A&B #34

Hey friends,

I hope you're having a wonderful weekend. I have a lot of cool things to share with you so let's dive right in!

1) I wrote a thread about

. If you're looking for an amazing book, I recommend picking one from this list (each book on it changed my life).

2) I wrote a thread sharing

. If you want to grow your audience on Twitter, definitely check it out.

3) I shared a book meme on Twitter that became my most popular post with 5k+ likes and 800k+ views (don't underestimate the power of a meme).4) We found an amazing new partner for this newsletter–Scribd. They're hooking A&B readers up with a deal to get unlimited ebooks and audiobooks (more info below).Alright, let's talk books.

📚 Book Lessons:

This week I read You're Too Good To Feel This Bad by Nate Dallas. This book is a hidden gem, barely anyone knows about it and it's packed with wisdom. It's like 10 self-improvement books rolled into one.Here are 3 lessons from it: 1) Take Your Sleep SeriouslyIf you're not getting enough sleep, it's impossible to be healthy. Sleep is the foundation to good health. You can eat healthily and exercise daily, but if you're only sleeping 4 hours a day, you're eventually going to get sick. Need more reasons to get proper sleep? Here are a few:

• It lowers your anxiety and depression.

• It speeds your recovery time from injuries.

• It protects you from cancer and dementia.

• It makes you feel happier and enhances your sex life.

• It increases your memory, focus, and mental cognition.

2) Check & Change Your ThoughtsOur thoughts become our feelings, and our feelings become our outlook. And since the average person has over 30,000 thoughts every day, if the majority of those thoughts are negative, it can lead to a pessimistic outlook on life (or worse, illness). Just feeling fearful can trigger hundreds of chemical responses in the body and activate a cascade of stress hormones even if the threat is only in our minds. Fortunately, thoughts work both ways. Feeling grateful decreases stress and anxiety.That's why it's important to check in with yourself to reflect on whether you're thinking positive or negative thoughts. If you're feeling bad, try listing three things you're grateful for or replaying a pleasurable life experience in your mind.

3) Stop Comparing Yourself To Others

Comparing yourself to others is a futile endeavor. It will only lead to unhappiness. It's also a waste of time since there are too many variables to get an accurate comparison.Sure someone may have more money and a bigger house than you and you might wish you were them, but if you knew that person grew up without a dad, their spouse was cheating on them, and they would need a heart transplant six years from now, would you still want to be in their shoes?Everyone in life has a unique past, present, and future so it's impossible to know who really has the "better life." And even if you knew, it's impossible to trade lives with someone so no amount of wishing will change anything. The better alternative is to compare where you are now with where you were last year. You are your only competition and that is the only comparison worth doing.

✅ Actionable Advice:

1) Tips for getting proper sleep:

• Get 8 hours of sleep every night.

• Turn off any lights to make the room as dark as possible.

• Avoid caffeine and alcohol as it disrupts healthy sleeping.

• Establish a ritual of going to sleep and waking up at the same time each day.

2) Check and change your thoughts:

• Check in with yourself throughout the day and reflect on what type of thoughts you're having

• If you're having negative thoughts, list three things you're grateful for.

• Another helpful exercise is to replay a positive event experience in your mind (a recent vacation, fun birthday party, etc).

3) Stop comparing yourself to others:

• Remind yourself that it's impossible to truly compare two lives.

• It's an unproductive use of your time and will lead to unhappiness.

• Instead, only compare who you are today with who you were a year ago.

• Strive to be the best version of yourself possible.

🎧 Podcast Update:

Love books?Love podcasts?Let's combine them.Here are 5 podcasts that will teach you how to become a better reader.

📖 Reading Lesson:Having trouble focusing on what you're reading or remembering what you've read?You may be suffering from reading fatigue.Here are 5 tips for overcoming reading fatigue.

⭐️ Weekly Quote:The goal of reading is to learn, reflect, and apply.Not to memorize everything in the book.(source)

🙏 Support:This week's newsletter is made possible by Scribd.Scribd is the Netflix of books. You get unlimited ebooks AND audiobooks for just $9.99 a month. That's right, you can read all the ebooks your heart desires and listen to as many audiobooks as you wish. This is an incredible offer you don't want to pass on.You can sign up for a free 30-day trial here.

Thank you for your support everyone, I'll see you next Sunday!Read on,Alex W.