Build Successful Work Habits with These 5 Audiobooks

Diligent communication and thoughtful planning are habits that push you forward toward success. But other habits, even ones that may seem harmless, can slowly deteriorate your work ethic and attitude.

Being mindful of your work habits will help you to understand and build on personal strengths and weaknesses. You’ll learn how to consistently highlight your best features while growing from your faults, making you a happier and more successful contributor to your industry.

We know you’re busy, and that changing a habit can seem difficult on your own. That’s why we’ve put together a list of five audiobooks written by professionals to help you build better habits at work. Listen on your commute, while you’re getting groceries, or even at your desk. 

The Power of Habit: Why We Do What We Do in Life and Business by Charles Duhigg, narrated by Mike Chamberlain

In The Power of Habit, award-winning business reporter Charles Duhigg takes us to the thrilling edge of scientific discoveries that explain why habits exist and how they can be changed. Distilling vast amounts of information into engrossing narratives that take us from the boardrooms of Procter & Gamble to the sidelines of the NFL to the front lines of the civil rights movement, Duhigg presents a whole new understanding of human nature and its potential.

At its core, The Power of Habit contains an exhilarating argument: The key to exercising regularly, losing weight, being more productive, and achieving success is understanding how habits work. As Duhigg shows, by harnessing this new science, we can transform our businesses, our communities, and our lives.

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Atomic Habits: An Easy & Proven Way to Build Good Habits & Break Bad Ones by James Clear, narrated by James Clear

No matter your goals, Atomic Habits offers a proven framework for improving–every day. James Clear, one of the world’s leading experts on habit formation, reveals practical strategies that will teach you exactly how to form good habits, break bad ones, and master the tiny behaviors that lead to remarkable results.

If you’re having trouble changing your habits, the problem isn’t you. The problem is your system. Bad habits repeat themselves again and again not because you don’t want to change, but because you have the wrong system for change. You do not rise to the level of your goals. You fall to the level of your systems. Here, you’ll get a proven system that can take you to new heights.

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Change Your Thinking, Change Your Life: How to Unlock Your Full Potential for Success and Achievement by Brian Tracy, narrated by Brian Tracy

‘Every line in this book is bursting with truth, wisdom, and power. Brian Tracy is the preeminent authority on showing you how to dramatically improve your life. Let him be your guide. I’ve learned so much from Brian myself that I can’t thank him enough!’
-Robert G. Allen, #1 New York Times bestselling author

‘This book gives you a step-by-step system to transform your thinking about yourself and your potential, enabling you to achieve greater success in every area of your life.’
-Lee Iacocca, Chairman, Lee Iacocca & Associates

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Genius Habit: How One Habit Can Radically Change Your Work and Your Life by Laura Garnett, narrated by Laura Garnett

Combining the most recent and exciting research on productivity and performance with Laura’s experience guiding dozens of high-level clients to the heights of success, The Genius Habit is a must-read for anyone who believes that work can and should be one of the most rewarding aspects of life.

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Four Seconds: All the Time You Need to Stop Counter-Productive Habits and Get the Results You Want by Peter Bregman, narrated by Chris Sorensen

Peter Bregman, author of the Wall Street Journal bestseller 18 Minutes, offers strategies to replace energy-wasting, counter-productive habits that commonly derail us with truly effective ones.

The things we want most—peace of mind, fulfilling relationships, to do well at work—are surprisingly straightforward to realize. But too often our best efforts to attain them are built on destructive habits that sabotage us. In Four Seconds, Peter Bregman shows us how to replace negative patterns with energy-boosting and productive behaviors. To thrive in our fast-paced world all it takes is to pause for as few as four seconds—the length of a deep breath—allowing us to make intentional and tactical choices that lead to better outcomes. 

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Desserts to Pair With Audiobooks

The only thing better than enjoying your favorite dessert is pairing that sweet treat with the perfect listen. You’ll be surprised by the parallels between your audiobooks and your desserts: sometimes they’re rich and exciting, other times smooth and nostalgic.

Here are 5 perfect collaborations for your earbuds and tastebuds. Bon appétit and happy listening!

