When was the last time that you read a book cover to cover? Books are becoming like typewriters and dinosaurs – extinct. We have smartphones now. Who needs ’em, right? And besides, there isn’t enough time in a day and you are always too tired. Unfortunately, there is a long list of more essential things to do. Other stuff that always seems to win or steal our minutes. Reading books has become a luxury. And yet, personal growth reading – reading books- is so important for our well-being. I am not talking only books specifically for our personal growth. I mean all books. Yes, all books can become a book that serves our personal growth because in this completely distracted world, we grow just by deciding to take the time to stop and read a book.

(If you are in a rush, CLICK HERE to jump down towards the bottom for your new reading list!)

A COUPLE OF PAGES A DAY TO WASH THE CRAZINESS OF LIFE AWAY

I love books and yet, I too have fallen into a long no time or too tired to read slump.

And yet, this is why I continuously remind myself to read even just a few pages before going to sleep at night, even when I am exhausted and tempted to turn to my phone or Netflix to unwind.

There is something magical about reading that balances out our nervous system and provides us with the antidote to all our rushing around and screen time. I would describe it as a full being relaxer. You can actually feel yourself e-x-p-a-n-d-i-n-g as your eyes scan from left to right, as you turn each page. If you are a reader or ex-reader, you know what I mean.

Reading is the perfect mix of concentration, connection, and calm. It is an opportunity to connect our emotions with those of a complete stranger through a perfect combination of words. And just the feeling of actually carving out a moment in our busy lives and minds to read in blissful stillness and silence – this is one of the best forms of self-love and self-care. It literally washes away the cramps and the crazies.

As a lover of words, I could go on and on, but on a practical level personal growth reading really is essential. So before I get to 6 of the best personal growth books, let’s speak about the whys, whats, and hows of reading books for our personal growth.

AGAIN, If you are in a rush, CLICK HERE to jump down towards the bottom for your new reading list!

Benefits of Personal Growth Reading

Reading books may seem out of fashion or a waste of your time, but as the old saying goes READING IS FUNDAMENTAL! Here are just a few of the reasons why:

• The best education is one that is stimulated by personal curiosity and enthusiasm. Reading books is the most important resource for learning. I remember an elderly, Italian man once telling me that when he was young his only access to an education was self-made study through books. Studying with true desire is so much more powerful than studying because you have to. And when this is combined with real life experience, I honestly believe that reading books to grow personally is just as effective (if not more) for our education than any college degree.
• Reading increases our brain health. Our minds require positive, thought-provoking stimulation to stay sharp and vital as we grow and age. This is something that the information we receive on a continuous basis does not satisfy. The prolonged concentration and memory involved in reading books is like a power workout session which then feeds our brains with nutrition-packed food after we put the book down. Among other things reading books stimulates reflection, self-reflection, problem-solving and adventure. It can improve concentration and focus and enhance cognitive abilities.

In this immediately available, Google it or Ask Alexa, information-crazed era, most of us lack this healty type of brain bootcamp.

There is nothing truer than the phrase: If you do not use it, you lose it. Unfortunately, the new generation is growing up with a significantly reduced vocabulary, ability to express themselves, concentrate, problem solve, and formulate a healthy chain of reasoning, both intellectually and emotionally.

Experiment: Observe yourself: How do you feel in your body, mind and heart after reading a book? How do you feel after scrolling social media feeds?

• Reading books trains us to be more present in our lives. It stimulates calm and focus and thus, puts us in a sort of meditative state. When we are absorbed in a book we are absolutely in the present moment. We may not be aware of the importance of this, but by doing so, we bring this type of presence with us into our busy days and into our lives. Reading books trains us to become more present to ourselves, our experiences and the people in our lives.
• Reading is a wonderful form of self-care. Unless you are a walking back and forth reader 🤩, readers tend to get comfy, maybe grab something to drink or pull up the cover, before diving into a magical restful spot. It is a necessary pause in your day that promotes stillness and relaxation.

