Well, I’ve done it. I’ve made a commitment to read only three books over the next year as a part of Chris Brogan’s challenge, The 3 Book Diet. It was hard for me to decide because, although his reasoning behind the challenge is solid, it feels so limiting and I was afraid I would commit and fail.
Chris’ reasoning behind this challenge is that we read so many incredible books but we never implement what we read {my perception of what he said}. We get inspired…motivated…excited and then we move onto the next book and repeat the cycle. He’s right. And I want more. I crave more. I don’t read just to get inspired once in a while. I read to absorb and move forward and make positive shifts in my life, both personally and professionally. I believe this will help.
My fear was all around only being able to read three. I’ve got a few more than that on my radar right now and feel like I might miss out. I also know that any decisions made out of fear or lack are never good ones for me. So I’ve committed.
I’m not sure if any or all of them will fill a year. I’ve also acknowledged that I may choose a different route down the road and I need to be okay with that. After all, one of the main keys to success is to be able to be flexible and make adjustments if something isn’t working.
So the three books I’ve chosen are:
- Ayurveda Wisdom – chosen because I’ve finally restarted my yoga practice and I really enjoy the lifestyle of yoga and want to create more harmony and health – in my mind, my body and my spirit.
- Getting Things Done – given to me as a gift from a dear friend, the focus of this book is stress-free productivity…the key being stress-free. I’ve been living in a state of stress for way too long so I’m hoping this will really help.
- Last, but not least, The Impact Equation – I just got this book and had to have it on my list because I couldn’t wait for a year to read it:) It’s a brand new book by Chris Brogan and Julien Smith. Chris mentioned, while he was flattered, he wasn’t sure how this book would hold up over a year. I just knew I couldn’t wait so we’ll see how it goes. I’ve just started it but it’s a great book so far!
I’ll keep you posted on how it goes. Wish me luck and positive life changes!
Amy Putkonen says
November 13, 2012 at 3:39 pmThat is cool, Michele. I love Getting Things Done. It is one of my favorites. It is such a great book! You’ve inspired me to take another look at yoga again. It is a great art. I have not read Impact Equation but I might just have to add it to my wish list! lol… Wow. That is quite a commitment. I am not sure if I could even survive a year without as many books as I want, but I can certainly appreciate the purpose of the challenge and I love that. Good luck! You will have to keep us posted as we go.
Michele says
November 13, 2012 at 9:03 pmMy copy was a gift from you…do you remember giving it to me? 🙂 I’m excited to be reading these three and it is kind of nice to just take my time and really focus on the bits I read and look at what and how I want to work with what I’m learning.
Amy Putkonen says
November 14, 2012 at 5:17 amI thought so, but I wasn’t sure. I did remember giving it to you. That is so wonderful that it is my copy that you are taking with you through this challenge! Oh how sweet. You will have a fabulous time going deep with THAT book! Whoa. Lifechanger.
Michele says
November 15, 2012 at 11:40 pmI’m looking forward to it!
Angie says
November 10, 2012 at 11:46 amMichele,
This is the line that I appreciated the most: “I also know that any decisions made out of fear or lack are never good ones for me.”
That one is exactly what I’ve been looking at for myself over the last few days because I, like you, have discovered that when I move in a specific direction (or not at all) simply out of fear, the results are generally not the most delicious.
Thank you for the reminder!
Michele says
November 10, 2012 at 3:18 pmI’m glad I could help 🙂 Delicious is a great thing to strive for!!
Carin Cullen says
November 9, 2012 at 3:44 amOoooh, perfect timing. I have been thinking a lot about that lately because I do that all the time; read a book, get all fired up about it and mean to implement it, but don’t, because I have moved on to the next one. I would like more depth too. I couldn’t limit myself to 3 books though. I’m not ready for that.
I have made another decision for myself though. I’m not going to take part in the goodreads “read x amount of books in a year” challenge next year because I want to read slower and better. And I am going to try to not buy any new books. The other day I calculated that on my kindle alone I have about 2 1/2-3 years worth of books at my current reading spead. My wallet will thank me, I’m sure.
I have set myself another challenge for next year though.
Michele says
November 10, 2012 at 1:05 amIt is a great idea. I am willing to go with the flow and see where it takes me rather than get worked up about the challenge. I am enjoying feeling like I can take a more leisurely approach to a book and focus on the content I read for a while and explore it deeper if I choose in other ways.