When it comes to self development books, there’s never been more choice than now. In fact, there’s so much literature out there, it’s almost overwhelming. 

At SHE, we’re no strangers to personal development recommendations that deliver new perspectives, sharpen your understanding and help you work on what matters for your business, your relationships, the inner you, and even just this thing called life. So this month’s blog is yet another self development gift from us to you. 

BUT before we get to the treat below, first dear reader, a little pep talk.

We’re calling time on the whole “New year, New you” thing… 

Because Truth: Each one of us is an amazing living, breathing library of our own stories, our experiences, triumphs and defeats – those elements that make us uniquely us and the many lessons we’ve learned along the way (often without knowing it). 

This is what it is to be human. 

Not models that malfunction and need throwing out each December to be replaced with a brand new one in January. You don’t need to become a new you. 

However…consciously striving to slightly improve the already pretty awesome version of yourself…? Now THAT’S something to get behind! 

Because here’s another truth: being human also means being an ever-evolving work in progress. This is especially accurate if you’ve chosen an entrepreneurial life.

(A wise woman once said “you can’t develop your business without developing yourself”.) 

So, if you’re looking for greater balance, meaning, business growth, kick-ass inspiration or to simply understand your world or the people around you better – but don’t quite know where to start – we’ve done the work for you. Again, we’ve carefully curated a selection of great reads on:  business, communication, money, mindset, relationships, midlife and inner work. 

So, put your phone away, stick a do not disturb sign on your door and feast your eyes on SHE Malta’s latest list of self development book recommendations.

BUSINESS & ENTREPRENEURSHIP 

Top Picks

1 The E-Myth Revisited  by Michael E. Gerber  

 Why most small businesses fail and how to turn them around. 

Gerber provides a step-by-step guide to building a successful business, focusing on systems and processes rather than just entrepreneurial passion.

A staple for business owners: Gerber dismantles the myth that great technical skill equals business success. Instead he shows how systems, roles and strategic thinking transform small businesses into sustainable ventures.

2 The Lean Startup, How Today’s Entrepreneurs Use Continuous Innovation to Create Radically Successful Businesses – Eric Ries  

A modern approach to entrepreneurial experimentation with businesses and products.

Ries teaches founders to test assumptions, iterate quickly and validate ideas with real customers — valuable for anyone launching or scaling a business. The book provides practical advice on how to create and manage successful startups in an age of uncertainty.

3 Start Something That Matters – Blake Mycoskie

Mycoskie shares the story behind TOMS and the rise of purpose-driven entrepreneurship. 

The book argues that business can be both profitable and socially impactful, without traditional barriers to entry. It offers practical insights on launching ventures aligned with values. Less about systems, more about mission-led action.

4 The $100 Startup – Chris Guillebeau

“This book is more than a ‘how to’ guide, it’s a ‘how they did it’ guide that should persuade anyone thinking about starting a business that they don’t need a fortune to make one.” – John Jantsch

This description by Jantsch (author of Duct Tape Marketing and The Referral Engine) nails it! Guillebeau went looking for what actually works in the real world for low-budget entrepreneurs, listening to and witnessing the case studies of diverse founders. His book shows you how to turn skills and passions into income streams without huge upfront costs, 

 If you love hearing inspiring yet practical examples of people, tiny ideas, small beginnings, this one’s for you.

5 Hug Your Customers – Jack Mitchell

A human-centred approach to customer service, emphasising the power of personal connection and delight.

Particularly useful for service-based founders looking to differentiate through culture and care. Mitchell argues that genuine warmth and attention aren’t “soft skills” but commercial advantages, showing how loyalty is built through everyday interactions rather than grand gestures.

FINANCIAL LITERACY, MONEY PSYCHOLOGY & RISK

Top Picks

6 Same as Ever, Timeless Lessons on Risk, Opportunity and Living a Good Life, Morgan Housel

The important events that will shape the future are inherently unpredictable. Instead, we should be asking a different question: What will be the same ten years from now? What will be the same one hundred years from now? 

Housel focuses on the patterns in human behaviour that don’t change, even as technology and markets do. Through short, reflective essays, he explores risk, uncertainty, incentives, and long-term thinking. The book blends financial psychology with life philosophy, arguing that understanding human nature matters more than predicting trends.

7 Money: A Love Story : Untangle Your Financial Woes and Create the Life You Really Want – Kate Northrup

Northrup reframes money as a relationship, shaped by values, emotions and self-worth rather than rules or discipline alone. 

Drawing on personal experience, psychology and feminine leadership principles, she challenges hustle culture, scarcity thinking and productivity-driven ideas of success. Unlike traditional personal finance books, this is not about budgets, investments or financial rules — it’s about changing how women emotionally relate to money in the first place. Blending reflective exercises with a softer, cyclical approach to earning and spending, Northrup encourages women to work with their energy rather than against it – particularly relevant for those unlearning guilt, overwork and fear around money.

8 The Richest Man in Babylon – George S. Clason

Timeless personal finance fundamentals and wisdom told through parables. 

Providing core principles on saving, investing and financial discipline, this book is intended to resonate with readers new to money management or seeking foundational habits to establish and ensure long-term wealth.

Also recommended

9 Think and Grow Rich – Napoleon Hill  

With over 100 million copies sold worldwide since its 1937 publication, this foundational mindset book has cemented its status as one of the best-selling self-help books of all time. 

