Book Recommendations
This post is the debut of a new series for the site, prompted by my review of Tony Hsieh’s book, Delivering Happiness (Amazon link), which I’ll publish during the week of June 7.
I won’t be reviewing the books listed here. Instead, this is a set of books I recommend, with an explanation of why I do. Each month I’ll recommend a new set of books and offer a book giveaway. This month’s book giveaway rules are listed in an earlier post, Delivering Happiness – Book Giveaway. Each of these postings will cover a different topic.
This week I’m listing Self Discovery books. These are books that help you realize your strengths, potential, and how to take advantage of them in your personal and professional life. The title of each book is linked to Amazon.com in case you want to purchase it.
Enjoy and feel free to recommend books of your own in the comments section.
StrengthsFinder 2.0: A New and Upgraded Edition of the Online Test from Gallup’s Now, Discover Your Strengths
This book is listed first since I like the idea the author promotes: focusing on your strengths, instead of figuring out how to eliminate your weaknesses. This is a short book, given that the first third of it introduces the tests for discovering your strengths, with a link and key for taking the online test for that purpose. The rest of the book is the explanation of each of the strengths, in what setting they’re most useful, each strength’s pitfalls, and what people with similar strengths say about themselves. You can knock out the book, its test, and related strength characteristic readings in an evening.
Do What You Are: Discover the Perfect Career for You Through the Secrets of Personality Type
This book walks you through discovering your Myers-Briggs personality type. In case you’re not familiar with the test, the test results are usually expressed in four-letter acronyms that elicit whether you’re an introvert vs. extrovert, sensing vs. intuitive, thinking vs. feeling, and judging vs. perceptive. The book doesn’t administer the test. Instead it provides you with description of each dichotomy and let’s you decide which type describes you best. I liked this approach, especially having read the StrengthsFinder book. The reason for this is that you can validate your type based on what you learned in the first book. However, if you prefer to take the test and take out the guess work, try this book: Please Understand Me II: Temperament, Character, Intelligence.
What Color Is Your Parachute? 2009: A Practical Manual for Job-Hunters and Career-Changers
The first two books will likely help you understand your personality type. You can possibly even determine what career fields to pursue and how to interact with friends, family and coworkers, but they don’t necessarily tell you what life and career goals or priorities you may have. This classic books walks you through a number of exercises aimed at discovering your priorities. I found this book especially helpful in a career transition as I made the choice to move from employee to an employer role. It made me realize how each of my previous positions helped me come closer to my eventual switch to an entrepreneur.
What Do You Think?
Do you have any books you would recommend? Feel free to share their names below.
Photo Credits: Amazon.com Book Covers