Dark Chocolate-Covered Strawberries

Pair with Love Her or Lose Her by Tessa Bailey, narrated by Charlotte North

If you’re looking for something sugary and light, you probably won’t reach for dark chocolate. But when mixed with strawberries, dark chocolate creates a perfectly balanced bittersweetness, a lot like Love Her or Lose Her. This pairing isn’t for sweet-tooth romantics looking for a fairy-tale. Instead, you’ll find a story of imperfect love that is put to the test after 10 years of being together. Tessa Bailey writes about how the juicy excitement of early love can, over time, become hidden by a tough and bitter shell.

Publisher Summary:
New York Times bestselling author Tessa Bailey returns with a unique, sexy romantic comedy about a young married couple whose rocky relationship needs a serious renovation. Rosie and Dominic Vega are the perfect couple: high school sweethearts, best friends, madly in love. Well, they used to be anyway.

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Tea and Cookies

Pair with Open Book, written and narrated by Jessica Simpson

If you’re in the mood to sip tea and binge on cookies, do we ever have the audiobook for you! Put on the kettle and grab your headphones, you’re listening to Jessica Simpson’s new memoir Open Book. In this tell-all memoir, Simpson shares her innermost thoughts and feelings in her own humorous voice. It’ll feel just like you’re catching up with an old friend over tea. Well… if your old friend was once one of the most talked-about woman in the world.

Publisher Summary:
America’s Sweetheart, preacher’s daughter, pop phenomenon, reality tv pioneer, and the billion-dollar fashion mogul invites readers on a remarkable journey, examining a life that blessed her with the compassion to help others, but also burdened her with an almost crippling need to please. Open Book is Jessica Simpson using her voice, heart, soul, and humor to share things she’s never shared before.

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Cake

Pair with Dear Edward by Ann Napolitano, narrated by Cassandra Campbell

Cake is a multifaceted dessert: you eat it at parties, at weddings, even at funerals. It’s the perfect dessert to represent big life events, sometimes bringing people together in celebration and sometimes eaten alone in sadness. When it comes to your audiobooks, cake is best enjoyed with a coming-of-age story that mirrors the hardships of real life. We recommend Dear Edward, a heartbreaking but unmissable story of life’s progression after an immeasurable loss. When the story gets sad, let the sweet taste of cake remind you of the happy times that life has to offer.

Publisher Summary:
One summer morning, twelve-year-old Edward Adler, his beloved older brother, his parents, and 183 other passengers board a flight in Newark headed for Los Angeles. Among them are a Wall Street wunderkind, a young woman coming to terms with an unexpected pregnancy, an injured veteran returning from Afghanistan, a business tycoon, and a free-spirited woman running away from her controlling husband. Halfway across the country, the plane crashes. Edward is the sole survivor.

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Apple Pie

Pair with The Giver of Stars by Jojo Moyes, narrated by Julia Whelan

Though apple pie is considered a long-standing symbol of American culture, the dessert surprisingly originated in England. What could be a better pairing for your warm slice of apple pie than The Giver of Stars, the tale of a woman who flees her mundane life in England to make her home in America? The story is rooted in American history, highlighting some of the most important themes of the time: courage, resourcefulness, and friendship. It will pull you in just like the inviting smell of a warm apple pie.

Publisher Summary:
Alice Wright marries handsome American Bennett Van Cleve hoping to escape her stifling life in England.  But small-town Kentucky quickly proves equally claustrophobic, especially living alongside her overbearing father-in-law. So when a call goes out for a team of women to deliver books as part of Eleanor Roosevelt’s new traveling library, Alice signs on enthusiastically.

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Hot Fudge Sundae

Pair with The Call of the Wild by Jack London, narrated by Frank Muller

The ice cream sundae, drizzled with piping hot fudge and toppings of your choice, is a timeless dessert classic. Pairing well with this fan-favorite is The Call of the Wild, originally published in 1903 and beloved ever since. Just like your favorite sundae, the icy story is set in the inhospitably bitter cold with a warm and feel-good plot, full of friendship and adventure. Oh, and the cherry on top? The book’s main character is a resilient dog named Buck that you can’t help but adore.

Publisher Summary:
The story is set in the Yukon during the 1890s Klondike Gold Rush-a period when strong sled dogs were in high demand. The novel’s central character is a dog named Buck, a domesticated dog living at a ranch in California as the story opens. Stolen from his home and sold into the brutal existence of an Alaskan sled dog, he reverts to atavistic traits.

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New to Audiobooks.com? Get your first book free, PLUS a bonus book from our VIP selection 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 audiobooks!