Based on Hill’s study of successful individuals, the famous business bible examines the power of desire, faith, persistence, and goal-setting. Though decades old, many of the principles of Think and Grow Rich for long-term personal and financial growth still resonate.

10 Women & Money: Owning the Power to Control Your Destiny – Suze Orman

A woman-focused guide to financial confidence, literacy and security, delivered in Orman’s characteristically direct style.

Addressing money through the lens of women’s independence, protection and long-term stability, this book combines clear financial guidance with an emphasis on informed decision-making and self-reliance. Where Northrup addresses the relationship with money and mindset shift, Orman’s book is more action-focused. Though acknowledging certain emotional barriers, her emphasis is on taking control by understanding your finances, protecting yourself, and making smart money decisions. A practical, instructive and empowering read.

COMMUNICATION & RELATIONSHIPS

Top Picks

11 Crucial Conversations – Pattersen, Grenny, McMillan, Switzler

A practical framework for navigating high-stakes conversations with clarity and respect.

Essential for leaders, founders and anyone whose success depends on relationships. This book teaches structured dialogue for emotionally charged moments, helping readers build influence without conflict.

12 Who Deserves Your Love – KC Davis

With radical honesty and a compassionate touch, this book helps readers distinguish between love that nourishes and attachments that drain.

Davis tackles our most common – and toughest – questions about love and relationships with warmth and insight. This practical guide explores how vulnerability and trauma shape our connections. Packed with lists and diagrams, it helps you discern who truly deserves your time – a guide to finding love and being loved – exactly as you are.

INNER WORK, HEALING & EMOTIONAL WELLBEING

Top Picks

13 How to Meet Yourself – Nicole LePera

This superb workbook is the companion to LePera’s best-selling book How to Do the Work. 

One of the most thoughtfully compiled books I’ve ever seen, LePera’s comprehensive book follows on from the hugely successful How to Do the Work, helping users actively apply its teachings. Readers are encouraged to drill down and understand self-limiting patterns, exercise compassionate self-observation, and literally do the work and benefit their lives. 

14 The Mountain Is You: Transforming Self-Sabotage Into Self-Mastery – Brianna Wiest

Exploration of  self-sabotage as an unconscious attempt at self-protection rather than failure. 

Wiest connects emotional patterns, trauma responses, and identity to the ways people block their own growth. The focus is on inner work, accountability, and transformation rather than tactics. It’s introspective and emotionally driven rather than research-based.

15 Why Has Nobody Told Me This Before? – Julie Smith

A practical wellbeing manual that tackles the everyday issues that affect us all and offers practical, potentially life-changing solutions. 

Written in short, bite-sized entries, this book is great for people looking for structured, actionable emotional tools. It’s organised into sections covering specific challenges and provides tools to help with managing anxiety, dealing with criticism, battling low mood, building self-confidence, finding motivation, learning to forgive yourself.

MINDSET, HABITS & BEHAVIOUR CHANGE

Top Picks

16 Essentialism: The Disciplined Pursuit of Less – Greg McKeown

A concise, compelling guide to essentialism. Focus relentlessly on what matters and eliminate the rest. 

A strong follow-on to McKeown’s core ideas about simplifying priorities. The book is especially relevant for women juggling competing demands, offering a disciplined framework for saying no without guilt and reclaiming time, energy and clarity. While written for a general audience, the book has particular resonance for women juggling competing demands, offering a clear framework for prioritisation, boundaries and intentional decision-making.

17 Fear Less Pippa Grange

“Pippa Grange has something to teach all of us when it comes to letting go of perfectionism and anxiety, and living with open hearts rather than clenched fists. Fear Less is a total game-changer.’ Brené Brown.”

 If we were truly free from fear, what could we achieve? We strive for success, but we are rarely happy. The more we try to win – putting on a brave face for work or family – the more we risk losing ourselves. And even reaching our goals can feel strangely hollow. The culprit? Fear. It makes us anxious, or shameful, or turns us into perfectionists. We pretend to be someone else while aiming for a status that’s never truly satisfying.

18 The Let Them Theory – Mel Robbins

How this could NOT be included? The book that everyone is reading (including yours truly) and talking about. 

Robbins argues that many people waste energy trying to control others’ reactions and behaviour. The “let them” mindset encourages detachment from external validation and unnecessary conflict. The book is about boundaries, emotional regulation, and personal agency across several key aspects of life. Pragmatic, refreshing and confidence-building.

Also recommended

19 Everything Is F*cked – Mark Manson

A refreshingly blunt take on meaning, acceptance and prioritisation. 

Manson blends humour with psychology to challenge conventional positivity and help readers focus on what truly matters. An deliciously irreverent exploration of hope, values and emotional decision-making in an uncertain world. Manson argues that modern anxiety isn’t caused by lack, but by misplaced beliefs about happiness, control and optimism. Drawing on psychology and philosophy, he challenges feel-good self-help and makes the case for grounded values, responsibility and acceptance rather than constant positivity.

20 Ikigai – Héctor García & Francesc Miralles

Ikigai explores the Japanese concept of purpose as the intersection of meaning, joy, and contribution. 

Through cultural observation, interviews, and lifestyle insights, the book links longevity with intention and community. It’s gentle, reflective, and philosophical rather than prescriptive. More about orientation to life than achievement.

21 Manifest(o): Unlock the life you deserve and find contentment in your everyday – Candice Braithwaite

Believing that you deserve abundance is the route to inviting it into your life. But what if your experiences so far have demonstrated the exact opposite? 

