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In 2017 I started a list of my goals and accountability tracking for the year. I reached and exceeded every goal. (You can see that post on my personal page here.) If you haven’t read my January-May favorites, here ya go. June is right here.
The goal of this blog section is to share a glimpse into what inspires, motivates and teaches me. Out of the books I read, I only bring up the ones I would suggest taking a look at…there are still a few that get left out; entirely based on my own opinions.
So where do I find all these books to read? Lots of places. I follow the Book of the Month Club on Instagram and I get weekly suggestions from my daily news source, theSkimm. You can sign up for free here using my referral code!
Read For Fun
Small Great Things by Jodi Picoult
I love to get recommendations from my friends and family, especially when they have similar taste to me. I saw a handful of my friends snapping this cover and it finally became available through my library. The Small Great Things mentioned in this book are babies. But it’s SO much more than another book about the miracle of life. This is narrated by a black nurse and a white supremacist father-to-be when their worlds collide with the birth of his son. I don’t want to spoil anything but it was a very thoughtful, compassionately written book and I like how the author dug into the good, bad and ugly of each perspective. A must read and I would say this is okay for high schoolers and older.
Black Chalk by Christopher Yates
The cover gave me badass Harry Potter vibes but it turned into a Jumanji/Black Mirror/Friends novel. Confused yet? So was I at the end of this fictional book but in the best way possible. As you can tell by the cover, one friend dies. The way the narrator tells the story there are a few parts that have you convinced a certain character died….but when you reach that character, it’s extremely, graphically clear. A game that a group of friends took part in college turned outcasts into the talk of the campus. What starts out light-hearted turns personal, nasty and violent. I found this intriguing and very easy to breeze through while reading because it was entertaining; even if some parts get a little gritty. This is not a murder mystery but it still provides a twisted mind game. See if you can figure it out.
Read For Improvement
Start With Why: How Great Leaders Inspire Everyone To Take Action by Simon Sinek
If you’re familiar with this bestseller, author, TedTalk, etc. then you already know. With ‘Finding Your Why’ has been a first step in marketing campaigns, fundraisers, company culture and team building for years now this book dives into more details than the quick and inspiring TedTalk. I found myself copying stats, quotes, stand-out sentences and things that made me think constantly in each chapter. If you are an entrepreneur, team leader or seek to be you just need to read this. Period. If you’re in a rut in your job, customer facing or dealing with students and about to fall into that ‘Is it Thanksgiving break yet?’ mentality, read this. Period. At the very least you will understand what the buzz is about everywhere you go. At the most, you will be invigorated to reshape your business. If you would like to find your WHY and re-brand or polish up your business, let’s talk.
The Gift of Fear: And Other Survival Signals That Protect Us from Violence by Gavin de Becker
I was surprised that what was less than a three hour audiobook had nearly 3,000 reviews for a 4.7 out of 5 stars. As they say in the description “True fear is a gift. Unwarranted fear is a curse. Learn how to tell the difference.” de Becker details a few true stories about people escaping fear and how it was built-in instincts that lead them to safety. It’s not difficult to take these very serious cases and apply it to your own situations. As a woman we are constantly taught how to protect ourselves, watch out for strange behaviors and cautionary tips. We have a natural gut instinct that can lead us in the right direction. Fear is a good emotion because it is there to protect and guide you. With this being such a quick audiobook, I would imagine it is also a quick hard-back read. Either way, highly recommend it’s worth your time.
The Universe Has Your Back by Gabrielle Bernstein
I’m late on the Gabby train-I get it. If you like Rachel Hollis, Jen Sincero or the Champagne Diet you’ll probably like Gabby Bernstein! She is a well-known (For example Forbes list of the 20 Best Branded Women) motivational speaker, life coach, and author. I was curious if the next-generation guru would be too ‘woo-woo’ for me but her writing was personable, entertaining and relatable enough that I could pull what I wanted from it and her message came through crystal clear. Basically how to turn your fear into faith and knowing how to use negative energy for positive, joyful change. If you’re in any moment of doubt (Or want to be proactive because, who hasn’t?) then pick this book up and take pages of notes and takeaways like I did.
