When it comes to improving yourself, there are many ways to do so and many philosophies on how to do it. While there is no one-size-fits-all approach to self-improvement, there is probably a good approach for you just waiting to be found! Self-improvement books have been around for decades, shaping the way millions of people think and approach life. They offer do-it-yourself motivation for ways to change your life for the better, often through changing your behaviors or ways of thinking. From changing your habits to be more productive to organizing your house, there’s a self-improvement book for everyone.
La Porte County Public Library has a bunch of self-improvement books that are available digitally on eBook or eAudiobook, so you can check them out without even leaving home, although many of these titles are also available in print. You can find links to our eReader apps Libby and Overdrive here: https://laportelibrary.org/library-online/stream-download/. Below is a list of self-improvement eBooks and eAudiobooks to get you started!
The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen R. Covey (eBook and eAudiobook)
When it was first published, in 1990, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People was an almost instant bestseller and became a permanent part of the cultural lexicon. With more than 15 million copies sold in over 33 languages and 75 countries since its first publication, this book continues to help millions of people become more effective both in their personal and professional lives. What author Stephen R. Covey advocates is no less than a paradigm shift, a major change in how readers perceive the world. This encompasses time management, proactivity, positive thinking, spiritual life, communication, and more. With compelling anecdotes and penetrating insight on every page, Dr. Covey guides the way to a life lived with integrity, service, dignity, and success both at home and at work
The 8 Minute Organizer: Easy Solutions to Simplify Your Life in Your Spare Time by Regina Leeds (eAudiobook)
Whether you are busy dealing with a demanding job, raising kids, or coping with illness, simply finding the time to get organized can be a challenge. The 8-Minute Organizer to the rescue! Regina Leeds shows how anyone can organize their home with just a few minutes each day. She has tailored her magic formula (eliminate, categorize, organize) so that readers can work in short, effective increments and complete small projects that add up to big progress. The book includes hundreds of systems and tricks- from rapid closet rehab to tackling junk drawers, clutter-busting a room to setting up a mail system. Leeds also offers quick but important daily routines (making the bed), periodic tasks (checking the smoke detector), and fun projects (creating a dream board) to keep up the momentum.
Spark Joy: An Illustrated Master Class on the Art of Organizing and Tidying Up by Marie Kondo (eBook and eAudiobook)
A follow up to the bestselling The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up: The Japanese Art of Decluttering and Organizing by Marie Kondo. Japanese decluttering guru Marie Kondo has revolutionized homes–and lives–across the world. Now, Kondo presents an illustrated guide to her acclaimed KonMari Method, with step-by-step folding illustrations for everything from shirts to socks, plus drawings of perfectly organized drawers and closets. She also provides advice on frequently asked questions, such as whether to keep “necessary” items that may not bring you joy. With guidance on specific categories including kitchen tools, cleaning supplies, hobby goods, and digital photos, this comprehensive companion is sure to spark joy in anyone who wants to simplify their life.
Eat That Frog!: 21 Great Ways to Stop Procrastinating and Get More Done in Less Time by Brian Tracy (eBook and eAudiobook)
There just isn’t enough time for everything on our “To Do” list and there never will be. Successful people don’t try to do everything. They learn to focus on the most important tasks and make sure they get done. There’s an old saying that if the first thing you do each morning is to eat a live frog, you’ll have the satisfaction of knowing that it’s probably the worst thing you’ll do all day. Using “eat that frog” as a metaphor for tackling the most challenging task of your day (the one you are most likely to procrastinate on), but also probably the one that can have the greatest positive impact on your life. Eat That Frog! shows you how to zero in on these critical tasks and organize your day. You’ll not only get more done faster but get the right things done. Bestselling author Brian Tracy cuts to the core of what is vital to effective time management: decision, discipline, and determination. In this fully revised and updated second edition, he provides brand new information on how to keep technology from dominating your time. He details twenty-one practical and doable steps that will help you stop procrastinating and get more of the important tasks done today!
The Power of Now: A Guide to Spiritual Enlightenment by Eckhart Tolle (eBook and eAudiobook)
Eckhart Tolle is emerging as one of today’s most inspiring teachers. In The Power of Now, already a word-of-mouth bestseller in Canada, the author describes his transition from despair to self-realization soon after his 29th birthday. Tolle took another ten years to understand this transformation, during which time he evolved a philosophy that has parallels in Buddhism, relaxation techniques, and meditation theory but is also eminently practical. In The Power of Now he shows readers how to recognize themselves as the creators of their own pain, and how to have a pain-free existence by living fully in the present. Accessing the deepest self, the true self can be learned, he says, by freeing ourselves from the conflicting, unreasonable demands of the mind and living present, fully, and intensely, in the Now.
