Vote on the Book Club book for May & June 2024 🗳️📘

[Pesso]

Hey Square Readers,

**VOTING IS CLOSED**

Our Square Readers Book Club is halfway through reading Worth Every Penny by Sarah Petty and Erin Verbeck, so jump into some of our discussion threads and let us know your thoughts. 

Now we’ll start voting for our next book for May & June 2024. We have 3 books to choose from, and we’d love for you to vote to help us decide! 

This month we're choosing between Personal Growth, Business Foundations, and Business Growth books; all recommended by sellers like you!

1. The Mountain is You by Brianna Wiest

“This book is about self-sabotage. Why we do it, when we do it, and how to stop doing it—for good. Coexisting but conflicting needs create self-sabotaging behaviors. This is why we resist efforts to change, often until they feel completely futile. But by extracting crucial insight from our most damaging habits, building emotional intelligence by better understanding our brains and bodies, releasing past experiences, and learning to act as our highest potential future selves, we can step out of our own way and into our potential. To scale our mountains, we actually have to do the deep internal work of excavating trauma, building resilience, and adjusting how we show up for the climb.”

2. The E-Myth Revisited by Michael E. Gerber

“Small business consultant and author Michael E. Gerber, with sharp insight gained from years of experience, points out how common assumptions, expectations, and even technical expertise can get in the way of running a successful business. Gerber walks you through the steps in the life of a business—from entrepreneurial infancy through adolescent growing pains to the mature entrepreneurial perspective: the guiding light of all businesses that succeed—and shows how to apply the lessons of franchising to any business, whether or not it is a franchise. Most importantly, Gerber draws the vital, often overlooked distinction between working on your business and working in your business.”

3. Competing Against Luck by Clayton M. Christensen

“How do companies know how to grow? How can they create products that they are sure customers want to buy? Can innovation be more than a game of hit and miss? Customers don’t buy products or services; they "hire" them to do a job. The "Jobs to Be Done" approach can be seen in some of the world’s most respected companies and fast-growing startups, including Amazon, Intuit, Uber, Airbnb, and Chobani yogurt, to name just a few. By understanding what causes customers to "hire" a product or service, any business can improve its innovation track record, creating products that customers not only want to hire, but that they’ll pay premium prices to bring into their lives.”

Which of these do you most want to read next?

We’re voting by survey, but feel free to tell us why you’re excited about a particular book in the comments below. And if you have suggestions for other books you’d want to read, drop them in the comments too and we’ll take a look and consider them for the next round. 

We’ll announce the winning book on Monday, April 15th, and start reading it in May. 

We can’t wait to read with you!

Pesso

**VOTING IS CLOSED**

[Pesso]

Folks have been recommending The E-Myth to me for years, so I'd love to dive into that one! It was actually one of the first options we gave for the first Book Club book choice, and has been suggested a few times since again. Looking forward to seeing what everyone picks!

[JUYBoutique20]

Yep...That's been on my to read list for a bit....

[Pesso]

Rooting for us to win then, @JUYBoutique20 , haha -- and thanks to @scastrotattoo for re-recommending it! 

[bonny]

I can't read that many books at the same time but I like all three.  Having to narrow down my choice to one, I choose "Competing Against Luck".  I can instantly pick out the companies pushing the status quo because of the interesting solutions they come up with.  Innovation has always been a fascinating aspect in business and in life for me.  It's wondering about what's behind thinking outside of the box quality that I would love to explore more.  The description of this book hints at being able to recognize and develop potential trends. 

[Pesso]

It's always a tough choice! Luckily we have plenty of time, and if the votes are decent for all of them, they'll come back around for another round. 

I love that, @bonny ! It definitely sounds like it could be super insightful, and I'm looking forward to getting to read it too! Thanks again-

[Doran]

I'm going with "Competing Against Luck"

[Pesso]

Great choice, @Doran ! Thanks for voting and sharing!

What about it speaks to you?

[DinaLRosenberg]

I think Gary V's new book is coming out this week... you should put this on the list!

[Pesso]

Thanks for the tip, @DinaLRosenberg ! I've put at least one of his books on the voting rounds before, and I'll bring it back around again soon! I'll check out the description and reviews for the new one when it's out-

[CareyJo]

I'm going with The Mountain is You because I feel like personal growth as a business owner is vital.  After reading Worth Every Penny, I feel like a personal growth book is in order.

[Pesso]

Such a great callout, @CareyJo ! I've definitely been focusing on super business specific books, but personal growth is just as important! I'll work to make sure we have more of those in the mix moving forward- thank you!

[Jimjam]

I have tried reading the e-myth a couple of times already. In all honesty I struggle with it, because I feel called out, page after page, 🙈 which means it's probably the exact book I should to be reading. 

The mountain is you, also sounds like a good read. The self sabotage is very real! Being able to break through that would be incredible! 

[Pesso]

Thanks for sharing, @Jimjam ! 

Ooh that's really interesting. In what way do you feel called out?
That's a good point -- sometimes what we need to hear is the hardest to hear. But I'm sure you're doing a fantastic job with your business! It's all about growth, and there's always something we can learn and do better at -- it's impossible to be perfect! 

I definitely struggle with self-sabotage too. It's SO hard to constantly try to put 110% into our businesses, and trying to find the balance between working hard and not hard enough is tricky. Rooting for ya, and so excited to have you here to read along with us!

[CareyJo]

I know what you mean about feeling called out.  It's never what we want.  And you're right - it means you need to read it.  But don't be so hard on yourself.  Instead, think about how good it will feel when you're done and you've gotten through whatever you needed to get through.  Getting to the other side will be the reward!

I'm with Pesso - what is calling you out?  What as a group can we help you with?  Do you have a mentor?  Do you need someone to walk through it with you, to help you conquer it?  Don't be afraid to reach out!

He's right - none of us are perfect as business owners.  We all make mistakes and we all need help sometimes.  🙂

[Pesso · Accepted solution]

Hey Square Readers,

You voted and chose The E-Myth Revisited by Michael E. Gerber as our book for May and June!

Head over to the announcement post, pick up your copy, and get ready to start reading on Monday May 6th. 

We can’t wait to read with you,

Pesso

[CareyJo]

@Pesso We spent Wednesday in a dealer's conference and I got to speak with one of the speakers.  She instantly recommended this book and told me that he wrote one for HVAC!  So I'm gonna have to check it out!

[Pesso]

That's so cool, @CareyJo ! I'm so glad you're excited about it!

[Stacelyn24]

When I tell you this was a tough decision!!!  It was between number 1 and 3 for me.  Ultimately, I choose number 1 but I hope that number 3 comes back around for a vote...or I may just have to read this one on my own 🙂

[Pesso]

Thanks @Stacelyn24 ! They were all really close so they'll definitely come back around in another round!

[CareyJo]

I really wanted #1 also!  Maybe next time we have a vote, all of the choices should be a personal growth book instead of choosing between personal growth and business growth.  What do you think @Pesso ??