6 Personal Development Books that will Totally Change You (in a seriously good way!)

There are seriously so many personal development books to choose from. And for some reason, all those options can be a bit intimidating if you’re new to the self-growth space.

Are you looking to lean into self-improvement? Maybe you’ve had enough of your current lifestyle. Or you’re just ready for a refresh and a change. Maybe you need to work on yourself to gain the confidence to try that new thing! Or maybe you want to become the very best version of yourself.

I like to consider myself an authority on personal development. I’ve created a whole blog around it! So if you’re not sure where to start for self-help type books with all the recommendations out there, I’ve gotcha covered.

If you want to dip your toes into some self-growth books, you’re in the right place!

By the end of this post, you’ll learn about 6 books for self-discovery which will allow you to further dig into who you really are to cultivate confidence and growth in your identity.

Okay, let’s get to the personal development books! I’m giving you my recommendations based on what I’ve read and loved recently!

This post may contain affiliate links which means I’ll receive a commission if you purchase through my links, at no extra cost to you. Please read full disclosure for more information.

Why Even Read Self-Help Books?

There are a lot of phrases I’ve already mentioned:

• Self-help
• Self-growth
• Self-discovery
• Self-improvement 
• Personal development
• Personal growth

The list goes on, but what do these words have in common? A hyphen.

Just kidding!

What these words have in common is that the goal is to improve and grow within yourself in some way. And actually, that’s the whole point of my blog! To grow within yourself so you can go out in this world and inspire others to do the same!

You may feel the inclination to read personal development books if you’re in a rut in life. Maybe you’re looking to start something new, like a blog, a new job, or a new hobby! Or maybe you’re tired of the way you’ve been living. Maybe you lack a good routine, a healthy lifestyle, or feel empty.

For When You Feel Empty

Side note:

If you feel empty, I recommend starting by looking at your spiritual wellness. I write a lot about my faith, and that’s where I’d love to see you start if you feel a big ol’ hole in your heart. God is who can fill that hole completely! Not self-help books. Self-help books are helpful, but not soul-filling.

But if you’re just looking for a refresh and growth in other areas besides faith, I love the idea of incorporating self-improvement books into your repertoire! 

Self-growth books can stir in you a desire to grow and maybe even change!

Related reading: How to Grow Your Faith While Navigating your Mental Health Journey: with Brandi Kepley of Unfinished Grace

You Don’t Have to Take One Book’s Opinion as Gospel!

I do want to add this note though:

When I read any given book, I sometimes accidentally think that I have to adopt that exact way of thinking. Let me remind you (and ME) that we can take the contents of a book at face value. Take what we like, and not ascribe to anything we don’t like.

Personal Development Books are One Piece of the Puzzle (H3)

I’m absolutely encouraging you to add reading for growth to your tool box, but know it’s just one piece of the pie.

Reading self-growth books isn’t a cure all. It’s not going to fix everything in your life all at once. It’s one thing you can add in to help you learn and grow.

| Related Reading: How to Change Your Life Completely: 57 Powerful Tips to Inspire You

You can choose to learn about coping strategies, a growth mindset, career help, entrepreneurship, confidence building, body image, or any other number of things.

I firmly believe that knowledge is power and reading self-improvement books is a wonderful way to broaden your knowledge and dig deeper into issues and concepts that matter to you! 

I also believe that reading a variety of authors is helpful so that you can experience a variety of perspectives and ideologies!

So why read personal development books? 

• To discover more about yourself and who you are and what you believe and ascribe to.
• To invest in yourself and become a lifelong learner about topics that matter to you.

My Recommendations for  Personal Development Books

Own Your Every Day by Jordan Lee Dooley

Problem it solves:

• Not knowing your purpose in life
• Feeling lost as far as what to do with your life
• Trying to plan out the path for your life when you aren’t sure how or what direction to go in

Pros: What I Liked and How it Helped Me

Okay, this book completely changed my perspective on life. And I don’t say that lightly. This just might be my favorite book I’ve ever read!