The Miracle Equation: The Two Decisions That Move Your Biggest Goals from Possible, to Probable, to Inevitable by Hal Elrod (eBook)
The bestselling author of The Miracle Morning shares the secret to unlocking your full potential all day, every day. What he had discovered was a timeless but overlooked formula for success. The world’s top achievers have used it for centuries. He used it to thrive against seemingly insurmountable odds, from overcoming life-threatening health challenges to near financial collapse. That formula is The Miracle Equation, and it couldn’t be any simpler: Unwavering Faith + Extraordinary Effort = Miracles. By establishing and maintaining Unwavering Faith that you can achieve anything you desire, and then putting forth Extraordinary Effort until you do, you’ll create results beyond what you believe to be possible. In The Miracle Equation, you’ll learn how to: replace fear with faith, move from resistance to acceptance, let go of negative emotions, turn off your stress response, overcome your limitations to unlock your limitless potential, develop emotional invincibility, grow from happiness, which is fleeting, to inner peace, which is lasting. And with the Miracle Equation 30-Day Challenge to guide your way, you’ll create a step-by-step plan to actualize your miracles and become the person you need to be in order to succeed. No goal is out of reach!
Rising Strong: How the Ability to Reset Transforms the Way We Live, Love, Parent, and Lead by Brene Brown (eBook and eAudiobook)
Social scientist Brené Brown has ignited a global conversation on courage, vulnerability, shame, and worthiness. Her pioneering work uncovered a profound truth: Vulnerability–the willingness to show up and be seen with no guarantee of outcome–is the only path to more love, belonging, creativity, and joy. But living a brave life is not always easy: We are, inevitably, going to stumble and fall.
It is the rise from falling that Brown takes as her subject in Rising Strong. As a grounded theory researcher, Brown has listened as a range of people–from leaders in Fortune 500 companies and the military to artists, couples in long-term relationships, teachers, and parents–shared their stories of being brave, falling, and getting back up. She asked herself, What do these people with strong and loving relationships, leaders nurturing creativity, artists pushing innovation, and clergy walking with people through faith and mystery have in common? The answer was clear: They recognize the power of emotion and they’re not afraid to lean into discomfort.
Walking into our stories of hurt can feel dangerous. But the process of regaining our footing in the midst of struggle is where our courage is tested and our values are forged. Our stories of struggle can be big ones, like the loss of a job or the end of a relationship, or smaller ones, like a conflict with a friend or colleague. Regardless of magnitude or circumstance, the rising strong process is the same: We reckon with our emotions and get curious about what we’re feeling; we rumble with our stories until we get to a place of truth; and we live this process, every day, until it becomes a practice and creates nothing short of a revolution in our lives. Rising strong after a fall is how we cultivate wholeheartedness. It’s the process, Brown writes, that teaches us the most about who we are.
How to Win Friends & Influence People in the Digital Age by Dale Carnegie (eAudiobook)
The updated and revised version of the 1936 book. Dale Carnegie’s How to Win Friends & Influence People has sold 15 million copies since its original publication in 1936. Here Carnegie’s classic guide on communication and leadership gets a fascinating update for the age of social media. While the digital age may have changed the face of communication, the basic skills necessary for successful social interaction remain as important as ever.
The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck: A Counterintuitive Approach to Living a Good Life by Mark Manson (eBook and eAudiobook)
Manson makes the argument, backed both by academic research and well-timed poop jokes, that improving our lives hinges not on our ability to turn lemons into lemonade, but on learning to stomach lemons better. Human beings are flawed and limited “not everybody can be extraordinary, there are winners and losers in society, and some of it is not fair or your fault.” Manson advises us to get to know our limitations and accept them. Once we embrace our fears, faults, and uncertainties, once we stop running and avoiding and start confronting painful truths, we can begin to find the courage, perseverance, honesty, responsibility, curiosity, and forgiveness we seek. There are only so many things we can care about so we need to figure out which ones really matter, Manson makes clear. While money is nice, caring about what you do with your life is better, because true wealth is about the experience. A much-needed grab-you-by-the-shoulders-and-look-you-in-the-eye moment of real-talk, filled with entertaining stories and profane, ruthless humor, this book is a refreshing slap for a generation to help them lead contented, grounded lives.
You Are a Badass at Making Money: Master the Mindset of Wealth by Jen Sincero (eAudiobook)
You Are a Badass at Making Money will launch you past the fears and stumbling blocks that have kept financial success beyond your reach. Drawing on her own transformation over just a few years from a woman living in a converted garage with tumbleweeds blowing through her bank account to a woman who travels the world in style, Jen Sincero channels the inimitable sass and practicality that made this book an indomitable bestseller. She combines hilarious personal essays with bite-size, aha concepts that unlock earning potential and get real results. Learn to: uncover what’s holding you back from making money; give your doubts, fears, and excuses the heave-ho; relate to money in a new (and lucrative) way; shake up the cocktail of creation; tap into your natural ability to grow rich; shape your reality; stop playing victim to circumstance, and get as wealthy as you wanna be. This book truly crystallizes the concept that financial abundance is an inside job in that it all begins with your mindset and Sincero gets serious (in the funniest ways possible) about helping you identify your particular limiting beliefs surrounding money.
