I read… A lot, and folks ask me what I’m reading and what I would recommend all of the time. This list is particularly books that I would love for my clients to read as it would help them to get a brilliant understanding of themselves. I’m all about putting the power of healing in the clients hands and here are some great tools to do that with.

All of these could be read really quickly, but the real benefit is from reading them over time with refection, even journaling if you dare. There are many deep insights in here, and often as I was reading them I’d discover more about myself and find a deeper piece of myself that I’d want to address.

Enjoy, I’d love to hear what you think! <3

2016

The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up – Marie Kondo

I started this book Jan 1^st This year. Maybe it was having my home organized, maybe it was having less stuff bogging me down.. maybe it was the time I took during the process to realize what I was holding on to that I really didn’t need… Either way.. This year has been dramatically different for me then my previous ones. I have read a lot of “declutter” and “Feng Shui” style books over the years, stuff about letting go. This is the only one I’ve read so far I’d actually recommend. Why? She actually has a system of what order to go through things so folks specifically don’t get overwhelmed. Which was the first time I came across that. It worked really well for me.

Do the work – Steven Pressfield
There are lots of inspirational motivational books out there. Why bother with this one? I found it got to the point fast. Once you were inspired, you could put it down and do the thing. Easy to pick up and be re-inspired. At the same time it acknowledges the struggles of making and completing projects. Different sections addressed to different aspects of the struggle. Making it a resource for future times when a struggle arises.
The War of Art – Steven Pressfield

Another Pressfield book, I don’t recommend reading them back to back, go from one to something else and then back to a Pressfield again, it keeps the motivation going. It feels like being taken on a journey of creation. Also designed and able to be read in page size chunks, it goes into depth as to why we stop ourselves from doing the things that we’re inspired to do.

The Gifts of Imperfection – Brene Brown

A brilliant examination of what it means to explore perfections, and what they cause us as humans to do. Understanding that holding ourselves up to the idea of “perfect” prevents “us” from actually showing up. Beautiful, heartwarming and really was my first book this year that allowed me to start embracing being human and connected to others. I’ve lent it out many a time, and I imagine I’ll never stop. Particularly as I see it become more and more dog-eared.
When the Body Says No – Gabor Mate

Ever wonder why when you start down the road to “healing” or “self help” or “therapy.” That the topic of emotions seems to come up? Perhaps it’s getting really frustrating how folks keep talking about “boundaries.” Well, Dr. Gabor Mate goes into great details about many major dis-eases that humans encounter in today’s world and takes, what was for me, a very unexpected looks at a possible source. I was taken aback, as I’m not used to any western medical doctors even acknowledging emotions. Particularly when it comes to Major illnesses, such as MS, Cancer and others.
Why am I afraid to tell you who I am?  – John Powell

Whew, read this one slowly folks. It’s deep and powerful. Surprisingly an older book and quite a short read. It’s like looking into the personal psyche 101. Written by a Jesuit Priest thankfully (for me personally) the religious overtones are very minimal. Though it is mostly written towards a male reader, I subbed the word “he/him” for “they/them” and it was a brilliant and very eye opening read.
The Tools – Phil Stutz & Barry Michels

I learned more about how to address and face and understand my anxieties/fears/worries and where they were coming from in this book then the last 5 years of reading I have done on the topic. A light read but not to be taken lightly. Another book to read slowly, even though it’s one that my desire to gobble it up was pretty strong. Practicing the tools has been a delightful gift of a deeper understanding of how I am feeling in the moment and getting far better clarity on how to handle it. A life changer if you’ve got some time for it.

There we are, I hope this brings about some inspired reading for you!