Everything is Figureoutable. Book Summary
Marie Forleo
Portfolio; First Edition (September 10, 2019)
About the author
A born-and-raised Jersey girl with nothing more than passion, a laptop and a dream, Marie Forleo has created a socially conscious digital empire that inspires millions across the globe. Named by Oprah as a thought leader for the next generation, she’s the star of the award-winning show MarieTV, with over 50 million views, and host of The Marie Forleo Podcast, with more than ten million downloads. Marie has taught entrepreneurs, artists, and multipassionate go-getters from all walks of life how to dream big and back it up with daily action to create results. She runs the acclaimed business training program, B-School.
About the book:
“Everything is figureoutable will change your life. You can use it to solve mundane problems like a busted washing machine or a flat tire. You can use it to build a company, reshape your health, or create financial freedom. You can use it to save (or end) a relationship or create the most magnificent, passionate love story of your dreams. You can use it to find your way out of chronic stress, grief, anger, depression, addiction, anxiety, hopelessness, and debt. You can use it to invent a breakthrough technology, learn a new language, become a better parent or a stronger leader. Most important, you can use this idea with others—in your family, organization, team, industry, community, or the world—to create a positive and significant change.
Individually and collectively, we’re confronted by events and circumstances that can no longer be ignored. […] Yet there can be no significant change in the world unless we first have the courage to change ourselves. In order to change ourselves, we must first believe we can.
Together, we’ll us this one simple belief, everything is figureoutable, to activate our inherent ability to transform our lives and, by doing so, instigate meaningful change around us. Which is exactly why this book is in your hands right now.”
About a year ago, I stumbled upon Marie Forleo’s Podcast and was immediately captivated by her infectious energy, delightful sense of humor, and invaluable practical wisdom.
Marie is a multifaceted individual, known for being the founder of the immensely popular B-School, a charismatic MarieTV host, a motivational speaker, a life coach, an accomplished author, and a former Nike dance athlete. Throughout the years, she has profoundly impacted the lives of countless individuals, inspiring them to recognize their potential and achieve meaningful success in both their personal and professional endeavours.
Her book, a true source of inspiration, feels like a powerful shot of motivational espresso straight to your brain. With her trademark blend of down-to-earth advice, captivating personal anecdotes, and unwavering belief in the indomitable human spirit, Marie ignites a fire within you. She challenges you to face your fears, rise above your excuses and become a creative force of your own life.
I, personally, LOVED the book and wholeheartedly recommend it to anyone with aspirations of living a purposeful and fulfilling life. As you can guess, it is packed with great insights and I can’t wait to share a few of my favorites.
Let’s jump straight in!
Key insights:
Everything is Figureoutable
“I stood there for a second, watching her work her magic. Finally, I asked, ‘Hey, Mom, how do you know how to do so many different things that you’ve never done before, without anyone showing you how to do it?’
She put down her screwdriver, turned to me, and said, ‘Don’t be silly, Ree. Nothing is life is that complicated. You can do whatever you set your mind to if you just roll up your sleeves, get in there, and do it. Everything is figureoutable.’
I was transfixed, reveling in and repeating those words in my head: Everything is figureoutable. Everything is figureoutable. Holy shit, yes…
Everything Is Figureoutable!
This phrase and philosophy took root in my soul. Since then it’s become the most powerful driving force in my life.”
Marie kicks off the book with this awesome story about her mum.
And as I was reading it, I couldn’t help but beam with a big, fat smile on my face. At our home, we’re all about instilling pretty much the same philosophy into our kids – the notion that no matter what life throws at us, there’s always a way to figure things out. Our family manifesto spells it out loud and proud: “Be a problem-solver and always look for solutions.”
Everything is Figureoutable. Such a simple yet so powerful mantra.
This mindset is a game changer.
The magic of belief
“When you change a belief, you change everything.
Our beliefs either propel us to or prevent us from living to our fullest potential. Our beliefs determine whether we fail or succeed, and how we define success in the first place. Just imagine the decades of relentless belief, action, and determination required to give women in the US the right to vote.
Or the unshakable belief that President John F. Kennedy and the team at NASA had in our ability to send humans into space and walk on the moon—something a mere one hundred years prior would have seemed preposterous.
Belief is where it all begins. It’s the genesis of every remarkable discovery and leap forward humans have ever made from science to sports to business to technology and the arts.
The power that beliefs have over our lives simply cannot be overstated.”
Love it. Changing your life starts with changing your beliefs. Our minds are insanely powerful, and changing them can unlock a whole new world of possibilities.
