Unintentionally, 2019 became the year in which I dove headfirst into personal development books. During previous years I spent more time reading fiction books with the occasional non-fiction work mixed in, but after I read 168 Hours at the end of 2018, I felt compelled to spend more time devouring books that could bring about small but life changing habits in my life.

This year, I read a number of personal development books, so I’m sharing my 6 favorites and the main takeaways I got from each book. If you have a book that has changed your life I’d love to hear about it. Shoot me an email, leave a comment or slide into my DMs.

6 Personal Development Books To Read Now:

ONE: Atomic Habits by James Clear

So many good nuggets in this book, which walks the reader through the science behind building good habits that stick and discarding those that don’t.

My biggest takeaway was the concept of Habit Stacking. Basically, when you want to start a new habit, start by adding it to a habit you already have. Want to start washing your face every morning? Attach it to the moment you brush your teeth. Want to start doing 10 minutes of meditation each morning? Attach it to pouring that cup of coffee. This concept helped me to FINALLY get regular about taking vitamins and keeping my desk orderly.

TWO: The 10x Rule by Grant Cardone

I adored this book, even Cardone’s brusque manner. (I ‘read’ via audiobook, so this was especially fun since Grant does the reading of his book.) The main premise is that we need to dream bigger and work harder to actually make things happen in our lives. We need to 10x our goals and think it is going to take 10x more time/energy to get it done.

It’s had me re-thinking the way I do everything - especially the way I blog and create content. My main take-away was to dream bigger and hustle for that big dream as opposed to the mediocre ones we often think are the safe bet. As a result, I’ve got big dreams for myself and for ModlyChic in 2020 and beyond.

THREE: Extreme Leadership by Jocko Willink, Leif Babin

The leadership messages are interspersed with real moments from these Navy Seals’ lives, making it a really interesting read. I really like military books and tales of people being bad asses, so this was combining two of my favorites kind of reads in one book.

I took two things away from this book. One: There are no bad teams, just bad leaders. Two: Leaders check their ego at the door. Both of these concepts were so interesting to consider and figure out how to implement them in my own life.

FOUR: Everything is Figureoutable by Maria Forleo

Okay, this book shook me to my core. Unlike the others, I actually read this book in physical form and didn’t just listen to it on audiobook. As the title suggests, the main point and my main take-away is that everything can be figured out. You just need to work at it, hustle, keep moving, and do what you can.

The book is easy to read and also full of really useful tips, tricks, and quotes to get you thinking and moving toward achieving your goals. It’s made me rethink the way I look at various aspects of my work as a content creator. The name of the book has even been my daily mantra a time or two, or ten!

FIVE: The Gifts of Imperfection by Brene Brown

This book is another one that shook me to my core in more ways than one. When I read this book, I took more notes than any other book I’ve read in my life - that includes all my school text books. I listened on audiobook, then bought the book and the workbook. I even bought extra copies to give to family and friends.

What does Brown teach here? The gifts of imperfection are courage, compassion, and connection. Chew on that for a moment. It’s life changing when you start to believe that. And it’s hella scary too.

SIX: Mindset by Carol Dweck

Yes, this book has been out for awhile now and a lot of people have read it already. But what can I say? I was a little behind on the personal development bandwagon. I read this book over the summer while sitting poolside, and have to say the concept is simple but profound.

The general idea is that we can either have a fixed mindset or a growth mindset about things. The fixed mindset says it is what it is and nothing can change that. The growth mindset says this is what it is now but I can work at changing that, at getting better. We all have both mindsets in our lives, so it is a matter of identifying what areas you have a fixed mindset and trying to change that.

Okay, now it’s your turn. what personal development books should I read in 2020? Let me know because I need to start making the list now.