Tag Archives: Self Development

12 Inspiring Audiobooks for New Year, New You

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As we ring in a new year and a new decade, it’s the perfect time to reflect on our goals for the future. Whether you want to adopt a healthier lifestyle, make budgeting a priority, or any number of lifestyle changes, audiobooks can help you become a better version of yourself!

Read on for all the inspiration you’ll need to make 2020 your best year yet!

Healthy as F*ck: The Habits You Need to Get Lean, Stay Healthy, and Kick Ass at Life by Oonagh Duncan, narrated by Oonagh Duncan

Welcome to a refreshing and gloriously unapologetic conversation about health, fitness, and habits. Award-winning trainer Oonagh Duncan cuts through the wellness clutter to drop some truth bombs: it might not be six-pack abs you’re looking for — it might be happiness, confidence, and acceptance. But if losing your belly is what you want, don’t let anyone-including yourself-stop you from going after it. And she’ll show you how to make it happen.

Read more and sample the audio →

Good to Go: What the Athlete in All of Us Can Learn from the Strange Science of Recovery by Christie Aschwanden, narrated by Allyson Ryan

In Good to Go, acclaimed FiveThirtyEight science writer Christie Aschwanden takes listeners on an entertaining and enlightening tour through the strange world of ‘recovery.’ She investigates whether drinking Gatorade or beer after training helps or hinders performance, she examines the latest trends among athletes — from NFL star Tom Brady’s infrared pajamas to gymnast Simone Biles’s pneumatic compression boots to swimmer Michael Phelps’s ‘cupping’ ritual — and she tests some of the most controversial methods herself, including cryochambers, floatation tanks, and infrared saunas.

At a time when the latest recovery products and services promise so much, Good to Go seeks answers to the fundamental question: do any of them actually help the body recover and achieve peak performance?

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7-Day Apple Cider Vinegar Cleanse: Lose Up to 15 Pounds in 7 Days and Turn Your Body into a Fat-Burning Machine by Jj Smith, narrated by Janina Edwards, Jj Smith

In the tradition of certified weight loss expert and nutritionist JJ Smith’s 10-Day Green Smoothie Cleanse, Think Yourself Thin, and Green Smoothies for Life, comes the 7-Day Apple Cider Vinegar Cleanse. This revolutionary cleanse includes meals and drinks that help support the body’s natural detoxification process and promote a healthy environment for good bacteria in the body. All of the new and delicious 25 recipes for breakfast, lunch, dinner, and snacks will effectively help rid of your body of toxins and unwanted fat in just 7 days, jumpstarting your journey to permanent weight loss.

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Ultralearning: Master Hard Skills, Outsmart the Competition, and Accelerate Your Career by Scott Young, narrated by Scott Young

Future-proof your career and maximize your competitive advantage by learning the skill necessary to stay relevant, reinvent yourself, and adapt to whatever the workplace throws your way in this essential guide that goes beyond the insights of popular works such as Extreme Productivity, Deep Work, Peak, and Make It Stick.

Whether the goal is to be fluent in a language (or ten languages), earn the equivalent of a college degree in a fraction of the time, or master multiple skills to build a product or business from the ground up, the principles in Ultralearning will guide you to success.

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The Most Powerful Woman in the Room Is You: Command an Audience and Sell Your Way to Success by Lydia Fenet, narrated by Lydia Fenet

Who is the most powerful woman in the room? She’s the one who can raise a million dollars in a minute. She’s the one who can command the attention of a crowd of any size from one person to a crowd of five thousand. She’s the one who can sell anything to anyone. And she can be you.

As a senior executive at Christie’s, leader in her field, and one of Gotham magazine’s Most Influential Women in New York, Lydia Fenet knows firsthand that the one skill that can set women apart in both their personal life and career is the ability to sell. The Most Powerful Woman in the Room Is You equips you with everything you need to know — from how to sell authentically and how to network (or die), to the importance of never apologizing (start negotiating instead), how to perfect your poker face, and always, always, tell the truth. Most of all, she offers plenty of encouragement to take ownership in your position and look for opportunities to innovate.

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Radical Candor: Be a Kick-Ass Boss Without Losing Your Humanity by Kim Scott, narrated by Kim Scott

Radical Candor is a simple idea: to be a good boss, you have to Care Personally at the same time that you Challenge Directly. When you challenge without caring it’s obnoxious aggression; when you care without challenging it’s ruinous empathy. When you do neither it’s manipulative insincerity.