What does Manifesting look like if you’re not white, thin, traditionally pretty, or able-bodied? Candice has learnt to manifest the hard way and can teach you to do the same. Focusing on the four pillars of Wellness, Wealth, Love and Happiness, Candice’s customary no bullsh*t candour will guide you towards the life you desire and show you that manifesting can be for everyone, not just those to whom the universe has already been kind.

22 Tiny Habits: Why Starting Small Makes Lasting Change Easy – BJ Fogg

If Charles Duhigg and James Clear’s ‘habits classics’ weren’t enough for you, you might want to add this one to the list. Written by a pioneer in behaviour design, Tiny Habits shows how small behaviour shifts lead to big results — ideal for readers who want practical tools to transform routines.

23 You Become What You Think – Shubham Kumar Singh

A contemporary guide to the power of mindset, this book explores how our thoughts shape daily experience, habits, emotional wellbeing and relationships. 

Singh distils ideas from psychology, neuroscience and personal insight into accessible, bite-sized practices designed to increase self-awareness and intentional living. It’s particularly useful for readers newer to self-development who want practical tools for mental clarity and growth

OUR WORLD & SOCIAL INSIGHT

Top Picks

24 Men Explain Things to Me – Rebecca Solnit

Exquisitely written with grace and energy, this collection of essays is a sharp cultural analysis on gender and voice.

It has become a touchstone of the feminist movement, inspired the term ‘mansplaining’, and established Solnit as one of the leading feminist thinkers of our time, inspiring everyone from radical activists to Beyonce Knowles. From rape culture to mansplaining, from French sex scandals to marriage and the nuclear family, from Virginia Woolf to colonialism, Solnit delivers a fierce and incisive exploration of the issues that a patriarchal culture will not necessarily acknowledge as ‘issues’ at all. 

25 Noise – Daniel Kahneman, Olivier Sibony & Cass Sunstein

How noise (random variability in human judgement) distorts decisions, even among experts acting in good faith.

Drawing on behavioural science, it shows how inconsistency affects hiring, medicine, justice, and business. Unlike bias, noise is harder to see, but just as costly. Co-author of Freakonomics calls it “an absolutely brilliant investigation of a massive societal problem that has been hiding in plain sight.”

Also recommended

26 Freakonomics – Steven D. Levitt & Stephen J. Dubner 

Assume nothing. Question everything! This is the message at the heart of this rule-breaking, iconoclastic book that turned everyone’s view of the world upside-down and became an international multi-million-copy-selling phenomenon.

Now updated 20 years after its release, this atypical self-help book is worth reading for its provocative insights that sharpen curiosity and critical thinking.

WOMEN, IDENTITY, POWER & LIVED EXPERIENCE

Top Picks

27 The Heroine’s Journey, Woman’s Quest for Wholeness – Maureen Murdock

Murdock reframes the traditional hero’s journey through a female lens.

The Heroine’s Journey offers a map for women seeking psychological wholeness beyond cultural expectations, in a society where she has been defined according to masculine values. Drawing on cultural myths and fairy tales, ancient symbols and goddesses, and the dreams of contemporary women, Murdock illustrates the need for — and the reality of — feminine values in Western culture.

28 Revolting Women: Why midlife women are walking out, and what to do about it – Lucy Ryan 

Professional women over 50 are faced with a triple-whammy of discrimination: they are not male, young, or linear in their career paths. 

As a result, they are leaving corporate life and taking their career into their own hands. And with it, they take their abundant wisdom, energy and ambition. Drawing on new research by Dr Lucy Ryan that fills a longstanding data gap, this book shows that assumptions about declining midlife motivation and energy just aren’t true for women and reveals how you can retain and develop this invaluable talent pool with a better understanding of their challenges and a few simple changes.

29 Wise Power: Discover the Liberating Power of Menopause to Awaken Authority, Purpose and Belonging – Alexandra Pope & Sjanie Hugo Wurlitzer

Written with humour, fierce tenderness and practicality, Wise Power is a trailblazing guide to menopause, filled with nourishing wisdom and practical advice that restores the dignity of menopause. 

It’s time to redefine this pivotal time of life that is often mistakenly viewed as a health crisis that is ‘suffered from’ or ‘coped with’, and misinformation and myths around menopause can leave you feeling ignored and misunderstood. Wise Power is the radical new story of menopause – illuminating its power and potential. 

Also recommended

30 The Light We Carry – Michelle Obama

A reflective exploration of resilience, doubt and self-worth from a global figure. 

Obama’s mix of personal story and insight makes this a meaningful read for women seeking grounded leadership and self-confidence. Her emphasis is on everyday courage and self-trust, offering reassurance rather than instruction

If you missed them before, remember to check out the superb (whopping 42!)  recommendations we brought you in: https://shemalta.com/community/17-books-to-help-you-end-2024-and-start-2025-strong/ 

and 

https://shemalta.com/business/25-great-books-on-business-motivation-and-personal-development-for-summer-2024/

Who doesn’t love a list? At the start of the summer, we brought you a fantastic collection of reading recommendations on Personal and Business Development. Now, as we start wrapping up another year, we have a final fabulous feast of a blog post for you. What BETTER way to help you end 2024 and start 2025 than to treat you to another cracking cornucopia of book suggestions to inform, inspire and motivate you on this rollercoaster we call life. 

Whether it’s business success stories, eye-opening philosophies on health and happiness, helpful dives into focus and productivity, riveting insights into motivation and mindset or practical strategies for success…the following smorgasbord of book ideas has it all. 

