In addition to reading a daily spiritual devotional, one of my other morning routines involves a daily reader that is more “secular” in nature. By secular, it means the reader contains inspirational notes around personal development, character, business, mindfulness, and/or leadership. Besides the inspirational notes, I’ll often use the reader as a jumping of point for my daily journaling exercise. Examples of daily readers I’ve used in the past are The Daily Stoic and The Mindfulness Journal.
Last year, my daily reader was written by renowned business leadership and management consultant John C. Maxwell and appropriately named The Maxwell Daily Reader: 365 Days of Insight to Develop the Leader Within You and Influence Those Around You.
Given Maxwell’s consulting practice around developing leadership and management skills in the business environment, you might think this book would only apply to business professionals. While there are certain readings and passages that pertain more to a business setting, the overwhelming majority of the readings are applicable regardless of whether or not you are a business professional. The passages contain fundamental principles that lay a foundation for being a person of good character, sound ethics, and strong morals. Maxwell often discusses and shows how these principles can be applied to improve your relationships and ability to work with and lead others.
One of the best parts of The Maxwell Daily Reader is that each reading stands on its own. The book doesn’t need to be read in a set order or specific progression. Each reading is associated with a date, but that doesn’t mean you need to read it on that day or in that order. You can come back to any of the passages that speak to you or any of the ideas that you want to revisit at any time.
Given its broad applicability, I got a lot out of The Maxwell Daily Reader. I suspect it will be a daily reader that I will return to in the future, much like The Daily Stoic by Ryan Holiday. The bottom line, if you’re looking for a daily reader to help jump start or push your personal development forward, then The Maxwell Daily Reader needs to be at the top of your list. In my opinion, it is a Must Read.