How Not To Die: Discover the Foods Scientifically Proven to Prevent and Reverse Disease by Michael Greger, M.C.
A long title but a great worthwhile read. While on juice or Whole30 kicks, I devour these books (pun unintentional but it fits). I love learning about what benefits specific foods provide for your body. I put off listening to this audiobook because I was worried it would be pro-vegan/vegetarian/meat will send you to hell textbook. But he did a great job of informing you with facts, statistics, suggestions, stories and case studies to encourage you to eat more greens. With a history of poor family health, cancer and Midwest diet growing up, it’s been fun to incorporate more healthy and nutritious food in our diet. I still find myself falling short compared to people like Greger but the hard-copy version of the books looks to provide recipes and graphics. If you download the audiobook it comes with downloadable pdfs. This WAS a bit of a longer read, 17 hours if you don’t speed it up, there is a lot of good information and if your family death, illness and health is like mine, you need to read this; and so do they. Do I plan on cutting out meat? No, but I’m willing to increase veggies and fruits. Education is best.
Podcasts
Here is my first post on podcasts. I have also been adding them into the other Book Club posts as I come across entertaining, informational shows. I listen to audiobooks while at my laptop and listen to podcasts on my phone so if they don’t hook me after a few episodes, they’re not getting my attention.
These podcasts were on an episode of Boss Girl Creative and I added them based on relevancy, interest and the description (If you want to get realllyyyy good at catching people on your first impression, I’ve got you.) Being 100% transparent I haven’t listened to these as often as I probably should but in general I feel they were good adds and they’re still on my list. Hopefully they will be a good match for you, too!
Marketing In Yoga Pants Podcast
Let’s be honest. Being someone who *literally* does marketing work from her home in yoga pants, this intrigued me right away. It may be a less-than-traditional/professional name but you bet it draws in her target audience…and that’s the entire goal of marketing pros, right? If podcasts aren’t your thing Brit’s website lets you choose from her podcast, book, Facebook, YouTube, blog and much more as your platform of choice to pick up your information. Every podcast is an interview with a professional of some kind in the field so it’s a fun way to hear how people in similar positions helped their industry or company succeed.
Create If Writing
Kirsten is a writer so it’s not surprising that this is what every episode and post revolves around. Her creativity, approach to language and variety of work impress and inspire me to make small tweaks or big leaps in my writing. I also like that her voice translates through whatever position or character she’s trying to portray because I’m able to picture them as brand archetypes; fantastic examples. You’ll know the most important part of marketing and business success is the ability to tell a good story. We’re humans-that’s what we’ve craved since we were kids. Listen in, read her books and get involved to figure out how to tell your business’s story. Need some help? Let me write FOR you!
Creative Biz Rebellion
These two ladies host informative and entertaining episodes on a variety of topics to help creative business’s from working with a printer to maximizing holiday sales to reps from magazines. Whether you are the owner or the representative these episodes will give you insight to potential vendors, fresh spins on worn-out sales and helpful ways to maneuver with tricky partners and situations. If you believe creativity is the ultimate rebellion, listen in.
Office Talk with Annette Stepanian
Notice a theme of female hosts? Annette is no exception. Like many other podcasts, Annette shares interviews with entrepreneurs and professionals building a business and life on their own terms. The most valuable and unique aspect of Annette’s work are her Legal Quickie episode where she answers FAQs about law and your business. This is a fun way to stay up to date on legalities and get your questions answered from a reliable source.
The Fearless Launching Show with Anne Samoilov
I love the word fearless so I instantly clicked on this podcast. Anne helps small business owners bring their big ideas to the big world. She helps you with everything necessary to LAUNCH your business including prioritizing tasks, creating and reaching your goals, and takes the burdens of stress and overwhelm out of the equation for you.
You’ve read through my opinions so you deserve some FREE STUFF! Make sure you are following the blog (upper right of this page) to get free downloads in the future. Once you’re following, go ahead and download this document: GOALS FOR 2018 from Local Collaborative I mentioned to track your goals and adventures for the rest of the year.
Cheers!
Marin
PS: Are you enjoying these blogs? Have we worked together? I would love to get your short and honest review on my Facebook page. Thanks in advance!