I love books that shift my perspective, expand my thinking, and ultimately, change the way I work, lead, parent, and live for the better. That said, I am not usually drawn to self-help books because they can be very prescriptive in a “one size fits all” kind of way, and not necessarily backed up by a lot of research or evidence. In running a financial coaching company, I’ve seen what happens when you change a person’s perspective—almost inevitably, they end up following suit by proactively doing the work necessary to improve their lives. These books all have the power to do that for readers who are open to it.
I wrote
Money Strong: Your Guide to a Life Free of Financial Worries
This book gave me such a huge epiphany that it changed how I communicate. I think about it every single day and consciously try to apply it in all areas of my life.
The author reveals that people tend to have one of two communication styles: candor, where they are very opinionated and generally dominate conversations, doing more talking than listening, and curiosity, where they tend to step back, question themselves, and become easily swayed by the more dominant personalities in a meeting or on a team.
Both have their strengths and weaknesses, and the key is finding balance, both within yourself and within your teams. When you figure that part out, you can achieve things you never thought possible.
OPEN, BALANCED DIALOGUE--THE KEY TO PEAK TEAM PERFORMANCE
In a world of rapid-fire change, it's more important than ever to build teams that work well when the pressure is on-and quality communication can mean the difference between success and failure.
Conversational Capacity provides the communication tools you need to ensure that your team remains on track even when dealing with its most troublesome issues, that it responds to tough challenges with agility and skill, and performs brilliantly in circumstances that would incapacitate less disciplined teams.
Praise for Conversational Capacity:
"This book blows the lid off everything you have learned about…
Switch shows how small changes make a huge difference, and how anyone can tap into the latest findings in neuroscience—as a way to “hack” our brains—to help make changes.
The Heath brothers reveal all sorts of tips and tricks to motivate yourself and others to adopt behaviors that drive success, simply by knowing how the human brain works and what you can do to harness it.
Anyone who wants to improve their personal life, improve their performance at work, or solve a seemingly intractable problem that changes the world for the better needs to read this—you’ll save yourself decades of frustration by working with human nature rather an against it.
___________________________________ Change is hard. It doesn't have to be.
We all know that change is hard. It's unsettling, it's time-consuming, and all too often we give up at the first sign of a setback.
But why do we insist on seeing the obstacles rather than the goal? This is the question that bestselling authors Chip and Dan Heath tackle in their compelling and insightful book. They argue that we need only understand how our minds function in order to unlock shortcuts to switches in behaviour.
Illustrating their ideas with scientific studies and remarkable real-life turnarounds - from the secrets of…
There’s a Henry Ford quote my mom used to always tell me growing up—which at the time, irritated me to no end, but now I realize it’s wisdom:
“Whether you think you can or you think you can’t, you’re right.”
This book shows that this is far more than a pithy quote, through in-depth research on the impact of having what is called a “growth mindset” where you actively lean into tackling new challenges and securing opportunities that might initially feel beyond your reach, with understanding that you will learn, evolve and grow to meet the occasion.
I am now passing on the lessons from this book to my 13-year-old son (not an easy task, but they are slowly but surely taking hold)!
From the renowned psychologist who introduced the world to “growth mindset” comes this updated edition of the million-copy bestseller—featuring transformative insights into redefining success, building lifelong resilience, and supercharging self-improvement.
“Through clever research studies and engaging writing, Dweck illuminates how our beliefs about our capabilities exert tremendous influence on how we learn and which paths we take in life.”—Bill Gates, GatesNotes
“It’s not always the people who start out the smartest who end up the smartest.”
After decades of research, world-renowned Stanford University psychologist Carol S. Dweck, Ph.D., discovered a simple but groundbreaking idea: the power of mindset. In this…
The Big Short (yes, the book, not the movie): If you want to understand the financial system, and how it’s rigged against individual investors, this is the best book I’ve found.
It exposes the underlying systems that drive the development of the financial products and services we are all sold, providing a level of understanding that can help us all make better financial decisions. Plus, it’s an incredible read.