This simple framework can help you build better relationships at work, and fulfill your three key responsibilities as a leader: creating a culture of feedback (praise and criticism), building a cohesive team, and achieving results you’re all proud of.

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Stress Less, Accomplish More: Meditation for Extraordinary Performance by Emily Fletcher, narrated by Sean Pratt, Emily Woo Zeller, Emily Fletcher

A leading expert in meditation for high performance, Emily Fletcher has taught meditation at numerous global corporations, including Google, Barclays Bank, and Viacom, to help their employees improve their focus and increase their productivity levels. With Stress Less, Accomplish More, anyone can get the benefits of her 15-minute twice-daily plan. Emily specifically developed the Z Technique for working people with busy lives. Now, you can learn to recharge anywhere, anytime-at home or at your desk. All you need is a few minutes and a chair (no apps, incense, or finger cymbals required).

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Emotional Detox for Anxiety: 7 Steps to Release Anxiety and Energize Joy by Sherianna Boyle, narrated by Sarah Mollo-Christensen

Most of us view a detox as a physical experience, but what we don’t realize is that it’s not just our physical bodies that need to be cleansed in order to return to a healthy state. When we’re unable to process our stress and worries, they can become toxic to ourselves and those around us. Wellness expert and author of Emotional Detox, Sherianna Boyle, modifies the revolutionary C.L.E.A.N.S.E method to guide you through the 7 steps to a successful anxiety detox. The 7 steps include: Clear, Look Inward, Emit, Activate Joy, Nourish, Surrender, and Ease.

Emotional Detox for Anxiety is a reset for the soul, flushing out negative feelings, clearing a path for new habits and behaviors, and energizing you to accept peace, acceptance, and pure joy.

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In Tune: Music as the Bridge to Mindfulness by Richard Wolf, narrated by Tom Parks

Richard Wolf first tried Zen meditation in his teens, but no matter in what posture or for how long he sat, transcendence proved stubbornly out of reach. It was only years later that he found the bridge that could take him there: music.

In Tune charts twelve “bridges” — skills and sensibilities refined in musical practice that carry over to mindfulness and meditation, among them:
Concentration, Posture, Harmony, Silence, the Art of Deep Listening, and Transcending the Self. This inspirational guide offers a wealth of music-based exercises to enhance daily meditation and creativity.

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Retirement 101: From 401(k) Plans and Social Security Benefits to Asset Management and Medical Insurance, Your Complete Guide to Preparing for the Future You Want by Michele Cagan, narrated by Kitty Hendrix

How much do I need to retire? Can I retire early? What’s the retirement age, anyway? No matter whether you are 25, 65, or any age in between, you probably have questions about retirement and knowing the answers is the key to planning your future. Whether you want to retire as soon as possible or are looking forward to continuing to work in some form for as long as you can, Retirement 101 guides you through each step as you approach this important milestone.

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Money Is Everything: Personal Finance for the Brave New Economy by Amanda Reaume, narrated by Liisa Ivary

Personal finance is not taught in school — and the process of learning how to manage your own finances can be fraught with painful missteps. In Money Is Everything, Amanda Reaume, the author behind Millennial Personal Finance and host of the Millennial Personal Finance podcast, helps walk you through everything you need to learn to manage your money, including the best ways to make it, spend it, borrow it, and save it.

Specifically written by and for Millennials, Money Is Everything will help you get the internships and jobs you want, understand and implement a financial plan (a.k.a. a budget), create a steady flow of side income, learn how to save money on small and big purchases (and get some free stuff), take control of your credit score, turn the tables on banks and borrowers, and become debt-free. Learn from personal finance experts — not the hard way!

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Financially Forward: How to Use Today’s Digital Tools to Earn More, Save Better, and Spend Smarter by Alexa Von Tobel, narrated by Alexa Von Tobel

Technology has made virtually every aspect of our lives cheaper and more convenient. Shouldn’t it do the same when it comes to managing our finances?

Alexa Von Tobel says that it can. In this straightforward and jargon-free guide, she shows us how to use the simple tools found on any smartphone to put more money back into our wallets. Readers will learn:

1. Six new trends that are impacting our finances — and how to optimize them

2. How to navigate the world of mobile pay, and cash in by going cash-free

3. How to save time and money by putting your savings — and spending — on autopilot

4. Best practices for keeping your identity and financial accounts ultra-secure

5. How to talk to digital natives — i.e. your kids — about financial planning

6. What the Bitcoin hype is all about and how to prepare for the future of digital money

Preparing ourselves for the financial future gives us the security and freedom to live our richest lives. It’s time to move Financially Forward…or get left behind.

