Useful Not True
Derek Sivers's short fourth book argues that almost every belief we carry about ourselves, our pasts, and the world is unprovable, so the question of whether a belief is true is the wrong question. The right question is whether the belief is useful. Sivers walks through reframing as a working practice, with dozens of examples drawn from his own life as the founder of CD Baby, a circus performer, and a longtime blogger. The book is built as a 90-page essay across short chapters, with the same conversational voice that made Hell Yeah or How to Live Sivers's signature. Published in June 2024 to wide attention in self-development circles.
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Derek Sivers argues in 90 pages that beliefs should be picked for whether they work, not whether they are provably true, and shows the practice of reframing in action.
He is the founder of CD Baby, a writer, and a TED speaker known for short, contrarian books on entrepreneurship and life philosophy. Useful Not True is his 2024 release.
It is intentionally short. Sivers writes brief books that can be read in a single sitting, and Useful Not True follows that pattern.
Useful Not True was written by Derek Sivers, published in 2024 by Sivers Limited.
Useful Not True is 98 pages in standard print editions, though page counts vary slightly between hardcover, paperback, and large-print formats.
At an average reading pace of about 250 words per minute, Useful Not True takes most readers 1 to 2 hours to finish.
Useful Not True is a standalone novel by Derek Sivers, not part of a series.
Useful Not True is available in hardcover, paperback, ebook, and audiobook formats from Amazon, Bookshop.org, ThriftBooks, and most major bookstores.