I believe that it can also boost self-esteem. Maybe it is the fact that fewer people read, but I feel smart and empowered when I am sitting in a park, on the beach or at a café reading a book while everyone else is mesmerized by their devices.

• Reading reduces stress. As a consequence of this increased calm, focus and relaxation, both our bodies and our minds are given a break. Whether you are reading something that sparks emotion or reflection, your brain, which is constantly on thought overload, goes into stress-reducing, pause mode.
• Reading, when done for personal pleasure or intention, naturally promotes self-awareness, self-reflection and personal growth. Whatever type of book you choose, when you choose to read, you come away with something new: feelings, sensations, beliefs, thoughts, questions, and/or the inspiration to change and take action.
• Reading makes us feel alive. Words spark emotions: joy, excitement, abandonment, freedom, sorrow, compassion, frustration, anger, curiosity, growth. When we read books we are active participants, as opposed to the passive consumers we transform into when scrolling or sitting in front of a monitor.
• Books create sensation of deep connection that the quick, easy-to-digest information provided by the news and on social media cannot replace.

Why What and How You Read Matters

Not all reading is equally good for us. It depends less on the subject or genre than the intention, the source, and the means. It doesn’t have to be super serious literature. In the end, the value depends on whether or not you truly obtain value from it.

Is what you are reading healthy or damaging? Ask yourself these questions.

• Are we reading with active intention or are we passively allowing information to consume us and our time?
• What is the intention of the creator of the words? Is he or she someone who communicates original, heartfelt emotions or inspires us in some way or is what we are reading impoverishing us?
• Are we purposely reading a book or a long blog post or article or are we allowing short messages with no true substance to be flashed continuously before our eyes?
• Does it promote our humanness? Are we feeling something while we are reading?

It all matters. Some reading is incredibly healthy. Other types of reading is incredibly damaging.

In the blog post How to Maintain Deep Connection in a Disconnected, Information-Crazed World, I wrote:

The reality is that not all information is created equally. There is information that inspires us to feel, expand and grow, there is information that is completely lacking in depth and emotion and there is information that feeds our fear. The first makes us feel connected. The second doesn’t make us feel anything and when we feed ourselves too much of nothing we feel anxious and disconnected. The third adds an instant dose of terror to our disconnected state of being.

As a consequence, the type of information we consume and the source of our information matters. We need to question what type of information we are feeding ourselves with on a daily basis because this influences both our wellbeing and the type of world we are contributing to.

The good news is that we get to choose. For example, choosing to read a book – paper, ink and in the flesh (as opposed to always some quick-read on the monitor of your phone) – is a conscious choice to take responsibility for your personal growth and well-being.

Personal Growth Reading – Why Rereading Is Important

Does this happen to you? You read a book and after only a couple of weeks (or days), you can’t remember a single detail about it.

Why is this? Basically, we often aren’t as present as we believe to be. Our mind wanders, there are too many distractions, the words aren’t resonating with us in that moment. In this case, rereading a book can be super beneficial. I am a person who underlines, highlights, stars, hearts and writes notes. This is really helpful when I go back to read the same book a second time around.

In the past, I thought that this was an absolute waste of time. I had so many other books collecting dust and wanting to be read. However, recently I have gotten into the habit of reading every book twice. TWICE!

The first time is when I mark it all up… fill margins with what speaks to me, makes me reflect and what I want to remember, and the second time I actually go back to fully absorb it and apply what I learned or am inspired by.

Rereading books in different time periods of our life can be extremely illuminating as well. What we receive from a book changes. Our likes and dislikes change. What once resonated perhaps no longer does and what flew right over us is now like a lightening bolt in our brain or a hug in our heart. Different phases, different learning experience, both intellectually and emotionally.

Rereading books in different periods of our life is an incredible way of noticing how we have evolved through the years.

I no longer consume my books like a person gobbling down breakfast without chewing it because she’s gotta catch the bus. I linger, I stop and observe, and I return to it like a favorite place to relax, feel supported or get inspired.

