The Four Tendencies by Gretchen Rubin is not your typical personality type book. Her main point is that there are four ways people respond to expectations. And there are outer expectations and inner expectations. Outer expectations are those placed on us like a work deadline, a medical appointment, or a request from a friend or relative. And inner expectations are those we place upon are selves. Most of these expectations come from our personal goals. So if we wanted to learn to play the piano, our inner expectation is that we would regularly practice the piano and take lessons. How Do I Learn My Tendency? Gretchen has a very short…

Reading Jon Acuff‘s book Finish is like hanging out with a best friend who makes you feel better for not finishing things. But then, like a best friend, he helps you to see the path to finishing things that are important to you. Perfectionism Is the Enemy Jon says there’s two things we must do to fight off perfectionism. The first is realize that no one is going to die if we make a small slip in our plans. We often get derailed thinking if we blew it this once, we shouldn’t even keep trying. The second skill we need is to develop tolerance for imperfection. Our path isn’t going…

I want to share with you someone who inspires me – T. Harv Eker. I’ve studied his programs, and am also in his coaching. I believe his book Secrets of the Millionaire Mind will help you align your inner thoughts with your dreams enabling you to ignite your goals in 2019. Don’t Believe A Word He Says Harv says he only speaks from his own experience. It worked for him and gave him amazing results. He has helped thousands and thousands of people around the world achieve their dreams. He recommends that if your life isn’t the way you want it right now, try following his advice and see how…

I’ve just discovered a delightful book that’s inspiring me to ignite my future even more by going smaller. The basic premise of Atomic Habits is that if you break a desired habit down into a 1-2 minute task that you do every single day while you build up the mastery, you will continue to do the task, and you will naturally desire to continue it. But it needs to be a small, simple tasks. The subtitle to this book is “An Easy & Proven Way to Build Good Habits & Break Bad Ones.” What You Will Learn James Clear opens the book with a very personal story of an adversity…

Never Split the Difference: Negotiating As If Your Life Depended On It by Chris Voss is a fascinating look at hostage negotiation techniques with useful tips and tricks to improve your own personal negotiations. Don’t think you have any? Do you have a child that won’t go to bed? Do you need to make a large purchase and need to negotiate the price? Plus, it’s amazing how much more confident you feel in life when you feel you can handle what comes at you. What Never Split the Difference Is About The author Chris Voss was a hostage negotiator who worked at the FBI and now teaches negotiation skills. His…

If you’re interested in a thought provoking book on women, ambition, and equality, you should get a copy of Lean In: Women, Work and the Will to Lead by Sheryl Sandberg. Who Is Sheryl Sandberg Sheryl has had a varied and interesting career. She started in American politics working for an economic adviser. From there, she got into Google in their early days and built up their advertising and publishing products. Then she took the leap over to Facebook to become their COO. In 2012, she became the eighth member (and first woman) on Facebook’s board of directors. In her blog, she said, “If I had to embrace a definition…

Jen Sincero wrote You Are a Baddass and then followed it up wtih You Are a Badass at Making Money. For this review, I’ll tell you my thoughts on both of the books. First off, they are a bit sassy, but I love that. It makes Jen come across as very sincere in her belief that no matter how much you screw up, no matter how many mistakes you make, you can still be a successful, happy person. How Do You Ignite Your Life? If you want to live the life of your dreams you have to do things you’ve never done. It seems simple, and yet completely difficult. So…

Have you ever heard that you should work on your business instead of in your business? Those are the brilliant words of Michael E. Gerber’s E-Myth books.  He’s written or co-written over 20 books on the subject on setting up processes and procedures that allow your business to successfully grow without taking over your life. Many people recommend this book if you’re just starting out. It can seem a bit daunting for someone thinking of setting up a side business since most of the examples are for established businesses. What Is the E-Myth The E-Myth is that small businesses are started by entrepreneurs risking capital to make a profit. The…

Think and Grow Rich for Women was released in 2014. Sharon Lechter took the basic structure of Think and Grow Rich by Napoleon Hill and updated it to target issues that women deal with day to day like overwhelm. She also has filled the book with really inspiring quotes from successful women. But in order to properly review Think and Grow Rich for Women, I need to go back and discuss some of the original success books. (And you should consider reading them as well.) The Original Inspiration Think and Grow Rich Napoleon Hill is believed to be the first person to write a self-help book. But he actually wasn’t…

Would you like to learn the secret for igniting your whole life? It’s called the Miracle Morning by Hal Elrod. In a quick nutshell, you spend a little time every morning in six main areas of your life for self-improvement including reading, exercising, and meditating. Ready to learn more? What Is the Miracle Morning? The miracle morning is a routine that you should follow when you first wake up in the morning. It inspires you, centers you, and gets you focused before you have to take on the day. Hal opens the book with a horrific accident that affected his life, and how he built himself back up, only to…