Motivate Me Book Club

Happy New Year! Here it is, the conclusion to season 1. Like all good things, there is a beginning and an end, with opportunity for more afterwards. Today we Challenge “Essentialism” by Greg McKeown with the help of Alina Taylor. Alina helped talk about “Grit” with us back in March and lends her insight and personal story on focusing on what’s essential to succeed. There were some pretty philosophical sections but all concepts are presented in a tangible, human way. But how did this book measure up? Find out who Alina recommends this book to and what she rates it out of 10. Send us your recommendations for Season 2 books at motivatemebookclub@gmail.com. We will be starting up the next season soon! Thank you for listening.

How did “Atomic Habits” by James Clear measure up on challenge day? Really well, but we didn’t necessarily. Would you rate it the exact same though? How did this book work for you? Should you go back and review some of the exercises, too? This book has something for everyone but it especially has some solid advice and guidance for those that TRULY wish to make a change in their lives. Once you discover how you can identify with a new way of doing things, if you apply this to your life it would last forever. But this isn’t an easy feat and you might need help to do it. Find that support on this week’s episode on the #motivatemebookclub podcast. You can also refer to previous episodes for overviews of this book.

Thank you. Thank you for listening, reading, being part of this. We are celebrating Thanksgiving this week in the US. It gives everyone an “excuse” to work on the habit of expressing gratitude more regularly. Why? There is scientific evidence that people who express sincere gratitude more often live better lives. Here we present 4 benefits of being thankful and 4 ways to cultivate gratitude in your life. Motivate Me Book Club is here to Motivate You. Thank you for motivating us!

The disciplined pursuit of less. Have you ever felt stretched thin, like you’re doing so much but feel like you don’t have the results to show for it? Are you working towards someone else’s goal? The way out may be “the way of the Essentialist” as suggested by Greg McKeown. This book provides a perspective to help you do less, but better. In this overview, you will find out what the mindset and three realities are of an Essentialist. Then, you can follow the three steps in order to become one yourself: Explore, Eliminate, and Execute. Does this sound like something you already do? Can Essentialism be an answer to our cultural affliction and glorification overworking. This is yet another proposed path to success.

Have you ever had anyone commit to you in advance? A phone call, a meeting, an activity, a service? The obvious answer is yes, of course. After 3 months of committing to an interview for the Motivate Me Book Club, an author pushed back based on their conflicting schedule. Then, after 2.5 weeks of back and forth for rescheduling, sincerest apologies were finally communicated. Learn how this is why you say “NO”. We all make commitments in our daily lives to show up to work, to show up in our relationships, and to show up when we say we will. But what happens every time someone doesn’t follow through on an obligation? It breaks down trust. It breaks down confidence. It breaks down your future opportunities. The culture of busy, doing everything for everyone, needs to shift to a culture of finer necessity for those things that matter most. How do you do this? Listen to find out how lessons have been learned from overcommitting and underproducing.

How did “The ONE Thing” by Gary Keller and Jay Papasan measure up on an intentionally delayed challenge day? We wanted to give this book a longer duration before we challenged it. There seemed to be very applicable takeaways but could it stand the test of time and linger with us? How did this book work for you? This book promotes something that could apply to everyone but more importantly those with a serious task at hand. Focus. Once you discover what your ONE thing is to focus on it should help you achieve the success you seek. Doesn’t that sound great! Find out how this helped your host, Pineapple Jen, on this week’s episode on the #motivatemebookclub podcast. You can also refer to previous episodes for overviews of this book.

How is it possibly the last book of this first season? All good things must come to an end , as it goes. But fret not! Although it is the last to read, we will still be reflecting and reviewing our books through Challenge Days. Through this season we have successfully read quite a few good books. They have seemed to form a theme around “Habits” and this book feels like a good fit to end on. “Essentialism” by Greg McKeown. This is the disciplined pursuit of less. Essentialism is not one more thing - it’s a whole new way of doing everything. It’s about doing less, but better, in every area of our lives. Essentialism is a movement whose time has come. What do you think? Tell us! motivatemebookclub@gmail.com. Grab a copy or an audio book today to join us for the last book of the season!

