If ‘New Year, New Me’ has been your motto for the past few years but you’re still struggling to get rid of those bad habits, check out my list of self-help, self-care, and feel-good books and films I recommend to end your year right, and start 2024 feeling even better.
Books
The Life-Changing Magic of Not Giving a F**k by Sarah Knight
The Life-Changing Magic of Not Giving a F**k is a book for anyone who is in desperate need of caring less. Sarah Knight teaches you the ‘magic’ of mental decluttering, and the things to give, or not give a f**k about including work, friends, and family. It is blazingly honest, hilariously real, and asks us what we all should have learnt a long time ago, ‘who gives a f**k?’. Knight unshackles us from a previous life of over-caring and over-stressing about the little things, and talks us through the yellow, orange, and red levels of difficulty when it comes to letting go and to stop giving – you guessed it – a f**k. Gift this book to the worriers in your life and share Knight’s wisdom of letting go from the things which no longer serve you.
Buy the amazing, and The Life-Changing Magic of Not Giving a F**k, here.
Surrounded by Idiots by Thomas Erikson
If your commination or social skills have left you falling behind in all aspects of life, including work, relationships, or with friends and family, Thomas Erikson’s non-fiction book Surrounded by Idiots is one the of the best ways to truly understand the people around you, and how to get the most out of them, too. Erikson categorises people into four personality types – Red, Yellow, Blue, Green – and tells you how to interact with each of these in a unique way. Filled with lots of tricks in body language, speaking skills, and written communication, Erikson will have you empathising more with people through realising their strengths and weaknesses, and also feeling much more confident approaching your own relationships. A must-read for those who find that they ‘don’t click’ with certain types of people, and for anyone who needs to take that extra step in truly understanding themselves and how their brain works.
Buy Surrounded by Idiots here.
Why Has Nobody Told Me This Before? By Dr Julie Smith
Dr Julie Smith is a clinical psychologist who uses everything she has learned in her years of work, and places it into this book. A toolkit for navigating life, Dr Smith shares simple, easy therapy practices which everyone can complete. With easy sections to flick straight to, this book can help with getting out of a dark place, motivating yourself, and dealing with emotional pain. Why Has Nobody Told Me This Before? is an accessible way for people to deal with what is bottled up inside of them. Read this book in December and start the new year with a healthy and emotional outlook on life, you will thank yourself for it.
Find Dr Smith’s bestseller here.
Films
Sometimes, a truly good film can take you from down in the dumps to on top of the world. You get to escape the realities of your own, often difficult, life and sink into someone else’s for an hour or two. Here is my list of films which can do just that. So, sit back, relax, and press play on something which has the power to transform your day.
About Time
- I personally believe that this film has it all. Romance, typical British awkwardness, and a beautiful bond between a father and son. Be prepared to laugh, cry, and feel bloody happy after watching About Time.
Midnight in Paris
- This film is a nostalgia inducing spectacle which tells the story of a screenwriter who yearns for the greatness of 1920s Paris. During a trip to the French city with his fiancée, he experiences just what he has been longing for. With an aesthetically pleasing filmography, alongside a beautiful soundtrack, Midnight in Paris makes you realise that everyone becomes nostalgic for a period in which they cannot reach, and makes you enjoy the present-day so, so much more.
La La Land
- One for the musical lovers and those who can appreciate the ‘bittersweet’, La La Land tells the story of Sebastian, a jazz pianist and Mia, a struggling actress in LA. Filled with fantastic sing-along tunes which never leave your head, and a beautiful message of never stopping till you reach your dreams, La La Land is the perfect escapism film.
Notting Hill
- For the 90’s Hugh Grant appreciators among us, Notting Hill is the perfect love story between high-flying American actress, played by Julia Roberts, and awkward, bashful bookshop owning William, played by Hugh Grant. Above a simple love story, it is a beautiful tale of London. Notting Hill is a Rom Com which will never die.
Eat, Pray, Love
- A cathartic film where we watch Elizabeth Gilbert leave the country after a difficult divorce, and ‘find herself’ in Italy, India, and Bali. Filled with important lessons of self-love and finding what truly makes you happy, Eat, Pray, Love is a beautiful tale of a struggling woman, who learns how to be happy again within herself, and not for the sake of a relationship.