New year, new books! So, read it and reap.

1. Awaken the Giant Within  – Tony Robbins

From the author: “I know that no matter where you are in your life, you want more! No matter how well you’re already doing or how challenged you now may be, deep inside you there lies a belief that your experience of life can and will be much greater than it already is. You are destined for your own unique form of greatness.” Awaken the Giant Within is the ultimate programme for improving the quality of every aspect of life, be it personal, business, physical or emotional. Focusing on the power of conscious decision-making, Robbins provides game-changing strategies and tools for taking control of one’s emotions, finances and relationships, with the goal of helping readers immediately become the masters of their own fate.

2. Creating Your Best Life: the Ultimate Life List Guide – Caroline Adams Miller & Michael B Frisch

For the first time, the science of positive psychology meets the science of goal accomplishment. Comprehensive and evidence-based, Creating Your Best Life breaks new ground in revealing how happiness and success are interconnected. With dozens of interactive exercises and quizzes, it helps readers identify their most cherished needs, ambitions, and wishes so they can take control of their environment and maximise their chances of success. The authors’ unique life list coaching provides step by step explanations of how to set goals in 16 key areas, inspire people to live their lives more consciously, productively, and joyfully.

3. Deep Work – Cal Newport

The concept of deep work is the ability to focus without distraction on a cognitively demanding task – making us better at what you do and enabling us to achieve more in less time. Developing a deep work practice is literally one of the most important habits to adopt, yet most people have lost this ability, instead spending their days in a frantic email and social media blur. This life-changing book presents a mix of cultural criticism, compelling manifesto and immediately actionable advice for cultivating focus and achieving success across all aspects of life. One of its key lessons is that it is wrong to view deep work as yet another thing to cram into the schedule. Instead, deciding to truly commit to it transforms your time, resulting in getting through shallow work faster, being more present in your home life and preventing wasted time from switching between tasks.

4. Delivering Happiness, a Path to Profits, Passion and Purpose – Tony Hsieh

Paying brand-new employees a four figure amount to quit, making customer service the responsibility of the entire company, focusing on company culture as the top priority,, encouraging employees to grow personally and professionally, seeking to change the world… These were all Tony Hsieh’s standard operating procedures as CEO of online retailer Zappos. Delivering Happiness is the New York Times and Wall Street Journal bestseller about how Tony Hsieh applied the science of happiness and Positive Psychology principles to building a company that achieved $1bn in annual gross merchandise sales and became the highest-ranking newcomer in Fortune magazine’s 2009 “Best Companies to Work For” list. Sharing the lessons he has learned from life and his many businesses, Hsieh shows how a very different kind of corporate culture is a powerful model for achieving success – and how by concentrating on the happiness of those around you, you can dramatically increase your own…

5. Getting Things Done: The Art of Stress-Free Productivity – David Allen

Author Daniel H. Pink, whose own book Drive made our previous list of 25 recommended books, says “I am a devout, card-carrying Getting Things Done true believer. The entire approach has boosted not only my productivity but also my wider well-being. But what amazes me just as much is how deeply GTD has taken hold around the world. . . . This is a genuine movement”. Since it was first published almost fifteen years ago, Allen’s book has earned the label of ‘Bible of personal and business productivity. It is now shorthand for an entire way of approaching professional and personal tasks and has spawned an entire culture of websites, organisational tools, seminars and offshoots. This updated version contains important perspectives on the new workplace.

6. The Examined Life, How We Lose and Find Ourselves – Stephen Groetz

Echoing Socrates’ statement that the unexamined life is not worth living, psychoanalyst Stephen Grosz draws on twenty-five years of work and over 50,000 hours of conversations to curate this illumination of the human experience. His book offers a collection of stories, including that of a woman who finds herself daydreaming as she returns home from a business trip, a young man who loses his wallet, the patient who points an unloaded gun at a police officer and the compulsive liar who convinces his wife he’s dying of cancer. The resulting journey will spark new ideas about who we are and why we do what we do.

7. Fear Less – Pippa Grange

We strive for success, only to realise that reaching our goals can actually feel strangely hollow. We aim for status that often turns out to be unsatisfying. The more we try to win – putting on a brave face for work or family – the more we risk losing ourselves and feeling unhappy. The culprit? Fear. It makes us anxious, shameful and can turn us into perfectionists. There is another way though…a way to find our true voice and win on our own terms. Building that open mindset is at the heart of this book by Dr Pippa Grange, the psychologist who helped the England football team reach the World Cup semi-finals for the first time in 28 years. Fear Less shows how we can find our real passions and deeper fulfilment by starting to shed fear and live without it (or less of it). Her simple manifesto enables us to replace stress with courage and connect with the people around us on a far deeper level. This type of success isn’t about trophies or beating others, it’s about winning at the very deepest level: from within. 

8. Good to Great – Jim Collins

Good to Great is a management book full of vital ideas that reads as well as a fast-paced novel and is widely regarded as one of the most important business books ever written. Can a good company become a great one? If so, how? After a five-year research project, Jim Collins concludes that good to great can and does happen. In this book, he uncovers the underlying variables that enable any type of organisation to make the leap from good to great while other organisations remain only good. Rigorously supported by evidence, his findings are surprising – at times even shocking – to the modern mind. 

