Christian Living
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Embrace Your Almost: Find Clarity and Contentment in the In-Betweens, Not-Quites, and Unknowns
A no-nonsense guide to the life you long for, even when it doesn't go according to plan, from the bestselling author of Own Your Everyday.
"If you are like me and need practical steps, hard-won wisdom, and a friend to help lead the way into a new season of promise, this redirection resource is what you need."-Lysa TerKeurst, #1 New York Timesbestselling author and president of Proverbs 31 Ministries
Jordan Lee Dooley knows firsthand how devastating it can be when you almost achieve a goal, almost reach a dream, or almost get to where you want to be, only to land just short of the finish line or watch it all fall apart at the last minute.
Disrupted, delayed, or even seemingly destroyed dreams have a way of making us rethink everything. But perhaps rethinking dreams is not always the worst thing. In those moments, you have a chance to pause and consider what matters most to you in a world that's constantly telling you what you should want or should do.
Believe it or not, it is possible to cultivate a life you really like-and one where you can succeed-in the tension of the middle, between where you started and where you hoped to be. Discover:
• practical steps to move forward when your plans don't go according to plan
• how to clarify which goals are right for you to pursue
• what to do when dreams seem to come true for everyone but you
• the unexpected gains that can arise from unwanted pain
• how to know when it's time to let go of a dream-and what to do with the space left behind
As hard as unexpected interruptions, uncertainty, and in-between seasons may be, they also offer a unique invitation to align your dreams and goals with what matters most. It's time for you to gain greater clarity about what you truly want, why you want it, and how to pursue it.
"If you are like me and need practical steps, hard-won wisdom, and a friend to help lead the way into a new season of promise, this redirection resource is what you need."-Lysa TerKeurst, #1 New York Timesbestselling author and president of Proverbs 31 Ministries
Jordan Lee Dooley knows firsthand how devastating it can be when you almost achieve a goal, almost reach a dream, or almost get to where you want to be, only to land just short of the finish line or watch it all fall apart at the last minute.
Disrupted, delayed, or even seemingly destroyed dreams have a way of making us rethink everything. But perhaps rethinking dreams is not always the worst thing. In those moments, you have a chance to pause and consider what matters most to you in a world that's constantly telling you what you should want or should do.
Believe it or not, it is possible to cultivate a life you really like-and one where you can succeed-in the tension of the middle, between where you started and where you hoped to be. Discover:
• practical steps to move forward when your plans don't go according to plan
• how to clarify which goals are right for you to pursue
• what to do when dreams seem to come true for everyone but you
• the unexpected gains that can arise from unwanted pain
• how to know when it's time to let go of a dream-and what to do with the space left behind
As hard as unexpected interruptions, uncertainty, and in-between seasons may be, they also offer a unique invitation to align your dreams and goals with what matters most. It's time for you to gain greater clarity about what you truly want, why you want it, and how to pursue it.
Editorial Reviews
"We all know what it feels like to have an expectation of what we hoped our life would look like, only to have it veer off onto a different path. In times like these, we need some help keeping our eyes up as we move forward. That's exactly what Jordan Lee Dooley does for us in Embrace Your Almost. If you are like me and need practical steps, hard-won wisdom, and a friend to help lead the way into a new season of promise, this redirection resource is what you need."-Lysa TerKeurst, #1 New York Times bestselling author and president of Proverbs 31 Ministries
"Rather than reinforcing the pervasive shoot-for-the-moon rhetoric that our boss babe culture pushes, Jordan is a part of the resistance. Her book Embrace Your Almost tactically guides us on how to redefine success so that we can faithfully steward the good that God sends our way. This book heralds the message that this generation desperately needs."-Amanda Pittman, founder of Confident Woman Co.
"Whether we've had the wind knocked out of us when a dream fails or we are finally breathing deeply after we release a dream that wasn't right, Jordan guides us with compassion and clarity to liking-or at least making peace with-our lives long before we reach the celebratory finish lines. Embrace Your Almost champions a life that is always under construction instead of one only satisfied at a completion that never truly comes. Jordan intimately invites us to join her in the space between disappointment and possibility, heartbreak and hope-whether in our home, motherhood, career, or faith. She reminds us that a life of almosts is one in which we're endlessly striving and never celebrating the fact that where we are today may in fact be beautiful enough, if only we see it through her lens."-Hilary Rushford Collyer, host of the You're Welcome podcast
"Jordan Lee Dooley is a perfect mix of wisdom and work-hard, and this book brings both. For when you don't understand and when you need a guide, Embrace Your Almost will walk with you, teach you, and lead you to the confident life you want."-Annie F. Downs, New York Times bestselling author of That Sounds Fun
"Embrace Your Almost
"Rather than reinforcing the pervasive shoot-for-the-moon rhetoric that our boss babe culture pushes, Jordan is a part of the resistance. Her book Embrace Your Almost tactically guides us on how to redefine success so that we can faithfully steward the good that God sends our way. This book heralds the message that this generation desperately needs."-Amanda Pittman, founder of Confident Woman Co.