How did “The Four Agreements” by Don Miguel Ruiz measure up on challenge day? I don’t think anyone would be surprised. Would you rate it the exact same though? How did this book work for you? If you said it didn’t or doesn’t apply to you, then congratulations! You are already the epitome of personal freedom without a single bad trait! However, if you are like the majority of the world, with areas for improvement, this book has something for everyone. These agreements are instructions on how to live your best life. This is how to be happier. Once you discover it within you it should linger for a while, if not forever. Doesn’t that sound great! Find out why on this week’s episode on the #motivatemebookclub podcast. You can also refer to previous episodes for overviews of this book.

This is the high level overview of “Atomic Habits” by James Clear. Wow. This book speaks volumes on how small, tiny, “Atomic” changes can create remarkable change in your life. James Clear brings many concepts together, including the “Habit Loop”, in a new framework for working on creating change. He showcases how “4 Laws of Habit Change” have subtle layers to help you work on your transformation. What habits do you want to adopt and what habits would you like to change? What kind of person has or doesn’t have those habits? Your identity will sustain your habits so make them the best ones for you. If you are ready to define these areas of your life, have a listen to this overview for a new method that can effectively support you. Through diagrams, examples and research, James Clear presents an easy approach to support your goals. How can you apply concepts from this book to your own habit changes? Read, listen and let us know! www.pineapplejen.com/podcast

Keep going. You never know what success you will achieve until it happens and until then you need to keep trying. For a lot of us, it means starting with changing our habits and believing in what we are doing. Before the Golden Gate Bridge was built, the longest suspension bridge in the world was only 3,501 feet, 699 feet shorter than the proposed project. This coupled with strong winds and deep waters in the San Francisco Bay made the bridge a risky venture. Despite “expert opinion” against construction, the visionaries behind the construction forged ahead with their plans and proved successful in the end. Let’s this week’s episode’s “Two Truths” help you forge ahead with your goal and habit tracking to success.

Keep your plants on! For good! How? Meet Lindsay Tobias, a 23 year old Holistic Health Coach who has successfully used “Atomic Habits” by James Clear to help her clients MAINTAIN their goals. Habit transformation does not happen overnight. Keeping the habits going once the “goal” has been reached is a challenge. But Lindsay has figured it out. Whats’s her secret sauce? Aside from her recipes, the key to her success was having some Atomic help. Listen to this perfect example of how books are an invaluable resource for knowledge. And who knows, you may just want to have her help you! Find her on IG @keepyourplantson and her website howtokeepyourplantson.com

Habits are hard to change, adopt and get rid of. This has been no easy feat for your host, Pineapple Jen, to change her ways. Over the course of many books, ideas have been presented on how to develop successful habits. It seems that to be efficient or effective there are habits to adopt and habits to drop. It takes time and effort but which WAY of doing this works the best? It’s probably not the same for everyone. Habit tracking is what Jen has been trying to do, unsuccessfully. Why has this happened? We reflect on how tracking habits has NOT been something of a habit in the first place. Atomic Habits by James Clear offers another approach to habit change. The Melting Ice Cube analogy puts things into yet another perspective. Let’s give this book a read and find out what we can extract from it.

Happy National Read a Book Day! We introduce our next book for the Motivate Me Book Club. “Atomic Habits” by James Clear. Have you heard of it? What are your thoughts? Working on our Habits is no easy feat but if we keep investigating how to manage them maybe we will discover a way that works for us. We won’t know until we try and this next book offers another approach. Check out some of these other cool podcasts while you are getting yourself a copy. We recommended Girl Boss Radio, The Bid, and Stuff You Should Know. What do you think of these shows? Let us know motivatemebookclub@gmail.com

This is an overview of “The Four Agreements” by Don Miguel Ruiz. Stemming from ancient Toltec wisdom, Ruiz suggests these four agreements are what can guide one to a place of personal freedom. As we grow from childhood, we develop an unconscious set of instructions for living life. According to Ruiz, many of these unconscious beliefs are arbitrary or false. The key to freedom is to become aware of these limiting thought patterns and to replace them with these agreements. You can almost use this book as a guide for self prescribed cognitive-behavioral therapy. What do you think about that? How could you apply these principles to your own dream of life?