9. Grit: Why passion and resilience are the secrets to success – Angela Duckworth

What goes through your head when you fall down? Grit scrubs away preconceptions about how far our potential can take us and solves the riddle of how those not likely to succeed in fact do. At a time when our collective notion of success has shrunk to the point of being unrecognisable, Duckworth demonstrates how passion and perseverance matter as much as talent and intelligence. Far from simply urging us to work harder for the sake of working harder, Grit offers a perspective about true success coming from devoting ourselves to joyful and purposeful endeavours. Through masterful storytelling, latest science and and real-life examples, Duckworth takes us on an eye-opening journey to discover the true qualities that lead to outstanding achievement, showing the significant role of grit in achieving long-term goals.  

10. The Miracle Morning: The 6 Habits That Will Transform Your Life Before 8AM – Hal Elrod

After surviving multiple near-death experiences, Elrod is living proof that we can all overcome our challenges and make an impact in the world. His three million copies bestseller now occupies its place in the self development hall of fame, alongside Atomic Habits, The 5am Club and Make Your Bed. Elrod’s principle philosophy that getting everything we want out of life isn’t about doing more…it’s about becoming more. His revolutionary S.A.V.E.R.S. methodology is a simple yet effective step-by-step process to transform one’s life in as little as six minutes per day, by incorporating silence, affirmations, visualisation, exercise, reading and scribing. Try it and see for yourself!

11. The Myth of Normal, Gabor Maté

The Myth of Normal delivers a groundbreaking investigation into the causes of illness and a pathway to health and healing. Nearly 70% of Americans are on at least one prescription drug, one in five Canadians has high blood pressure and hypertension is diagnosed in more than 30% of Europe’s population. And everywhere, adolescent mental illness is on the rise. Renowned physician Gabor Maté and his son Daniel dissect these alarming rates of chronic illness and general poor health in Western countries that pride themselves on their healthcare systems. For all its expertise and technological sophistication, Western medicine often fails to treat the whole person, ignoring how modern culture stresses the body, burdens the immune system and undermines emotional balance. This book explores how our society breeds disease, challenges the prevailing understanding of ‘normal’ and uncovers the overlooked connection between trauma, stress and modern life’s pressures and our mental and physical health.

12. Outliers, The Story of Success –  Malcolm Gladwell

Outliers will change the way you think about your own life story and about what makes us all unique. Gladwell overturns conventional wisdom about genius to show us what makes an ordinary person an extreme overachiever. Why do some people achieve so much more than others? Can they lie so far out of the ordinary? In this provocative and inspiring book, Malcolm Gladwell looks at everyone from rock stars to professional athletes, software billionaires to scientific geniuses to show that the story of success is far more surprising and fascinating than we could ever have realised. It is as much about where we are from and what we do, as who we are and that nobody – not even a genius – ever makes it alone. 

13. The Power of Now – Eckhart Tolle

Described by Oprah as essential spiritual teaching and one of the most valuable books she’s ever read, this guide to fulfillment and happiness has sold 16 millions copies since its 2001 release. The Power of Now talks about leaving our analytical minds, false created selves, and egos behind as part of the quest to create a liberated life. To facilitate this journey of self discovery and renewal, Tolle provides a simply-worded question and answer format that shows how to silence our thoughts and learn to live in the present moment – achieving a deeper sense of peace and fulfillment. 

14. Stop Overthinking, The Path to Calm – Nick Trenton

Overthinking is the biggest cause of unhappiness, trapping overthinkers in a never-ending thought loop and creating an exhausting mental prison of anxiety and stress. In Stop Overthinking, acclaimed author Nick Trenton walks readers through detailed, proven techniques to help rewire the brain, control one’s thoughts and change mental habits. The book provides scientific approaches that completely change the way we think and feel about ourselves by ending vicious thought patterns. This must-read is designed to help you stay present and keep your mind off things that don’t matter…and never will!

15. Thinking fast and slow – Daniel Kahneman

This groundbreaking psychology classic has sold over 10 million copies and changed the way we think about thinking. Distilling his life’s work and revolutionising our understanding of human behaviour, Nobel Prize-winning Kahneman (described as the godfather of behavioural science by Sunday Times) shows that there are two ways we make choices: fast, intuitive thinking and slow, rational thinking. His book reveals how our minds are tripped up by error, bias and prejudice (even when we think we are being logical) and gives practical techniques that enable us all to improve our decision-making. Exploring the marvels and limitations of the human mind, this book analyses why we make the decisions we do, impacting how we see ourselves. 

16. Tools of Titans: The Tactics, Routines, and Habits of Billionaires, Icons, and World-Class Performers – Timothy Ferriss

Author of bestselling The 4-Hour Workweek, The 4-Hour Body, and The 4-Hour Chef, Tim Ferris has been dubbed “the Oprah of audio” due to the influence of his 100M-plus-download podcast The Tim Ferriss Show. Ferriss has talked to nearly 200 world-class performers from super celebs and athletes to legendary Special Ops commanders and black-market biochemists for his podcast. Tools of Titans contains the distilled tactics, life lessons and habits that his interviewees have shared. The focus is on actionable details, reflected in questions such as ‘what do these people do in the first sixty minutes of each morning?’, ‘what books have they gifted most to other people?’, ‘what are the biggest wastes of time for novices in their field?’. Ferriss has vetted, explored and applied these tips to his own life in numerous ways. Now his readers can too. 