January’s Top 10 Audiobooks.com Member Downloads

Listen to last month’s most popular fiction and non-fiction titles downloaded by Audiobooks.com members.


Fiction

Little Women by Louisa May Alcott, narrated by Barbara Caruso

Publisher Summary:

Lovely Meg, talented Jo, frail Beth, spoiled Amy: these are hard lessons of poverty and of growing up in New England during the Civil War. Through their dreams, plays, pranks, letters, illnesses, and courtships, women of all ages have become a part of this remarkable family. Based on Louise May Alcott’s childhood, this lively portrait of nineteenth-century family life possesses a lasting vitality that has endeared it to generations of readers.

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The Last Wish: Introducing the Witcher by Andrzej Sapkowski, narrated by Peter Kenny

Publisher Summary:

Geralt is a Witcher, a man whose magic powers, enhanced by long training and a mysterious elixir, have made him a brilliant fighter and a merciless assassin. Yet he is no ordinary murderer: his targets are the multifarious monsters and vile fiends that ravage the land and attack the innocent.

But not everything monstrous-looking is evil and not everything fair is good…and in every fairy tale there is a grain of truth.

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Such a Fun Age by Kiley Reid, narrated by Nicole Lewis

Publisher Summary:

Alix Chamberlain is a woman who gets what she wants and has made a living, with her confidence-driven brand, showing other women how to do the same. So she is shocked when her babysitter, Emira Tucker, is confronted while watching the Chamberlains’ toddler one night, walking the aisles of their local high-end supermarket. The store’s security guard, seeing a young black woman out late with a white child, accuses Emira of kidnapping two-year-old Briar. A small crowd gathers, a bystander films everything, and Emira is furious and humiliated. Alix resolves to make things right.

But Emira herself is aimless, broke, and wary of Alix’s desire to help. At twenty-five, she is about to lose her health insurance and has no idea what to do with her life. When the video of Emira unearths someone from Alix’s past, both women find themselves on a crash course that will upend everything they think they know about themselves, and each other.

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The Institute by Stephen King, narrated by Santino Fontana

Publisher Summary:

In the middle of the night, in a house on a quiet street in suburban Minneapolis, intruders silently murder Luke Ellis’s parents and load him into a black SUV. The operation takes less than two minutes. Luke will wake up at The Institute, in a room that looks just like his own, except there’s no window. And outside his door are other doors, behind which are other kids with special talents — telekinesis and telepathy — who got to this place the same way Luke did: Kalisha, Nick, George, Iris, and ten-year-old Avery Dixon. They are all in Front Half. Others, Luke learns, graduated to Back Half, “like the roach motel,” Kalisha says. “You check in, but you don’t check out.”

In this most sinister of institutions, the director, Mrs. Sigsby, and her staff are ruthlessly dedicated to extracting from these children the force of their extranormal gifts. There are no scruples here. If you go along, you get tokens for the vending machines. If you don’t, punishment is brutal. As each new victim disappears to Back Half, Luke becomes more and more desperate to get out and get help. But no one has ever escaped from the Institute.

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The Wives by Tarryn Fisher, narrated by Lauren Fortgang

Publisher Summary:

Imagine that your husband has two other wives.

You’ve never met the other wives. None of you know each other, and because of this unconventional arrangement, you can see your husband only one day a week. But you love him so much you don’t care. Or at least that’s what you’ve told yourself.

But one day, while you’re doing laundry, you find a scrap of paper in his pocket — an appointment reminder for a woman named Hannah, and you just know it’s another of the wives.

You thought you were fine with your arrangement, but you can’t help yourself: you track her down, and, under false pretenses, you strike up a friendship. Hannah has no idea who you really are. Then Hannah starts showing up to your coffee dates with telltale bruises, and you realize she’s being abused by her husband. Who, of course, is also your husband. But you’ve never known him to be violent, ever.

Who exactly is your husband, and how far would you go to find the truth? Would you risk your own life?

And who is his mysterious third wife?

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Non-Fiction

Becoming by Michelle Obama, narrated by Michelle Obama

Publisher Summary:

In her memoir, a work of deep reflection and mesmerizing storytelling, Michelle Obama invites readers into her world, chronicling the experiences that have shaped her — from her childhood on the South Side of Chicago to her years as an executive balancing the demands of motherhood and work, to her time spent at the world’s most famous address. With unerring honesty and lively wit, she describes her triumphs and her disappointments, both public and private, telling her full story as she has lived it — in her own words and on her own terms. Warm, wise, and revelatory, Becoming is the deeply personal reckoning of a woman of soul and substance who has steadily defied expectations — and whose story inspires us to do the same.