There is a reason that Michael Lewis’ books (Moneyball, Liar’s Poker, Flash Boys) are made into movies—they read like fascinating screenplays and make you feel like you are there, in the room, with these eccentric characters who are deciding the fate of the entire U.S. financial system over the course of a single weekend.
The real story of the crash began in bizarre feeder markets where the sun doesn't shine and the SEC doesn't dare, or bother, to tread: the bond and real estate derivative markets where geeks invent impenetrable securities to profit from the misery of lower- and middle-class Americans who can't pay their debts. The smart people who understood what was or might be happening were paralyzed by hope and fear; in any case, they weren't talking.
Michael Lewis creates a fresh, character-driven narrative brimming with indignation and dark humor, a fitting sequel to his #1 bestseller Liar's Poker. Out of a…
It’s a story of a family caught up in an impossible dilemma, doing their best but failing because there is no right answer. But even more poignantly, it’s one of the best love stories ever written—the love that exists between two sisters who innately understand that in doing right by each other they must endure unrelenting misunderstanding and judgment, and even be willing to make the ultimate sacrifice.
Like all good writing, the story unravels slowly, building suspense as you learn more about each character. And, it has the best ending I’ve ever read. It will make you cry—I sobbed at the end—but it was cathartic at the same time, because it reveals the most beautiful part of our humanity—our capacity to love unconditionally.
Sara and Brian Fitzgerald's life with their young son and their two-year-old daughter, Kate, is forever altered when they learn that Kate has leukemia. The parents' only hope is to conceive another child, specifically intended to save Kate's life. For some, such genetic engineering would raise both moral and ethical questions; for the Fitzgeralds, Sara in particular, there is no choice but to do whatever it takes to keep Kate alive. And what it takes is Anna. Kate (Sofia Vassilieva) and Anna (Abigail Breslin) share a bond closer than most sisters: though Kate is older, she relies on her little…
As CEO of a financial coaching company that has helped millions, I see firsthand how tough things are for most Americans. Financial stress is at its highest levels since the Great Recession, inflation is outpacing wage growth, interest rates are rising, making debt more expensive, and many large-scale employers are making layoffs. On top of that, the student loan moratorium is ending.
Against this backdrop, I wrote Money Strong to help readers overcome current financial challenges and bulletproof their finances for the future. It’s like a conversation with a trusted financial coach who is as invested in your goals as you are. You’ll learn to define your financial identity, replace bad habits with positive ones, identify (and squash) negative money scripts, and take control of your financial life.
I’m an OB/GYN, passionate about adventuring beyond what’s expected. This has led me to pivot multiple times in my career, now focusing on writing. I’ve written a play, The Post-Roe Monologues, to elevate women’s stories. I cherish the curiosity that drives outer and inner exploration, and I love memoirs that skillfully weave the two. The books on this list feature extraordinary women who took risks, left comfort and safety, and battled vulnerability to step into the unknown. These authors moved beyond the stories they’d believed about themselves–or that others told about them. They invite you to think about living fuller and bigger lives.
Tap Dancing on Everest, part coming-of-age memoir, part true-survival adventure story, is about a young medical student, the daughter of a Holocaust survivor raised in N.Y.C., who battles self-doubt to serve as the doctor—and only woman—on a remote Everest climb in Tibet.
The team attempts a new route up the East Face without the use of supplemental oxygen, Sherpa support, or chance for rescue. When three climbers disappear during their summit attempt, Zieman reaches the knife edge of her limits and digs deeply to fight for the climbers’ lives and to find her voice.
The plan was outrageous: A small team of four climbers would attempt a new route on the East Face of Mt. Everest, considered the most remote and dangerous side of the mountain, which had only been successfully climbed once before. Unlike the first large team, Mimi Zieman and her team would climb without using supplemental oxygen or porter support. While the unpredictable weather and high altitude of 29,035 feet make climbing Everest perilous in any condition, attempting a new route, with no idea of what obstacles lay ahead, was especially audacious. Team members were expected to push themselves to their…