Who is your host, Pineapple Jen, for the Motivate Me Book Club? She gets a bit exposed and personal on this week’s episode. Maybe a little TMI occurs but that’s her. Life is what you make of it. You are who you are and Pineapple Jen is who she is supposed to be. Find out more as she answers some of the FAQs she receives.

Think back to when you were most productive in your life. Where was that? Maybe that’s a new concept and one you’ve not really considered before. But in your life, where and how are you the most energized? Around others or by yourself? In peace and quiet or with an energetic ambiance? Can you guess where Pineapple Jen has found her Environment of Productivity? Have a listen and consider how you owe it to yourself to search for this space in your life and to actually utilize it.

We introduce the next book for the Motivate Me Book Club. It’s “The Four Agreements” by Don Miguel Ruiz. We leave the inspirational and motivational for a little self-help reading. Sometimes we need to take an introspective look. How are we truly living our lives? Ruiz suggests that everything we do is based on the agreements we make in life. Let’s see about that! And why not physically grab a copy this time? Our host, Pineapple Jen, shares her insight into 4 great reasons why reading is good for you! They’re scientifically supported reasons to make you happier and less stressed. Sound good? See if you agree. Listen to this latest episode and you’ll be motivated to grab a copy of “The Four Agreements”.

How did “The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People ” by Stephen Covey measure up on challenge day? The perfect score of 10/10 is well deserved for this book. We go over how our host applied it and what she learned over the past few weeks since reading. What are 3 big takeaways from these suggested habits for success? Find out on this week’s episode on the #motivatemebookclub podcast. You can also refer to previous episodes for overviews of this book. We will be announcing the next book on next week’s episode. In the meantime check out these other motivational shows: The Mindset & Motivation podcast, The Motivated Mind, and Mama Motivation podcast.

How are you doing? What are you up to? Why do we always answer “Great, I’m so busy!” And then it seems hard to even say what it is that makes it all so busy...there’s no denying we are in a culture of grinders. People who day in day out feel the need to constantly be doing something. It’s kind of crazy. We are guilty of it here at the Motivate Me Book Club, too. But what we should be able to do is speak to the things that matter most. How can we better articulate what we are up to? Same as we prepare for a podcast recording, we can prepare our answers with some guided questions. And through these guided questions, we’ll find that universal concepts are the key to clarity. Listen to this week’s episode and try this approach for your own busy life. Now let us ask you, what are you up to?

A high level overview of “The ONE Thing” by Gary Keller and Jay Papasan. The first two parts were introduced in previous episodes and here we elaborate on Part 3, which we like to call the “secret sauce”. This is where you’ll really understand HOW to succeed by following the ONE Thing concept. We open up the book for you so that if you’re thinking about reading it, this may be all you need to do so. Or it may be all you need! Feel free to provide feedback to motivatemebookclub@gmail.com

We need to check-in for accountability! It’s said that by having someone who holds you to what you say you’re committed to doing, like exercise or business, you are more likely to succeed. Listen to our interview with Luke, several weeks after our initial interview with him where we spoke about his “Why”. Luke has a business coach and other accountable support that help him with his goal journey. So, how has he progressed on his goals? How could “The One Thing” work for him? We find out these answers and more in this interview recorded from St. James, Barbados. Sounds like something has been going well for him, right? What works for him might also work for you then!

This week’s episode explores what your habits are doing for your goals. Doesn’t it make sense for them to correlate and even go hand in hand? How many times do we say to ourselves “I really need to do more of that” or “I really should be doing this”? Too many to count. Often we get overwhelmed and stop ourselves from starting. Sometimes what we need is a little push, a little help and maybe a new month. Listen to this podcast for a push, use the Motivate Me Book Club for help, and use the beginning of this new month as a fresh start. “It doesn’t matter when we start. It doesn’t matter where we start. All that matters is that we start.” - Simon Sinek. Get your free habit tracker by emailing motivatemebookclub@gmail.com

Hello Summer reading! Am I right? Whether you’re going to be at the beach, the pool, the lake or simply relaxing at home, take the opportunity to keep making a habit for self-care. Reading is one of the best ways to keeping your mental game strong. Which book can you pick up for the next Motivate Me Book Club Challenge?? Find out now!! This quick episode gives you extra time to listen to other episodes while grabbing a copy or audio version of the next book and start digging in.

