Summer is the perfect time for self-improvement. You’ve likely got more down time to do what you want and you should take the opportunity to relax and have some fun. But don’t waste ALL of your free time binging on Netflix. Dedicate some time to personal growth. One great way to learn new skills and expand your horizons is to read more. Advance your career by seeking out books that will get you closer to your goals. Below, we’ve compiled a list of top rated self-help books to read this summer.
Girl, Stop Apologizing: A Shame-Free Plan for Embracing and Achieving Your Goals
Many women have been taught to define themselves in light of other people—as wife, mother, daughter, or employee—instead of learning how to own who they are and what they want. In Girl, Stop Apologizing, author and founder of a multimillion-dollar media company, Rachel Hollis sounds a wake-up call. With a challenge to women everywhere to stop talking themselves out of their dreams, Hollis identifies the excuses to let go of, the behaviors to adopt, and the skills to acquire on the path to growth, confidence, and believing in yourself.
Atomic Habits
If you’re having trouble changing your habits, the problem isn’t you. The problem is your system. Bad habits repeat themselves again and again not because you don’t want to change, but because you have the wrong system for change. James Clear, one of the world’s leading experts on habit formation, reveals practical strategies that will teach you exactly how to form good habits, break bad ones, and master the tiny behaviors that lead to remarkable results. In Atomic Habits you’ll learn how to make time for new habits, overcome a lack of motivation and willpower, design your environment to make success easier and get back on track when you fall off course.
Emotional Intelligence 2.0
While many focus on IQ as an indicator of potential, emotional intelligence (EQ) is just as critical to your success. But knowing what EQ is and knowing how to use it to improve your life are two very different things. Emotional Intelligence 2.0 delivers a step-by-step program for increasing your EQ via four, core EQ skills that enable you to achieve your fullest potential: Self-Awareness, Self-Management, Social Awareness, and Relationship Management.
Free to Focus: A Total Productivity System to Achieve More by Doing Less
Most think productivity is just about getting more done at a faster speed. But productivity is actually about getting the right things done. Michael Hyatt has created a 3-step total productivity system to achieve more while doing less. Proven by over 25,000 professionals, this system helps overwhelmed leaders achieve what matters most so they can succeed at both work and life. In his latest book, Free to Focus, you’ll discover how to redefine your work so it works for you, filter tasks and commitments, cut out the non-essentials, eliminate distractions. set boundaries, leverage your time and energy and build momentum for a lifetime of success.
Make Your Bed: Little Things That Can Change Your Life…And Maybe the World
Admiral William H. McRaven addressed the graduating class of the University of Texas at Austin on their Commencement day, sharing the ten principles he learned during Navy Seal training that helped him overcome challenges throughout his life. He explained how anyone can use these basic lessons to change themselves-and the world-for the better. Building on the core tenets laid out in his speech, McRaven recounts tales from his own life and from those he encountered during his military service. In Make Your Bed, he teaches how to deal with hardship and make tough decisions with determination, compassion, honor, and courage.
Make the most of your summer break by reading books that will help you grow and learn. By reading more, you’ll not only feel more confident in your career but also in your personal life.