17. Rest Is Resistance: Free yourself from grind culture and reclaim your life – Tricia Hersey

Tricia Hersey is an artist, poet, theologian and community organiser. She is the founder of The Nap Ministry, an organisation that examines rest as a form of resistance by curating sacred spaces for the community to rest via Collective Napping Experiences, immersive workshops, performance art installations and social media. Rest is Resistance looks at the liberating power of rest as a portal through which we return to ourselves. This revolutionary book illuminates certain critical truths, helping readers become aware of the toxic systems of our times, encouraging them to no longer accept living at a machine pace. Hersey offers us rest not instead of the incredible work we are doing but shows us that our dream space is sacred and rest is how we reclaim access to the wisdom there. 

We hope that these recommendations provide at least one must-read that helps you think constructively about the year ahead, set goals for work or simply open your mind to new concepts and information. Happy reading!

Got any book recommendations of your own that you’d like to suggest for one of our future lists? We’d love to hear from you! Message us on: Instagram or Facebook

It’s that time of the year again.  When Malta’s sandy coastline disappears under a carpet of suntents, towels, beach mats and swimsuited bodies.  When eating ice cream for breakfast seems perfectly acceptable and flip flops are  the only footwear worth considering.  When leaving the house without sunglasses is like going out naked…and air con and a 24/7 supply of iced water become entirely responsible for your life’s happiness.  

Whether you’re sheltering at home/the office until the cooler months return, making good use of your own pool (lucky thing), planning the great escape abroad or are an avid beachlover who can’t get enough of the Maltese summer, we’ve compiled a superb list of book recommendations to see you through summer 2024…wherever you are spending it!  Not a ‘typical’ holiday reading list of tear-inducing romance novels or heart pounding thrillers.  Instead, true to the spirit and purpose of SHE Malta, these books intended to inspire, educate and empower you in life and/or business.  AND the extra large cherry on top, several are specifically written for women by women – for which we owe SHE member Mireille Pelligrini Petit a big thank you for her recommendations. 

Many of these books are international bestsellers.  Some less well known.  All are by experts who have truly lived, worked, studied and experienced.  (Several have accompanying workbooks to help you apply what you have read to your own life.)

So check out this list of 25 Great Books on Business, Motivation and Personal Development for Summer 2024.

1. The 5 AM Club: Own Your Morning. Elevate Your Life – Robin Sharma

A transformational book that is part manifesto for mastery, part playbook for genius-grade productivity and part companion for a beautiful life in this age of overwhelming complexity.

This multimillion-selling phenomenon was inspired by Sharma’s 20 plus years as a leadership and performance expert, helping clients maximise their productivity, health and serenity thanks to a revolutionary early-rising concept: the 5am Club.  Using the less common self development format of a story (in this case, two strangers meeting a tycoon who becomes their mentor), Sharma introduces readers to the daily morning routine habit that has helped countless people accomplish results with overall happiness, purpose and feelings of aliveness.

2. The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People  – Stephen R. Covey  

Described as one of the most inspiring and impactful books ever written, this book has sold 40 millions copies over 30 years and  guided generations of readers in understanding the seven core habits for achieving personal and professional effectiveness.

Presidents and CEOs have kept it by their bedsides, students have studied passages from it, teachers and parents have drawn from it and individuals of all ages and occupations have used it to adapt to and benefit from change.

3. 10x Is Easier Than 2x: How World-Class Entrepreneurs Achieve More by Doing Less – Dan Sullivan & Benjamin Hardy

Dan Sullivan, the world’s leading coach for highly successful entrepreneurs, wants you to know that achieving 10X growth is exponentially easier than striving for 2X growth. 

Most find this idea confusing at first because simply imagining 10X growth causes them to think they need to do 10X more work to achieve it. However, being a 10X entrepreneur is nothing like what most people think.  10X is fundamentally about quality vs quantity, and the quality of your freedoms determines the results you achieve.

4. Atomic Habits – James Clear

This brilliantly titled book is becoming a bible in the self development world, selling 5 million copies and being translated into 30 languages.  And not without good reason. 

Clear by surname and clear by writing style, this author delivers a logical and implementable framework for creating good habits, breaking bad ones and mastering tiny behaviours that all stack up to create remarkable results.  Packed with easy to follow diagrams and further resources by the author, Clear discusses the power of small changes and how they compound over time.  An absolute must-read.

5. The Confidence Code – Katty Kay & Claire Shipman

Working women today are better educated and qualified than ever before. Yet men still predominate in the corporate world.  Shipman and Kay propose that the key reason is confidence.  

Based on cutting-edge research in genetics, gender, behaviour and cognition plus their own experiences and those of successful women in politics, media, and business, Kay and Shipman go beyond telling women to ‘lean in’ [see below!].  Offering the inspiration and practical advice that women need to close the gap and achieve the careers they want and deserve, this book helps women fight self-doubt and increase confidence.

6. Dare to Lead – Brené Brown  

One of SHE member Mireille’s own all time favourites, presenting Brown’s work on vulnerability, courage, shame and their connection with leadership. 

No list on self development literature is complete without mentioning this trailblazing author (and it was tough choosing only one of her works).  Leadership is not about titles, status and power over people. Leaders are people who hold themselves accountable for recognising the potential in people and ideas and developing that potential. This is a book for everyone who is ready to choose courage over comfort, make a difference and lead.

[Also by this author: Daring Greatly, The Gifts of Imperfection.]

7. Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us – Daniel H. Pink  

The human need to learn, create and to do better by ourselves is the real driver of motivation and productivity. 

