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Buckle up darling readers, it’s about to get interesting around here, or boring, depending on how you roll.  For this week’s post, we both had a book we wanted to read and review, and we weren’t particularly interested in the other’s title, so we decided to bring you a single review of both.  The potentially boring part – they’re both nonfiction.  We know, it’s not always boring, and growth is important, but in a season when House of Flame and Shadow feels like it’s burning an unread hole in our souls kindles, it’s a struggle.  And yet, we persisted!  

We’ve shared previously how we contain multitudes, both in real life and as a reader, my nonfiction habits however, do tend to contain… fewer multitudes than my fiction habits.  When my church started down a bit of a rabbit hole center around Soul Reset: breakdown, breakthrough, and the journey to wholeness by Rev. Junius B. Dotson, I rolled my eyes, searched out the book online, then searched out a means to borrow it digitally (like I do, thanks to my local library).  Dotson was a Methodist pastor, a church planter, and a CEO of Discipleship Ministries before he passed away from pancreatic cancer in February 2021.  Please read three things in the previous sentence: 1) Dotson was a church leader who was well-respected (Discipleship Ministries is a big deal, at least to Methodists), 2) Cancer screenings are important, please get them as prescribed even though they aren’t comfortable, and 3) This is not some old blerg religious text.  That said, this is most definitely a Christian text.  I do think there is a lot to be gleaned from this work for any person who believes in a higher power, but if you aren’t Christian, please note there are many references to the Protestant Bible and Jesus.  If that’s not for you, please feel welcome to skip down to Ashley’s book review.  

In Soul Reset, Dotson tells the story of how he was at the top of his professional game, and hit bottom, not once, but twice, and then found his way to healing after a second reset.  It’s a jam-packed 150 pages, and designed to be read over six weeks, with a journal in hand, and even includes daily spiritual practices to support soul rest for each week of the reading.  As any consumer of books does, I read this title in two days.  Do I think I would have gotten more rest for my soul if I’d have read slowly, with a journal, and really focused on the daily spiritual practices?  Most definitely, but my life and my attention span don’t have that available right now, so maybe I’ll consider a more leisurely paced reread in the spring, as that’s the season for renewal (unlike the cold season, yes, I’m living my best winter era currently).  

My favorite piece about Soul Reset is the authenticity with which Dotson discusses his personal breakdowns (yes, two of them).  He shares very vulnerably, even discussing how hard it was to write pieces of the book because of those experiences.  Yes, this book is about resting in relationship with and in the presence of God, but it’s also about stopping the busyness, delegating, and leading well.  Dotson gives so many nuggets to readers that can apply broadly, if one is looking for it.  One that spoke to me on several levels is “We are so busy trying to do the work of the gospel that we often fail to slow down long enough to simply soak it in.”  Exchange “the gospel” for “parenting,” “work,” “loving others well,” or any number of other things that you need to slow down long enough to soak in.  This piece really hit me well as the day before my oldest shared they’d discussed Martha and Mary in Sunday school.  That’s right, the sisters, with one being too busy and the other soaking it all in while she could.  

Soul Reset included lots of little pieces of advice, rolled up into one brief book, concisely and vulnerably written, and so I’m giving it four solid stars and am considering rereading it over several weeks, so I can slow down long enough to soak it in, much more than was possible in two brief days.

What’s a title you’ve read and wanted to reread so it got to marinate a bit longer in your soul?

~Nikki 

There was a brief time in my recent history where instead of working towards being the most badass real estate agent in Middle Tennessee I wanted to be the most badass financial coach anyone could hire. If you looked at my physical bookshelf you’d wonder why that wasn’t still my goal, since many of my physical book titles relate to financial well being. I do think however, that I’m still a badass financial coach, as real estate is typically part of a diversified personal financial plan. My point is that I like learning about what money can do, how we can use money to do things besides buy things from Amazon (who owns my soul) or stuff it in a bank account. But, we have to be able to talk about money and what money does for us in ways that the people in our lives can understand us.

Tarra Jackson, Madam Money, helps us understand how to do that in The 4 Financial Languages: The Secrets to Communicating About Money. I was a little skeptical at first, because I thought, oh, she’s going to break down savers and spenders into a little more detail, but I was pleasantly surprised to be called out in the investors section, and thrilled to realize that givers have their own language, too. After years of working in the financial services sector as both customer facing and as a corporate trainer and executive, Jackson has the experience to lay down the law on the ways we communicate about money and what money means to those who speak a specific language. This book is a tight 100 pages, filled with descriptions of the four languages: Savers, Spenders, Investors, and Givers, what money means to each type of person, and how those of us with differing communication styles can change how we speak about our wants, needs, and goals to facilitate healthy money talks. 

When I say above that I felt called out, what I mean is that I felt seen. For the first time in any personal finance book that I can remember reading (keyword: remember) I was told about the investor mindset. That we’re not afraid to take reasonable and calculated risks. That we’re patient, passionate, and long-term thinkers driven by information. Plus, we’re usually active learners and voracious readers. (Obvs.) Do I love to spend money on things, absolutely, my bougie broke lifestyle is a testament to that. But, what I really loved was when Jackson stated that not only do investors invest in money, they’re also investing their time and that investing in people is also a way that investors show their financial language to others.

I would give this quick four star read to anyone trying to figure out their money value system or someone trying to figure out how to communicate with a loved one who doesn’t share the same financial language. And especially to young adults just getting started on their money journey. Tarra Jackson can be found on the interwebs at www.madammoney.com, and I will be checking out her podcast and other books in the near future, and hope to hear her speak at some financial conference some day, too!

Do you love it when you find a mirror in a nonfiction book?

~Ashley

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