This is it! Concluding our “high-level” overview of “The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People” by Stephen Covey, it’s Habit 7 - Sharpen the Saw. What does that really mean? How are you going to work on this habit of practice and renewal? Here is some food for thought when it comes to taking care of ourselves in terms of our physical, emotional, spiritual and mental wellbeing! We make time everywhere to get these books read and since finishing we’ve been trying to figure out which book to read next! In the meantime, find out what podcasts you have got to listen to.

This week is a continuation from 2 weeks ago. We expand on the second set of habits put forth by Stephen Covey in his highly acclaimed book, “The 7 habits of highly effective people”. These may be more challenging than the first set but equally if not more important to work on regularly. We take an ecological look at Habits 4, 5, and 6. This is the journey from independence to interdependence. These habits all build on each other and work to refine our thinking, communication, and understanding with others. Reflect on how this can apply to your interactions. How can these habits add to the value and success of your personal and professional relationships?

Today’s episode puts a spin on reading books and looks at resources to help support the Motivate Me Book Club. Britt Alex and her business, BrittKayCreates, show us what it’s like to take a goal and make it happen. She shares which authors have really spoken to her, who has been her biggest supporters, and what she has used to stay focused. Her business of planner inserts and quotes are an integral part, of course. You can find her products at her Etsy shop, Instagram and Facebook. But wait, there’s more! Find out what we’ve done to create a special collaboration for Motivate Me Book Club members!

How did “The Power of Habit” by Charles Duhigg measure up on challenge day? I don’t think anyone would be surprised. Would you rate it the exact same though? How did this book work for you? If you said it didn’t or doesn’t apply to you, then congratulations! You are either flawless without a single bad habit or a really big liar. This book has something for everyone. Power. Once you discover it within you it should linger for a while, if not forever. Doesn’t that sound great! Find out why on this week’s episode on the #motivatemebookclub podcast. You can also refer to previous episodes for overviews of this book.

This week we explore the dynamics of these habits as written by Stephen Covey. How can they work for us? Have any of them worked for you already? A tangible, applicable overview of the first three habits are presented here. They relate to working on building ones self up from a dependence state to one of independence. This may not be the easiest feat but these are concepts that are not impossible to accept. The way we think, how we view life, and what we choose to do are all within our control. Find out how you can through these first three habits as presented by Pineapple Jen and The Motivate Me Book Club.

If you’ve ever wondered who a Highly Effective person is...here’s a prime example. Melanie Knight is interviewed on her success with her company, Ocean to Eye Level, opening multiple mini-aquariums, a dream she has worked hard at achieving. Melanie’s new BHAG of transitioning those ocean lovers who wish they were living the dream to self-proclaimed marine biologists is also underway. How has she achieved that and still pursue such an astounding and inspiring initiative? Her skills and training are part of it but this book, “ The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People”, has steered her on a path of regularly practicing good habits. What habit does she keep working on and which have helped Melanie the most? Have a listen on this week’s episode of the Motivate Me Book Club. What do you think? Is this book for you?? Send comments to motivatemebookclub@gmail.com

We introduce the next book after running for 12 weeks! Yay! This one is “The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People” by Stephen R. Covey. Have you wanted to read this book? I’ve heard a lot about it but never put as much thought into it. Now I can’t put it down! Find out more about how to be part of the Motivate Me Book Club. It is here to serve you and to be there as you work on your goals. The best part is you don’t even need to read the books...We would love to hear from you! Send all feedback and comments to motivatemebookclub@gmail.com. Find our more on this week’s episode.

