Posts tagged self-development book recommendations
5 Personal Development Books Worth Reading
Anna Osgoodby Life + Biz :: 5 Personal Development Books Worth Reading

This post contains affiliate links for your convenience which means if you purchase something I recommend I may receive a commission at no additional cost to you.

Looking for a new book to read? Well, you’re in the right spot! I’ve been doing a bit of reading this summer, specifically self-development books and today I’m giving you a rundown of the ones I think you should check out too!

Better than Before | Gretchen Rubin

I’ve already been a big fan of Rubin’s work after reading The Four Tendencies and I really loved this book! If you haven’t read The Four Tendencies, it’s all about identifying our personality traits and then using them to our advantage to reach our goals and live more successful lives. This book makes reference to some of the content in that book (although you don’t have to read it first) and is focused all about developing powerful habits that can support our goals and help all of us live happier lives. Things I’m all about!

Before Happiness | Shawn Achor

Maybe it seems like a strange time to read a book on happiness during a kind of bummer time, but this book was pretty interesting! This book follows Achor’s The Happiness Advantage and focuses on different strategies for looking at our lives in a positive lens. Which Achor writes is imperative to understanding before we can actually be truly happy and make changes in our lives. He definitely brings up a lot of good points and it had a lot of actionable advice you can start implementing in your life right away.

You are a Badass at Making Money | Jen Sincero

Mindset work has definitely been something I’ve worked a lot on over the last 3 years and after really enjoying You are a Badass I decided to read this book. This one is specifically on money mindset and how the way we think about money can ultimately have an impact on our success and how we look at it. During my time as an entrepreneur, I have to say my relationship with money has TOTALLY changed, for the better! Whether you’re a business owner or not though, I think this is a great book to work through some thought processes you may not have even realized you had.

Free to Focus | Michael Hyatt

This year, I’ve taken on a lot more passion and personal projects on top of being a business owner and sometimes it feels like there’s just never enough time. I’m sure you can relate! This book focuses on taking a good hard look at what you’re currently spending your time on and developing strategies so that you can make the most of your time by cutting out some of the fluff and really focusing. Our priorities are what we spend our time on and this book does a great job of helping you really identify what yours are.

The Power of Habit | Charles Duhigg

Clearly I’m on a productivity kick with these books! I know firsthand that our habits and the routines we set for ourselves are key in living the lives we want. So I read this book to learn more about them and how to create habits that really support my goals and what I’m working on. This book is interesting too because it really dives into the science behind habits and also about how our personalities influence how we look and create habits.

I hope you’ve enjoyed these recs and definitely give me a shout on social if you end up reading any of them or have some other recs. I’m always on the lookout for new books to read!

5 Books Worth Reading This Year :: My Recommendations for Non-Fiction Books to Read in 2020
Anna Osgoodby Life + Biz :: 5 Books Worth Reading This Year :: My Recommendations for Non-Fiction Books to Read in 2020

This post contains affiliate links for your convenience which means if you purchase something I recommend I may receive a commission at no additional cost to you.

I read more books last year than several of the previous years combined and one of the biggest reasons why was that I found out non-fiction books are my jam! Just like most things, it’s all about finding your sweet spot and it turns out learning new things or perspectives and hearing others’ stories is what keeps me interested. So as we start a new year I wanted to highlight some of my favorites I’ve read that are definitely worth checking out if you’re looking for some new reads!

Anna Osgoodby Life + Biz :: 5 Books Worth Reading This Year :: My Recommendations for Non-Fiction Books to Read in 2020 | The 12 Week Year

The 12 Week Year | Brian Moran & Michael Lennington

If sticking to your new year’s resolutions or goals has been tricky for you in the past, you need to give this book a read! Like right now, it’s the perfect time! You guys already know I’m goal-crazy but this book gives a great step-by-step method for making goals and developing accountability tactics to keep you on track. The great thing too is the strategy can be applied whether you’re trying to make one or two small changes or go after really big goals. The methodology is focused on taking the filler time out of a full year and staying focused for smaller increments — 12 weeks. Very insightful and they also have a lot of tools on their website to help you stay on track.

Anna Osgoodby Life + Biz :: 5 Books Worth Reading This Year :: My Recommendations for Non-Fiction Books to Read in 2020 | Law of Attraction

Law of Attraction | Michael J. Losier

This one is an oldie but goodie that I finally got around to reading! If you’re unfamiliar, the law of attraction is focused on how positive thinking can shift your mindset and help you accomplish the things you set out to do. I used to think manifesting and things like this were a little woo wooy, but after dabbling in them a little last year and seeing results it’s definitely something I want to get better about this year. It’s not just for business owners either. It’s for anyone looking for ways of improving their own thoughts and their lives.

Anna Osgoodby Life + Biz :: 5 Books Worth Reading This Year :: My Recommendations for Non-Fiction Books to Read in 2020 | The Four Tendencies

The Four Tendencies | Gretchen Rubin

Another thing I’m really big on is personality tests… I’ve always loved them since I was a kid and now that I’m an adult I’ve learned how helpful they can be — especially as a business owner. There’s something about learning more about ourselves and why we make the decisions we do. As well as how to approach our challenges and personality tests can be great for this. I really enjoyed The Four Tendencies because it really helped me nail down my workstyle and then change the way I made my goals. For example, I learned that while I’m really great at meeting other people’s deadlines and requirements, it’s easier for me to let my own slide so I started creating external accountability measures in place (like sharing my goals progress each month). Definitely super helpful!

Anna Osgoodby Life + Biz :: 5 Books Worth Reading This Year :: My Recommendations for Non-Fiction Books to Read in 2020 | Girl Wash your Face

Girl Wash Your Face | Rachel Hollis

This is another one that has felt like it’s everywhereeee but for good reason! Rachel Hollis gives a really honest look at her life, things that have helped her and things where she’s flat out failed. It was a refreshing book because reading it, you feel like you’re one of her girlfriends. Not only is it totally hilarious but the lessons included are ones that everyone can benefit in a less text booky self-help kind of approach. This is one of those books that you’ll be excited to pick up! If you’re into this book too, then you’ll also definitely like her second book, “Girl Stop Apologizing”. She also has a great podcast worth listening to if you like her approach.

Anna Osgoodby Life + Biz :: 5 Books Worth Reading This Year :: My Recommendations for Non-Fiction Books to Read in 2020 | You are a Badass

You Are a Badass | Jen Sincero

If you like Rachel Hollis’ books then you' might also be into Jen Sincero’s style of writing. While very different, both write very conversationally, which I personally love. Some of the topics in this book are a little woo wooy too, but overall I think it is such a great guide for starting to shift your mindset and get after your goals. See a pattern? Mindset is GOLD! She also has two other books in this series, Jen Sincero has a couple of other books in this series too (both of which I also read, “You are a Badass at Making Money” and “You are a Badass Every Day

I hope you’ve enjoyed these recs and definitely give me a shout on social if you end up reading them! I’m continuing with my reading goals this year too so if you’ve read something that you love I’d love to hear about it too!