Today I have a bonus episode of Pep Talks for Side Hustlers for you! Over the last 6 episodes, I took you behind the scenes of my strategic planning process, from setting big goals to getting into the weeds with data to planning and budgeting and making sure it’s all serving our WHY.
So if you missed them, it’s episodes 155 – 160 and be sure to subscribe so you don’t miss another episode!
Today, I’m going to share 9 books with you that have completely changed my life and put me on the path I’m on today. I’ll link all of these up in the show notes for you. I highly recommend you grab the audio version of each book from Audible if it’s available, especially if you’re a busy side hustler so you can listen on the go.
First on the list, PUSH by Chalene Johnson. I talk about this in episode 158 about how setting the PUSH goal to start my own business totally changed my life. The thought literally never occured to me before reading that book. Highly recommend it for both business and personal goals.
Next up on the list, Dave Ramsey’s Total Money Makeover. It’s a step-by-step system to show you exactly how to get out of debt and the best part is, it’s actually doable. My husband and I did it, twice, I’m a little embarrassed to say. But the way you feel when you have no debt, the freedom you have in your life, there’s nothing else like it.
The next one on my list is Profit First. This book gives you a system for paying yourself first so that you’re not paying everyone else and keeping the leftovers. I implemented the Profit First system when I quit my day job, and I wish I would have done it much sooner in my side hustle!
Next up is the Rock Star Guide to Getting it Done. It’s not a book, it’s a course, and it will help you get total control of your life and get completely ahead and have you more efficient that you ever thought possible. Especially if you have a side hustle that you’re trying to grow, while working full time, while raising a family, do yourself a favor and take this course.
The next one on my list is called the E-Myth, and this is for when you’re ready to scale. Or maybe before you’re ready to scale, really. It stands for the Entrepreneurial Myth, which is the mistaken belief that most businesses are started by people with tangible business skills, when in fact most are started by “technicians” who know nothing about running a business. Like me, when I started my business I knew how to build websites and do online marketing but knew nothing about running a business. This book walks you through how to run a business and how to grow a team the right way. In fact, in light of my PUSH goal I’m going to give this one another read.
Next up, Side Hustle by Chris Guillebeau. It’s an awesome primer on how to start a side hustle, from idea to income in 27 days. You can use it to get inspiration or to realign yourself if something feels off in your side hustle. And I’m in it, so I of course I love it. You can read my story in Chapter 8.
High Performance Habits is a total must read and game changer for how I show up in life every day – if you want to know more about it you can check out the review I did of it in episodes 139 and 140.
The next one on the list is called Direct Selling 101, by my business coach Vicki Fitch and it’s all about how to sell in a really authentic way. It’s a must read for anyone that has a service-based side hustle, or any kind of side hustle really, and feels like selling is hard. I mention the life-changing part of this book for me in my interview with Vicki in episode 100 of this podcast.
Finally, this one I’m in the middle of right now, but it’s going to be a life-changer just because I know it is, I know it’s what I need, it’s called Evict the Bully in Your Head, also by my biz coach, Vicki Fitch. Because there’s one thing I’ve learned about myself during this whole entire journey of building a business, the only thing that can prevent me from reaching my goals is me. Not money, not time, not my plan, not my goals. My mindset and what I believe and what I tell myself. And this book is designed to evict the bully in my head that tells me I can’t, it’s not possible, I’m not smart enough, I don’t have enough time, it’s too scary, and kick it to the curb so that I can focus on all the ways I CAN do it. So if you have those doubts, I highly recommend you pick that book up too.
Okay, that’s a wrap on my series on strategic planning – I can’t wait to hear what you come up with and your goals – leave me a comment on one of these show notes over at Pep Talks for Side Hustlers with your biggest AHA from this process.
Today’s pep talk is brought to you by Bluehost. Go to www.shannonmattern.com/bluehost and get 36 months of web hosting for just $2.95 a month. That’s less than one trip to Starbucks a month – and if you’re anything like me, you’re at Starbucks more than that!
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