5 Books To Change Your Mindset

I felt like life had thrown me a curve ball and nothing was going my way. Nothing. I remember picking up the phone and calling my friend Alisha for a pow wow. I vented, I cried, and I lost it. Everyone has those moments and I was having mine. What was going on with me? Why did I feel so powerless? Why was I letting life get to me? This wasn’t the Deanna I knew. “Come on Dee. Keep your chin up. You got what it takes to get past this,” Alisha whispered on the other end. She said I needed to start working on me. I needed to change the way I was thinking. Positive thinking. And that I needed to learn the law of attraction. Ok, I thought to myself, is this some voodoo crap? But at this point I’d give it a try. It was 2018 and that’s when I started my journey. My journey to internal happiness and accepting what is. Alisha suggested I start with the book, The Secret by Rhonda Byrne. She said it helped her when she was stuck in a rut and needed to get in a positive place. She was opening her own hair salon and wanted more out of life. Til this day, she credits this book. So I bought it. It’s a quick read and a great start if you want to start doing some work on yourself. But I needed more.

I turned to one of my radio mentors and he suggested I pick up The Power Of Now by Eckhart Tolle. Ugh, more reading. If you read one of my previous blogs, I’m not much of a reader. ReadingGraphics.com summarizes it best by saying:

“The Power of Now” is a spiritual self-help guide to help us discover our true Being, release our pain and find deep inner peace. When we are intensely present in the Now, we respond from deep consciousness and flow with ease and joy in life. In so doing, we can better fulfill our outer purpose (to achieve goals and seek to create a better world), while fulfilling our inner purpose and truly changing the world at cause.“

I know what you’re thinking….this sounds a little outlandish. But bare with me, go into this with an open heart and mind. Most importantly, keep working on yourself.

Next up, Daring Greatly by Brene Brown. She talks about being vulnerable and having the courage to open yourself up so you don’t miss out on your greatness. Think about it, most of us grew up in a household that taught us to be strong, suck it up, and not show much emotion. Ok maybe that wasn’t you, but that was definitely me. I for the longest and still today have a hard time talking about my feelings. Afraid things won’t quite work out the way I want if I speak up. WRONG! The truth is, things will go my way IF I speak up and there is nothing wrong with that. I loved this book. A matter of fact, if you don’t want to read this book, she has a Netflix special named, Brene Brown: The Call to Courage. Watch that and I’m sure you’ll buy the book right after.

Ok, I know you’re sitting on the edge of your seat wondering what are the last two?!!! The last two have to do with building your backbone. It’s about honing in on your passion, your love, and what drives you. Never losing site of what you want and what you can achieve. Sometimes you need it just laid out simply, which is why I loved the book, You Are A Badass by Jen Sincero. She’s straight forward, to the point, and no B.S. Understanding what makes you tick is critical this is what will lead you to great accomplishments.

Finally, book #5 is (drum roll please)… No Matter What by Lisa Nichols. She has been a guest on Oprah several times and is honestly such a joy to listen to. Her book talks about her journey, her ups and downs, and what lead her to the path she is on now. I learned from her, “A winner never quits and a quitter never wins”. Keep that in mind and you’ll be unstoppable.

So after all this reading, am I where I want to be? Am I making a million dollars yet? Ha! Absolutely not. Not even close. I’ve learned that life is too short to sweat the small stuff. I learned that worrying is going to get you NO WHERE. I learned that happiness can only be found within yourself. And I learned that you just gotta keep pushing but while you are own your own journey realize that this life is a true gift and only you have to the power to smile.

Here’s a quick summary of the 5 Books That Changed My Mindset:

1. The Secret by Rhonda Byrne

2. The Power Of Now by Eckhart Tolle

3. Daring Greatly by Brene Brown.

4. You Are A Badass by Jen Sincero

5. No Matter What by Lisa Nichols