Book review: “It’s Up To Us” by John Kasich

The subtitle of this book is “Ten Little Ways We Can Bring About Big Change”. I stumbled across this while researching some other posts, and recently got it from the library. It draws on John Kasich’s career in public service (governor of Ohio, US presidential candidate, US House rep). The ten ways are as follows:

• Start A Movement – Mentions the women’s suffragist movement, environmental issues (think Greta Thunberg) among others
• Be The Change Where You Live – Look at what you can do in your neighborhood, your town or city
• Be Prepared To Walk A Lonely Road – Being out in front of an issue can bring criticism, but accept that you might need to stand out from the crowd before you can find a way to convince others to stand beside you
• Slow Down – Take time to stop, look and breathe
• Bounce Back – After a setback, we need to be able to dust ourselves off and get back in the mix
• Love Thy Neighbor – Work to lift people up, not tear people down
• Get Out Of Your Silo – Take in other points of view and stay open to revisiting your own points of view
• Put Yourself In Someone Else’s Shoes – Understand other people’s struggles
• Spend Time Examining Your Eternal Destiny – Think about the footprints you are leaving behind
• Know That You Are Made Special – Live each day in a way that lets your individuality shine through

I thought this was an uplifting book, if short on specifics, worth a read if you are thinking about activism.