Next month, well Thursday 6th of September to be exact, is National Read A Book Day. Now we know there are a lot of national ‘this’ days, national ‘that’ days, never quite enough national dog days, (you may disagree if you’re not a dog lover), but it got us thinking about the benefits of reading – for you and your business!

Now we’re not saying reading a certain book is going to make you an instant overnight success / millionaire / boss / conquer all your fears / [insert generic goal here], but be it a hardback, paperback, audiobook or a download on to your kindle, there is something good about taking some time (preferably with a cuppa or glass of wine) to get a fresh perspective on life – or give you a big dose of motivation!

So, for this month we’ve rounded up a couple of our favourite books that we’ve not only enjoyed, but has helped given us a bit of direction, both personally and professionally.

  1. The Life Changing Magic of Not Giving a F**k – Sarah Knight

We’re guessing everyone has, if not read, then heard about this book. There’re two similar books, the other, The subtle art of not giving a f**k by Mark Manson. What we love about Knight’s book is the logic of comparing f**ks to credit / money and time. Unless your obscenely rich, like credit, you need to assess what’s worth spending your money /time on, i.e. what’s important to you, and what’s not. So, if you overspend on your credit / time, you’ll essentially become broke (read as exhausted) and unhappy. So how does this book help for your small business? Well, it helps you to redefine what really matters to you. By taking a bit of control, you can say no to the things you don’t want to do – without coming across as being totally rude! Word of warning though, you may be put off if you don’t care for a lot of swearing…

  1. The Multi-Hyphen Method – Emma Gannon

Described as ‘the essential new business book for the digital age’, Gannon speaks frankly about how the world of work has changed. If you have the motivation and drive, you can choose when, where and how to make money – be that through a creative hobby or an online blog you do in your spare time. The aim is to recognise and nurture the talents you have, to shape the career you want (i.e. one that’s not defined by others, especially if you are feeling a bit lost by it all). Gannon isn’t preachy, and the book is more likely to inspire you to try a new or different lifestyle – especially if you are newly self-employed.

  1. The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People – Stephen Covey

An oldie but a goodie. It may sound like some cliché business book, it certainly looks like one, but Covey’s argument focuses on the main principals one should consistently consider to conduct business effectively -fairness, honesty, integrity and human dignity – therefore you’ll find you be able to work more cooperatively with others. Along with a consideration of these four principals, as well as being pro-active and stopping the self-doubt, new opportunities are likely to be created as we become more productive and more likely to take risks. Covey can get a bit repetitive but it’s a great book to start one’s self-awareness journey. Top tip: try to buy a newer version of this book where an eighth principal has been added to include efficiency in the digital world.

Have you read any inspiring books recently? If so, we’d love for you to share them below. While we know it can be hard to get a spare night to yourself, the team at Yellow Bird are going to start leaving a book by the bedside, even just to read a few pages every so often.

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