I read several business books each year. It has been awhile since I have read a book that will have a profound effect on me both personally and professionally. This book was recommended to me this past summer. I read it then and just started reading it a 2nd time as part of a group book club. It is called Atomic Habits by James Clear. I used it as the basis for our January Team Meeting at O’Connor Insurance Associates.
The first chapter poses the question “Does massive success require massive action?” It is such a thought-provoking question on so many levels. If you are in business for yourself and working hard every day to grow and take business to the next level, you probably understand why I thought this question was so intriguing. It is the kind of question that keeps me up at night.
The author goes on to make the case that by getting 1% better every day you will experience exceptional growth based on positive compounding. He also makes a case for goals that we set being a navigational tool but the actual systems we create being the way to achieve the goals. Being a systems junkie, this makes perfect sense to me and gained my buy in right away. I am fascinated by one of the concepts the author uses that illustrates an “overnight success.” In business we have all heard the stories of people who just woke up massively successful with businesses ready to be sold for millions right? The author paints the picture that what we don’t see with these overnight successes is all the things they did day in and day out leading up to their massive breakthrough to make them a success. That by not giving up but rather continuing to refine their systems they appeared to be an overnight success. Really interesting thing to think about.
This book is really a breath of fresh air in what can be a crowded business book arena. It is an easy read and is so interesting it is hard to put down. I encourage you to put it on your reading list for 2020. Let me know what you think.
