My Take on Capital Gains – Healthy Mom Revolution

I don’t have cable T.V. but Chip and Joanna Gaines have taken the nation by storm with their genuine love for each other and their cool businesses that were showcased on the show Fixer Upper. The premise is basically this: Chip remodels houses, Joanna makes them beautiful, and also keeps him in line. They’ve since written books and developed a line of home goods that is sold in Target stores.

If you haven’t heard of Chip and Joanna Gaines, it’s possible that either:

You don’t have cable television
You haven’t stepped into a Target store recently
You live under a rock

But the truth is so much more than that. You see, these are two people who love God, love each other, love their children, and have grown their businesses to a place of incredible success. God’s hand is all over them, and I love seeing His mission lived out through their lives.

Personally, I’m not a shiplap lover. In fact, I think the only reason I ever watched the show was because of my hubby. But I do love a good show and I do love good people. Their business Magnolia is the focus of the show and people flock to their retail location in Waco, TX like it’s the home decor Holy Land. Okay, maybe that’s a slight exaggeration, but shiplap lovers everywhere love their stuff.

I think they have a magnetism though that can’t be explained by goofy antics and genuine love. I really believe that the reason people love Chip and Joanna so much is that they are drawn to Christ in them. They are drawn to the love the pours out of them in everything they do, in the people they interact with, and in what they create. It’s cool to watch.

Chip wrote a book called: Capital Gains, Smart Things I Learned Doing Stupid Stuff. He wrote this book to share his testimony essentially of where God brought him from to where he is now. If you’re looking for a book that tells you how to start a business, look elsewhere.

Capital Gains is a memoir of sorts that will encourage you, make you laugh a little (especially if you ever watched any of the show), and maybe even challenge you to step out of your comfort zone. He shares his faith, his story, his trials, and triumphs. Here are a few takeaways from the book.

Transparency. Chip is honest about himself and his shortcomings in a way that is hard to find in these types of books. It’s great to see someone with so much success focus on the most important things.
Business isn’t easy. He talks about the challenges they encountered on their road to success. All we see is the end product. We don’t see the blood, sweat, and tears that were poured into making the dream work. This is an encouragement to me because I often look at my past business attempts as failures, and really, they were just opportunities to learn and grow.
They had help along the way. People believed in them, encouraged them, and came alongside what they were doing. Listen, mindset matters when it comes to growing a business. You need people around you to speak truth, but who also have your best interests in mind and want to see you succeed. You need truth in love. And you need encouragement when the days get tough.
Marriage is a give and take. I LOVE how Chip encourages Joanna to bloom in her God-given talents. My husband is like that to me. He gives me a platform to try. He encourages me to step out in faith, and he’s there to help me step out again and again.
Write it down. It’s important to write down your dreams, and then create goals to help you get there. I knew this already. I just liked that Chip reiterated it in his book.
Invite God into your business. Look, if you’re a Christian, you can’t do business without Jesus at the helm. Invite Him in and focus on building your biz in a way that glorifies God.

The book feels like a normal guy talking to a friend. I love the tone and feel of it. If you need something to encourage you in your business, this is a great book. If you need something to help you see your challenges in a new way, this is a great book. If you want to hear about the dumb stuff Chip did, this is a great book.

You can get it almost anywhere books are sold, including Target and Barnes & Noble.

Have you read it? What did you think?