What are the best personal assistant courses?
There is no single starting point on a personal assistant career path, and successful PAs can find their way into the role in very diverse ways. However, for those people…
With World Book Day just days away, it’s time to discover the wonders of reading once more. Known to keep you sharp, help you chill out, improve your sleep and increase your empathy, there’s literally no downside to picking up a good time.
Here at Tiger, we like to kill two birds with one stone by reading non-fiction books that can also help us in both our professional and personal lives. So, charge your e-reader or pop into your local bookstore – here are six to inspire and inform, setting you up for ongoing career success.
Credit: Penguin
1. Why We Sleep by Matthew Walker
The amount of shuteye you manage to catch each night can seriously affect your health and wellbeing. And yet, it always seems to be one of the first aspects sacrificed when we are busy or stressed. Professor Matthew Walker aims to explain just how important sleep is in this thought-provoking study, exploring 20 years of research to find out just why sleep matters.
It answers every question you’ve ever had about sleeping, including why sleep patterns change, what effect caffeine and alcohol have and what is really happening when you’re in rapid-eye movement (REM) sleep.
Credit: Catherine Price
2. How to Break Up with your Phone by Catherine Price
We know it, you know it, everyone knows it – phone addiction is a real thing, so much so that it’s beginning to affect our behavior and relationships, both personal and professional. Start the long journey back to normal phone usage with Catherine Price’s 30-day guide to breaking up with it.
As an award-winning science journalist, Catherine knows what she’s talking about when it comes to constant connectivity. Chock full of practical tips, the handbook provides a simple plan that will help you re-assess your relationship with your phone, figuring out what you actually need it for and where it is taking up all your time unnecessarily. At the end of the 30 days, you’ll have some brand-new habits and hopefully, much more time on your hands.
Credit: Mark Manson
3. The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F**k by Mark Manson
In Mark Manson’s hilariously named tome, positivity is out and realism is in. Going against the ‘you’re all winners’ grain, the blogger suggests that we should embrace our limitations, fears and faults instead of striving for the unattainable. Instead of worrying a little about 100 things, The Subtle Art aims to help us figure out what truly matters and how we should be spreading our anxiety. With lessons in honesty, responsibility, courage and perseverance, along with some laugh-out-loud moments, expect to get to the end of this tome feeling a lot lighter.
Credit: Penguin
4. Brain Food: How to Eat Smart and Sharpen Your Mind by Dr Lisa Mosconi
Now that you know how important sleep is, it’s time to brush up on your food knowledge. General discussions about diet and the body usually revolve around fitness, but this book, written by Dr Lisa Mosconi, looks at the effect food has on the most important organ in the body: the brain.
As an expert in both neuroscience and nutrition, Dr Lisa explains just what you should be eating and drinking to prevent a number of degenerative diseases, as well as providing some brain-boosting recipes to help you get there.
Credit: Bluffer’s Guides
5. The Bluffer’s Guide to Etiquette by William Hanson
Wondering how to hold your knife or introduce someone to a group of strangers? As one of the UK’s leading experts in etiquette, William Hanson has all the answers to questions you didn’t even know you had. His guide, condensed into handy pocket form, covers what to say and what you shouldn’t, what you should and shouldn’t wear and how to approach social occasions such as weddings, funerals and birthdays.
With a light-hearted approach to the otherwise serious topic, it’s both entertaining and informative, combining actionable tips with jokes at the expense of our American friends and Downton Abbey. Quotes, pictures and examples of collateral such as invitations ensure that you’ll swan through your next dinner party without a hitch.
For a taster of just what William has to offer, check out his recent talk with our Tiger Private candidates: part 1 and part 2.
Credit: Penguin Australia
6. a. Amazinger Face by Zoe Foster-Blake
Sunscreen then moisturiser? Or moisturiser then sunscreen? Amazinger Face answers this question, and plenty of others as every woman’s beauty bible, covering both the essentials and extras of your self-care routine. Ranging from hairstyles to conceal unwashed hair, to choosing a lipstick that will enhance your skin tone, it has everything you need to get through life looking like the superstar you are.
Written in Zoe’s classic relaxed style, this is a tome you’ll read time and time again and pass onto friends when they can’t figure out why their foundation is slipping off their face by lunchtime.
Credit: Mr Porter
b. The Mr Porter Paperback: The Manual for a Stylish Life by Jeremy Langmead and John Brodie
Sometimes, all a man needs is a stylish compendium to remind him how to take care of his dress shoes (or to wear them at all) and how to dance at a wedding. This is where Mr Porter’s Paperback comes in. Curated by the editor-in-chief of the online magazine of the same name, it profiles some of the world’s most stylish men, past and present, and offers advice that covers everything from charming the in-laws to how to wear a biker jacket and mixing a Bloody Mary.
There are three volumes to breeze through, so that by the end, you’ll be the best-dressed and best-behaved man in London.
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Now that you’ve fixed up your sleep patterns, are eating for your brain, have changed your priorities, broken up with your phone, know how to introduce yourself to the Queen and are looking absolutely fabulous, it’s time to find a job worthy of the new you. Tiger can help – get in touch today!
