to live a more flexible, imperfect life which helps to create a healthy, happy state of mind through letting go of stressors. This book has really given me a lot of good tips on how to calm my anxieties and to remember I'm not perfect nor do I need to be.

I don't love self-help books all the time, but this one was a little different! This book challenged me to be flexible on thinking, and taking a step back to analyze negative thoughts instead of drowning in them.

This self-help book was pretty standard when it comes to self-help books, but the personal timing of it (burnt out, anxious, a lot major life changes) made it really helpful. The emphasis on flexibility was a particularly good reminder.

This book is part memoir and part book of tools to embrace happiness, strengthen your mind, and choosing healthier thoughts. A lot of tools and techniques to take into your day. I love how the author shared her own journey, and I even found some tips I'll pick up to use on my own journey. Thanks to the author, the publisher, and to Netgalley for allowing me to review.

Happy Not Perfect by Poppy Jamie is part memoir part self help that helps the reader reassess their mental health and emotions.

The author stresses the importance of happiness being a state of mind (a perspective) where being perfect is not. If you strive for perfection, you will be let down continuously because this state doesn’t ever exist. It is unobtainable.

Poppy gives tools on how to live a more flexible, imperfect life which helps to create a healthy, happy state of mind through letting go of stressors.

Some examples are as follows:

- Changing ridged thinking & thoughts to more flexible ones.

- Acknowledge negative thinking & emotions.

- Acceptance for things that cannot be changed.

- Be present and open to what matters.

- Embracing love when fear presents itself.

- Validation comes from within, not from external sources.

Please note that she uses some explicit language that some readers might find offensive like the use of the F word.

Would I recommend?

Yes, Poppy has created a helpful book that connects well to a younger audience who are trapped by all the pressures put on them by social media, consumerism, corporate workplaces, and the media. She writes with a voice that connects with a youthful and fun reader and gets the issues they struggle with on the daily.

4/5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

TAGS:
#SelfHelp #Happiness #SelfCare

Thanks to Netgalley, publisher and author for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I have always struggled with anxiety and it's only gotten worse the older and more aware I become. This was a really great book because it provides the reader with helpful tips to calm yourself and allow grace in a crazy world.

A bit too bland for me, to be honest, but still a good starting point for someone wanting to read a positive self-help book. The content is easy to access and instructive - not bad at all, just not as specialized as I'd like it to be.

Happy Not Perfect is full of information and techniques on rethinking your approach to mental health and emotions. Which is, let's face it, something that we all could use some help working through. It was a great read that I would highly recommend to anyone struggling with anxiety or their mental health!

I really enjoyed this book!
THANK YOU FOR SHARING THIS BOOK WITH ME!
I got behind in the COVID DRAMA and missed posting about this important book when it came out.
Thank you!

OMG. Poppy gave me a much needed dose of perspective. Happy is a mind state - rather a perspective and perfect is not. If you strive for perfection you will always most certainly be let down. I appreciate her insights and will read again when I fee like I am subsuming to my perfectionist tendencies.

I usually speed through books, but I sat with this one and I'm happy that I did. As a self-described perfectionist, I'm always looking for helpful strategies to learn how to be a little less perfection-driven. Poppy Jamie delivers practical tools to help live a more flexible, or as she calls it "bendy" life. Some of my parts of the book were:

- "The one strategy that eases deeply rooted thought patterns that trigger anxiety is flexibility, being able to bend, reframe and challenge, and to see oneself and the world with a new perspective".

- "I learned workaholism, emotional avoidance, and a habit of overreacting in childhood as a way to survive. I learned the belief that perfection equaled love and safety without rejection and built my work-addicted life around it."

- Many of us step away from our integrity to perform identities given to us and, in the separation, we begin to lose understanding of what our deepest desires, longings, and passions are. What really lights our soul up. Instead we look to other people, and tune into their ideas of how to do life. We rely on external sources to validate us, and popular opinion to guide us".

Visually pleasing and broken down into bite sized pieces. Would be good as part of a daily gratitude/meditation/journaling practice.

ARC provided by the publisher via NetGally but the opinions are my own.

A memoir and self help book all in one an interesting read from an interesting Author.
I think a great read for a younger audience.
Thank you to Netgalley, Rodale books and the Author Poppy Jamie for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This book has good advice, but not that much different to me than other self help books.
However, I did like the steps the author suggests to reduce anxiety and depression:
Acceptance / Be present, be open and do what matters / Bend your negative emotions, do not ignore them / Make your thoughts flexible / Stop negative chatter / Avoid rigid thoughts / Choose love over fear when reacting to triggers.

I had not heard of Poppy Jamie until I read this, so I found all her personal narratives to be kind of distracting to the rest of the book.

This book is a bright, refreshing reminder that we shouldn't strive towards perfection and instead take notice of the present moment. The author did a good job explaining various concepts, the content was engaging, and I love the cover.

Thank you to the publisher and to Net Galley. My review opinions are my own.

The author has written this as a self help book for those with anxiety in this new culture we live in. Its directed mainly toward a younger audience who certainly have their own stress to deal with. The author shares her journey to anxiety and how she healed from fears . I appreciate that it is written in a candid format . A younger audience will relate more to this. Every self help book has something to offer and this definitely does offer good sound advice on overcoming our new anxiety of this strange time of pandemic life.

Thank you to Rodale Inc and NetGalley for providing me with an advanced copy of this book.

A thoughtful, empathetic perspective on how we can life an 'imperfect' life without being too hard on ourselves. While I'm not actually on board with the whole 'self-esteem' movement, I do think Jamie provides insightful feedback that isn't always self-indulgent. I'm not sure if that makes exact sense but hopefully someone else understands my thought process. Most self-help books I've read come across as condescending (too preachy) or unrealistic advice. Again, Jamie's advice was practical and applicable to the day-to-day.

Happy not Perfect is the book I needed in my life! I have struggled with a lot of the same thought processes as poppy especially perfectionism. I love that she teaches us the steps she’s learned and that I can use them alongside her app! Poppy has greatly helped my lifelong struggles with anxiety and people pleasing and I have already recommended this book to my friends and family. Even though we come from two different life paths she has shown that we all have struggles and are in this thing together.