Self-Development Book Club - I Decided to Live as Me

Book number four in my goal to read or reread a self-development book every month in 2025 is I Decided to Live as Me by Kim Suhyun. The subtitle of this book is An Illustrated Checklist for How to Stop Comparing Yourself to Others So You Can Learn to Love Yourself.

I picked this book up on a whim. My husband and I were walking around a bookstore in January. As all the New Year's Resolution energy in the air requires, there was a display of self-development books just inside the entrance. As it was meant to do, it immediately drew me in. Several books caught my eye. I looked at a new book by Kendra Adachi and another by Gabrielle Bernstein, but the book I picked was I Decided to Live as Me. I grabbed this one mostly because it was cute and also because it had a sticker that read "The Million-Copy International Bestseller".

Watch Me Discuss This Book

Summary

The book is divided into six sections.

Checklist For a Life That Respects Who You Are
Checklists For Living as Yourself
Checklist For Not Being Defeated by Anxiety
Checklist For Living With One Another
Checklist For a Better World
Checklist For a Good and Meaningful Life

As I read this book, I did make a few notes of things I enjoyed, but my overall opinion was not all that great. There were several times I felt that the content seemed a little immature and sometimes I completely disagreed with what it was saying. You might ask what I expected from an illustrated book...? Fair question.

I think 2 things are happening here.

-Number one, the author is Korean and the book was then translated to English. I think part of this could be the difference between American and Korean cultures, or it could be a few things were lost in translation.

-Number two, I don't think a 50-year-old woman is the target audience for this book. I think this book could be beneficial for a young adult who struggles with self-doubt and anxiety. (again, while I thought the illustrations were cute, I guess they were a clue that the book would not be as deep as I had hoped)

Favorite Quotes

Like I said above, there were things I enjoyed about the book. Below you will find a few quotes/sections that made me nod along while reading.

"when someone criticizes you, keep in mind that this is only an individual's opinion - and the individual in question is not exactly King Solomon or Sigmund Freud." p.17

"even virtues, when excessive, overflow into toxicity." p.40

The whole section "Speak out for the Right to Respect Yourself." p.43-46

"How many things have you done because you liked doing it, not because you wanted to have done it?" p.59

I really don't ever like giving a book a bad review, because I understand what it takes to open up and share your thoughts on the page. Not every book is intended to be enjoyed by every reader. I do think there is an audience for this book, it just wasn't me.