July was not a big reading month! Most of my mental headspace had been dedicated to learning Physics, thinking about my career, and trying to wrap my brain around a new project at work. With all of that going on, reading for pleasure was pretty much out of the question. 😭

We’re currently halfway through August, and this trend has unfortunately continued. Writing this out, though, is inspiring me to make an even more conscious effort to make time for books!

Anyways, behold the two non-fictions I knocked out:

Bored and Brilliant by Manoush Zomorodi
Rating: C
Left me feeling: 🤷🏻‍♀️
Overall: This book was okay. I picked it up after I’d read Digital Minimalism by Cal Newport since it has similar themes: living in a distraction-ridden world, the pressing need to rethink our relationship with tech, etc. In general though, I didn’t really get much out of it, which might not really be a critique of Bored and Brilliant as much as it is praise for Digital Minimalism. The latter captured everything in a much clearer and less fear-mongering way, and reading them back-to-back really highlighted this contrast.

So Good They Can’t Ignore You by Cal Newport
Rating: A
Left me feeling: 🧐
Overall: Another Newport book! I know, I’m a bit obsessed with his work (I even listen to his podcast Deep Questions). Honestly though, this isn’t without reason—I really do tend to make positive life changes after reading his books…this one included! So Good They Can’t Ignore You introduced me to career capital theory at a time when I was considering jumping fields, and I’m eternally grateful to have read it before I made any truly major decisions. Essentially, Newport argues that the tenets of a satisfying job are autonomy, competency, and relatedness (aka connection to others), rather than how much the work aligns with one’s preexisting passions. It’s a really interesting contrast to the whole “Follow your dreams!” narrative that is so prevalent in the US, and I’d highly recommend this book to anyone who’s taking a critical look at their career.