Keep Those New Year’s Resolutions Chugging Along with These Motivational Books
If you’re one of the many who set your mind to making a change – or two – in 2017 (aka a New Year’s resolution), you might be looking for a little help about now to stay motivated.
Making any kind of change to your regular routine, be it how much/what you eat, your activity level or your financial situation to name a few, is extremely difficult.
Routines are called routines for a reason. They’re a common, regular course of action. Change is not part of a routine.
And to break out of a routine, significant effort must be put forth.
That effort can be overwhelming for many, which means help is needed to stay on that new course.
If you have someone who’s working with you to make that change, that’s great…a motivator is the best way to achieve your goal.
However, many try to make changes on their own. And without that inspiration, keeping on track can be extremely difficult.
While books are no replacement for a real live person prodding and cheering you on each day, they’re better than going it alone.
Here are some of the better motivational books in a variety of “change” categories. Grab one, or two, and give it a quick read when your motivation wanes. It will make a difference.
Motivational Books
Weight Loss
Eat to Live: The Amazing Nutrient-Rich Program for Fast and Sustained Weight Loss, Revised Edition
The Eat To Live 2011 revised edition includes updated scientific research supporting Dr. Fuhrman’s revolutionary six-week plan and a brand new chapter highlighting Dr. Fuhrman’s discovery of toxic hunger and the role of food addiction in weight issues. This new chapter provides novel and important insights into weight gain. It explains how and why eating the wrong foods causes toxic hunger and the desire to over consume calories; whereas a diet of high micronutrient quality causes true hunger which decreases the sensations leading to food cravings and overeating behaviors. It instructs readers on how to leave behind the discomfort of toxic hunger, cravings, and addictions to unhealthy foods.
Chicken Soup for the Soul: Shaping the New You: 101 Encouraging Stories about Dieting and Fitness… and Finding What Works for You
No one likes to diet, but the personal stories in Chicken Soup for the Soul: Shaping the New You will encourage and inspire readers with its positive, practical, and purposeful tales of dieting and fitness. This is a great book for anyone embarking on a healthier lifestyle.
Fitness
The Men’s Health Big Book of Exercises: Four Weeks to a Leaner, Stronger, More Muscular You!
The Men’s Health Big Book of Exercises is the essential workout guide for anyone who wants a better body. As the most comprehensive collection of exercises ever created, this book is a body-shaping power tool for both beginners and long-time lifters alike. This book contains hundreds of useful tips, the latest findings in exercise science, and cutting-edge workouts from the world’s top trainers.
The Women’s Health Big Book of Exercises: Four Weeks to a Leaner, Sexier, Healthier You!
Backed by the authority of Women’s Health magazine, this updated and revised edition features 100 new exercises in 20 workouts designed by BJ Gaddour, the Fitness Director of Men’s Health magazine, and 1,350 photographs, showing movements for every muscle and training plan to match every fitness goal.
Personal Finance
The Total Money Makeover: Classic Edition: A Proven Plan for Financial Fitness
By now, you’ve heard all the nutty get-rich-quick schemes, the fiscal diet fads that leave you with a lot of kooky ideas but not a penny in your pocket. Hey, if you’re tired of the lies and sick of the false promises, take a look at this—it’s the simplest, most straightforward game plan for completely making over your money habits. And it’s based on results, not pie-in-the-sky fantasies. With The Total Money Makeover: Classic Edition, you’ll be able to:
- Design a sure-fire plan for paying off all debt—meaning cars, houses, everything
- Recognize the 10 most dangerous money myths (these will kill you)
- Secure a big, fat nest egg for emergencies and retirement!
The Automatic Millionaire: A Powerful One-Step Plan to Live and Finish Rich
The Automatic Millionaire starts with the powerful story of an average American
couple–he’s a low-level manager, she’s a beautician–whose joint income never exceeds $55,000 a year, yet who somehow manage to own two homes debt-free, put two kids through college, and retire at 55 with more than $1 million in savings. Through their story you’ll learn the surprising fact that you cannot get rich with a budget! You have to have a plan to pay yourself first that is totally automatic, a plan that will automatically secure your future and pay for your present.
Personal Fulfillment
Daring Greatly: How the Courage to Be Vulnerable Transforms the Way We Live, Love, Parent, and Lead
Daring Greatly is not about winning or losing. It’s about courage. In a world where “never enough” dominates and feeling afraid has become second nature, vulnerability is subversive. Uncomfortable. It’s even a little dangerous at times. And, without question, putting ourselves out there means there’s a far greater risk of getting criticized or feeling hurt. But when we step back and examine our lives, we will find that nothing is as uncomfortable, dangerous, and hurtful as standing on the outside of our lives looking in and wondering what it would be like if we had the courage to step into the arena—whether it’s a new relationship, an important meeting, the creative process, or a difficult family conversation. Daring Greatly is a practice and a powerful new vision for letting ourselves be seen.
The ONE Thing: The Surprisingly Simple Truth Behind Extraordinary Results
In The ONE Thing, you’ll learn to * cut through the clutter * achieve better results in less time * build momentum toward your goal* dial down the stress * overcome that overwhelmed feeling * revive your energy * stay on track * master what matters to you The ONE Thing delivers extraordinary results in every area of your life–work, personal, family, and spiritual. WHAT’S YOUR ONE THING?
Organization
The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up: The Japanese Art of Decluttering and Organizing
Japanese cleaning consultant Marie Kondo takes tidying to a whole new level, promising that if you properly simplify and organize your home once, you’ll never have to do it again. Most methods advocate a room-by-room or little-by-little approach, which doom you to pick away at your piles of stuff forever. The KonMari Method, with its revolutionary category-by-category system, leads to lasting results. In fact, none of Kondo’s clients have lapsed (and she still has a three-month waiting list).
With detailed guidance for determining which items in your house “spark joy” (and which don’t), this international bestseller featuring Tokyo’s newest lifestyle phenomenon will help you clear your clutter and enjoy the unique magic of a tidy home—and the calm, motivated mindset it can inspire.
Getting Things Done: The Art of Stress-Free Productivity
Since it was first published almost fifteen years ago, David Allen’s Getting Things Done has become one of the most influential business books of its era, and the ultimate book on personal organization. “GTD” is now shorthand for an entire way of approaching professional and personal tasks, and has spawned an entire culture of websites, organizational tools, seminars, and offshoots.
These are just a few of the many motivational books that are available. If you’ve found any of these particularly informative or helpful, please let other readers know by posting a comment. And if you have another favorite book to help others achieve their goals, don’t hesitate to post those as well.
Success in all aspects of life is the goal. Let’s work together to make that happen.
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