I Don’t Have Time To Read a Whole Booook

Reading is something that I choose to put in an inclusive category. Because by setting time to read we include it in our day and this naturally leads us to exclude something that is less important or healthy.

The average person spends over 6 hours on their cellphones and/or passively sitting in front of some type of screen. (For 2023 stats see Alarming Average Screen Time Statistics (2023).) SIX HOURS! YIKES!

We have time. We just have to re-make reading a priority using an inclusive and not an exclusive mindset. So don’t think about what you will be giving up. Like anything good for us, the more we do it, the more we will want to do it. This is how healthy habits are formed and unhealthy ones broken.

Suggestion

Set an alarm for the same time every day and then set it again for an alotted amount of time. 5 minutes. 15 minutes, 30 minutes, an hour. It will soon become routine and you may even find yourself tapping to add just another 10 minutes.

Why Personal Growth Reading Is Not Enough

Reading alone is not enough. To make reading valuable, it must be reflected upon and applied to real life. Regardless of the book, the value comes from the mental and emotional impact it has once you close the back cover.

When you truly dive into a book, it changes you in some way. You learn something new, your perspective shifts, you feel more curious, comforted, understood, and/or inspired. You feel. Even a novel can leave an aftereffect of sensation. You will benefit in some way or many ways. This is how books help us to learn, grow and transform.

However, when referring specifically to personal growth books, your personal growth does require immediate, intentional action.

Remember this: it is nice to know things, however, you can only change when you actually make a change. The book only comes to life through real life experience, darling friend!

When you finish a book, try asking yourself: How do I feel? How am I changed? How can what I received from this book serve my life?

“In the case of good books, the point is not to see how many of them you can get through, but rather how many can get through to you,” – Mortimer J. Adler

Your Summer “Created To Expand” Personal Growth Reading List

(LINKS TO ALL BOOKS THROUGHOUT TEXT and LINKS OF ALL BOOKS RELISTED ALL THE WAY AT THE END, WITH ITALIAN VERSIONS WHERE AVAILABLE)

Book #1: FOR SELF-TRANSFORMATION

The FOUR Agreements: A Practical Guide to Personal Freedom BY don Miguel ruIZ

Described in two words: SIMPLE, POWERFUL

Out of all the books that I have read, this book is the probably the one that I find most useful in showing up as my best self in life. In the book The Four Agreements, Ruiz offers 4 principles as a guide to develop personal freedom, love, happiness, and peace.

I have always felt that the things that are most right for us are simple. This book is the proof. Ruiz has a talent for transforming complex human issues into simple common sense. But don’t be fooled, simple does not in any way mean easy. These agreements will stimulate you to question who you are, what you feel, what you believe, and how you behave.

The four agreements are extremely challenging to put into practice. They require us to learn how to look at our long-held habits and beliefs in a new way. Ruiz’s teachings are rooted in traditional Toltec wisdom. They are centered around the idea that everything we think and do is based on agreements we make with ourselves; agreements that are deeply embedded into our belief systems as children. This is why letting go of our beliefs and shifting our attachments, patterns and mindset takes time, patience and self-compassion.

With practice and increased awareness, we get better in applying this ancient knowledge to our present day experience of life. The Four Agreements encourage us to love ourselves more, not take things personally, heal our relationships, and stop living in this false “dream” of social rules, expectations and judgments. And with this we find a healthier and more meaningful life.

This book is a true gem.

FAVORITE QUOTES FROM THE BOOK THE FOUR AGREEMENTS

“All your life you tried to be good enough for somebody else, and you left yourself last. You sacrificed your personal freedom to live according to somebody else’s point of view.“

“You will find that you don’t need to trust others as much as you need to trust yourself to make the right choices.“

“You can have many great ideas in your head, but what makes the difference is the action. Without action upon an idea, there will be no manifestation, no results and no reward.”

