Book Review: How to Be a Bawse

How to Be a Bawse: A Guide to Conquering Life by Lilly Singh
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Yes, I love Lilly Singh. It’s difficult not to love her. However, I have always admired her from afar not because of her funny videos, but because of her creativity and entrepreneurship. I’ll be honest, I was late to the game. I stumbled upon her videos when I was in college around 2007. I found some of them hilarious and some of them corny, but all extremely relatable. It’s Lilly Singh’s knack for being able to get people from all walks of life to relate to her stories that has contributed to her success. Also, being gorgeous helps.

I was watching her rise when there weren’t any prominent South Asian women in the media, especially ones that were fun and entertaining. That is what drew me to her more than anything. I was curious how this young woman who came from the same background as me was able to become so famous and cool when I didn’t even know my people could be on T.V. in a non-stereotypical way. I was mesmerized by her success. This is why I had to read her book “How to Be a Bawse.”

I immediately noticed her book had the same ADHD-like quality that her videos have where there is too much going on, too fast, all at the same time. This book is an extension of her personality. It’s vibrant, colorful, funny, relatable, and most importantly real. There are many motivational books out there, but I’m tired of reading books by White men who started with a small loan or a small business of $3 million dollars and became multi-millionaires or billionaires and now they’re telling us how they can make us rich. I crave books written by people of color, especially women of color like me, who were truly self-made. This book did not disappoint. Amidst the bold colors and graphics (she has a purpose behind them), are some real gems. She talks about letting go of fear, being yourself, investing in yourself, and being “the dumbest” person in the room and surrounding yourself with people who are smarter than you. She doesn’t talk about how she can make you a millionaire in six months. She talks about making sacrifices, learning from your mistakes, and being clear about what you want in life. All this talk isn’t just fluff. She shares personal examples for all of these situations and how she learned these lessons herself the hard way. She has exercises at the end of each chapter to encourage you to evaluate yourself and take the necessary steps to change and succeed.

This is a book I find myself going back to whenever I need a little pick-me-up or some quick focus and motivation to start my day. One of my favorite self-improvement books from a truly self-made Desi woman. I highly recommend it.


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