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Catch and Kill: Lies, Spies, and a Conspiracy to Protect Predators by Ronan Farrow, narrated by Ronan Farrow

Publisher Summary:

In 2017, a routine network television investigation led Ronan Farrow to a story only whispered about: one of Hollywood’s most powerful producers was a predator, protected by fear, wealth, and a conspiracy of silence. As Farrow drew closer to the truth, shadowy operatives, from high-priced lawyers to elite war-hardened spies, mounted a secret campaign of intimidation, threatening his career, following his every move, and weaponizing an account of abuse in his own family.

All the while, Farrow and his producer faced a degree of resistance they could not explain — until now. And a trail of clues revealed corruption and cover-ups from Hollywood to Washington and beyond.

This is the untold story of the exotic tactics of surveillance and intimidation deployed by wealthy and connected men to threaten journalists, evade accountability, and silence victims of abuse. And it’s the story of the women who risked everything to expose the truth and spark a global movement.

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Just Mercy: A Story of Justice and Redemption by Bryan Stevenson, narrated by Bryan Stevenson

Publisher Summary:

Bryan Stevenson was a young lawyer when he founded the Equal Justice Initiative, a legal practice dedicated to defending those most desperate and in need: the poor, the wrongly condemned, and women and children trapped in the farthest reaches of our criminal justice system. One of his first cases was that of Walter McMillian, a young man who was sentenced to die for a notorious murder he insisted he didn’t commit. The case drew Bryan into a tangle of conspiracy, political machination, and legal brinksmanship — and transformed his understanding of mercy and justice forever.

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Leadership Strategy and Tactics: Field Manual by Jocko Willink, narrated by Jocko Willink

Publisher Summary:

From the co-author of Extreme Ownership and The Dichotomy of Leadership comes a leadership field manual that provides a direct, situational, pragmatic how-to guide that anyone can instantly put to use.
Leadership Strategy and Tactics explains how to take leadership theory, quickly translate that theory into applicable strategy, and then put leadership into action at a tactical level. This audiobook is the solution that leaders at every level need — not just to understand the leadership game, but also how to play the leadership game, and win it.

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Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind by Yuval Noah Harari, narrated by Derek Perkins

Publisher Summary:

One hundred thousand years ago, at least six different species of humans inhabited Earth. Yet today there is only one — homo sapiens. What happened to the others? And what may happen to us?

Most books about the history of humanity pursue either a historical or a biological approach, but Dr. Yuval Noah Harari breaks the mold with this highly original book that begins about 70,000 years ago with the appearance of modern cognition. From examining the role evolving humans have played in the global ecosystem to charting the rise of empires, Sapiens integrates history and science to reconsider accepted narratives, connect past developments with contemporary concerns, and examine specific events within the context of larger ideas.

Dr. Harari also compels us to look ahead, because over the last few decades humans have begun to bend laws of natural selection that have governed life for the past four billion years. We are acquiring the ability to design not only the world around us, but also ourselves. Where is this leading us, and what do we want to become?

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New to Audiobooks.com? Get your first book free, PLUS a bonus book from our VIP selection 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 audiobooks!

Celebrate Black History Month with These Audiobooks

It’s February, which means it’s time to celebrate Black History Month. Whether you’re looking for an informative historical listen, a powerful memoir, or even a notable fiction audiobook, we’ve got something for you. Click here to see our full booklist for Black History Month.


The Nickel Boys by Colson Whitehead, narrated by Colson Whitehead, JD Jackson 

From Colson Whitehead, author of the bestselling, Pulitzer Prize and National Book Award-winning novel, The Underground Railroad, comes his heartbreaking follow-up, The Nickel Boys.

Whitehead is at the height of his powers in The Nickel Boys, as he brilliantly dramatizes another strand of American history through the story of two boys sentenced to a hellish reform school in Jim Crow-era Florida.

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I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou, narrated by Maya Angelou

If you’re looking for a listen that is joyous and painful, and as mysterious and memorable as childhood itself, look no further. Maya Angelou’s debut memoir, I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, is an American classic that is beloved worldwide. It captures the longing of lonely children, the brute insult of bigotry, and the wonder of words that can make the world right.