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Don Miguel Ruiz is an internationally known author of personal growth books. The book The Four Agreements has sold millions of copies and inspired countless people. Ruiz was born in Mexico, went to medical school, and worked as a surgeon for many years. Then suddenly the course of his life was changed by a car accident that almost killed him. Don Miguel became an apprentice under a traditional spiritual guide and healer. He began studying the wisdom of the ancient Toltecs, a population of great Mexican warriors and artists, that lived around 1000 years ago.

Book #2 FOR SELF-LOVE & ACCEPTANCE

On Being HumaN: A Memoir of waking up, living real, and listening hard By Jennifer Pastiloff

Described in two words: RAW-THENTIC, INSPIRING

On Being Human is a memoir full of human suffering and hope. It is about personal shame, hiding from ourselves and the world, soffocating our personal power and potential and learning to accept ourselves through the caring of others.

On Being Human is a story about judgment, compassion and empathy, building walls and then taking them down. It is a love story between Jen and herself showing us that the only way to self-love or any love is through complete honesty.

In the book, Jen shares her personal journey from darkness and self-doubt to happiness and self-realization as she, after years of denial, finally admits her hearing loss to herself and to the world.

Inspired by her raw and intimate way of sharing her own experience, Jen helps us to embrace our own vulnerability, spirit and humanness. She teaches us the power of fierce listening. Her story makes us see that wholeness is possible even with our cracks and that we only meet our true selves when we let go of who we believe we are supposed to be.

Reading this book makes you feel like you are speaking with a dear friend whose experience is unique, but whose every word resonates profoundly within.

FAVORITE QUOTES FROM THE BOOK ON BEING HUMAN

“But mostly in those years, I learned how easy it is to confuse grief for body fat, your job for your worth, your lack of knowing who you are with the fact that you are nobody and nothing.”

“At the end of my life, when I say one final What have I done?, let my answer be, I have done love.”

“What is the deepest truth? That we are love. We are not our bullshit stories, we are not the size of our thighs, we are not things we spoke as a child, we are not our depression, we are not our disabilities, we are not the lies other people have told us about ourselves. We are love.”

“Should is an asshole.”

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Jennifer Pastiloff, born in the USA, is an author, public speaker and coach. She travels the world with her unique workshop On Being Human, a hybrid of yoga related movement, writing, sharing out loud, letting the snot fly, and the occasional dance party. She is also the founder of the online magazine The Manifest-Station. Jen leads annual retreats to Italy and France and she is the guest speaker at Canyon Ranch and Miraval Resorts a couple times each year.

Book #3 For coming face to face with your emotions and winning

Rising Strong: How the Ability to Reset Transforms the Way We Live, Love, Parent, and Lead by Brené BROWN

Described in two words: necessary, revolutionary

This book is so incredibly valuable. It gives us a roadmap to dealing with vulnerability, worthiness, fear, bravery and other emotions, which can hold us back (or propel us forward) in life. It shows you how to break yourself down and then build yourself up.

Brené Brown descibes a 3-phase process of bouncing back from failure (The Reckon, The Rumble and The Revolution), which you can implement both in your own life and as a team or company, in order to embrace setbacks as part of life, deal with your emotions, confront your own ideas and rise stronger every time.

Rising Strong is about learning how to not shy away from that risk, stepping up and saying “Yes, let me try that again,” even after you’ve failed before. Say, “Yes, I know how to rise strong.”

FAVORITE QUOTES FROM THE BOOK RISING STRONG

“Stay in your own lane. Comparison kills creativity and joy.”

“…sometimes when we are beating ourselves up, we need to stop and say to that harassing voice inside, “Man, I’m doing the very best I can right now.”  ”

“People who wade into discomfort and vulnerability and tell the truth about their stories are the real badasses.”

“Compassionate people ask for what they need. They say no when they need to, and when they say yes, they mean it. They’re compassionate because their boundaries keep them out of resentment.”

