If you saw me when I was in middle school and high school, you would’ve seen me with multiple books in my hand. I remember when I could read a 400–500 page book in a few days. As I’ve gotten older and busier, it’s been pretty hard for me to sit down, relax, and read a book that I actually want to read. But I definitely miss the joy of picking up a book and diving into a story outside of your own.
One thing that I’m really excited about this year is the chance to really take my blog to the next level and to make it a profitable year. Several successful entrepreneurs and content creators that I follow always talk about the books that they read and how important it is to always be continuously learning throughout your journey. So here are 10 books that I’m adding to my reading list this year. The books that I choose are ones that will help me focus on: improving my productivity, building an unwavering relationship with my audience, growing and understanding my influence.
The 12 Week Year by Brian Moran & Michael Lennington
At the beginning of the year, many of us like to create yearly goals and we look at the entire year when we are planning out our lives, content, and goal metrics. But a year is a long time to focus on several different goals, and it’s easy to become unfocused or unmotivated to continue on them. This book focuses on redefining your year to be 12 weeks long instead. This changes the way that your mind works to get more stuff done and increases the chances that you’ll actually reach your goal. The book focus on clarity, which I definitely need right now. Most months, I feel like I’m not getting enough done to reach my goals so this is why this book is on my list.
Traction: Get a Grip On Your Business by Gino Wickman
In Traction, it focuses on giving you the tools and secrets to strengthening your business and how to run a successful business. Mattie James actually recommended this book, and after reading the description, I knew I wanted to add it to my reading list. I’m always get stuck when I have to make decisions or I never know when to start implementing those decisions or even how to. This book, I’m hoping will give me cut-and-dry information on how to actually run a profitable, frustration-free business. I want to be in my bag all 2021 when it comes to my blogging business!
Clarity First by Karen Martin
A common problem that I have every year is getting clear on where I want to take my blog and how to get results with my ideas. Because I’m unclear on my business, I can’t get consistent income, grow my blog’s pageviews, and just elevate my social media in general. This book says that “it’ll provide methods and insights for achieving clarity to unleash potential, innovate at higher levels, and solve the problems that matter to deliver outstanding business results.” All of this is what I need help on.
Atomic Habits by James Clear
I’m sure if you ever googled how to break a bad habit, then you’ve seen this book before somewhere online. It’s one of those books that is always recommended from successful entrepreneurs because bad habits can stunt your growth without you even knowing it. Atomic Habits offers a framework on how to improve daily and how the tiny changes that you make will lead to amazing results. I really want to read this book this year so that I can change my systems and create better habits that are going to allow me to improve in my life and business.
Profit First by Mike Michalowicz
While I’m not terrible with my finances, I do think that there is 100% room for improvement to learn how to manage my finances better and how to make my business more profitable. Making money from your business is great until you don’t know how to manage it and your business eats away any profit that you made. Profit First follows 4 simple principles that help simplify accounting and highlight how to look at your financials differently.
Fascinate: How to Make Your Brand Impossible to Resist by Sally Hogshead
In the world of blogging and social media, branding is so important to keep the attention of your audience and build creditability in your niche. Fascinate dive right into how to captivate your audience and make your brand irresistible. This book says that you will learn how to increase your prices, build revenue, get better targeted leads, and attracting the fans that you want to follow you. As a blogger, I definitely struggle with everything that this book says that it’ll help with so I’m excited to read it.
Superfans by Pat Flynn
Superfans focuses on how to connect with your audience in a way that makes them into a Superfan. Because social media can easily be a vanity metric for some people, it can be easy to forget that there are actual people behind the screen that look up to you and want to connect with you beyond pretty pictures. Superfans are people who are your biggest supporters, your hype man, and your promotors. As I want to continue growing your audience and business, I want to make sure that I’m connecting with you and building those connections as best as possible.
The One Thing by Gary Keller & Jay Papasan
I’m definitely that person who ends up trying to do everything under the sun and either getting nothing done or being stressed out daily. The constant assault of emails, texts, tweets, meetings, and demands from outside forces definitely distracts and overwhelms me. The One Thing focuses on “cutting out the clutter to achieve better results in less time, stay on track, and master what actually matters to you”. This book is on my reading list because I want to be able to do more things while still keeping centered on what matters to me.
168 Hours: You Have More Time Than You Think by Laura Vanderkam
I don’t know about you, but I’m always wishing that I had more time to get the house cleaned, to exercise, to try new hobbies, and accomplish my goals. The reason why this book got added to my reading list because Laura Vanderkam actually shares real life examples of how happy people manage to do it all with the same amount of time as everyone else. It focuses on doing the things that no one else can do for us while delegating all of the things that don’t bring you joy that someone else can do for you.
Unleash the Power of Storytelling: Win Hearts, Change Minds, Get Results by Rob Biesenbach
Even if you’re not a blogger or content creator, you need to read this book if you want to learn how to craft powerful stories that entertains, persuades, and influences people. Sharing a good story can break down barriers, build trust with your audience, and influence people to act like you want them to do. I think this book is great for anyone looking to get the most out of your career and life because good stories make an impact beyond a powerpoint or a pretty picture.
What books are you currently reading or what books do you recommend if you’re also a content creator? I would love to hear your thoughts and add a few more books to my reading list this year. I’m really excited to finally knuckle down and take my blog to next level, which starts with education, dedication, and perseverance.
You may also like: 11 Ways to Invest In Yourself This Year, Chatbooks: The Perfect Photo App for Millennials, and How We Bought An Airplane in Our 20s
