Review: Sorry I’m Late, I Didn’t Want to Come: One Introvert’s Year of Saying Yes by Jessica Pan

Sorry I’m Late, I Didn’t Want to Come: One Introvert’s Year of Saying Yes by Jessica Pan – 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟
Perfect timing for my trip, many ideas went into play! I’m motivated to do all the important things for myself now, so I guess I should capitalize while that lasts. 👍

Recommended: YES!
For anyone who has to talk to people but doesn’t always enjoy it, for insight into the struggles people face who don’t always enjoy talking to people, for a really funny and personal story, or for a thoroughly researched look into how common loneliness is, for those who’ve run out of ideas from The Escape Manual for Introverts and are looking for a new method

Summary:
What would happen if a shy introvert lived like a gregarious extrovert for one year? If she knowingly and willingly put herself in perilous social situations that she’d normally avoid at all costs? Writer Jessica Pan intends to find out. With the help of various extrovert mentors, Jessica sets up a series of personal challenges (talk to strangers, perform stand-up comedy, host a dinner party, travel alone, make friends on the road, and much, much worse) to explore whether living like an extrovert can teach her lessons that might improve the quality of her life. Chronicling the author’s hilarious and painful year of misadventures, this book explores what happens when one introvert fights her natural tendencies, takes the plunge, and tries (and sometimes fails) to be a little bit braver.

Thoughts:
I LOVED IT. That’s probably pretty clear. I loved it from probably page 6, but the true cinching moment was when she started talking about performing for The Moth and that she did a show with David Litt. Guess what I need to go find footage of?

The bottom line is that I loved this because it resonated and inspired me. And with perfect timing, too, as I was just about to go on a trip that would require talking endlessly to strangers and finding people to sit with for 3 meals a day. A.k.a. a perfectly formed world of anxiety-inducing situations. So I used her tips, and Deep Talk on older strangers went quite well. I also have a party to attend, which will be getting these ideas put to work. Maybe I’ll even join improv, WHO KNOWS!

What you get in this book is complicated, because depending on what you’re reading for, you could get many things. One would be a funny personal story where you get to go on Jessica’s journey with her and empathize throughout. Another would be a path of research and experts into how loneliness is affecting people worldwide and ways to combat it with literal pro-tips on how to make friends. A third would be almost a guide to model for helping you get past your own similar struggles, and encourage you to take that nerve-wracking but critical step towards the change you most need to make in your life.

It’s all of those things, and it’s also completely hilarious and unflinchingly honest. This might be another one of those books that I just recommend to everybody. This is one kind of nonfiction that I love best!