Review by Booklist Review
Former NFL linebacker, Emmy--winning broadcaster, and best-selling author Acho provides a step-by-step guide advising readers on how to stop letting society's metrics or allegedly logical expectations determine their value, success, or greatness. Instead, he suggests that one should create a new path by rejecting conventional logic about life choices and thinking illogically. Once a highly logical thinker, Acho decided to stop focusing on football strategies and pour all his energy into new projects and skills. Thinking illogically helped him start a career in broadcasting and become a leading communication expert for several football executives. He later became an activist and creator of the online video series, Uncomfortable Conversations with a Black Man, which he turned into a book. Throughout this call for personal growth, Acho provides inspirational quotes and stories about himself and others who utilize mental and, sometimes, physical toughness to achieve their goals. Acho encourages readers to study people who work, look, and sound different from themselves, to discover new ideas, acquire new skills, step out of their comfort zones, and be brave in breaking free of old patterns that hold us back.
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
Acho (Uncomfortable Conversations with a Black Man), a Fox Sports analyst and former NFL linebacker, encourages readers to think illogically and reject convention in this optimistic guide. After Acho broke his thumb while playing with the Philadelphia Eagles in 2015, he made the "illogical" decision to pivot to sports media instead of returning to the NFL, and soon became the youngest national football analyst at ESPN. Pulling from his own life, from history, and popular culture, Acho gives advice on how to buck conventional wisdom, recommending that readers get comfortable with uncertainty and risk, remain open to changing their goals on the fly, follow their gut, and learn to not fear failure. For example, he uses Steve Jobs's promotion of the iPhone to illustrate the power in believing in oneself, the Wright Brothers' first flight to demonstrate how one can learn from one's predecessors, and the biblical story of Peter walking on water to extoll the virtue of being willing to act alone. While most may find Acho's suggestions unsurprising, his upbeat tone adds spunk and confidence to such self-affirming statements as "You are valuable, worthy, and beautiful." Though Acho leans on common maxims, this brims with infectious positivity. (Mar.)
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Review by Kirkus Book Review
An accomplished athlete becomes a cheerleader. In 2015, Nigerian American linebacker Acho suffered an injury that caused him to be dropped by the Philadelphia Eagles. The footballer, who had been cut five times by the age of 25 and traded after his rookie season, faced a real dilemma: the need to reinvent himself as something other than a football player. Acho draws on that experience, biblical stories (David and Goliath, Noah), and the successes of people like Steve Jobs, Oprah Winfrey, and his own immigrant father to offer upbeat encouragement to anyone mired at a crossroads in life. Now an Emmy Award--winning sports analyst for Fox Sports and host of the podcast--and author of the book--Uncomfortable Conversations With a Black Man, Acho urges readers to follow their dreams, take risks, and refuse to let other people tell you that what you want is not logical. "Take the chance," he advises. "Life is short and tomorrow is not promised. Do not live a half-filled life leaving yourself to wonder, 'What if ?' Just go do it." He cautions against letting other people determine your value or success and even advises against aiming toward one particular goal: "If you open up your peripheral vision to different paths your impact is so much greater than crossing one finish line." Children, he reminds readers, "just believe, they don't overcomplicate things" by weighing the pros and cons of whatever they want to do. "My coach always used the phrase, 'Paralysis by analysis,' " Acho writes. "Don't overthink, just believe, and thus achieve." The author urges readers to find their natural gift--something they're inherently good at or thoroughly enjoy--and develop it through perseverance and hard work. Never let other people's doubt stop you, he insists: "The moment you think to yourself, 'I might be crazy,' is the first checkpoint on your path to accomplishing greatness." A heartfelt guide to personal success. Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
