The Upside of Being Down: How Mental Health Struggles Led to My Greatest Successes in Work and Life

by Jen Gotch

Overview

A NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER

An entertaining, humorous, and inspirational memoir by the founder and chief creative officer of the multimillion-dollar lifestyle brand ban.do, who “has become a hero among women (and likely some men too) who struggle with mental health” (Forbes).

After graduating from college, Jen Gotch was living with her parents, heartbroken and lost, when she became convinced that her skin had turned green. Hallucinating that she looked like Shrek was terrifying, but it led to her first diagnosis and the start of a journey towards self-awareness, acceptance, success, and ultimately, joy.

With humor and candor, Gotch shares the empowering story of her unlikely path to becoming the creator and CCO of a multimillion-dollar brand. From her childhood in Florida where her early struggles with bipolar disorder, generalized anxiety, and ADD were misdiagnosed, to her winding career path as a waitress, photographer, food stylist, and finally, accidental entrepreneur, she illuminates how embracing her flaws and understanding the influence of mental illness on her creativity actually led to her greatest successes in business and life.

Hilarious, hyper-relatable, and filled with fascinating insights and hard-won wisdom on everything from why it’s okay to cry at work to the myth of busyness and perfection to the emotional rating system she uses every day, Gotch’s inspirational memoir dares readers to live each day with hope, optimism, kindness, and humor.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781982108816
Publisher:	Gallery Books
Publication date:	03/24/2020
Pages:	288
Sales rank:	337,784
Product dimensions:	5.80(w) x 8.50(h) x 1.10(d)

About the Author

Jen Gotch is the founder and chief creative officer of ban.do and an advocate for mental health and emotional well-being. In 2008, she founded ban.do with a friend, and with no prior business experience, was able to work with a small group of passionate people and transform it from a small hair accessories company into a beloved lifestyle brand that’s all about encouraging joy and personal growth. She lives in Los Angeles, California.

Table of Contents

Introduction ix

Chapter 1 It's Not Easy Being Green 1

Chapter 2 At the Time, None of Us Knew 19

Chapter 3 I Got It from My Parents 31

Chapter 4 This Winding Road 47

Chapter 5 "Can I Call You Mom?" and Other Things I Said to My Therapist 67

Chapter 6 A Calming Shade of Blue 95

Chapter 7 This Is Just the Beginning 111

Chapter 8 I Am Very Busy 141

Chapter 9 I Cry at Work 163

Chapter 10 My First Husband 175

Chapter 11 Hello, Crispy Cereal 197

Chapter 12 Better Than Great, Less Than Perfect 209

Chapter 13 What Does Your Necklace Say? 221

Chapter 14 Jen Gotch Wants You to Feel Better (Just Like She Does!) 233

Chapter 15 The Upside of Being Down 245

Acknowledgments 261

Appendix: The Emotional Rating System 265

Editorial Reviews

01/06/2020

Gotch, the founder of clothing and accessory lifestyle website Ban.do, chronicles a lifetime of mental health challenges in her self-deprecating and witty debut. After bouncing from job to job, Gotch writes of finding her niche in commercial photography and styling in her early 20s, then diving into therapy in an effort to face her demons. After being diagnosed with bipolar disorder, generalized anxiety, and attention deficit disorder—and being properly medicated—Gotch realizes that her challenges have fueled her creative endeavors (though not always in a healthy way, she admits, noting her tendencies toward workaholism). Gotch unflinchingly explores her past, recounting her suicidal thoughts and a time she hallucinated that her skin had turned green, and sharing stories from her failed marriage. “Here’s the thing about writing a memoir,” she writes. “The person you are when you start and the person you are when you finish are practically strangers.” Throughout, Gotch is unequivocal in delivering her message that mental health is every bit as important as physical health (and that the two are interrelated), and her often humorous delivery underscores her belief that sometimes a laugh truly is the best medicine. Anyone who’s ever dealt with mental illness will appreciate this forthcoming and empathetic volume. (Mar.)