You see, I used to have the perspective that I needed to have it aaaaaall figured out. I thought that my career was my purpose.

This book untangled that confusion for me. My career isn’t my purpose. What I do for a living to make income isn’t the end-all be-all. My purpose is actually a heck of a lot larger than that.

And this book clarified that there’s really no such thing as “getting it right” as far as your path and your purpose. 

I’m including this book in my list of personal development books because Jordan Lee Dooley breaks down what your purpose actually is and how it’s really not tied to a job or any external title or role. And that’s instrumental for your personal development!

Cons:

This isn’t necessarily a con, just a “I gotta letcha know” kind of thing.

Jordan Lee Dooley is a Christian, and that comes through in her writing. The lessons and insights are often faith-based I love that, because I’m also a Christian, but since we’re talking about self-development, I figured it was worth mentioning. 

That being said, even if you’re not a Christian, I would still recommend reading this book, THAT’S how good it is! 

This Book is For You if:

• You tie your worth to your job/titles and roles you have in life
• You need help with the next steps for your life
• You’re in a transitional phase (graduating, becoming a wife or mother, starting a career)
• You’re a Christian and you’re feeling lost/you don’t understand God’s plan for you
• You’re not a Christian and you feel lost about your plan for your life

Get Own Your Everyday

Woman Code by Alisa Vitti

Problem it Solves:

• Your hormones being out of whack
• Your cycle being out of whack, your mood being off, fertility issues, low sex drive
• Lack of knowledge about how your hormones work and how big a part they play in your health
• Intake of too many toxins through products we use and things we eat
• In short- feeling like crap!

Pros: What I Liked and How it Helped Me

This book opened my eyes- like I mean reeeeealllly opened them. I had no idea how big a role my hormones play in my overall health and wellbeing. 

I really loved that this book broke things down so well. Alisa Vitti has a whole 4-step “protocol” for improving your health. And the first part of it is all about growing your knowledge of your body and all it’s innerworkings.

She discusses toxins, how to avoid them, how toxins affect your endocrine system, and more.

What I liked most was that she breaks down each of the 4 phases of our cycles, and how to literally optimize each one. Meaning, she tells you what to eat and how to exercise within each of the 4 phases of your cycle, so that you’re doing things that your body needs and craves in each phase.

Crazy right?! She calls it being “in the flow” and working WITH your body! There’s actually a better time of the month to ask for a promotion, and a better time to do creative work based on where you’re at in your cycle. It’s kind of crazy!

I’m including this book in this personal development books list because I think it’s foundational knowledge we need to be our best selves! We can work with our bodies so we’re not perpetually exhausted and burnt out!

When we can get into this “flow state,” we can then implement the teachings and practices of other personal development books even better!

Cons:

This book is a tad “science-heavy” in a way. But seriously noooothing to be scared of at all.

The author does a crazy good job of breaking big concepts down that are likely new to most women! (Middle school health class really failed us.)

Sure the concepts as far as your body may be new to you and you may want to re-read a paragraph or two, but that’s nothing to shy away from! 

I’m actually planning to re-read this entire book. So much was new to me, and I want to better internalize it so I can use it to further improve my wellness!

This Book is for You if:

• You want to improve your knowledge of how to invest in your health
• You want to get a handle on your health
• You have painful periods
• You’re struggling with infertility
• You want to maximize your health and live a fuller life

Get Woman Code!

Period Repair Manual by Lara Briden

Problem it Solves:

• Your doctor brushing off your problems
• Lack of understanding about womens health
• Bad periods (irregular, painful, and more)
• Undiagnosed symptoms relating to your period and reproductive system
• How to naturally treat PCOS, endometriosis, and more

Pros: What I Liked and How it Helped Me

This book helped me understand that periods shouldn’t be painful! Also that periods on the pill are not real periods, and that hormonal birth control is wreaking havoc on my body!

