Life Changing Books: Perfect for Creating a Transformational Year
I absolutely love reading & recommending personal development literature; they’re the books I find fascinating and find myself flying through, eager to glean pearls of wisdom and nuggets of golden knowledge.
One of my favorite ways to start the day: reading with a cup of coffee.
So I’m EXCITED to share with you the titles at the top of my mind that I’ve read and felt have made the largest impact on my growth and mindset over the past few years…books that i’ve found inspiration and/or that I've turned to when going got tough and I needed new and fresh ways of seeing life, my situation and the world.
Here they* are, In no particular order:
(*please note, book hyperlinks are to independent bookstores I love. I receive no affiliate compensation for these, so if you have a fave independent bookstore you love, check there 😉 🙌🏾)
Health/Happiness:
Heal Your Body by Louise Hay: I think this book is a great dot connector in the mind/body/soul connection, giving possible connections to physical symptoms. Definitely an interesting point of view and something I reference regularly.
You Can Heal Your Life: Louise Hay expands on the concepts in ‘heal you body’ and give really beautiful new perspectives and points of view for different areas of life + affirmations to work with to shift your mindset.
Happy for No Reason by Marci Shimoff: this. book. is everything. This book gave me so many ways to view life, see things in a new way and shed light on what true happiness is. I became a ‘Happiness for No Reason’ trainer in May of 2019, when I decided to look up Marci’s website after seeing her guest appearance in the movie ‘The Secret’ and as soon as I got to her site and saw she offered this training, my soul said ‘YES!’ and I dove in! A lot of the content we covered in training is in this book, and is one of the books that I highly recommend to my life coaching clients. So many tools, so many strategies that, when implement & integrated into your life, are life changing.
The Big Leap by Gay Hendricks: expanding our comfort with being happy and experiencing success vs. sabotage it (which the mind can do when we feel a success is ‘too big’ and therefore, unsafe
The Confidence Code by Katty Kay & Claire Shipman: research into why women in general, in all walks of life and professions, have a tendency to have decreased confidence and not go after things that our male counterparts do…and how to start doing it (Who doesn’t want to learn skills to feel more confident in earning what you deserve and being unapologetic about your dreams? This book is a great starting place)
Untamed by Glennon Doyle: This book fires us up to take living an authentic life unapologetically up a notch, inspiring us to live an authentic life that is true to us, regardless of what others think (after all, one of the noted top 5 regrets at the end of life is “I wish I had the courage to live life true to myself, not the life others expected of me”— It’s a regret I want to avoid, and feel this book was a great jumpstart…side note, my little sis gave it to me for my/our birthday last year because SHE loved it so much! )
Life Structure /Habits/
Forward Momentum:
The One Thing by Gary Keller & JayPpapasan : self explainable, but a great read on why and how to do this
Atomic Habits by James Clear: also self explainable, & also a great read on why small habits over time really are the game changers, as well as ways and strategies to do this.
Failing Forward by John C. Maxwell: this book hands down turned my perfectionistic tendencies and feelings of imposter syndrome I had on its head years ago, and I started truly seeing ‘mistakes’ as learning opportunities for growth and wisdom. Such a great book.
Euphoric by Karolina Rzadkowolska: Just Published this week, Fresh for the New year!! This beautiful and inspiring story shares how the author ditched alcohol after feeling the nudge & opened up fully to her potential: starting and running a successful coaching business, traveling and publishing her first book (this one!), a dream she’s had since she was little. She shares up to date research on the benefits of going alcohol free, plus gives viewpoints from a Mind/Body/Soul Persective (all about that!) There is also an easy to follow 8 week plan to guide anyone on an alcohol free break (or jumpstart to a new lifestyle) (side note: my path crossed with the author’s when I was a few months into my alcohol-free journey in 2020 & the magic she talks about in the book is something I’ve 100% experienced myself when I gave up alcohol)
Soul-led/Intuitive Living & Manifestation:
Soul Lessons and Soul Purpose by Sonia Choquette: I recently came across Sonia Choquette last year. Sonia is a spiritual channel who teaches how to tune into your inner guidance, intuition, and your spirit guides that are present all the time (I like to refer to them as my ‘Spiritual Dream Team” This book in particular outlines 22 lessons that each of our souls came here to earth to learn and master. I found this book extremmmmely therapeutic and eye opening— it definitely gave me a new perspective that have changed how I “react’ to life, challenging situations and people, etc.