"Whether we've had the wind knocked out of us when a dream fails or we are finally breathing deeply after we release a dream that wasn't right, Jordan guides us with compassion and clarity to liking-or at least making peace with-our lives long before we reach the celebratory finish lines. Embrace Your Almost champions a life that is always under construction instead of one only satisfied at a completion that never truly comes. Jordan intimately invites us to join her in the space between disappointment and possibility, heartbreak and hope-whether in our home, motherhood, career, or faith. She reminds us that a life of almosts is one in which we're endlessly striving and never celebrating the fact that where we are today may in fact be beautiful enough, if only we see it through her lens."-Hilary Rushford Collyer, host of the You're Welcome podcast
"Jordan Lee Dooley is a perfect mix of wisdom and work-hard, and this book brings both. For when you don't understand and when you need a guide, Embrace Your Almost will walk with you, teach you, and lead you to the confident life you want."-Annie F. Downs, New York Times bestselling author of That Sounds Fun
"Embrace Your Almost
Readers Top Reviews
Melody LipfordKai
As someone in a waiting season looking for encouragement and motivation and real life story examples this book takes the cake. Raw, honest, vulnerable, and relatable I would recommend this book to anyone in a waiting season.
Shannon McKinleyM
So far, this book has been an amazing help in my life. I think it comes at the right time and I know for many others. If you have been in a place of limbo or in between and you feel stuck in your situation. I suggest you read this book. Also, I think this is a book for people who have dreams/goals for their life and have had to lose things, or people to press forward to their goals/ dreams. Jordan Dooley has written a book that will leave you, nodding, and feeling that you're not alone.
LivieShannon McKi
This book so beyond inspiring. I finished Embace You Almost in one night. I couldn't put it down. I have never needed a book so much in this season of life. Thank you for such a blessing, Jordan!
Taylor Marie Hayd
Holy moly. I received early access to this as part of the book launch team and have only read the introduction and Chapter 1 so far but I can already tell how much of an impact this book is going to have on my life. I relate to the “almost” so much and cannot wait to dive in further to hear Jordan’s story & embrace my own! *Will update once I finish the book.
Kaleigh P.Taylor
Being in my late 20s I thought I would’ve been in a much different spot in life than I currently am. Jordan does a phenomenal job meeting you right where you’re at in the almosts of your life. This book has been so empowering and enlightening and given me hope - especially when things don’t end up like we think. Girlfriend, if there’s one thing you do today, get this book, a cup of hot tea, and sit down and enjoy it.
Short Excerpt Teaser
1
Redefine Success
I felt sick to my stomach, like I was going to puke. As I blinked hard at the results of a project displayed on the computer screen in front of me, my heart sank to my toes. I had invested tens of thousands of dollars into this venture, willing to take the risk because conservative predictions had indicated that I'd make it back three to four times over.
However, the actual data was showing that I might not even break even.
How is this happening? I wondered as I tried to make sense of it. Did I miss something? I had done my research, planned, and made calculated moves. Everything was set up for success, and I was so sure the investment would yield a generous reward.
I looked over everything again and again, only to come to the same conclusion: this was not going well. I felt so stupid! How could I have been so off in my predictions? Why am I always so overly ambitious?
Realizing how big of a flop this project could turn out to be, I called my husband and expressed how worried I was. He offered some encouragement and suggested we go out to our favorite little Italian restaurant later that night to discuss possible plans of action. Still in disbelief that we were having this conversation, I reluctantly agreed, and he made a reservation.
As he twirled his linguine onto his fork and I bit into my gluten-free risotto that evening, he said something I didn't expect. "J, I know this feels like a big loss, and your frustration with it is valid. But I also want to remind you that you didn't have to do this project. It was something you wanted to go for, but it's extra. It's not essential to doing what you're best at. And maybe this is a lesson in contentment in a season when you've been saying you want to slow down. Maybe it's an opportunity to focus on what is working instead of constantly trying to make something new work."
I swallowed hard as I processed what he'd just said.
He was right. Perhaps I'd let my ambition for more, more, and more run away with me . . . again. In an unexpected way, it was as if on that day, at a tiny table over pasta, he gave me permission to reconsider all that I was chasing after and whether I would allow what was working to be enough.
