--- title: 3 Books That Improved My Life (and a Giveaway) description: Last year I read a number of books. Most I liked, some I didn’t, and a few I just couldn’t finish. However, there were three standouts that really changed how I work and view challenges. These three I can see myself reading over and over, learning something new every time. image: https://www.ashleyidesign.com/hubfs/bookscover-2.png --- ![bookscover-2](https://www.ashleyidesign.com/hubfs/bookscover-2.png) [Business Development](https://www.ashleyidesign.com/web-design-and-marketing-blog/topic/business-development) # 3 Books That Improved My Life (and a Giveaway) By [ Ashley Hill](https://www.ashleyidesign.com/web-design-and-marketing-blog/author/ashley-hill) / Tue, Feb 5, 2019 / 1 min read Last year I read a number of books. Most I liked, some I didn’t, and a few I just couldn’t finish. However, there were three standouts that really changed how I work and view challenges. These three I can see myself reading over and over, learning something new every time. ## Profit First ![51dmxuS1kdL](https://www.ashleyidesign.com/hs-fs/hubfs/51dmxuS1kdL.jpg?width=200&name=51dmxuS1kdL.jpg)I started my business in 2013 and didn’t quite know I was starting a business. At the time I had just moved to Malaysia and picked up a couple of clients back in the US for freelance HubSpot development work. Over the two years I lived there, I picked up more and more clients— some I still work with today. When I came back to the US, I had enough business to continue freelancing full-time instead of going back to a regular, full-time office job. This is all to say I never took a class in business management or finances; that's not something you’re taught at my art college, unfortunately. I managed to muck through, but I was always a step behind when it came to managing business expenses and taxes. *Profit First* gave me a structure to follow no matter my income, which can vary from month to month or even season to season. Setting up my TAPs (target allocation percentages) gave me a goal to hit, and my CAPs (current allocation percentages) told me what to do twice a month when I sit down to transfer things around. I get some interesting looks from the bank teller when they see I have a million accounts, but they all have a specific job to do. If you’re a freelancer in need of financial structure, I highly recommend *Profit First*. ## The Obstacle is the Way ![41d+aa6UYCL._SX352_BO1,204,203,200_](https://www.ashleyidesign.com/hs-fs/hubfs/41d+aa6UYCL._SX352_BO1,204,203,200_.jpg?width=200&name=41d+aa6UYCL._SX352_BO1,204,203,200_.jpg)Toward the end of last year, I spent a month really studying stoicism. I wanted to learn how to use the practice to improve my work and, really, myself in general. I joined the 30-day challenge from DailyStoic.com, subscribed to the emails, and still listen to the daily podcast today (I love podcasts). I bought several other books related to stoicism that I’m in the middle of reading (*Meditations* and *Letters from a Stoic*). I realize that I’ve always been a bit of a stoic, I have a practical way of looking at issues which really helps when dealing with personal and work challenges. I give little credence to those who don’t value my time or expertise. This book gave me the comfort in knowing I’m not the only one who thinks like I do and has helped enhance those thoughts. > “It doesn’t matter whether this is the worst time to be alive or the best, whether you’re in a good job market or a bad one, or that the obstacle you face is intimidating or burdensome. What matters is that right now is right now. > > The implications of our obstacle are theoretical—they exist in the past and the future. We live *in the moment*. And the more we embrace that, the easier the obstacle will be to face and move.” This book definitely won’t be everyone’s cup of tea, but I still recommend everyone reads it, if nothing else to be more empathetic to how others view the world and to stop and take time to reflect. ## The Bullet Journal Method ![613D-sCSsoL._SX342_BO1,204,203,200_](https://www.ashleyidesign.com/hs-fs/hubfs/613D-sCSsoL._SX342_BO1,204,203,200_.jpg?width=200&name=613D-sCSsoL._SX342_BO1,204,203,200_.jpg)Here are all the online project management systems I’ve used in the past five years: Trello, Basecamp, Teamwork, Asana, Todoist, Podio, Hive, and Wrike. I’m sure I missed a few. The one I used the longest was Teamwork, and [they even wrote a case study about me here](https://blog.teamwork.com/teamwork-projects-creates-success-solo-agencies/). Today I use Trello boards for collaboration, but everything else is in my notebook. A couple of years ago I started using the SELF journal for daily recording and quarterly planning, along with Teamwork for collaboration with clients and task-management. While I think the SELF journal is great, I found that I wanted more customization so I could do more in my notebook and less on the computer. In Q2 last year, I switched over to a Moleskine notebook, some general ideas about setting it up from my [business mentor Curtis McHale](https://curtismchale.ca/2018/05/21/how-i-modified-the-bullet-journal-system-to-run-my-online-business/), and stopped using an online project management tool. I don’t think I’ll ever go back. When I started I never knew the “official” Bullet Journal method. Collections were some weird term that I didn’t quite get, and I wasn’t tracking future events at all, so things would sneak up on me if I wasn’t paying attention. When *The Bullet Journal Method* came out, I picked it up out of curiosity and learned about the gaps in my practice. Using a bullet journal is a very personal thing. Everyone has theirs set up differently, but know that I don’t use that tape stuff nor draw illustrations around my spreads. Once a week I set up a spread for the following week using a ruler, and if I have time some colored pens, but usually not, and that’s it. Moving my system of managing personal tasks and work tasks all into one notebook that I carry everywhere has dramatically changed my ability to get stuff done, and if there’s only one takeaway you get from this post, it’s this: **write everything down**. ## Giveaway Last year was excellent in so many aspects of my life, from athletic accomplishments (yeah podiums!) to working with clients new and old, all whom I want to work with forever. I believe in kaizen, or continuous improvement, and I want to share some of the things that have helped me. So, for the next couple of months I’m running a giveaway. Two folks will get all three books I mentioned above. If you’re interested in entering, [just click here](https://kingsumo.com/g/zakgc2/business-book-bundle). [![Enter the giveaway](https://no-cache.hubspot.com/cta/default/15686/98cdc82b-a5a0-42ab-a600-ffb6111f6d55.png)](https://cta-redirect.hubspot.com/cta/redirect/15686/98cdc82b-a5a0-42ab-a600-ffb6111f6d55) --- I help businesses and marketers build marketing and sales systems that drive leads and scale with ease. Not sure where to start? [Take my marketing quiz](https://www.ashleyidesign.com/marketing-quiz) and get personalized next steps. - [Tweet](https://twitter.com/share) ## Related Posts #### [![Don't Rely on Anyone Else's Platform. Build Your Own.](https://www.ashleyidesign.com/hs-fs/hubfs/brett-jordan-tWX_ho-328k-unsplash.jpg?width=500&name=brett-jordan-tWX_ho-328k-unsplash.jpg) Don't Rely on Anyone Else's Platform. 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