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The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas, narrated by Bahni Turpin

The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas became a #1 bestseller and was the Goodreads Choice 2017 Winner. Not only that, but Bahni Turpin also won Best Female Narrator at the 2018 Audies for her narration of the audiobook.

Thomas’ debut novel follows sixteen-year-old Starr Carter as she moves between two worlds: the poor neighborhood where she lives and the fancy suburban prep school she attends. The uneasy balance between these worlds is shattered when Starr witnesses the fatal shooting of her childhood best friend Khalil at the hands of a police officer. Khalil was unarmed.

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The Great Stain by Noel Rae, narrated by Steven Crossley 

Noel Rae weaves firsthand accounts together in The Great Stain to create a narrative from an intensely consequential chapter in human history: the transatlantic slave trade.

Rae has provided all viewpoints to eliminate any historical blindspots, and to ensure that the full story is told. The Great Stain tells of good and evil, of greed and kindness, and of a civilization as it develops, evolves, and continues to move toward the future. Full of in-depth research, this audiobook is an important work of history that is relevant to the world today.

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Queenie by Candice Carty-Williams, narrated by Shvorne Marks 

Named by both The Times and NPR as one of the 100 Best Books of the Year, Queenie by Candice Carty-Williams is a remarkably relatable exploration of what it means to be a modern woman searching for meaning in today’s world.

In Queenie, we meet the relatable Queenie Jenkins — a twenty-five-year-old Jamaican British woman living in London, straddling two cultures and slotting neatly into neither. She works at a national newspaper, where she’s constantly forced to compare herself to her white middle class peers. After a messy break up from her long-term white boyfriend, Queenie seeks comfort in all the wrong places. As she continues to make questionable decisions, she tries to quiet the noise from the outside world as she discovers who she really is and what she really wants.

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New to Audiobooks.com? Get your first book free, PLUS a bonus book from our VIP selection 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 audiobooks!

Staff Pick: Layoverland by Gabby Noone

Post by Erin O’Neill

TitleLayoverland
Author: Gabby Noone
Narrator: Sophie Amoss

When I first heard about Layoverland, I was told that it’s comparable to one of my favorite shows, The Good Place. For anyone who hasn’t watched the show, it follows a morally-unsound lady after her death and through her journey in the afterlife. She builds friendships with some memorable characters, gets herself in some cheeky trouble, and finds a little bit of romance. For me, The Good Place has it all. How could anything compare?

Let me tell you, Layoverland did not disappoint. It’s like a delicate nod to all of the things I loved about the show but with a different take on the afterlife. Though it may sound like a drama, the story maintains light-hearted humor throughout. And just like The Good Place, the audiobook brings lots of light to a dark situation.

Beatrice Fox, a bitter, mean, and hilarious high school student, wakes up in an airplane with no idea where she’s going. One minute she was driving home, the next flying through the air. At the airport, Bea finds out she died in a car crash and was taken to… neutral ground, a.k.a Layoverland. She is told that she will, one day, be sent to Heaven but must earn her spot by proving she has a good heart. Because of Bea’s natural sarcasm and extreme pessimism, she’ll have to work extra hard to make it to Heaven. Her task: help 5000 people on their way to Heaven say goodbye to the life they lived on Earth.

Like a real airport, people are constantly coming and going through this story, which is quite impressive of Gabby Noone. Her characters were all lovable and had their own distinctive personality. I especially loved Bea’s mentor in her airport job, a perky beauty queen named Sadie, who died during a pageant in the 80s – very memorable. Noone’s writing reminded me of what I loved about The Good Place but her witty style made the story all new and exciting.

I was equally impressed with narrator Sophie Amoss, who nailed how I’d expected Bea to speak: with a young but very jaded voice. And even with so many characters, I could always distinguish who was talking by the sound of their voice. I would definitely listen to her narrate another audiobook in the future.

Overall, Layoverland was a lot of fun to listen to. It was sharp, funny, and at times even really sweet. Just like The Good Place, this book surprised me with a thought-provoking and enticing story of the afterlife, a story that I didn’t want to end.

New to Audiobooks.com? Get your first book free, PLUS a bonus book from our VIP selection 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 audiobooks!