In the book, Marie shares some mind-blowing research that proves just how incredible our minds are. For example, she dives into a “sham” surgery study by the orthopaedic surgeon Bruce Moseley. During the experiment, he had some patients get a legit full-on knee surgery, while others went through a placebo sham version – only a few shallow cuts and painkillers, nothing too crazy. Now get this. A third of the patients who had the real surgery reported pain relief, but guess what? The researchers were absolutely stunned when roughly the same amount of patients from the placebo group had the same results! That’s right, the sham surgery was just as effective.
Oh, and if you want more proof on how changing beliefs can change your life, check out one of my all-time favourite TED talks: “Change your mindset, change the game” by Dr. Alia Crum. It’s mind-blowing.
Question for you – how are your beliefs?
Marie writes:
“All you need is one core meta belief, a master key that unlocks every imaginable door in the castle of your consciousness. It’s like throwing a switch that instantly illuminates a field of infinite potential. If you haven’t yet guessed, the whole purpose of this book is to inspire you to adopt the supremely powerful belief that everything is figureoutable.”
Do you believe that everything is figureoutable (please say YES)?
The famous quote by Henry Ford probably crossed your mind, and Marie provides her insights on it:
“As clichéd as this Henry Ford quote has become, it’s a fact: ‘Whether you think you can or you think you can’t, you’re right.’ Now does this mean that anyone can do or achieve anything they imagine as long as they believe hard enough? No, it does not. Consistent action, creativity, and commitment all play a role.
But one thing is certain. If you don’t believe something is possible for you, it’s not. Period. End of story. The moment you tell your brain, ‘That’s not possible’ or ‘I can’t’ or ‘That will never work for me,’ you’re 100 percent right. You command your brain to shut down. The mind and body will follow.
While our potential as individuals is unknowable, what we know for sure is that limiting beliefs guarantee limited outcomes.”
I couldn’t agree more. To achieve extraordinary things in life, we must embrace moonshot thinking.
Combine the belief that “Everything is figureoutable” with consistent action, creativity, and unwavering commitment, and the possibilities become limitless.
Two four-letter words that will annihilate your excuses
“Let’s start by looking at your language and two common words that blur your ability to be honest with yourself. Those two four-letter words are ‘can’t’ and ‘won’t.’ Think about how often people say some version of the following:
I can’t get up and work out every day.
I can’t find the time to get writing done.
I can’t forgive her for what she’s done.
I can’t take that job, it’s across the country.
I can’t ask for help.
I can’t ask for a promotion because I’m not good enough yet.
I can’t launch this project because my boss didn’t approve it.
I can’t ___________ [take the class/learn the language/start the venture/etc.] because I can’t afford it.
Here’s the problem: 99 percent of the time when we say we ‘can’t’ do something, ‘can’t’ is a euphemism for ‘won’t.’ What does ‘won’t’ mean? ‘Won’t’ means we’re not willing. In other words…
You don’t really want to.”
When we let the word “can’t” slip into our vocabulary, we start playing the victim card, making excuses, and feeling utterly powerless. It’s like we’re handing over the reins of our lives to some imaginary force.
But here is the truth:
We are 100 percent responsible for our life. Period.
Now, if you’re ready to bid farewell to those pesky excuses, Marie’s got a powerful exercise for you:
Grab a pen and paper, and make a list of all the things you believe you “can’t do.” Then, here comes the magic: rephrase each one with “I won’t do.”
How does that hit you? A bit more honest, right? Marie puts it like this:
“In my life, whenever I say ‘I can’t,’ most of the time what I really mean is ‘I won’t.’ I don’t want to. I have no desire to make the sacrifice or put in the effort to get that particular result. It’s not something I want badly enough or something I want to put ahead of my other priorities. Saying that you don’t want something (or don’t want to put in the work or sacrifice to get it) doesn’t make you bad or lazy. It makes you honest.”
Marie also shares some practical tools to combat the three most common excuses: “I don’t have time,” “I don’t have money,” and “I don’t know how/ I don’t know where to start.” So, if you’re hungry for more, grab the book and dive right in.
Increase your odds of success by 42 percent
“An oft-cited study done by Dr. Gail Matthews, a psychology professor at Dominican University of California, shows that you’re 42 percent more likely to achieve your goals if you write them down. Gail’s sample group included men and women, ages twenty-three to seventy-two, from around the world and all walks of life—entrepreneurs, educators, health care professionals, artists, lawyers, and bankers. She divided the participants into two groups, those who wrote down their goals and those who didn’t. The results were clear. Those who wrote down their goals achieved those desires at a significantly higher level than those who didn’t.