What I really liked is the data to back all of the info up. The author is a naturopathic doctor, and at first, I was unsure of what that really meant. 

Basically, the difference is that a naturopathic doctor treats the underlying cause of the symptom, while a regular doctor simply treats the symptom (like just putting a bandage on).

I like the perspective of a naturopathic doctor a lot better! It’s like we’re really getting down to the nitty gritty, finding the cause, and treating it naturally. It’s incredible really.

I especially liked the natural approach. Lara Briden walks you through how to use food, nutritional supplements, herbal medicine, and your own hormones to heal yourself.

It’s not just a slap-a-bandage-on-it approach. It’s a get-to-the-actual-problem approach. How refreshing!

I’m including this book in my list of recommendations for personal development books because I strongly believe that health is a big part of developing who we are so we can grow!

Cons:

This book reads a bit more like a textbook at times. It’s not the kind of book you curl up on the couch and get cozy with. It’s the kind of book you read during the day when you’re fully alert and have a highlighter handy.

This book took me a while to read because it’s packed with some serious info! Don’t let the fact that this book is a little dense stop you, though. Read it in small sections! Or even skip to the parts that are most interesting. 

Since it’s not like a novel, you can absolutely jump to the chapters that are most relevant to you and skip what’s not.

This Book is for You if:

• You want to learn more about how your body works
• You want to take control of your health
• You want to understand your period better
• You want to reduce certain symptoms relating to women’s health

Get Period Repair Manual!

Embrace Your Almost by Jordan Lee Dooley

Problem it Solves:

• Not being where you want in life
• Coming up short of goals you set
• Almost accomplishing something but not quite getting there

Pros: What I Liked and How it Helped Me

I LOVE Jordan Lee Dooley as an author and content creator! She also has a podcast called She that I also totally recommend!

Her book Embrace Your Almost helped me remember that unmet expectations aren’t actually the worst thing in the world. They can actually help us reevaluate what we want and what’s important to us.

I really liked the focus this book had on creating a life we love even in the midst of hardship and in the middle of where we are and where we want to be. 

Changing or letting go of goals and dreams isn’t always bad, and this book taught me that!

I can’t say enough about how applicable this book is. The author uses personal stories to share her points, but they’re also laid out in a very organized, outline-type structure which makes it super easy to follow along and see the application for my life.

I’m including this book in the list because personal development is chock full of ups and downs and in-betweens. And this is the exact encouragement we need to pick up and keep pushing forward toward growth.

Cons:

This book discusses some serious hardships and loss. I’d add in a trigger warning about miscarriage too. 

These are not bad things, I just want you to be aware of the heavy topics within the cover.

This Book is for You if:

• Your life isn’t going the way you wanted or planned
• You’ve experienced some serious setbacks, loss, or pain
• You always come up short when working toward a goal
• You have lots of “almost but not quite” situations in your life that leave you feeling discouraged
• You need help clarifying goals for your life

Get Embrace Your Almost!

How Are You Really? by Jenna Kutcher

Problem it Solves:

• Not feeling fulfilled by the life you’re living
• Others/the world impressing their own desires for YOUR life
• Living a life that doesn’t feel like your own
• Unsure of your identity
• You need a kick in the pants to get your butt in gear to start living a life you love

Pros: What I Liked and How it Helped Me

I’m actually currently reading this book! I’m about half way through, but I’m still recommending it because the first half alone is worth it! The first half is Part 1, and there are two more smaller parts after that.

Part one helps you uncover who you actually are, then part 2 is about discovering “who you have” and part 3 is about what to do about it all.

This book has helped me put into perspective what my self-talk looks like, how to not care about what I’m “supposed to be doing” according to society, that I’m allowed to change my mind, and I’m stinking allowed to make time for fun!

I really like how Jenna uses so many stories to share her lessons, too! It’s like a mentor or mature friend helping you a long the way.

