Read More to Work Better

As I look back on the last year, I’ve experienced a lot of professional growth as a Graphic Designer. Some of it has come with time and practice. Some of it has come from reaching out to mentors and coworkers for insight into their expertise. But a lot of it has come from reading books. Interestingly enough, most of the books I read this year had nothing to do with the design field.

‘Training a personality’ seems to be something that has to come from within, and not from an outside source. Similar to someone deciding to go to rehab on their own accord, instead of being told to by other people. It takes a certain amount of self-recognition and desire to change.

For example, if an employee has a super defensive personality and is very reactive with criticism, it probably won’t do any good for their employer to suggest that they work on being less defensive.

In order to change, a person has to want to. And this is where reading comes in. It’s easy and available knowledge on every topic under the sun. The right book could teach that person the meditative habits that lead to less stress, lower cortisol levels, and a healthier life. One book leads to another. And down the road, that defensive employee could make a total attitude adjustment — on their own accord.

Empathy, cognitive ability, and the multitude of other reading benefits are all factors that influence your personality.

So circling back to Branson’s point, it might be very difficult to train someone’s personality from an employer perspective. But it is totally possible for an individual in search of self-improvement to take that challenge on themselves.

Reading books gives you the opportunity to learn habits and ways of thinking. Ones that affect how you approach situations. It improves how you connect with the people around you. It forces you to look inward and reflect. And it adds to both your personal and professional arsenals of how to handle life.

So whatever your next big step is, prepare yourself for it by picking up a book and diving in.

In case you need any suggestions, here are my favorite reads from 2018 and a tidbit from each of them.

Tidbit: Prioritize the most important actions for your day. Not just in a work sense but in a life sense. It forces you to hone in on what matters most. And having a clear-cut vision for that allows you to work and live more intentionally. The more you focus on the essentials ** cough cough essentialism** the happier you’ll be.

Tidbit: I found this book really interesting because even though it’s written by a renowned athletic coach, the book is actually about becoming strong mentally. And most importantly, strengthening your character. As I’m typing this now, I’m recognizing how the overarching message in this book mirrors what I wrote earlier in this blog post. Building that foundational level — be it personality or character — is what will lead to your success. Fun little full circle there haha.

Tidbit: I was totally bias about this book from the start because I’ve been a Lewis Howes fan for a long time. But it lived up to my expectations and expanded on a lot of cool topics I’ve heard him talk about before. His podcast — also dubbed The School of Greatness — has something to offer everyone and I would highly recommend it along with the book. Both dive into the entrepreneurial hustle. They regularly remind me of how important it is to surround yourself with great people.

The book especially illuminates the idea that you need to be brutally honest with what you actually want. Create a vision for yourself. And don’t stop until you get there. Granted there’s nothing particularly unique about that message — you’ll hear it from almost every successful person. But the way Howes delivers it — with background stories and personal anecdotes — is what makes it a win.

Tidbit: In passing one day I told my entrepreneurship professor that I was reading this great book and that it reminded me of some recent class topics. Instead of just saying “oh that’s cool!”, he asked me to go up in front of the class the next week and talk about it (**face palm**). My one woman book club actually turned out well and the class had a great discussion about it.

Tidbit: This book was my first dip into entrepreneurship. I blazed through it in a couple days on a summer vacation and signed up for my first entrepreneurship course when I returned to school a month later. I’ve read it again every six months since then. The gist of it? Everyone starts from the bottom. The “greats” fail more than anyone else. And usually, the events in your life that seem like the absolute worst are the ones that you can attribute your success to.

I love this book so much because each chapter is maybe only 5 pages long (mmm bite sized). And also it features people like Warren Buffet & Anderson Cooper and dives into their hardships in early life. It’s a reassuring read if you’re someone who has felt like they didn’t have a clue at one point (all of us?).

That’s it for this post. If you’ve gotten this far — hey, thanks. And if you have any good book recommendations, drop me a line!

“Let’s be reasonable and add an eighth day to the week that is devoted exclusively to reading.” — Lena Dunham

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