Forget everything you thought you knew about how to motivate people – at work, at school, at home. It is wrong.  Pink shatters the common paradigm and shares the secret to high performance and satisfaction in today’s world.  Along the way, he takes us to companies that are enlisting new approaches to motivation and introduces us to the scientists and entrepreneurs who are pointing a bold way forward.

8. The Female Vision – Sally Helgesen and Julie Johnson 

Supporting women in finding their voice and trusting in themselves to speak up about what they notice and what their vision is – for the benefit of their organisation.

Women and men not only see things differently—they also see different things.  Men generally think in bottom line, linear terms while women usually have an empathetic awareness of interpersonal factors.  Both qualities are important, yet organisations only reward traditionally male points of view.  Delving into the stories of women whose vision improved their companies – amidst unresponsive organisations, dismissive managers and their own personal fears – the authors highlight an essential yet underutilised asset within most companies: the female perspective.  

9. Fierce Self Compassion: How Women Can Use Self-Compassion to Stand Up, Claim Their Power, and Speak the Truth – Kristin Neff

Why it is more urgent than ever that women acknowledge their areas of suffering, celebrate their inner voice and challenge the male-orientated status quo.

Drawing on Neff’s own experiences and those of other women, this books shows how women can harness self-compassion to gain the strength, clarity and courage needed to be resilient and stand up for themselves in a male-dominated society.  Exploring gender differences, reasons why women aren’t more compassionate towards themselves and what women do for love, this book also provides concrete tools and easy-to-follow mindfulness practices to empower women to let go of self-criticism, draw boundaries and become fierce.

10. The Four Agreements – Don Miguel Ruiz

Ruiz presents four simple yet profound agreements, based on ancient Toltec wisdom, for a new code of conduct leading to personal freedom and a fulfilling life.

Addressing self-limiting beliefs that rob us of joy and create needless suffering, this is a practical guide that can help people turn their lives around.

11. Good Vibes, Good Life: How Self-Love Is the Key to Unlocking Your Greatness – Vex King

Overcoming adversity (and becoming a source of hope for millions of people), King draws from his own experience to show how when we change the way we think, feel, speak and act, we begin to change the world.

Self-care, conquering toxic energy, lifestyle habits, mindfulness and meditation, changing belief systems, manifestation, challenging fears and flowing with the Universe…  It’s all here.

12. The Happiness Advantage: The Seven Principles of Positive Psychology that Fuel Success and Performance at Work – Shawn Achor

Based on the largest study ever conducted on happiness and human potential showing that success comes from shifting the ‘happiness-success’ formula around.

When it comes to the pursuit of success and happiness, most people assume the same formula: if you work hard, you will become successful, and once you become successful, then you’ll be happy.  The only problem is that a decade of cutting-edge research in the field of positive psychology has proven that this formula is backwards…

13. How to Meet Yourself, a Workbook for Self Discovery – Dr Nicole LePera

By a leading voice in psychological self-healing – who has helped millions rise out of survival mode and ‘stuckness’ –  this incredible workbook is designed to help uncover one’s highest self and create a truly lovable life.

Our conditioned habits can cause stagnation, pain and self-destruction.  Dr LePera shows it’s within us to wake up to and change the behaviours no longer serving us.  Through objective and compassionate observation of our current default settings – including sleep, movement, eating, emotional reactivity and core beliefs – this interactive guide is like an encouraging companion helping us recognise the physical, mental and emotional patterns we don’t want to carry into the future.  Radical self-understanding for an improved inner self and relationship with the outer world.

[Also by this author: How to Do the Work.]  

14. How Women Rise – Sally Helgesen & Marshall Goldsmith

A powerful read that talks about breaking the 12 common habits that hold women back.

Do you hesitate about putting forward ideas?  Are you reluctant to claim credit for your achievements?  Do you find it difficult to get the support you need from your boss or the recognition you deserve from your colleagues?  If your answer to any of these is yes, this book will help get you back on track.  Inspiring and practical by turns, it identifies the common obstacles females face in ensuring future success and tells you how to overcome them.  In the process, it points the way to a career that will satisfy your ambitions and help you make the difference you want to make in the world.

15. Lean In – Sheryl Sandberg

Described as a landmark manifesto for women by the NYT, this bestseller launched a movement and ignited global conversations about privilege, gender issues and systemic barriers.

Facebook COO Sandberg draws on her own business experience to show how women can empower themselves, unlock top leadership roles and achieve their full potential.  Selling 4 million copies, Lean In also polarised readers with its stance on personal responsibility in overcoming workplace challenges being viewed by many as downplaying systemic and structural barriers and seemingly shifting the blame for lack of female professional advancement onto women themselves.  Sandberg’s perspective as a high-ranking executive at a major multinational  has been called impractical for the broader population of working women whose experience is defined by the power dynamics and corporate cultures that propagate inequality.  A book sparking widespread media coverage

16. Make Your Bed – Admiral William H. McRaven

“A book to inspire your children and grandchildren to become everything that they can.” The Wall Street Journal

Struggling to find structure?  Finding yourself lacking motivation?  Start by making your bed.  

Maintaining routine and structure is more important than ever in the age of home working, digital distractions and life’s overall busy-ness.  McRaven shares the 10 life lessons he learned as a Navy Seal that helped him overcome challenges in work and life.  His book is intended to help you master essential habits for staying grounded, keep your mind calm and ready for the day ahead, find solace and companionship in the people around you, cope with setbacks and keep moving forward and stray beyond your comfort zone and take risks

17. Mindset: The New Psychology of Success – Carol S. Dweck  

A compelling look at two different mindsets and how these impact every aspect of our lives.

