My Top 10 Books for 2017. #2 will change your life.

2011, was the first year I set a goal to read a certain number of books within the year.  My goal that year was to read 12 books, one a month.  I ended up reading 22 books that year. The next year I read roughly the same amount.  The following year I challenged myself with reading a book a week, 52 for the year.  Since that time 52 has been my minimal standard, with the big goal to read 100 for the year.

I have yet to hit the 100 number, but this year I currently have read 83, one more than last year.  Probably the closest I have come to hitting the big goal of 100.  I have a big road trip in about a week, so I may listen to another two or three books before the end of the year. We’ll see.

Interesting enough this year was a year that I listened to more books than I actually read the hardcover/paperback of.  This was new to me. Up until this year I had always read the hardcover/paperback version of ninety percent of my books.  However, this year I had more road time than I had in the past.  I spent a lot of time traveling in my car.  So I listened to a lot more books.

Also, another interesting thing I did this year was listen to several books that I had read the hardcover/paperback version of before. None of these books made my list, because they are most likely on another list.  But I see myself doing more of this in 2018.  Listening and rereading books that I have already read. There is so much wisdom in the books that I have already read, that I want to go back and make sure I get more out of them.

So here is my list.  As you will see it is very wide range of topics and interests.  There are leadership books, sales books, philosophical books, business, motivational, etc.  The books are not ranked in any particular order.

1. Peak: Secrets from the New Science of Expertise; author (s): Anders Ericsson and Robert Pool.  Click here to purchase the book from amazon

• Anders Ericsson was one of the original authors of the study that become known as the 10,000 hour rule. Do a quick google search of this rule to learn more.  I read the original research that Ericsson and his team compiled in determining what it took to become an expert in any field.  This book expands on this research and provides new insight on how anybody can become a top performer in any field.

2. Creating Wealth: Retire in 10 Years using Allen’s Seven Principles of Wealth; author: Robert G. Allen.   Click here to purchase the book from Amazon.

• As an investor in real estate and a big reader as you can tell.  I was quite surprised I had never heard of this book until this year. I picked it up and consumed it.  Obviously, the system he built has helped many people become wealthy.  However, what I like even more about this book, is the language the author uses to discuss wealth and how wealth should be treated an used.  If you are interested in acquiring wealth, read this book.  Regardless of the method you plan on using to earn your wealth this book will help you.

3.  The Definitive Book of Body Language: The Hidden Meaning Behind Peoples Gestures and Expressions; author (s): Barbara Pease and Allan Pease. Click here to purchase the book from Amazon.

• I have recommended this book at least 1000 times in my workshops and to my participants that attend my trainings, since I read the book earlier this year.  This book was an amazing read, it describes body language and what that body language is saying in about any scenario you can think of.  It not only gives you the theory of the body language and why, but it gives you countless numbers of pictures of examples.  If you want to understand people better, and also, what your body language is saying to others, then I highly recommended you buy this book today.

4.  Be Obsessed or Be Average, author: Grant Cardone. Purchase the book here from Amazon.

• If you don’t know who Grant Cardone is, then the chances are you never get on social media or you are living under a rock and never get online.  Grant Cardone is the CEO/Owner of four different 100 mullion dollar businesses.  He made his name delivering sales training to car dealerships for thirty plus years, and took all of his money and invested it into real estate.  Grant talks about what it takes to be successful better than anyone I have ever listened to.  His ability to say what you need to hear, is like no other speaker I have ever heard.  This is one of those books I would highly recommend you listen to because Grant is the best motivator on the planet.

5.  Change or Die: The three Keys to Change at Work and in Life; author: Alan Deutschman. Purchase the book here from Amazon.

• If you were given the choice of changing a habit or a behavior in your life, or dieing, which one would you choose?  You are probably saying, you would change.  We all would.  However, when faced with that exact same question many people chose death over changing something in their life.  This book provides research around why it is so difficult for humans to actually change. It is not something any of us doing very well. I would encourage you to read this book and learn for yourself why change is so hard.  This book brings a lot of evidence and facts to an argument that we all think we know the answers to.

6.  Rejection Proof: How to Beat Fear and Become Invincible, author: Jia Jiang.
Purchase the book here from Amazon.

• After I read this book, I immediately was more motivated to go out and do some of the things I was most fearful of.  I picked up the phone and called a CEO that had been putting me off.  I wasn’t scared of the CEO, or at least, I would have told you I wasn’t.  However, what is the worst that can happen.  There is no growth without a little fear, hesitation, and some discomfort, but that is also where the growth and success exists as well.  Read this book and you will learn how to overcome your fear.  This was one of the best books I have read in a long time about sales and it isn’t even a sales book, but it is.

7. Win Bigly: Persuasion in a World Where Facts Don’t Matter, author: Scott Adams (Dilbert creator).  Purchase the book here from Amazon.

• Scott Adams is the creator of the world famous comic strip Dilbert. But Adams is not only a cartoonist, but he is a great writer.  Most of his books are around this topic of persuasion and how we can have more influence.  In this book, he talks about why he was one of the first to predict that Donald Trump would win the Presidential election in 2016.  He made this prediction because of Donald Trump’s ability to persuade and convince people.  This book is well written and is truly a lesson on how you can be more persuasive and convincing and grab attention in todays complex and noisy world.

8.  Amazing Grace: William Wilberforce and the Heroic Campaign to End Slavery; author: Eric Metaxas. Purchase the book here from Amazon.

• William Wilberforce doesn’t get the credit he deserves in helping the United States of America end slavery in 1864. Wilberforce was the one person to help end slavery in the British Colonies.  The story of Wilberforce’s life and his pursuit to end slavery is a story of inspiration, motivation, heartache, sickness, etc.  Everything you can think of happens to him, and he always keeps up the fight because he was on a mission to end this horrible thing called slavery.

9.  9 Things You Must Simply Do: To Succeed in Love and Life; author: Dr. Henry Cloud. Purchase the book here from Amazon.

• I mentioned earlier that I have read a lot of books since 2011.  What I didn’t mention, was that I track all of my books in a spread sheet.  I rank the books on a Star system.  One star means the book was horrible.  And 10 Stars means the book was amazing and life changing.  Additionally, I add notes about the book in my spreadsheet. I gave this book eight Stars.  I also said that the chapters on Hate and not Playing Fair are by far two of the best chapters I have read in quite some time.  This book will help you determine what you need to “do” and “stop” doing, to have better success in all areas of your life.

10.  The Business of the 21st Century, author: Robert Kiyosaki. Purchase the book here from Amazon.

• Robert Kiyosaki is known as one of the few people to predict the economic crash that occurred in 2008 and 2009.  He is also the author of the massively famous book, Rich Dad, Poor Dad, and all of the training and other properties associated with the Rich Dad, Poor Dad brand. In typical Kiyosaki fashion, he lays out a plan for what all of us can do to create wealth and success for ourself.  In this book he provides you the philosophy and the playbook on how you can start thinking differently about work and what you can do to get yourself out of the daily grind of working for someone else and start working for yourself.

I hope you found this quick list interesting, but more importantly I hope you clicked on the link and purchased some of the hardback/paperback or the audio books.

My mentor said this “The book you don’t read, won’t help.”  If you want to have a better year in 2018 than you did in 2017.  I would purchase all of these books.

To your success and your future.