A Complaint free world by Will Bowen (Book Review)
The book itself didn’t get my attention; it was more the purple bracelet that came with it. I assumed it was a great marketing strategy to 
upsell your book with a little goodie. I was so wrong….
Author Will Bowen designed a solution to stop complaining with a 21-day challenge: Each time you complain (or gossip), you have to switch the bracelet to the other wrist and start again from day 0. Until you manage tho have the bracelet for 21 days on the same wrist.
It’s a super interesting concept because it shows you how much you actually complain daily. The first pages are a bit salesy, but then the book gets super interesting to read. It provides great examples and how to implement them. Let me share this little anecdote from the book which stayed with me for a while:
There is an old story of two construction workers sitting down to eat lunch together. One opens his lunch box and complains: “Yech! A meatloaf sandwich… I hate meatloaf sandwiches.” His friend says nothing. The following day, the two meet up again for lunch. Again, the first worker opens his lunch box, looks inside, and, this time agitated, says: “Another meatloaf sandwich?! I’m sick and tired of meatloaf sandwiches, I hate meatloaf sandwiches.” As before, his colleague remains silent. The third day, the two preparing to eat lunch when the first construction worker opens his lunch box and begins to shout:” I’ve had it!! Day in and out it’s the same thing! Meatloaf sandwiches every blessed day! I want something else!” Wanting to be helpful his friend asks, “why don’t you just ask your wife to make you something else?” With bewilderment on his face, the first man replies: “What are you talking about? I make my own lunch!”
Why should you read it?
I worked a decade in the hospitality industry and most people I worked with are born complainers (no offense). They can complain about complaining. It starts already when you come to work with the attitude that you don’t want to work. Then you polish cutlery in a group and drama begins: “How much cutlery today again!” “Waste of time!” “I hate this job!” “Me, too!” Misery seeks company.
Even the guests can influence or get influenced by complaining. In Hospitality, it’s not difficult that something goes wrong. Food can be cold, a room not prepared like requested, a delivery late. You get complains and problems regularly. My job as a restaurant manager was mostly to react to complaints and solve problems. That’s no fun at all. After a while, you don’t even recognize it anymore, because it’s part of your daily duties. A waiter comes to work and complains about the evening shift which didn’t do the closing job properly. A chef gets the wrong chemicals with the delivery and can’t operate the dishwasher. A lady cleans the room and gets the complain because she throws away an empty shopping bag. The list is endless.
My 5-cent contribution
I wish I had found this book earlier to implement the steps and change the attitudes of my colleagues. I don’t fully agree that you should never complain again. For example, my 21 days are still in the making.
Don’t just say: “This colleague is useless; he doesn’t do the job properly.” Instead, you can say: “He didn’t get the right or enough training, let me help him!” I always try to find solutions. Instead of complaining that it’s raining, and you can’t go out with the kids. Just say: “finally, we can do this puzzle together or we can go to this newly opened indoor playground.”
It’s just that simple.
Conclusion
This book changed my mindset about being annoyed or upset for unnecessary things. If I would recommend one book, 
to start your entrepreneur mission, it would be this one. I don't think I would like to become a complaint-free person, but it does make me love my life so much more, ignoring the small imperfections that ought to happen.
If you read 10 pages a day (that’s roughly 15 minutes) you can read one book a month. Easily. The more you read, the faster you read. Which leads to more knowledge, a better life and so on. (Except you read the same Harry Potter book repeatedly). If you can implement reading as a daily habit in your schedule, your life will change dramatically.
And, hey you just read 1000 words. Go on!
Amazon UK Affiliate Link: A Complaint Free World
As a little bonus here is a text from my life-long friend Stephan. I recommended him this book even before I was reading it and he spread the word in back home in a remarkable way:
“It might sound a little over the top and bold but reading this wonderful book has changed my life!
And there's so much more to it than just the simple tip of extracting the positives from every single event of daily life and harnessing the unbelievable amount of energy we use every day in moaning and moaning about our problems to solve.
It's an entertaining way to present scientifically, yet easily understandable, what impact negative thoughts have and how, since our brains get better in every discipline in which we train, negative thoughts generate ever-new negativity. Fortunately, this also works in the opposite, positive direction!
Will Bowen uses simple examples from life to provide practical tips for constantly questioning and directly changing your thoughts and actions.
Since applying this knowledge, I have achieved my goals 10x faster than before. I am happy about new problems as they bring with them the opportunity to solve them and grow personally.
Especially from a professional point of view (I am a physiotherapist) has impressed me, I would like to say, even shaken, which possibilities arise from it also on a medical level, concerning pain and complaints!
I strongly recommend that this book be read as a required reading in school, vocational training, and studies.”
Stephan Heinrich
(follow him on Instagram: @amygdalla)
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