Book 2, Post 1

I chose My Life on the Road by Gloria Steinem as my second book because I’m honestly much less educated on Gloria Steinem and her activism than I’d like to be. Although I’m not too deep into the book yet, I’m already moved by her passion, authenticity, and wisdom. It’s really cool how she asserts that constantly being on the road and traveling gets people “out of theory and into practice, out of caution and into action.” As someone going into sales, this is similar to the idea of “analysis paralysis.” This is when someone spends too much time researching a customer instead of maximizing their time by doing some quick research then picking up the phone and calling. Putting too much thought into anything can build it up in your head until it’s much more intimidating than it needs to be, so I totally agree with Gloria about the benefits of jumping into action.

 

Another really cool idea that Gloria brings up right off the bat is that traveling is “right up there with life-threatening emergencies and truly mutual sex as a way of being fully alive in the present.” With the rise of social media and smartphones, it has become harder and harder to stay engrossed in the present moment. And as a college student, everything we do seems to be focused on our future professional goals. I’m excited to learn more about her journeys, the causes she fights for, and how she stays so refreshed and focused despite traveling the country and world for most of her life.