Read more and sample the audio →

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STAFF PICK: Girl, Stop Apologizing by Rachel Hollis

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Title: Girl, Stop Apologizing
Author: Rachel Hollis
Narrator: Rachel Hollis

Have you ever felt like a book was literally written just for you and that it fell into your life at exactly the right moment? That is the feeling I got when I started listening to Girl, Stop Apologizing, which was released on March 5, 2019.

I have been working on a dream of mine since the beginning of this year, but I started to feel like the dream was fading and I didn’t know what to do next. I started doubting myself and wondering if it was still worth it. As soon as I started listening to this book, I felt so motivated that my self-doubt was gone almost instantly!

Rachel Hollis gives you real examples from her life experiences—both personal and professional—to help you reach your goals. She talks about how she started her company, The Hollis Co., and all the failures she endured in order to get to where she is now. Hollis’s mantra is that it is okay to fail; what really matters is how you decide to continue working towards your goal or dream. That toolbox of knowledge in your head is going to be overflowing with all of the tools she supplies, and you’ll be left motivated to do that thing you have feared for so long. Your dreams will seem less daunting and you will be able to create a road map of the steps needed to reach your goal.

There are plenty of motivational self-help books out there, but Hollis has really set herself apart from the crowd with her relatable writing and narrative style. I honestly felt like she was speaking to me as a close friend, giving me advice on how and what to do in order to bring my dreams to fruition. You’ll finish the book with the understanding that it is perfectly okay to work on your goals and dreams, and not just to help others with theirs (as women sometimes fall into the trap of doing).

Hollis narrates the audiobook herself, and this further enhanced the whole experience; her engaging, positive manner and personal touch indeed captivates the listener. The conviction with which she shares her ideas are sure to make an impact—you will immediately want to start taking action and striving for more.

I highly recommend this book if you are currently working towards a goal or dream, or if you’re simply a fan of motivational self-help books. Her drive and passion for helping other women strive for more are truly inspiring. I would also highly recommend her previous book Girl, Wash Your Face for even more wisdom and motivation.

Publisher Summary:

“I believe we can change the world. But first, we’ve got to stop living in fear of being judged for who we are.”

Rachel Hollis has seen it too often: women not living into their full potential. They feel a tugging on their hearts for something more, but they’re afraid of embarrassment, of falling short of perfection, of not being enough.

In Girl, Stop Apologizing, #1 New York Times bestselling author and founder of a multimillion-dollar media company, Rachel Hollis sounds a wake-up call. She knows that many women have been taught to define themselves in light of other people—whether as wife, mother, daughter, or employee—instead of learning how to own who they are and what they want. With a challenge to women everywhere to stop talking themselves out of their dreams, Hollis identifies the excuses to let go of, the behaviors to adopt, and the skills to acquire on the path to growth, confidence, and believing in yourself.

As an audiobook exclusive, join Rachel in a guided meditation bonus track designed to ground you in gratitude with focus and intention!

Read more and sample the audio →

New to Audiobooks.com? Get a free audiobook when you sign up for our one month free trial. Digital audiobooks make audible stories come to life when you’re commuting, working out, cleaning, cooking and more! Listening is easy with our top-rated free audiobook apps for iOS and Android, which let you download & listen to bestselling audiobooks on the go, wherever you are. Click here to get your free audiobook!

New Year, New You: The Best Audiobooks for Self Improvement

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No matter what your New Year’s resolution is, audiobooks can help you reach your goals. Check out these inspiring listens to make 2019 your best year yet!

clean & declutter

The Year of Less: How I Stopped Shopping, Gave Away My Belongings, and Discovered Life Is Worth More Than Anything You Can Buy in a Store by Cait Flanders, narrated by Cait Flanders

After working her way out of nearly $30,000 of consumer debt, Cait Flanders challenged herself to consume less. She decluttered her apartment and got rid of 70 percent of her belongings; learned how to fix things rather than throw them away; researched the zero waste movement; and completed a television ban. At every stage, she learned that the less she consumed, the more fulfilled she felt. Blending Cait’s compelling story with inspiring insight and practical guidance, The Year of Less will leave you questioning what you’re holding on to in your own life-and, quite possibly, lead you to find your own path of less. Read more and sample the audio →

advance your career

Game Changers: What Leaders, Innovators, and Mavericks Do To Win At Life by Dave Asprey, narrated by Rick Adamson, Dave Asprey

The bestselling author of Head Strong and The Bulletproof Diet answers the question, “How can I kick more ass at life?” by culling the wisdom of world-class thought leaders, maverick scientists, and disruptive entrepreneurs to provide proven techniques for becoming happier, healthier, and smarter.

