Book Review: Extraordinary by Michael Dauphinee

Title: Extraordinary: The world sold you a map. What you need is a compass by Michael Dauphinee

Genre: Non-Fiction Self-Help/Business Development

Review Synopsis: A decent read that will change lives, but felt rather ordinary in prose and structure. 

Version: Kindle Book

Amazon Rating: 5.0 (23 reviews as of this posting)

Get a view into the depths of what it means to live out an extraordinary life with this book. Author and business coach Michael Dauphinee shares his expertise on using strengths to find life direction. 

It was a fun read with good thoughts throughout and sits somewhere in the middle of the pack for books this year. I didn’t resonate with it as much as I tend to with some books, and while I took notes, there wasn’t much that stuck out to me as profound or moving. 

Let’s dive into the good the bad and the great!

The Good

The book makes the point early that it’s possible to live an extraordinary life even in the most difficult and challenging of circumstances. He told a story about a conversation he had with his dad that nearly brought me to tears, and it illustrated his point well. I love that he shares how it’s more about rising out of the ashes of a struggle instead of beating ourselves up because we didn’t make anything of our lives. 

The Bad

The writing style and/or edit didn’t suit my tastes. I thought he rambled on and on quite frequently, and struggled to either make a point, or figure out what point he wanted to make. He spoke of courage and I found myself shaking my head in disagreement at his thoughts, and I didn’t resonate at all with his whole concept of permission. 

What’s worse, by the end of the book I wasn’t 100% sure what his overall point was. How does one live an extraordinary life? I get that he is a big Clifton Strengths guy and that’s great, but how do I use my skills to live an extraordinary life? The major point was unclear. I might have missed it (and probably did) but the overall thesis of the book didn’t stand out to me. 

The Great

The author is an entrepreneur, and I finally found some common ground when he talked about his business and how it works in his life. I loved his personal anecdotes and they served to give the book some much needed flair. I love books where I can feel the author’s heartbeat for his readers, and I could Michael cares very much. 

His chapter on generosity was easily the best part of then book and it spurred me to take action and give back by buying breakfast for a nearby family of three. I think he did well to nurture the spirit of giving and how that relates to living an extraordinary life. 

Pick up the book on Amazon here and see what it takes to become Extraordinary. 

Enjoy and best of luck in all of your entrepreneurial endeavors. 

-Jordan