I did it!! I completed my challenge of reading 12 books in 12 months. It may be one of the only goals I ticked off this year, but I set out to do something in January and I actually did it.
The book reading may have taken a lull from September-November when I moved to New York, but can you blame me? I’ve recently got back into the swing of things, bought five books and have so far made my way through two of them.
I finished the year with a grand total of 15 books and even though I hope to beat that number next year, I’m going to set the same goal of reading 12 books in 12 months as I know I won’t have much time to dedicate to reading while I’m exploring the US.
Anyhow, here’s a little review of the most recent five books I’ve read:
1. Bad Girls Throughout History by Ann Shen
I loved this book a lot. If you’ve been around a while then you’ll know that I’m a huge advocate of women in the workplace and women reaching high positions and making a difference in the world (like my #GirlBossMonday series). So this book was right up my street.
I especially loved it because it introduced me to a lot of women that I had never heard of before or taught me things I didn’t know about the women I had heard of like Joan of Ark and Cleopatra.
If you want to be inspired to one day make a list such as this, I would definitely recommend picking up a copy.
2. Getting There by Gillian Zoe Segal
This is a book full of mentors, from Warren Buffet to Sarah Blakely. It gives a short account of what they were like when they were younger, how they started out and then how they came to be the huge business moguls that they are today.
There were a lot of names that I didn’t know and a very varied range of industries included which was enlightening. The one thing I didn’t really rate was the ratio of male to female accounts.
The book included 22 male mentors and only 8 female. Given that the book was written by a female author, I would definitely have liked a heavier female perspective.
3. Awaken the Giant Within by Anthony Robbins
If you haven’t listened to a Tony Robbins podcast or YouTube video, then where have you been? I’m a huge, huge fan of this guy’s work and he always makes me feel motivated when I listen to his voice.
He’s probably one of the most well-known self-help gurus out there and has made millions because of it. This book is definitely one to make you re-evaluate your life situation, the way you think, the way you act and how you can change the course of your life.
I would always recommend Tony Robbins to anyone that wants to start getting into self-help content and bettering themselves. I used to listen to his podcasts while running in Liverpool – very motivational.
The thing with Tony Robbins is that he just speaks a lot of sense. Things that you should know but doesn’t actually click until you hear him say it out loud and then process it. I would very much recommend this book. If not this, then definitely check out his podcasts or YouTube videos.
4. The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck by Mark Manson
I had heard quite a lot about this book and seen a lot of people reading it on social media, but being honest, it didn’t live up to the hype. I was expecting to be changed as a person, have my mindset changed and be free of caring what others think.
But alas, no. I had read a similar book before called The Life-Changing Magic of Not Giving a F*ck by Sarah Knight which I think was a much better read, but that was three years ago before I had been introduced to any form of self-help/motivational reading.
It’s an easy read, I will give it that and the end of the book was a lot better than the start and middle, but I would only recommend it if you’re not too far into the world of self-help/mindset etc.
5. Unf*ck Yourself by Gary John Bishop
These self-help books are starting to take a turn aren’t they? Basically the same title as the last but I definitely preferred this one.
Another very easy read, it was straight to the point and made me think about things a lot more than the previous book. Another great book to help get started into the world of self-help and motivation, it does have a lot of great content to make you think why you aren’t reaching your full potential.
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