With anecdotes from game changers like Dr. Daniel Amen, Gabby Bernstein, Dr. David Perlmutter, Arianna Huffington, Esther Perel, and Tim Ferris as well as examples from Dave’s own life, Game Changers offers readers advice they can put into action to reap immediate rewards. From taming fear and anxiety to making better decisions, establishing high-performance habits, and practicing gratitude and mindfulness, Dave brings together the wisdom of today’s game-changers to help everyone kick more ass at life. Read more and sample the audio →

healthy active living

Body Respect: What Conventional Health Books Get Wrong, Leave Out, and Just Plain Fail to Understand about Weight by Dr. Lucy Aphramor, Dr. Linda Bacon, narrated by Celeste Oliva

You’ve heard it before: there’s a global health crisis, and, unless we make some changes, we’re in trouble. That much is true—but the epidemic is NOT obesity. The real crisis lies in the toxic stigma placed on certain bodies and the impact of living with inequality—not the numbers on a scale. 

Dr. Linda Bacon and Dr. Lucy Aphramor’s Body Respect debunks common myths about weight, including the misconceptions that BMI can accurately measure health, that fatness necessarily leads to disease, and that dieting will improve health. They also help make sense of how poverty and oppression—such as racism, homophobia, and classism—affect life opportunity, self-worth, and even influence metabolism.

Body insecurity is rampant, and it doesn’t have to be. It’s time to overcome our culture’s shame and distress about weight, to get real about inequalities and health, and to show every body respect. Read more and sample the audio →

Learn Something new

Faerie Knitting: 14 Tales of Love and Magic by Lisa Hoffman, Alice Hoffman, narrated by January Lavoy

Featuring fourteen original fairy tales, Faerie Knitting is an entrancing collection of stories of love and loss, trust and perseverance. Seamlessly woven into the plot of each tale is a magical garment or accessory inspired by the bravery and self-reliance of the tale’s heroine and brought to life through an imaginative and bespoke knit pattern.

From the Blue Heron Shawl and the Love Never Ending Cowl, to the Three Wishes Mittens and Amulet Necklace, each project is as wearable as it is magical. Lush, atmospheric photography captures the enchanted faerie domain while beautifully rendered charts and instructions are well suited for beginner and advanced knitters alike. Includes a PDF with knitting patterns. Read more and sample the audio →

mental health & mindfulness

The Healthy Mind Toolkit: Simple Strategies to Get Out of Your Own Way and Enjoy Your Life by Alice Boyes, Ph.D, narrated by Teri Schnaubelt

Whether we’re aware of it or not, most of us are guilty of self-sabotage. These behaviors can manifest in seemingly innocuous ways, but if left unchecked can create stress and cause problems in all areas of your life. In The Healthy Mind Toolkit, Dr. Alice Boyes provides easy, practical solutions that will help you identify how you’re holding yourself back and how to reverse your self-sabotaging behaviors. Blending scientific research with techniques from cognitive behavioral therapy, this engaging book will take you through the steps to address this overarching problem. The Healthy Mind Toolkit is the essential guide to get out of your own way and get on the path to success. Read more and sample the audio →

New to Audiobooks.com? Get a free audiobook when you sign up for our one month free trial. Digital audiobooks make audible stories come to life when you’re commuting, working out, cleaning, cooking and more! Listening is easy with our top-rated free audiobook apps for iOS and Android, which let you download & listen to bestselling audiobooks on the go, wherever you are. Click here to get your free audiobook!

Three listens for a better you

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Three listeners rave about their favorite self-help audiobooks, and why you’ll be raving too.


Book: The Code of the Extraordinary Mind, by Vishen Lakhiani
Narrator: Vishen Lakhiani
Reviewer: Mohamed A.

“I loooooooved this book!! Vishen Lakhiani is an amazing author and speaker (I listened to the audiobook) and I was inspired and engaged throughout the entire book. One of the best self growth books I’ve ever read.

The book is about questioning the cultural and environmental rules that has been passing for years from a generation to generation and we tend to follow a lot of them without questioning them just because. This book goes deep into some of these “brules” and makes you process them on a personal level and re-evaluate them. It goes on into many topics such as gratitude, forgiveness, meditation, spirituality, religion, and so many similar deep philosophical topics. And it’s the kind of book that you finish and start all over again. It has so many exercises and practices that can live with you for the rest of your life.

