Twenty Books To Understand Business, Life, & Love

Twenty Books That Improved My Understanding of Business, Life, & Love: & What Each One Taught Me

1. The Body Keeps Score: brain, mind, and body in the healing of trauma by Bessel A. Van Der Kolk, M.D..  --  This book helped me understand how trauma affects our brain. Reading this book helped heal deep-rooted beliefs called "grooves" in my mind, where I held and acted out of debilitating fear of intimacy.  Van Der Kolk explains how our brain has the ability to trap us in a prison of our past experiences. So much so, the brain will stop developing beyond its trauma without this awareness. If you want to understand why you think, feel, react, and perceive the way you do, this book is a scientific analysis to why.
2. Curating Your Life: ending the struggle for work-life balance by Gail Golden -- Written by a Business psychologist, Gail Golden affirms the struggle in "having it all, or doing it all." She helps you organizes your priorities. Through this book, you will learn that you will only be great at a couple things, and to others you will be "mediocre" and that is okay.
3. Never Split the Difference: negotiating as if your life depended on it by Chris Voss -- I loved this book. This title was a recommendation in Gail Golden's book. After a couple of low-paying jobs, I felt it was important for me to learn how to negotiate. I wanted to learn and leverage how to earn my worth in the workforce and in life. If you need tips to advocate for yourself and be heard or taken serious, this is a great read. 
4. The Power of Broke : how empty pockets, a tight budget, and a hunger for success can become your greatest competitive advantage by John Daymond -- Speaking of low-paying jobs, this book was the best follow-up to learning how to work with a little. This book was an inspiring book about how to use your determination to beat the odds, despite your financial ability. John Daymond from F.U.B.U. and Shark Tank, tells compelling stories of how ordinary hustlers such as himself, went for broke, and broke the mold to wealth. 
5. He's Just Not That Into You: The No excuse Truth to Understanding Guys by Greg Behrendt and Liz Tuccillo -- Alright, now to the juicy stuff (lol)! If you are a very understanding person who tends to accept people's excuses in life and love, this book is for you. You are someone that understands that "life be life-ing," and there are indeed a lot of gray area between desires and happily ever after. You may even consider yourself "a realist." Well, I'm here to tell you, that works well with public service jobs, and non-profits etc. However, it works terribly when you are dealing with someone who WILL waste your time and use this beautiful gift against you. This book lays out all the possible excuses men will give a woman, as to why he cannot be a fully available, functioning, and committed partner to her.  It drives home why you MUST develop the awareness that he may "like you," but "like" isn't true devotion. Period. So let Greg and Liz gather you. It is worth the information.
6. The Female Dating Strategy Handbook by the Female Dating Strategy-- Now this book may be harder to get your hands on, but it is floating somewhere on the internet (possibly the Internet Archive). The Female Dating Strategy Handbook originated from a Reddit Board. It grew into an amazing podcast. This PDF guide gives tips in dating to screen, test, and weed out low-vibrational, zero-sum men. It warns you of toxic tricks and tactics men can use against you, to doubt yourself, to trick you into a non-reciprocal relationship and more.
7. The Everything Guide to Starting and Running A Restaurant : secrets to a successful business by Ronald Lee -- I picked up this book to learn what it takes to run a restaurant successfully. I Found a lot of helpful tricks about creating an ambience, an amazing experience, and quality service through your operations. If you love to cook, host or cater, this is a useful guide.
8. Starting & Running A Restaurant by Jody Pennette -- Ibid. (lol) More helpful tips for getting started in the food and drink industry. Everything from Menu structure, themes, and intention.
9. The Circle Maker : praying circles around your biggest dreams and greatest fears by Mark Batterson -- The Circle Maker made me a believer in powerful prayers! Through this book, I learned that Prayer is the MOST important habit you must have to conquer this life.  Mark Batterson commanded that you can build future generations through your prayers alone, not merely wealth and accolades. If you want to be steadfast, and persistent in building a relationship with God, and asking Him for what you need and want, check out this amazing author. 
10. Mars and Venus In Touch : enhancing the passion with great communication by Gray John -- This short book was a helpful guide in counseling lovers in how to communicate effectively, based on gender preferences.  An extension of Men are from Mars, Women are from Venus, this little pocket-book helps put out little mis-understandings couples can have while expressing their needs. 