Publishers Weekly

Jen is my hero, because she’s not afraid to tell the messy truth about entrepreneurship, business, love, and mental health, and how it’s okay to not always be okay. I loved this book as much as I love sequins, confetti, and pizza.”
—Emma Straub, author of The Vacationers and Modern Lovers

“You know when you get stuck in an elevator with a stranger and you're so freaked out that you start telling each other deep secrets and powerful truths and then you realize you have a new best friend and also she has wine and you decide it’s actually better to be trapped in the elevator than out in the real world? That’s exactly what this book is like. But without elevators or wine. Unless you bring your own.”
—Jenny Lawson, author of Furiously Happy and founder of Nowhere Books

“Jen Gotch has perfectly translated her natural hilarity and charm into her storytelling. A well curated set of life stories. You will laugh hard, maybe cry, and fundamentally understand why we do the things we do.”
—Kelly Oxford, author of When You Find Out the World Is Against You

“Jen Gotch is a magical sensitive soul. She shares her wisdom and unique perspective on life and offers advice she has learned through founding the joyful & optimistic lifestyle brand, ban.do, and being a BOSS (who cries at work), but ALSO through her own struggles with mental illness, personal setbacks, and managing to come out on the other side with optimism firmly intact. She wrote a memoir disguised as a self-help book—or maybe she wrote a self-help book disguised as a memoir? Either way, as far as I’m concerned it’s required reading for 2020. So get on it!”
—Busy Philipps, author of This Will Only Hurt a Little

“The Upside of Being Down hits home with me and so many of us who have struggled with our mental health. Jen’s raw honesty, humor, and wit break through the noise in a way that bridges memoir, inspiration, and self-help. I highly recommend!”
—Sophia Amoruso, founder and CEO of Girlboss

“The Upside of Being Down is laugh-out-loud funny, irreverent, and most of all, inspirational. Jen is a role model for navigating the ups and downs of any and all diagnoses with resilience and creativity. In a time when the world is increasingly anxious, Jen's story has the power to remind us that it's ok to struggle, and in fact, struggle can point us toward our greatest accomplishments. This is a book that will give hope to many, many people.”
—Mark Lukach, author of My Lovely Wife in the Psych Ward

“The narrative captures the energy and enthusiasm required to build a startup company and provides strategies for maintaining an optimistic outlook. Ultimately, Gotch's feel-good focus conveys a positive message about a long journey toward emotional stability. An upbeat look at dealing with life's curveballs.”
—Kirkus

“Gotch is unequivocal in delivering her message that mental health is every bit as important as physical health (and that the two are interrelated), and her often humorous delivery underscores her belief that sometimes a laugh truly is the best medicine. Anyone who’s ever dealt with mental illness will appreciate this forthcoming and empathetic volume.”
—Publishers Weekly

“Irreverent and instantly lovable, Jen Gotch shares her personal struggles with bipolar and anxiety disorders in a relatable, diaristic tone. She details the challenges and ultimate triumph of founding a multimillion dollar thriving business based on bringing joy to others.”
—Zibby Owens

From the Publisher

2019-12-15
A heartfelt memoir from the founder and chief creative officer of ban.do, a "bright, optimistic multimillion-dollar lifestyle company."

In this humorous tour behind the happy brand, Gotch explores her challenges balancing her mental health, her personal life, and a startup company—and it's not all polka dots and glitter. The author addresses the hurdles of finding proper care, support, diagnosis, and medication for mental health concerns and augments this narrative with personal tools and tips that will resonate with readers struggling with similar issues. A more explicit acknowledgment of how barriers of access affect people may have broadened the book's reach, but the bright tone and candid effort to destigmatize the topic are refreshing. At times, the interjected one-liners detract from the author's story, grabbing punchlines at moments of emotional height and overshadowing deeper themes. However, this lighthearted, relaxed style has endeared Gotch to her many fans and followers, who will enjoy the close-up tour of her career and personal life. Some of the more reflective insights stem from her business experiences. As she writes, she stayed open to learning within every role, from temporary work all the way up to CCO. Chronicling how she has found and nurtured mentoring relationships and attended to the ongoing work of managing a staff, growing a business, building a brand, and cultivating creative partnerships, Gotch offers a candid glimpse at the balance of stamina and passion required to be a successful entrepreneur. "There's a very real risk of losing yourself, your health, and your life outside of work if you aren't careful," she writes. At its best, the narrative captures the energy and enthusiasm required to build a startup company and provides strategies for maintaining an optimistic outlook. Ultimately, Gotch's feel-good focus conveys a positive message about a long journey toward emotional stability.

An upbeat look at dealing with life's curveballs.

Kirkus Reviews

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