Challenge Day! These are the best. We look at whether or not a book resonated with us after the fact. It’s so easy to get swept up in the hype. How did “Grit” by Angela Duckworth really measure up? What was this book’s score out of 10? Would you recommend reading Grit? Don’t take this review as negative. We’re trying to be constructive here and really out these books up to the test. To begin with ALL the books chosen are already considered in some way Great Reads. But who are the really Great for?? Is “Grit” for you?! Listen and Find out.

We test out a cloud platform, Zoom, for its potential to host the Motivate Me Book Club’s monthly online meeting. Sign up and download the free app! Do you think that would be easy for you to utilize? Well this is how we can discuss our books together like Charles Duhigg’s “The Power of Habit”. During this episode I reveal my biggest takeaway secret from the book! And what are we reading next....? Can you guess the next book!? It’s a CLASSIC! I’ve been looking forward to finally getting this one under the belt. Tune in next week for the Challenge Day of “Grit” by Angela Duckworth. How well did that book end up resonating with you? What thoughts or ideas lasted and lingered? I’m curious to know all of your thoughts so please email me your comments! motivatemebookclub@gmail.com. All comments welcomed!

The Power of Habit by Charles Duhigg is THE book about habits. He explains how to ID the one crucial habit for change to occur and what you ultimately need to have in order to make that change possible. This is the episode you need to hear to get your goal journey on the right track. You’ve got this!

Our “Life Vision” will come to fruition through what we try to make habits of on a daily basis. How? Because it is science. What you will be known or remembered for is what you end up regularly doing and thinking. And what behaviours and thoughts you regularly have are called your habits. A good majority of the time we don’t even realize that’s what is going on when we speak or react! Charles Duhigg explains “the habit loop” with his own personal “bad cookie habit” example on today’s episode. What habits do you have that you want to change, improve and/or adopt?

We introduce the next book to read, “The Power of Habit” by Charles Duhigg. Grab a copy or download an E-book and start reading

The first official challenged book review is up! What did Start With Why by Simon Sinek score out of 10? What is the main application? What is the Tip Takeaway from Jen? Find out on this latest episode.

Alina Taylor is someone who will get you #motivated on your #goaljourney. But even motivators need to keep perservering for themselves. Listen to why she gave reading “Grit” a second chance and to the moment “Grit” started clicking for her. Her takeaway is solid advice for anyone who is or wants to read this interesting discovery about passion and perseverance made by Angela Duckworth.

Grit is up next on the Motivate Me Book Club challenge. We introduce University of Pennsylvania psychologist, Angela Duckworth, and her notion that the power of passion and perseverance are more important than talent alone. It’s called “grit”. The grittier a person is or becomes, the more successful that person ends up being according to her research. How gritty are you? Take the Grit Scale test. Can we acquire grit if we don’t have it already? Apparently there are two ways to do so! We are intrigued to say the least. Let’s read this book and see if there’s something in here that works for us. “Psychologists have spent decades searching for the secret of success, but Duckworth is the one who found it” - Daniel Gilbert, author of Stumbling on Happiness

Format shake up in action. This week on the Motivate Me Book Club, Pineapple Jen interviews Vanessa who found her Why at a breaking point in her life. Literally. Vanessa shares what she took away from reading this book and her new found nutritionist career. Follow her on Instagram @nutrition_with_ness for food and health motivation!

Approaching this book club as an experiment means it needs the proper structure of one. These books are really going to be put to the test. What books have really inspired you! Let me know!! Send a msg to @pineapple_jen and I may interview you on the show. #motivateme #bookclub #books #inspo #goals

We explore our Why on this episode. My guest, Luke, shares insight on his own Why for goals and how he works on them. The idea of Why, How, What are key factors in inspiring others. Will this book helps us stay motivated? Listen as we introduce these concepts at our first crack of this book.

Motivate Me Book Club is here to help us achieve our goals together. January’s Book is “Start With Why” by Simon Sinek. We will be talking about this book on January 29 @ 4pm CST on the Motivate Me Book Club Facebook Page. Follow or tweet me in the meantime @pineapple_jen to let me know how it’s going for you! #motivatemebookclub #getmotivated