Today’s episode, the first of 2019, is special. I’ll be sharing three books I believe you must read if you want to make the most of 2019.

All three of these books have been featured selections in my members-only online book club – more on that later.

Two of these books have been featured right here on the podcast.

And one of them is my favorite book of 2018

Just for you, I’ve created written summaries of each of these books and am making them available to you absolutely free.

If you’re on my mailing list, they should already be in your email inbox. If you’re not on my list currently and you’d like to grab these free summaries, you can get them right now by entering your first name and email address below. 

Before we get to these special books, I want to give you a chance to try my online book club for just $1.

When you take me up on this you’re going to get access to all our content from the last two years – including many more book summaries and our virtual book chat recordings – and, you’ll have the chance to attend our January chat LIVE where we’ll be visited by the author of the book we’re reading together this month called Clarity Wins (which, by the way, deserves an honorable mention as a book you should read for a productive 2019).

Get access for 30 days for just $1 by clicking here. Then, at checkout, enter the discount code JAN19.

If after 30 days you don’t think it’s awesome, you can cancel – at which point me and all our current members will mourn your departure. 🙁

Keep reading for more on these important books, or click “play” below

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The 12 Week Year

The first book I believe you must read now to have a successful 2019 is called The 12 Week Year: Do More in 12 Weeks than Others Do in 12 Months by Brian Moran and Michael Lennington.

I’ve recommended this book to numerous friends and colleagues and every one of them has told me it has been a game-changer.

Most organizations and individuals work in the context of annual goals and plans; a twelve-month execution cycle. Instead, The 12 Week Year avoids the pitfalls and low productivity of annualized thinking.

It’s amazing what happens when you redefine your “year” to be 12 weeks long. In 12 weeks, there just isn’t enough time to get complacent, and urgency increases and intensifies.

The 12 Week Year creates focus and clarity on what matters most and a sense of urgency to do it now. Because of that, more of the important stuff gets done and the impact on results is profound.

You’ll learn how to leverage the power of a 12 week year to drive improved results in any area of your life. Turn your organization’s idea of a year on its head, and speed your journey to success.

Your Best Year Ever

Okay, the second book you need to read right now to knock 2019 out of the park is the book that was featured in the very first episode of 2018. That book is called Your Best Year Ever: A 5-Step Plan for Achieving Your Most Important Goals by Michael Hyatt.

This book and The 12-Week Year compliment one another quite well. Its content is inspired by Michael’s Best Year Ever course that first launched in 2013 and has been honed and improved upon every year since. Plus, Michael is just a great writer. His books make for easy and actionable reads.

As I mentioned, Your Best Your Ever was featured in my conversation with Michael one year ago. You can check out that conversation here. 

You want to live a life that matters. You want to reach your full potential.

But too often you find you’re overwhelmed by the day-to-day. Your big goals get pushed to the back burner–and then, more often than not, they get forgotten. Michael says it doesn’t have to be this way. In fact, he thinks this can be the year you finally close the gap between reality and your dreams.

In Your Best Year Ever, Michael shares a powerful, proven, research-driven system for setting and achieving goals. You’ll learn how to design their best year ever in just five hours. He includes: 

• three simple ways to triple the likelihood of achieving your goals
• how to quit-proof your goals
• what to do when you feel stuck
• and much more

If you’re tired of not seeing progress in your personal, intellectual, business, relationship, or financial goals then you will treasure the field-tested wisdom found in these pages.

Atomic Habits

That brings us to the last book on my list, and the book that I’ve dubbed my favorite book of all of 2018.

That book is Atomic Habits: An Easy and Proven Way to Build Good Habits & Break Bad Ones by James Clear.

James stresses that developing the right systems is the key to any goals you set and that, if you don’t evaluate your current systems and make the necessary adjustments, your goals are likely never to be realized.

No matter your goals, Atomic Habits offers a proven framework for improving – every day. He 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. We don’t rise to the level of your goals. We fall to the level of your systems.

Here, you’ll get a proven system that can take you to new heights.

James draws on the most proven ideas from biology, psychology, and neuroscience to create an easy-to-understand guide for making good habits inevitable and bad habits impossible.

In James’ book you’ll learn how to:

• Make time for new habits (even when life gets crazy)
• Overcome a lack of motivation and willpower
• Design your environment to make success easier
• And get back on track when you fall off course;
  

Atomic Habits promises to reshape the way you think about progress and success, and give you the tools and strategies you need to transform your habits–whether you are a team looking to win a championship, an organization hoping to redefine an industry, or simply someone who wants to quit smoking, lose weight, reduce stress or achieve any other goal.

So, What Do You Think?

If you want your 2019 to be incredible (and who doesn’t), I would suggest you consider making one of your first goals of the year to read a book a week in January, the three books I’m recommending here, and maybe the honorable mention I talked about (our book club selection this month).

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