After we paid our tab, we headed home, changed into comfortable clothes, and read books under the bistro lights on our patio. The sound of crickets filled the cool evening air, and I took a deep breath as I thought, Wow, even with this project not panning out, I really like my life right now.
Sure, I had a lost investment to make up, but strangely enough, I was reminded to be thankful for all that was going well. I paused, looked around, and breathed it all in, noticing that I felt gratitude on a deeper level than I had in a while. Perhaps that's because when disappointment or loss strikes, it reminds us just how good the very normal things of everyday life really are.
The Garden
A couple of days after our Italian dinner, I walked out my back door to see my husband preparing the garden boxes for planting, just as the sun was going down over the lake behind him. It was a late spring evening, and the golden light reflected off the water onto his athletic frame. I squinted as I walked toward him to offer a hand.
With my hands in the dirt, my mind jumped back to the previous August, the first time we had tried to start a garden, which I would later learn was well past planting season for most vegetables in the Midwest. The motivation to start one late in the season came after a hard summer for our family. I needed a hobby. Plus, I knew fresh, homegrown organic produce was so much healthier than days- or weeks-old store-bought food, so I decided to give gardening a try. Never mind that I'd never been able to keep even a simple houseplant alive for more than a week. (My poor succulents, one of the lowest-maintenance plants a person can own, always withered away because I was constantly on the go.)
But I felt empowered and determined to make that late-summer garden work. Dreaming about the bushel...
Redefine Success
I felt sick to my stomach, like I was going to puke. As I blinked hard at the results of a project displayed on the computer screen in front of me, my heart sank to my toes. I had invested tens of thousands of dollars into this venture, willing to take the risk because conservative predictions had indicated that I'd make it back three to four times over.
However, the actual data was showing that I might not even break even.
How is this happening? I wondered as I tried to make sense of it. Did I miss something? I had done my research, planned, and made calculated moves. Everything was set up for success, and I was so sure the investment would yield a generous reward.
I looked over everything again and again, only to come to the same conclusion: this was not going well. I felt so stupid! How could I have been so off in my predictions? Why am I always so overly ambitious?
Realizing how big of a flop this project could turn out to be, I called my husband and expressed how worried I was. He offered some encouragement and suggested we go out to our favorite little Italian restaurant later that night to discuss possible plans of action. Still in disbelief that we were having this conversation, I reluctantly agreed, and he made a reservation.
As he twirled his linguine onto his fork and I bit into my gluten-free risotto that evening, he said something I didn't expect. "J, I know this feels like a big loss, and your frustration with it is valid. But I also want to remind you that you didn't have to do this project. It was something you wanted to go for, but it's extra. It's not essential to doing what you're best at. And maybe this is a lesson in contentment in a season when you've been saying you want to slow down. Maybe it's an opportunity to focus on what is working instead of constantly trying to make something new work."
I swallowed hard as I processed what he'd just said.
He was right. Perhaps I'd let my ambition for more, more, and more run away with me . . . again. In an unexpected way, it was as if on that day, at a tiny table over pasta, he gave me permission to reconsider all that I was chasing after and whether I would allow what was working to be enough.
After we paid our tab, we headed home, changed into comfortable clothes, and read books under the bistro lights on our patio. The sound of crickets filled the cool evening air, and I took a deep breath as I thought, Wow, even with this project not panning out, I really like my life right now.
Sure, I had a lost investment to make up, but strangely enough, I was reminded to be thankful for all that was going well. I paused, looked around, and breathed it all in, noticing that I felt gratitude on a deeper level than I had in a while. Perhaps that's because when disappointment or loss strikes, it reminds us just how good the very normal things of everyday life really are.
The Garden
A couple of days after our Italian dinner, I walked out my back door to see my husband preparing the garden boxes for planting, just as the sun was going down over the lake behind him. It was a late spring evening, and the golden light reflected off the water onto his athletic frame. I squinted as I walked toward him to offer a hand.
With my hands in the dirt, my mind jumped back to the previous August, the first time we had tried to start a garden, which I would later learn was well past planting season for most vegetables in the Midwest. The motivation to start one late in the season came after a hard summer for our family. I needed a hobby. Plus, I knew fresh, homegrown organic produce was so much healthier than days- or weeks-old store-bought food, so I decided to give gardening a try. Never mind that I'd never been able to keep even a simple houseplant alive for more than a week. (My poor succulents, one of the lowest-maintenance plants a person can own, always withered away because I was constantly on the go.)
But I felt empowered and determined to make that late-summer garden work. Dreaming about the bushel...