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Brené Brown is an American professor, author, and podcast host. Brown is known for her work on shame, vulnerability and leadership. She has written six number-one New York Times bestselling books, including Rising Strong, Dare to Lead, Daring Greatly, and Atlas of the Heart.

She appears on the 2019 documentary, Brené Brown: The Call to Courage, on Netflix. In 2022, HBO Max released a documentary series based on her book, Atlas of the Heart.

Book #4 FOR REALIZING YOUR FULL POTENTIAL

Everything Is Figureoutable by Marie Forleo

DESCRIBED IN TWO WORDS: Liberating, empowering

Are you the type of person that stops permanently at roadblocks? Or are you dealing with something right now that you consider impossible to find a solution to? Many of us tend to fall victims to this “if it is not easy, I can’t handle it” type of thinking. We have been conditioned to believe that easy is better. However, always seeking the easy road makes us weaker. Well, in the book Everything is Figureoutable, Marie Forleo, is gonna change the way you think about difficulty and strength.

Through her personal experience, actionable suggestions and exercises, you’ll realize that you do not have to give up because everything in life is “figureoutable.” Leave a dead end job, break an addiction, heal a relationship, grow a business, master your money….

As Marie says, it is a philosophy of relentless optimism. A mindset. A mantra. A conviction.

When I get stuck, as I did when creating this blog space, I say to myself: Take a breath. Everything is figureoutable!

FAVORITE QUOTES FROM THE BOOK EVERYTHING IS FIGUREOUTABLE

“You never feel ready to do the important things you’re meant to do.”

“The figureoutable philosophy doesn’t promise a life free from pain, just one free from regret.”

“Whether it’s a relationship, a career, or a project, just because something ends doesn’t mean it failed. Giving up isn’t the same as moving on. Don’t use “progress not perfection” to punish yourself and keep pursuing a dream that no longer serves you.”

“My mom explained it to me this way: “Nothing in life is that complicated. You can do whatever you set your mind to if you roll up your sleeves, get in there, and do it.”

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Marie Forleo is an American entrepreneur and founder of Marie Forleo International. She is known for her advice books Everything is Figureoutable and Make Every Man Want You, as well as the online business program B-School. Forleo hosts MarieTV, a YouTube web series, and The Marie Forleo Podcast.

Book #5 For being more present in your everyday life

STOP MISSING YOUR LIFE by cory Muscara

DESCRIBED IN TWO WORDS: FRIENDLY, APPLICABLE

Let’s get honest. Most of us are on autopilot most of the time. We multi-task, are on overload, are looking down at our devices, are often absent, even more often… depleted.

In the book Stop Missing Your Life, Cory, in his super unintimidating, feel like you already know him kind of way, guides us to increased presence with ourselves, our loved ones and throughout our days.

Cory’s easy to understand four-part FACE model (Focus, Allow, Curiosity, and Embodiment) helps break down our inner walls and builds our capacity to experience the abundance that already exists in our lives. Stop Missing Your Life teaches how we can find peace in the chaos and shine our best selves out into the world.

I have read many books about cultivating presence, and as a lover of simplicity and shared experience, I think this is the type of book that can actually help us be more present in our real, way too busy, everyday lives. For the most drained, exhausted minds… You will love the lightness of this book.

FAVORITE QUOTES FROM THE BOOK STOP MISSING YOUR LIFE

“When we are present, our mind does not try to go somewhere else. It meets the moment as it is. This is our practice, learning not to run from, and learning not to hold on to, what is here. Bad moments come and go. Good moments come and go. You can fight the bad, but it will be back. You can hold on to the good, but it will pass. The only way to find real peace is to be present with what is. Just be present, more and more, more and more.”

“This is not about meditation. This is about intentionally moving closer to our human experience, learning how to dance with it, to be at peace with it – maybe even enjoy it.”

“It’s not about what you see in the mirror (on the outside), but instead what you can feel (on the inside).”