I’d strongly recommend this book to everyone and any one.”

 


Book: Never Split the Difference, by Chris Voss with Tahl Raz
Narrator: Michael Kramer
Reviewer: Justin A.

“This is one of the best books on business, negotiations, emotional intelligence, and productive dialogue that I’ve ever read/listened to. What’s so encouraging, is that the principles were born, tested, refined & proven in real life situations, by real, working professional people. (As opposed to an academic theory born in a classroom.) There is lots of practical advice on what drives peoples behaviors, and how to get inside their decision making progress to achieve a positive outcome. It’s full of several real-world examples, some gut-wrenching, and some downright hilarious.

Not only is the content excellent, but the book is written & arranged very well. I generally prefer to hear the writer narrate the book, but in this case the narrator is PERFECT for this book. (Especially for the late night, FM D.J. voice.)

Not only is the content great, but the book is wonderfully entertaining as well. It is very easy to listen to multiple times over, and will be one of the best business books for quite a long time. I can’t recommend this book enough.”

 


Book: You Are a Badass, by Jen Sincero
Narrator: Jen Sincero
Reviewer: Tamara P.

“A game changer. Life changer. I’m one to stay in a comfortable routine. 30 years young and working for the same company over 10 years. Different roles, different states, all of which I excelled in growth-wise but never financially comfortable not to mention not a single one of these roles fulfilled a true sense of purpose in my life which is otherwise fucking awesome.

Maybe 2-3 chapters into listening to this book, I made the decision to walk my ass with a less than mediocre career into a business that I’ve wanted to work for since in the womb and didn’t blink to realize that I’m not necessarily even qualified for this career but planned to win then over with my charm and good looks. I did it. Miss live in doubt and take no risk…I introduced myself, dropped off my resume aaaaaand I start next month. Many thanks to Jen Sincero and this badass book.”
These featured reviews were written by Audiobooks.com customers. Have a favorite audiobook? Review it! If it gets featured, you get a free credit to use on any book in our library.

STAFF PICK: An Astronaut’s Guide to Life On Earth by Chris Hadfield

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An Astronaut's Guide to Life On Earthy audio book by Chris Hadfield

Our Head of Acquisitions told me about An Astronaut’s Guide to Life On Earth when it was first released, and it went immediately onto my “To-Listen” list.

Right? Right. That can almost make me cry.

At times while listening to this book, I realized this was a risky choice: listening to Hadfield’s ridiculously jam-packed list of qualifications, successes, and admirable personality traits could have made me feel like an unremarkable schlub, if only they weren’t read with such humility. Regardless, I absolutely loved An Astronaut’s Guide to Life On Earth. The book is a memoir of the journey he took to go from a nine-year old aspiring astronaut (with an astounding sense of responsibility and discipline, I might add) to a commander of the International Space Station, and offers a lot of insight into space travel, agencies, and the whole space program, with all the right minutiae picked out to let us in on some of the little details, but keep it interesting and novel. There are also plenty of the requisite descriptions of inky black infinity to bring on the epic fuzzy feelings that are really the whole point of reading a book about space travel in the first place.

Chris Hadfield is diligent, competent, smart, humble, and utterly, utterly quotable. *Ahem* “Good leadership means leading the way, not hectoring other people to do things your way.” “Sweat the small stuff. Without letting anyone see you sweat.” “You can’t change the bricks, and together, you still have to build a wall.” I finished the book feeling like I knew a lot more about how to succeed if I ever somehow ended up in space, but also that I knew a lot more about how to succeed in life in general. I also felt like I really wanted to give Hadfield a hug.

As a narrator, Hadfield is wonderful. I’m a firm proponent of authors reading their own work (as long as they have the chops to pull it off) because they know the spirit of it better than anyone else. Generally, Hadfield comes off as a really nice guy, so listening to his narration felt like we were carpooling together and he was telling me stories about space mixed with some fatherly advice about how to achieve my own goals. The one negative thing I have to say is in regards to the audio quality itself: there’s a strange sort of muffled echo that makes it sound like it was recorded in a bathroom. (Initially I thought the weird quality might have been because it was recorded IN SPACE, through the in-helmet microphone or something, which would be totally forgivable and actually kind of awesome. I looked it up; it wasn’t.) That’s unusual coming from top-tier publishers like Random House (Canadian rights) and Hachette (American rights), but it won’t stop you from fully enjoying the audiobook.

If you want to learn more about what it’s like to be in space (and what it takes to get there), pick this up. You will not be disappointed.