Twenty-eighteen has been a blast when it comes to the Balance Collective book club; a year and 12 books that have not only been a joy to read and share, but they have taught me and the book club members a lot!
For the final online club of the year, we have been sharing the books that have made a difference to us in 2018; a real mix of fiction, personal development, and business that have left their mark way past the point in time that we read them.
There is often an assumption that the only books that can make a difference to our lives are the ones that are marked as personal development; however, during this week we have seen that some fiction books make as much of an impact through the storytelling, the characters, and the settings. Some of them will be added to my personal to read list for 2019!
However, there have been some stand out books in the book club this year, and I want you to know about them today!
The two most read blogs from 2018 reads have been a real mix; one is very scientific and based around neuroscience, the other is philosophical and political in equal parts.
We: A manifesto for women everywhere is a book that I loved so much I gifted it to make sure the manifesto spreads! Whilst the title of the associated blog is based around self-care for the self-employed, rest assured this book is a must-read for any employment status and gender.
The second most read of the year was The Idiot Brain by Dean Burnett; this is such an impressive and accessible read, which gets to the bottom of the one thing that most people want to understand.
YOUR OWN BRAIN.
However, the most read book blog during this year wasn’t even a 2018 book club choice! How to Be Fucking Awesome by Dan Meredith is actually from August 2017 but is the still the most read overview of all time. For those that want to get stuff done, and don’t mind a few strongly worded examples, then you NEED to read this!
The final book I want to share with you is my favourite , Messy (how to be creative in a tidy minded world) by Tim Hatford. This was like therapy to me; I have perfectionist traits, and this helped me see that throwing caution to the wind and having a trial and error approach to life and business can really work!
So, if you are after some light reading over the Christmas break, to understand yourself better and get stuff done, then make sure you check out these blogs.
The books for the 2019 book club have been chosen. Find them out here and hope to see you in the group!
Clara Wilcox is a straight talking, practical and experienced coach helping clients navigate the tricky waters of returning to work, career changes and professional development. The Balance Collective is a social enterprise focused on improving the lives of parents, by working together to build inner confidence and promote a healthy work/life balance.
