The Book That Made Me Do It.
Being in my car is one of my favorite places because it’s when I have time to sit and listen to podcasts and audio-books, which, for an idea-guy, is a crucial time. As I was reflecting on my year, I thought about all the books I’ve read and wondered if there were any that changed me in some way or gave me a tool that I’m still using now? And yes! I found that I could list ten books that have impacted the way I think about myself, my time, or my resources. This month I will share five of them, and next month I’ll share the other five! If you haven’t yet read these books, I highly recommend them since these books didn’t just present novel ideas, “they made me do it.”
“When” by Daniel Pink :
Made find the time.
This book by Daniel Pink is not only entertaining, but it is packed with tons of research on what time of the day, week, month, and year you can take advantage of your natural energy rhythms. Not everyone is productive or creative at the same time of the day, so he talks about how to discover your particular "chronotype" so you can work with your body's natural peaks and troughs and not against them. This book made me an investigator of my calendar and schedule to try and determine when I should be running, writing, doing email, practicing music, etc. I haven't mastered this yet, but I'm working on slowly designing my time better so I can find greater freedom!
Big Takeaway: Charting your day based on your chronotype. Now I try to take care of all my creative thinking and writing before 9 am each day since this is when my brain is primed for this work.
Profit First by Mike Michalowicz:
Made it simple for me to understand my accounting. (also made me switch to a credit union.)
One of the best things Christa and I have done with our budget every month is to use an envelope system for buying our groceries. The are several studies that show that people tend to spend less when they pay for things in cash as opposed to a credit card. We did it for a while a few years ago but not very consistently, but when I stepped out into the small-business world, we became religious about it. Profit First takes the wisdom of the envelope system and applies it to business. The reason it works is that it operates on the economic principle of Parkinson's Law, which states that supply will always meet demand, therefore if you have $20 to spend, you won't pay $15; you will find a reason to spend $20. If you design your environment intentionally, you can use the principle to your advantage. Sometimes this is called the "smaller-plate theory" because when people are trying to eat less, a strategy of environment design is to set your table with smaller plates. This will trick your brain into believing you have a full plate, and you will be eating less. Profit First is simple, but it doesn't mean it's easy. It takes disciple and consistency, but it also produces results. Christa and I never over-spend on groceries, and most months, we have a little extra that goes into our "fun money" envelope!
Big Takeaway: This book inspired me to start asking the question: “why are we using this bank?”. Hence, I began researching credit unions and discovered that they might be structured in a way that supports our values more than the global banks we’ve been using since college.
“The Dip” by Seth Godin :
Made me quit (and stick)
This little marvel of a book is terrific. If you listen to the audiobook, you can get through it in about 1.5 hours. I have heard it more than once, and I know I'm going to listen again. The genius of this book is that it achieves its purpose not by telling you the answer but by leading you through the question, "Do I quit, or do I stick it out?" It's not specifically about business. It is about anything and everything you are doing. There would be no way a book would be able to give the definitive answer for each unique situation. Still, this book expertly provokes, frustrates, and encourages the reader in the hope of stimulating the internal insight that they need to have the faith to quit or the grit to push through the obstacle.
Big Takeaway: This gave me essential questions to ask, like is this “ a cliff, a dip or a col-de-sac?” Recognizing the “col-de-sacs” as soon as possible is the most important one to know.
“Atomic Habits” by James Clear
Made me apply the 1% rule.
James Clear is a formal baseball player who found himself recovering from a freak accident that threatened permanent brain damage. As a part of his recovery, he began writing a regular blog that led to research in performance efficiency and improvement. Atomic Habits is the culmination of that research and extending the conclusions from Charles Duhigg's book "the power of habit." My biggest take away from the book is the concept of the 1% rule. This is a practice of analyzing and observing your performance to look for small (atomic) changes you can easily apply that will make significant improvements over time. So often we are tempted by the lure of dramatic improvements that happen in a short amount of time, like "lose 20lbs in 3 months!" We rise as quickly as we fall, and after it all, we are further behind than when we started. The 1% rule is designed to establish sustainable habits that have a compounding effect over time. Like Clear writes, "you do not rise to the level of your goals, you fall to the level of your systems."
Big Takeaway: The 1% rule of growing by relentless incremental improvements has permeated into everything I do from training for a 10K to fundraising for Torn Curtain.
Born a Crime Trevor Noah:
Made me laugh, cry, and think all at once.
I got this book for free with a promotion, but I loved it so much I listened to it twice! Yes, "listened" is the operative word. I can't imagine the experience of reading this book on paper being as rich since Trevor Noah narrates the book himself.
The reason this book is so important to hear read is that language itself and how it sounds is integral to the story. Noah speaks several different African languages, and hearing the distinct sound of each language spoken would be something that would be lost in the written word alone.
The book is an autobiography of Noah's early life, but I found it a very insightful dissection of racism through the history of South Africa, where Noah was born. The title comes from the fact that he was born from an illegal marriage between a white Swiss man and a black South African woman. He detailed heart-breaking experiences when he had to pretend his mother was his nanny so his mom would not be sent to jail and how most of the time his family could not be together in public during apartheid. At the same time, he recounts hilarious stories of his growing up a young, ornery boy in the different neighborhoods of the city. The relationship the Noah has with his mother is the centerpiece of the book and was so moving it became the basis for his most recent Netflix special "Son of Patricia."
Big Takeaway: Language is a vital bridge toward kinship. Noah discovered that sometimes languages could even transcend barriers of race because if you “sound like me,” I’m more willing to believe “you are like me.” I think I also saw myself in Noah’s spiritual journey and his relationship with his mom, which gave me a deeper appreciation of my own story of faith.