As basic as it seems, most people still don’t write down what’s most important to them. If I was considering making a bet and you told me that if I wrote that bet on paper, I had a 42 percent HIGHER chance of winning—I’d do it! If I was undergoing some kind of medical protocol and my doctor said, ‘Hey, if you write this down, you’ll increase your chances of healing by 42 percent’—am I NOT going to listen? Who doesn’t want those kinds of odds?
Even without this study, writing down what you want is sheer common sense. In our endlessly distracted, overcommitted, overstretched world, writing down what’s most important is a deceptively easy way to stay focused. Writing down your dream forces you to be clear and specific about what you want. Ambiguity is the enemy of accomplishment. […]
Now, obviously, you shouldn’t just write your goal in a journal and call it a day. You should look at it often. Daily is ideal. This keeps your top priority top of mind.”
Can you believe it? The chances of achieving your dreams shoot up by a whopping 42 percent just by writing them down!
The book is packed with mind-blowing exercises that will help you define your dreams and set those one-year goals on fire. I personally tried them all, and it worked wonders in bringing clarity to my aspirations. So definitely grab the book for more.
Now, it’s your turn – have you taken the time to jot down your goals? Give it a try and see the magic unfold.
P.S.: If you’re really serious about turning your dreams into reality, I highly recommend checking out the WOOP technique from Gabriel Oettingen’s brilliant book, “Rethinking Positive Thinking.”
Start before you’re ready
“All progress begins with a brave decision.
Personal progress. Professional progress. Collective, societal progress – all of it is born from a single person’s decision to act. To stand up. To speak out. To make a move. Usually long before there’re any guarantee of success. Another point most of us fail to see: action comes before the courage to act. Action spawns courage, not the other way around.
Action also generates motivation. Instead of waiting for inspiration to strike, action implores you to keep going.”
Absolutely spot on! Even a belief as powerful as “Everything is Figureoutable” won’t get you anywhere if you don’t back it up with action.
Let’s face the truth: we never feel fully prepared to take on important challenges in life. That imposter syndrome creeps in when we begin. But here’s the secret sauce to making progress – taking that first step. Then, muster the courage for the second one. Before you know it, you’ll be strolling, making strides toward your dream.
Ozan Varol’s wisdom from “How to Think Like a Rocket Scientist” comes to mind:
“…absolute certainty is a mirage. In life, we’re required to base our opinions on imperfect information and make a call with sketchy data. […]
The path, as the mystic poet Rumi writes, won’t appear until you start walking. […]
The secret is to start walking before you see a clear path.
Start walking, even though there will be stuck wheels, broken drills, and exploding oxygen tanks ahead.
Start walking because you can learn to walk backward if your wheel gets stuck or you can use duct tape to block catastrophe.
Start walking, and as you become accustomed to walking, watch your fear of dark places disappear.
Start walking because, as Newton’s first law goes, objects in motion tend to stay in motion—once you get going, you will keep going.
Start walking because your small steps will eventually become giant leaps.
Start walking, and if it helps, bring a bag of peanuts with you for good luck.
Start walking, not because it’s easy, but because it’s hard.
Start walking because it’s the only way forward.”
Reading that gives me goosebumps too!
So, question for you: is there something you’re trying to figure out in your life? Identify those first couple of steps and just start walking. Take the plunge, embrace the uncertainty, and watch the magic unfold as you make progress towards your dreams!
Action steps for you:
- Replace negative beliefs with one powerful one: Everything is Figureoutable. Here’s a transformative exercise from Marie:
- Write down your goal – what is it that you want to solve, change, or figure out in your life?
- List all the negative/limiting beliefs that have hindered your progress until now.
- Cross out each negative belief and write “BULLSHIT” next to them. Then, take a moment to reflect on WHY these beliefs are indeed total bullshit.
- Envision who you could be without these limiting beliefs holding you back.
- Create a creative and playful plan to fully embrace the belief that everything is figureoutable. Embody this belief and let it guide you to your desired outcomes.
- Transform Dreams into Actionable Plans: Write down your dreams, and then take the time to chart a practical roadmap on how to achieve them. Apply the Ten-Year Test to each dream: honestly ask yourself, “Ten years from now, will I regret NOT pursuing this?” Let your answer guide your prioritization.
- Build Your Figureoutable Force Field: Surround yourself with figureoutable friends – individuals who believe in possibilities and encourage growth. Also, infuse your home and workplace with a figureoutable mindset, fostering an environment of open-mindedness and problem-solving.
Quotes from the book