11. Set Boundaries, Find Peace : a guide to reclaiming yourself by Nedra Glover Tawwab -- If you need to implement effective boundaries with family, co-workers, friends, and lovers, this is the book for you. How do you know whether you need boundaries or not? (1) You avoid people in your life and tend to isolate yourself, when you need people the most (2) You compulsively have the desire to move away from your family/friends and start your life over (3) Your social interactions drain you (4) Your relationships are unstable and volatile (5) You fear standing up for yourself because you believe you will be abandoned if you do not people please (6) you consistently feel violated, disrespected, unconsidered.
12. Daring Greatly: How the Courage to Be Vulnerable Transforms the Way We Live, Love, Parent, and Lead by Brenè Brown -- Who knew that vulnerability would be the most powerful emotion you can share with others and yourself. If you fail to go for the things you dream or set out to do, you may have an issue with vulnerability. If you feel too prideful to apologize, or even give others the opportunity to apologize to you, you may struggle with a lack of vulnerability. Brenè Brown's work is life-changing. When you allow yourself to be brave, and trust that you will be okay regardless, amazing things can happen.
13. Atomic Habits: An Easy & Proven Way to Build Good Habits & Break Bad Ones by James Clear -- This book is a crowd favorite. Leveraging the power of small steps and constant progress, this book is great for building compounding interest in your efforts. Having only read a few chapters, I still processed enough of its merit, to apply it to my routine in project management of my lifestyle. 
14. Thank You for Arguing: Third Edition: What Aristotle, Lincoln, and Homer Simpson Can Teach Us About the Art of Persuasion by Jay Heinrichs -- Thank You For Arguing is for the nerds like me!! If you are into reading, writing, and publishing, this book is a great for understanding how to grab your audience's attention using Rhetoric and the art of public speaking. As a historian, I love writing argumentative and persuasive text. I have been a contributor for Public Libraries Online, and taught history in public spaces, so improving my writings skills is important to me and my profession (and blog😉). It's witty too. 
15. It doesn't have to be that way : how to divorce without destroying your family or bankrupting yourself by Laura Wasser -- This book is pretty personal, but I chose to check-out this book to learn how to mitigate my fresh co-parenting situation, and how to prevent a new divorce/break-up in the future. I liked some of the personal accounts of how to take care of yourself and your ex, amicably. 
16. Communion : the female search for love by Bell Hooks -- Bell Hooks is raw. I love this book and it was an aspiration to my business name The Communion Floor (😇). Bell Hooks explains the struggle of men and women existing in a society that thrives off domination. Bell Hooks argues that love and domination cannot exist in the space of relationships. If you are aware of 3rd wave feminism, the Black Movement, and other culturally historical subjects, you will find it quite valuable. 
17. Maximize the moment : God's action plan for your life by Bishop T.D. Jakes -- Bishop T.D. Jakes is an amazing teacher. His books are so succinct and tactful. His books have the same power of conviction as his preachings. If you want to be mentored through a book, this is the one for you. He has a methodical approach to writing, that provides a steady stride to understanding purpose and seizing the moment. 
18. Bread alone: bold fresh loaves from your own hands by Daniel Leader -- Probably random, but I have an interest in baking bread. I believe keeping "old world" skills is important to continuing legacy. In this case, it is less about "grandma's legacy," but more so a societal legacy to maintain. If we suddenly returned to the dark ages, how well will we survive without the convenience of convenient stores. 
19. The Mountain is You: transforming Self-Sabotage Into Self-Mastery by Briana Wiest -- If self-sabotage is your middle name, this book is for you. Sometimes you are in your own way. Sometimes your thoughts and fears work against you, before any thing bad can impose on your life. If you learn how to overcome you, and become your own best friend, you will become a victor.
20. Blue Ocean Shift: Beyond Competing: Proven Steps To Inspire Confidence And Seize New Growth by W. Chan Kim & Renee Mauborgne -- If you are a business nerd like me, and you love everything with improving processes, creating your own lanes, and bringing others together, to solve problems, this book is for you. Blue Ocean Shift changed my perspective on business and creating products and standing out among tough crowds. I love the charts and graphs and healthy group-thinking methods to building a sustainable business mindset.