Dweck explains why a person’s mindset is as relevant as their talent and abilities to their chances of success and happiness.  Demonstrating a fixed versus a growth mindset, she places the praise of intelligence and ability under the microscope, analysing self-esteem, accomplishment and other factors that can actually jeopardise success. As Mireille, SHE member says, “Carol Dweck is the guru on fostering growth mindsets in our relationships, parenting, schools and businesses to help everyone grow and develop”.

18. The Power of Habit: Why We Do What We Do and How to Change – Charles Duhigg

Why can some people and companies change overnight and some stay stuck in their old ruts?  The answer lies deep in the human brain and this book reveals the secret pressure points that can change a life. 

Adopting a storytelling style, Duhigg explores the science of habit formation and change from a psychological aspect.  This book is especially helpful for people who want to understand why they have certain habits or have difficulty sticking with new habits.  Duhigg explores the incredible results of keystone habits and how they can make all the difference between billions and millions, failure and success – or even life and death.

19. The Rules of People – Richard Templar 

We all know someone who’s a natural ‘people person’; they seem to communicate effortlessly with any type of person, getting them onside in any situation. What’s their secret – and can the rest of us learn it?  

Well, they know the rules of people and yes you can know them too.  In this personal code for getting the best from everyone, Templar lays down fundamental guiding principles to help us connect with strangers, build stronger relationships with our friends and colleagues and even get through to difficult people.  Few books are laid out as simply and logically as this; each ‘rule’ is brilliantly explained on two short pages with one standout summary line underneath. 

20. Start with Why – Simon Sinek  

Based on one of the most-watched TED Talks ever.  Finding the purpose, cause, belief that inspires you to do what you do.

“Those who have had the greatest influence in the world all think, act, and communicate in the same way – and it’s the opposite to most.”  Sinek explores why some individuals and organisations are more innovative, influential and profitable than others.  Drawing on the stories of Steve Jobs, Ernest Shackleton and the Wright brothers, Sinek uncovers the fundamental secret of their success.  How you lead, inspire, live, it all starts with why.

21. The Stress Test – Ian Robertson

A revelatory study of how and why we react to pressure the way we do and how the right level of challenge can help us flourish and achieve more than we ever thought possible.  

Why is it that some people react to seemingly trivial emotional upset with distress while others power through life-changing tragedies? How do some shine brilliantly at public speaking while others seem on the verge of an anxiety attack?  Why do some people sink into all-consuming depression when life has dealt them a poor hand while this merely increases resilience in others?  Psychologist and cognitive neuroscientist Professor Robertson reveals how we can shape our brain’s response to pressure and answers the question: can stress ever be a good thing? 

22. Surrounded by Idiots – Thomas Erikson

An eye-opening, and often hilarious, read to help improve dynamics in one’s personal and professional life.  

Opening with a hilarious and true anecdote, this simply written and fascinating read contains a groundbreaking theory on understanding people’s behaviour.  Inspired by the unique method that Erikson has been using to assist organisations and individuals, by identifying and understanding four core personality types, this book provides fascinating insights on how to tune into different personalities better, understand yourself better, confidently handle conflict and get the best out of the people you deal with and manage.

23. Think Like a Monk – Jay Shetty

Shetty (host of the #1 podcast ‘On Purpose’) distils the timeless wisdom he learned as a practising Vedic monk into practical steps anyone can take to live a less anxious, more meaningful life.

This book reveals how to overcome negative thoughts and habits (the roadblocks to our potential and power) to access inner calm and purpose.  Shetty transforms the abstract lessons he learned in the ashram into practical advice and exercises that can be applied to reduce stress, improve focus, identify our hidden abilities and increase self-discipline.  

24. Tomorrowmind – Thrive at Work with Resilience, Creativity and Connection, Now and in an Uncertain Future – Gabriella Rosen Kellerman and Martin Seligman

A guide, from two authorities in workplace mental health, to re-humanising the workplace in order to bring about greater personal success and corporate productivity.  

Workplace toxicity, industry volatility, employee isolation and technology-driven change are increasingly threatening the psychological well-being of employees. The rise of quiet quitting proves that not being able to flourish at work deeply impacts personal success and corporate productivity.  Based on the science of thriving, Tomorrowmind  provides actionable advice on resilience, foresight and creativity for succeeding in an uncertain environment and cultivating a workplace of connection and meaning for everyone. 

25. What Happened to You? Conversations on Trauma, Resilience, and Healing – Oprah Winfrey & Dr Bruce Perry

Winfrey and Dr. Perry challenge us to move from asking “what’s wrong with you?” or “why are you behaving that way?” to asking “what happened to you?”. 

Trauma and adversity experienced in childhood is a powerful predictor of the people we become in adulthood and the risks to our physical and mental health problems down the road.  With scientific insights into the patterns of behaviours so many struggle to understand, this book offers a simple perspective shift that can open up a new understanding of why we do the things we do, why we are the way we are – and ultimately provide a road map for repairing relationships, overcoming what seems insurmountable, and ultimately living better days.

There you have it.  Practical advice, inspirational stories, biographical experiences and theoretical frameworks to help you grow both personally and professionally…  We hope at least a few of the above selections resonate with you and make worthy additions to your beach bag, aeroplane carry-on or home sunbed this summer.

Happy reading and happy summer from SHE!