I’m including this book in my list because it’s the quintessential self-disocvery book! And discovering who exactly we are and becoming confident in that person (then loving that person) is a seriously big part of personal development.

Cons:

This book is chock full of inspo! I will say, some of it is things we already know and have heard before, but her perspective on it makes it worth hearing again!

This Book is for You if:

• You don’t really know who you are, what you love, or what to do in life
• You need inspiration/a reminder about what’s actually important in life
• You’ve pushed down feelings of discontentment for a while
• You’re not happy and don’t know what to do
• You want to dig deeper into your identity and understand who you really are

Get How Are You Really?

The Joy of Missing Out by Tanya Dalton

Problem it Solves:

• Being crazy busy
• Feeling overwhelmed with your life
• Feeling burnt out

Pros: What I Liked and How it Helped Me

What I liked most about this book is that it comes with a downloadable guide that provides exercise to go along with the chapters! I printed it out and had it handy when I was reading.

I like this because so often, I read a book but don’t put things into practice. The guide helps you do just that!

This book seriously helped me to realize that being busy is not the goal. Busyness isn’t something to be idealized. Productivity is totally different than being busy all the time. And being busy is actually for the birds!

Tanya discusses her unique view on priorities, and how there actually is no such thing as balance. Her philosophy is actually super profound here!

She covers so many practical tips to create and streamline these “systems” into your life. It’s helped me create a cleaning system, believe it or not! And also realize that saying yes to everything is a recipe for burnout.

I’m including this book in my list of personal development books because this is seriously the ultimate guide to get your life together in a way. It’s about productivity but the author approaches it in such a tangible and doable way!

How can we be our best selves if we’re strung out on energy-draining daily tasks that aren’t even meaningful or important for our lives? This book is 100% self-improvement!

Cons:

There are a ton of practical tips and takeaways which I LOVE. But I will say, this is the kind of book where you read a chapter or two, then pause to implement things. Then pick up the book again later. 

It’s not the kind of book you breeze through, simply because there are so many helpful applications!

This Book is for You if:

• You’re caught up in the hustle bustle of life, or worse- the hustle culture
• Your priorities are all over the place and you’re spending time on things that aren’t “moving the needle” toward where you want to be
• You want to simplify your life

Get The Joy of Missing Out!

BONUS: A guide to simplifying your morning routine

Swipe my free habit tracker which will totally simplify your morning!

Be sure to check your spam or promotional folder in your email for this.

Action Steps for Personal Development

I’m giving you one simple action step.

You read this post because you’re interested in personal development books and you want to grow as a person in one area or another (maybe health, career, relationships, home life, etc.).

So, I want you to scroll back up and pick one book from the list of 6 above, and just take the plunge and get it! 

And don’t just get it and let it sit on your nightstand for 3 months. Crack that bad boy open and read, girl! 

You’re just a book or two away from a wider, more hopeful perspective. You’re probably only a few chapters away from some knowledge you didn’t have before! And isn’t that what self-growth and self-improvement are all about?!

What I don’t want is for you to get overwhelmed by all the information out there. That’s why this isn’t a list of the 101 best self-help books out there. It’s just six. So there will be now decision paralysis here, friend!

Let’s Bring it Home

You’ve got a list of 6 books and all the pros and cons of each. I’m sure there was at least one bullet point that stuck out to you from the “this book is for you if…” section.

You want to grow as a person, you want to broaden your horizons and gain new perspectives, so go do it! There’s nothing stopping you!

You have the power to grow and change. You get to decide what information you take in. You pick the book! And you’ll see the growth!

Happy reading my friend.

Related Reading:

34 Best Books on Finding Your Passion so You Can Live Out Your Purpose in Life

Exactly What to do When You’re Feeling Behind in Life

20 Tips to Have a Better Relationship with Yourself

7 Tips for Becoming More Independent + 16 Activities to Become a Strong Independent Woman