Ask & It is Given by Esther & Jerry Hicks: This book is so fun! As I started learning and understanding more and more about our roles as ‘co-creators’ of our lives, this book gave me a fun and fresh perspective on how the process works, what to pay attention to, where to direct my focus, etc. It also has ‘processes’ that you can experiment with and see changes in your life. -Yes, it’s “Woo”, yes is references the Law of Attraction, and yes, I absolutely love it ;-) The best part is playing with these principles and experiencing the magic for yourself ;-)
The Power of Deliberate Intent by Esther & Jerry Hicks: Goes a step further after ‘Ask and it is given’— fun to dive into if you want more after reading the first book.
The Astonishing Power of Emotions by Esther & Jerry Hicks: Also a great follow up reading after ‘Ask and it is given’, diving into the messages we can receive from different emotions, and how to use those messages. In 2020, before the pandemic hit, I set the intention to be a “Master of my emotions”…welp, that year sure did deliver the opportunities to do just that, and it also came with this book as the manual :D
Business/Finances/Money Mindset:
It’s Not Your Money by Tosha Silver: I recently finished this book, and it was the last book I read in 2021/first book I finished in 2022. I’ve been running my own business since 2015, and in 2021, was able to decrease the hours I worked in a physical therapy clinic down to 24 hours a week to spend more time in my coaching business. I have student loans from PT school, taxes from my business to submit, a retirement account I contribute to. I invest in coaches, courses, books, certifications (both for physical therapy and coaching) to continue growing so I can be the best I can be for those I help…it’s a lot of balls to juggle, and this book truly helped me learn to surrender and turn it over to the Divine. Don’t get me wrong, I still do my part and manage my moolah well, but this book helped me see things from a new perspective, and not stress about finances. So. Refreshing & highly recommend.
Chillpreneur by Denise Duffield-Thomas: For my fellow biz owners (or those who want to start a business that doesn’t become another job)…this book is light. It takes the pressure of all the ‘should’s’ we think we need to be doing for a successful business and gives us full permission (and strategies) to run our biz in our way, in a way that feels good to us. Also a fun, easy and inspiring read with lots of tools and strategies (a lot of which I’m implementing & experimenting with this year)
Rich as F*ck by Amanda Frances: When I first saw the cover of this book, with the author in a bathtub of money, and read the title, I thought “oooo, I need that book” :D I don’t know why my soul was so excited, but I learned to trust her and I got the book after it was recommended to me. Some may find the title/cover to be repulsive, I and many other readers have found it to be inspiring and life changing. I love the author’s unapologetic stance that she receives what she believes she is match for, and that her work is of high service and is worthy of massive compensation. She is a woman who knows the value she provides, and receives compensation for it. She also shares the message that more money belongs in the hands of good people who do good things with it, because that can change the world. Another Money Mindset changer that offers new ways to see things.
We Should All Be Millionaires by Rachel Rodgers: And last but not least, we have this book by Rachel Rodgers. Rachel takes it a step further on why it’s important women of color and other marginalized groups have financial security and independence. At the root, when we have more money, we have options. When we have options, we aren’t stuck. We can contribute to changing the world, contributing to causes that matter, etc. Also an amazing book with great tools and strategies, as well as exercises and journal prompts if you’re interested in starting a business/side gig that earns money, or scaling/thinking BIGGER if you already have a business
And that’s the tea!
So now I’d love to hear about any books that are on your recommendation list or books you’re excited to dive into this year. Feel free to let me know in the comments below.
Happy Reading!!