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Cory Muscara, born and raised in the USA, is a former Monk, the bestselling author of the book Stop Missing Your Life, the voice behind the Practicing Human Podcast, and is an International Mindfulness Keynote Speaker.

Book #6 For Living more joy-fully

A New Earth: Awakening to your life’s purpose By Eckhart Tolle

DESCRIBED IN TWO WORDS: SUPPORTIVE, BRILLIANT

This isn’t just a book, it is the BIBLE for getting past our limiting emotions and patterns. Tolle describes how our attachment to the ego creates the dysfunction that leads to anger, jealousy, and unhappiness, and shows us in a simple and concrete way how to awaken to a new state of consciousness and follow the path to a truly fulfilling existence. Read it if you haven’t. Reread it if you have.

“A wake-up call for the entire planet . . . [A New Earth] helps us to stop creating our own suffering and obsessing over the past and what the future might be, and to put ourselves in the now.” —Oprah Winfrey

FAVORITE QUOTES FROM THE BOOK A NEW EARTH

“You become most powerful in whatever you do if the action is performed for its own sake rather than as a means to protect, enhance, or conform to your role identity.”

“What a liberation to realize that the “voice in my head” is not who I am. Who am I then? The one who sees that.”

“Life is the dancer and you are the dance.”

“This is my secret,” he said. “I don’t mind what happens.”

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Eckhart Tolle is a spiritual teacher and best-selling author. He is a German-born resident of Canada best known as the author of books The Power of Now and A New Earth: Awakening to Your Life’s Purpose.

Final Note

I have learned so much from reading ALL types of books.

Classics, novels, biographies, cookbooks, and of course, my favorite, personal growth books, also in the form of memoirs.

For years, I was fortunate to have a vast library right under my nose. When my husband and I decided to downsize our life and he began his career as a writer, we started selling books at festivals for his publishers. Hundreds and hundreds of titles, most of them true resources for personal growth.

And boy, did I read, question and grow in those years. Lifestyle, education, social-political insight, health, mindset, mindfulness.

For me reading a personal growth book feels like true support and encouragement. It is like having a mentor by your side (and on your side table 😉).

If you don’t already know, I am a strong advocate of the reminder. So besides learning a bunch of new ideas and techniques, challenging my conditioned beliefs and thus, training my brain’s flexibility to think outside of the box, these books personally keep me on track by reminding me in the most powerful and effective way what I already know to be true in my mind and my heart.

So not only do the books I read gift me those fundamental “aha” moments that help me create the life I desire, but they also offer me glorious “YES!” vibrations, encouraging me to continue to trust myself.

(Again self-esteem)

Today’s message: READ. Whether it is to slow down and relax, improve presence and focus, learn some new skill or transform your life…

READ.

I love hearing from you. Let me know what you think about the list. What book is calling out to you most? Would you like to see more posts like this one?

My heart reaching out to yours,

Disclosure

This post contains affiliate marketing. This means that when you purchase a product through the link provided, I will receive a small commission with no extra cost to you. This is a small way that you can thank me for my writing. I really appreciate your support. If you want to purchase any of the books click on the title.

HERE IS THE COMPLETE LIST (where possible I have also included the Italian version)

THE FOUR AGREEMENTS by Don Miguel Ruiz

ON BEING HUMAN by Jennifer Pastiloff

RISING STRONG by Brené Brown

EVERYTHING IS FIGUREOUTABLE by Marie Forleo

STOP MISSING YOUR LIFE by Cory Muscara

A NEW EARTH by Eckhart Tolle

THE POWER OF NOW by Eckhart Tolle (ANOTHER AMAZING BOOK!)

ITALIAN VERSIONS FOR SALE

I QUATTRO ACCORDI di Don Miguel Ruiz

OSARE IN GRANDE di Brené Brown (This is Daring Greatly)

A TUTTO C’E UNA SOLUZIONE di Marie Forleo

UN NUOVO MONDO di Eckhart Tolle

IL POTERE DI ADESSO di Eckhart Tolle