Our Top 7 Book Recommendations for Health Coaches
Karen Pattock and I love to read, so today we’re sharing a few of our favorite business and personal development books that we think you’ll like too. These are books that have made an impact on us personally or in our business (or both).
In this episode, you’ll discover:
- A list of our favorite business and mindset books that made a lasting impact on us and how we show up each day as coaches and entrepreneurs
- Insight into what we loved about each book and why we believe they will have an impact on you too
- Personal stories of what we were struggling with and how these books pushed us to change and grow
Good books are meant to be shared and we’re excited to share our faves with you.
1. The 12 Week Year by Brian Moran. You’ve likely heard us talk about this book on the podcast before because it is one of our all-time favorites. If you’re a planner like we are then you’re going to love the premise of this book. Essentially, the author shares a strategy for planning and running each 12-week increment – or 90-day interval as a year in your business. If you’ve ever tried to put a one-year plan in place on January 1st, chances are by the end of May you were already off track. Projects took longer than expected, new opportunities presented themselves, your personal life had something unforeseen come up. When you plan in 12-week increments, and they are considered their own individual profit and loss centers, it’s easier to stay on track with meeting your goals.
2. The Power of Less – By Leo Babauta
I read this book a few years ago and I just picked it up to read it again recently. I like it because it’s really about simplifying things to get the best results – in business and in our daily lives. It’s about setting boundaries and goals, so you can have better focus, less stress and live a more fulfilling life. Rather than feeling like you have to do it all, when you focus on less and you go all in, you’ll make more progress.
The author talks about choosing the tasks and actions with the most impact – he calls these high-impact tasks. He also covers something we both know to be true, but it can be difficult to stick to sometimes and that is focusing on the task at hand instead of multitasking, because focusing on one thing at a time, makes you more productive because you can take things to completion, and see progress faster.
In a nutshell, it’s about streamlining your life by determining what is essential while ditching the unnecessary, so you can accomplish the goals that can change your life for the better.
- You’ll learn how to break down goals into manageable tasks.
- Focus on fewer things at one time.
- Create more productive habits.
- Improve your focus.
- Increase your efficiency.
The book is only 170 pages, so it’s pretty easy to get through.
3. The One Thing by Gary Keller. If you tend to not finish projects or are easily distracted by shiny object syndrome this book is for you. It is an amazing book that outlines the necessary steps to be your most productive self.
In The ONE Thing, you’ll learn to:
- Cut through the clutter
- Achieve better results in less time
- Build momentum toward your goal
- Overcome that overwhelmed feeling
- Master what matters to you
The most amazing thing about this book is you can apply the principles to not just your business but your personal life also.
4. Rise of the Youpreneur, by Chris Ducker. The subtitle of the book is: The definitive guide to becoming the go-to leader in your industry and building a future-proof business.
This book is kind of like your A-Z guide for starting and growing a business for your personal brand.
I’ve met Chris in person, we’ve had him on the podcast a couple of times, and he’s a great teacher. He has a way of breaking things down in easy to understand and implement steps, so the book is very actionable.
Here’s some of what he covers in the book:
- Defining your perfect customer
- Positioning yourself as an expert
- Growing your business circle – making connections and networking
- Building your email list
- Developing your pricing strategy
- Launch strategies for your promotions
It’s a really good book for anyone who is starting out in the online space or they’ve been at it a while and want to fine tune things a bit.
5. Year of Yes: How to Dance It Out, Stand In the Sun and Be Your Own Person by Shonda Rhimes.
Shonda Rhimes is a television writer and producer of some of the most popular shows ever created. Shows like Grey’s Anatomy, How to Get Away with Murder, and Private Practice. Needless to say, she is a very busy and focused woman. She also has 3 kids at home so staying in her lane became her formula for success for years.
Then through a conversation with her sister she realized that she was always saying no to the opportunities that came her way. That’s when she decided to embrace what she called a Year of Yes.
Karen loved this book because it’s so easy to double down on building a business once you’ve made the decision to become an entrepreneur and forget everything else around you. After reading Shonda’s book, Karen realized how isolated she had become since starting her business in 2011 because she was focused on building the best business she could. After reading this book a few years back she has reprioritized the things that are truly meaningful to her, opened herself up for the unexpected, and to say ‘yes’ more than she says ‘no’.
6. My next book recommendation is another one by Chris Ducker, called Virtual Freedom. The subtitle is: How to work with virtual staff to buy more time, become more productive and build your dream business.
This book was instrumental to me when I was looking to start outsourcing things in my business. It’s a complete step-by-step guide that walks you through how to decide what to outsource, how to find the right people, writing a good job description, communicating with your virtual team and much more. One of the trickiest things for me in the beginning was trying to figure out what to delegate, and this book was really helpful. I highly recommend it if you’re ready to find people to help you in your business, so you can focus more on the income-generating tasks rather than getting lost in a sea of endless tasks that others can take off your plate.
7. Perception: Take Charge of How Others View Your Brand, Become Irresistible, and Make a Bigger Impact by: Christo Hall & Franziska Iseli. Karen loved this book, and she has read it a few times over the years. The author uses 3 different entrepreneurs at different stages of their businesses, to illustrate their marketing strategies. This is not your everyday boring marketing book. Instead, the authors brought their teachings to life through the telling of a day-in-the-life of three friends that are all business owners. It’s a quick read and will have you turning the page to find out what happens next.
Perception teaches you to take charge: to define and then create the perception of you or your business that will lead you to the lasting success you desire. It is aimed mainly at small business owners and entrepreneurs who are looking towards defining a brand strategy targeted at increasing business growth. The strategies behind influencing perception outlined in this book also work to shape our personal lives as well.
We hope you enjoyed our book recommendations, and you take the time to read at least one of them.
Enjoy!
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