Have ever woken up on a weekday and thought, “I so do not want to do what I’m about to go do today”? If the Sunday blues is an old pal that shows up without fail around 5 pm as the clock inches towards Monday, or if you just have this little voice urging to you to start making some shifts in your life to see if you can do better (you can!), then you’ve come to the right place.
Even before I could write, I was writing. I would scribble cryptic combinations of squiggly lines, with devout concentration, as if there was an ancient hieroglyphic message within me that I just had to get out. I’ve always had piles and piles of notebooks that I filled with lists, goals, and my plans for myself, even if said plans weren’t necessarily the most noble ambitions. I remember writing things like “sell enough cookie dough to win the deluxe boombox prize, get a nice tan this summer, try out new hair-do’s,” and the holy grail of all lovestruck third grader’s notebooks, “make Jason* fall in love with you.”
*Jason’s name has been changed in order to protect his rosy cheeked third grade self. I’m over him though, I swear.
You could say that I’ve always had an interest in seeing what I could pull off in life. It was somewhere around the time that I decided to go abroad for a semester that I started reading inspirational books, and from that point on, I couldn’t stop reading them. Reading opens up your mind. Self development opens up your consciousness. Put them together and boom! you might just end up in Milan, writing a blog post on a Monday night with fine glass of red wine, feeling excited for life.
I love the following five books because even if there’s nothing wrong with your current situation in life, they make you think about what’s possible and help you expand your view of what you’re capable of. They make you think bigger. So without further ado, let me introduce five books that will totally transform your life. Whether you like it or not.
You Are A Badass by Jen Sincero
I have read and re-read this book so many times because a.) it’s inspiring as hell and b.) it’s also funny as hell. Jen Sincero is one of the first people to write a self-help book that is full of curse words, extremely relatable examples, and an honest tone that says, “look, I know this sounds cheesy but it kind of works.” This book is perfect for anyone who is a little skeptical about the whole makeover your life/law of attraction/affirmation hoo-hah and who likes to laugh out loud while reading on the subway. I have even given this book as a gift to two of my friends because I found it to be so powerful and helpful that I wanted to share it with them. Annnnnd now I’m telling you. Seriously. Start here.
The Four-Hour Work Week by Tim Ferriss
The title alone makes you want to skip on down to your local bookshop and get to readin’, amiright? Tim Ferriss outlines practical steps for increasing your income while reducing the amount of hours you spend working and freeing yourself from the rat race, desk chair, awkward-chat-at-the-water-cooler life. Who doesn’t want to be in on that? He has a refreshing approach to life that basically calls into question all of the social norms we tend to blindly accept. After a few chapters you’ll be asking yourself, “Wait a minute…who told me I had to spend 9 hours a day on my butt in front of a monitor? Is that actually necessary?” Spoiler alert: it isn’t.
The Science of Getting Rich by Wallace D. Wattles
If financial success is your game, this is the book for you. It’s a little outdated in the sense that Wattles talks about the railroads and steel industry (lol) instead of the internet and social media, but every single concept he mentions is still evergreen. Even if you don’t necessarily want to focus on money, but rather the bigger picture, this book is a great place to start. It stresses the fact that mindset, visualization, and intent, are truly the root of all the shifts in your life. Maybe start off with Jen and work your way to Wally if you’re not so sure about this.
The Four Agreements by Miguel Ruiz
This book is short, simply written, and incredibly powerful. Based on ancient Toltec wisdom, Ruiz outlines four essential ideas to adopt if you want to eliminate unnecessary suffering and strengthen your connection to yourself. If you’re a chronic overthinker or just feel like you have a cluttered mind, this read is essential for starting to untangle your thoughts. Basically, it’s like a juice detox for your brain.
You Can Heal Your Life by Louise Hay
This book is very much about the art of self-love. The key is this: if you show yourself unconditional love (aka take outstanding care of yourself, tell yourself you’re the bomb.com, let go of any guilt or resentment, take yourself dancing), everything in your life will start to work. She has an incredibly inspiring story that starts with childhood abuse and teen pregnancy and transforms into a positive life that she felt quite good about. She holds the interesting, powerful belief that our ailments stem from internal issues and that we have the ability to cure ourselves of illness. She cured herself of cancer by working through old issues. It may be a little bit foo foo and cheesy for some, but there are definitely important practices in here that you’ll want to implement. If you’re still not sold, at least it’s eye-opening to read books that contradict your current beliefs.
I hope you enjoyed this list and have decided to add at least one of these books to your nightstand rotation. It’s incredible what just a few words can do. One book, chapter, or even just a sentence, could end up changing the course of your life. It may even cause you to say, pack your bags and buy a one-way ticket to a foreign country. Hypothetically speaking.
