Two book reviews

20,000 Days and Counting by Robert D. Smith and You Can If You Think You Can by Norman Vincent Peale.

20,000 Day and Counting
This is the second time I have read this book and I absolutely love it. It not only is a quick read, but it’s easy to go back and revisit sections because they are direct and to the point. Its a book you can literally read in a day and then go back for the next week and break down the parts to begin implementing what he practices on a daily basis. It is worth going back and making that effort to implement. The big picture that stood out to me was his intense focus on other people, and his love of laughter and enjoyment in life. Those two pieces alone make me want to revisit this book more than once a year so I can continually remind myself to practice these two pieces in my life.

There’s a chapter in this book that brings the whole book together and its by a simple statement; “If we learn how to die, we’ll know how to live; if we learn how to live, we’ll know how to die. Why not pledge to live better right now?”
It’s simple, its to the point, and once you read this chapter through those lenses, you begin to understand the importance of making people feel valued every single day, as well as understand your life purpose so you can live it every day of your life. Each day, is a day to be treasured, so treat it as such and never let a day go back without laughter and love being given to others.

You Can If You Think You Can
This was an audio book I listened to, and I had to stop it many times to write down the quotes that were said. Here are some quotes from the book:
“You can’t be logical about something you have wanted your whole life.”
“It’s always too soon to quit. Quitting begins a habit of defeat.”
“Never despair, but if you do, work on in-despair.”
“If you start thinking your circumstance is hopeless, your state of mind will actually attract further trouble to defeat you.”
Need I say more? This audio was incredible, and clearly points out ones state of mind. I’m glad we have this as a audio book, because if our mindset needs a shift and we need to focus on something else, this will be a good book to listen to and in essence, turn that frown upside down.