This post originally appeared on lidpublishing.com where I was a guest contributor. You can view the original piece here.
Mindset. A topic I love to talk about and could go on talking about for hours. Personally, I consider mindset to be the most important aspect of who we are as a person. Your mindset will determine the outcome of your day, months and years (not to get too Friends on you all), so it’s pretty important.
Let’s consider waking up in the morning as an example. I’m sure you don’t spring out of bed and throw open the curtains with a huge grin on your face, shouting ‘GOOD MORNING WORLD!’. Please. I can’t imagine anyone gets out of bed with the sudden rush to do that.
Most of my mornings consist of snoozing my alarm for an additional ten minutes and then reluctantly pulling myself out of bed once that final alarm does go off. I’m sure you can relate.
So how then, do we set ourselves up for a productive, positive and optimistic day? Well there are books to give you that information, don’t just rely on me.
CAN’T (AND WON’T) STOP READING
Last year I set myself a target of reading 12 books in 12 months. With moving to a new city, country and continent (hello New York!), starting a new job and graduating from university all in the same year, I didn’t want to stress myself out with too high of a target. I managed it and read 14 books by the end of 2019.
This year, I set myself the same target of 12 books in 12 months as I now live in the city that never sleeps, have a full-time job and will once again, be moving to another new continent before the year is over.
Alas, a worldwide pandemic has ensued and I now have more free time on my hands than ever.
I’ve already passed last year’s number of 14 books (you can read all of my book reviews here) and have raised my target to read 30 books before the year is out and would be very proud of myself if I can actually complete the 52 books in 52 weeks challenge.
Thanks to the lovely people at LID Publishing, I’ve gained an additional few books to add to my (very tiny) library in my (very tiny) apartment and have been able to develop my understanding of mindset and mental health.
These are four books that I would recommend to help improve your mindset.
POSITIVE THINKING BY NEIL FRANCIS
You’ll know why this is a great book about mindset as soon as you read the blurb. The author, Neil Francis, suffered a stroke at age 41 but didn’t want that to stop him from going back to his day job as CEO.
Suffering a stroke that has detrimental effects on your brain and mind would be life-changing. Neil has showed that you don’t have to let it determine the rest of your life and with the right attitude and mindset, you can make the positive changes that you want.
This book is a real life perspective on something that can set you back so far, but if you have the will and a good mentality, you can make sure that it won’t control you or your future.
INSPIRING INNOVATION BY GILES FURY
This book probably wouldn’t be the first to spring to mind when you think about mindset, but there are messages hidden within that can lead you to start thinking. And a lot of things can come from just thinking.
This book highlights 75 brands/products and how they happened to be created. If you’re feeling in a particular slump, and looking for your next business idea or venture, this book might be the exact thing to get you back in action.
It’s crazy to see how some brands were started or what happened to make someone create a certain product. If you believe you can, you will. There are many opportunities out there to come up with the next big thing. You just have to let your mindset believe that you can be the one to find it.
Change your mindset to be open to opportunities, look for the positives, continuously question what’s already out there and stay curious and inquisitive.
THE ENERGY BOOK BY RICHARD MADDOCKS
The Energy Book is another book to complement mindset as it tells us about our energy levels and why they rise and fall. The book consists of 50 different tips and exercises that can help raise our energy levels and thus, hopefully improve our mindset.
We don’t all spring out of bed every morning praising those above for another glorious day to sit at the dining table for the next eight hours. If you do, then your mindset must be top notch. However, we do need something to keep us motivated, to keep us in good spirits and to feel positive about the day ahead.
Of the many (50) exercises and chapters in this book, there will definitely be one in there for you to improve your mindset, to make you feel better or even make you that little more productive.
I think I’ll find myself doing most of the exercises (mental, physical and emotional) around 3pm when I usually suffer from the afternoon slump.
POSITIVE MENTAL HEALTH BY DR. SHAUN DAVIS & ANDREW KINDER
Even from the title of this book, you’ll know it’s a good one for mindset. I usually say your mindset is your most important asset, but I guess your mental health has to be up there too, if not placed with higher importance.
There are some shocking facts and figures in this book which will really make you think about the stigma surrounding mental health and talking about our problems.
The book covers every subject possible that could be impacted by our mental health; from school, university, jobs, age and everything in-between.
If you want to learn more about mental health, how you can improve yours, understand it better and also talk to others about the subject, then this is a great book to read.
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