This is a very common new year’s goal for many of us. Between Netflix, Hulu, and reality TV, we are more than digitally entertained. If your goal is to slip in a book in between your tweeting and your scrolling, here are some of Team Wren’s favorite suggestions:
- The One Thing
- Gary Keller
- When trying to keep all of the many plates that you are juggling in order, this book and the logic behind it can be very useful. Keller outlines this bestseller novel with the concept that every successful person is backed by ONE particular thing. Although it could be different for each of us, if we decipher what our one thing” is and then focus all of our efforts on concentrating our energies to it, we will ultimately find success. If you want to learn more about the different distractions that might be getting in the way of your desired results, the societal myths we all are taught to buy into that can also hinder our success, as well as how to determine what your “one thing” is, then this is the book for you.
- Animal Farm
- George Orwell
- This classic peace of literature is a must-read for anyone who wants to venture into the world of reading. This book follows the story of a farm where the animals decide to revolt and take over the farm conquering their human counterparts. The revolt is led by a pig, Napoleon, who begins as a team player and motivates the other animals to join in; however, he is eventually overcome with greed and becomes a worse dictator than the humans ever were. Although this story sounds very odd (and let’s be real, it is), the symbolism between the greed and malice of the pigs on that of our own society and humankind is blatant and clear, and the innuendos that this book portrays are far worth the read.
- Secrets of Dynamic Communication
- Ken Davis
- If you are looking to enhance your communication skills, specifically your presentation skills, then this is the book for you. Davis is the founder of Dynamic Communicators International, and he uses the concepts from this book to teach thousands upon thousands of people how to communicate more effectively. The central concept that Davis teaches is a method of presentation preparation that he refers to as SCORRE. This acronym represents the central components of a powerful presentation: subject, central theme, objective, rationale, resources, and evaluation. Not only does this book break each of these concepts down, but gives you the opportunity to put them to work at the end of each chapter. Interactive, informative, and impactful – this book is the total package.
- Essentialism: The Disciplined Pursuit of Less
- Greg McKeown
- Essentialism may be a term that you remember from an old philosophy or perhaps history class. Well McKeown brings this concept into a modern light and shows how quality is ultimately more valuable than quantity. This book calls for you to take a deep look at where, when, and how you spend your time and resources, and determine which things are priority and which are not. This essentialist perspective puts the power of decision making back into your hands, and teaches you how you can become great at a few things as opposed to good at a lot of things.
- The Tell-Tale Heart
- Edgar Allan Poe
- If you are a reader who gets bored fast while reading, then this is the solution to your reading woes. The Tell-Tale Heart is a short story that was written in the early 19th century and is considered to be in the gothic genre due to its dark contents. The story follows the narrator as they explain the gruesome details of a murder (that they themselves committed). This story is a classic and one of the greatest short stories ever written, so it should be on the reading bucket list of anyone looking for an exciting story. Not only is this story short, but it is also very suspenseful and keeps the reader on their toes, and perhaps even peeking over their shoulder…
Some of these you may have read, while others you may have never heard of. We hope that you try out some of these reading suggestions and let us know what you think! At Wren we are committed to constantly improving, and maybe that means we should read some more too…So let us know if you have any suggestions 😉