HBIC Reading Challenge 2013

So the end of the year is near and this time of year always gets me thinking about New Year's Resolutions. I generally make a few resolutions each year and have been pretty successful about sticking to them. They are more like yearly goals or milestones, rather than resolutions, but I make them still the same. Having a quantitative time frame in which to accomplish goals makes it easier for me to visualize my timeline and actually get things done. I have a few goals in mind for 2013 that I have been formulating... 

Since I moved into my own house about 6 weeks ago I started watching a lot of TV (umm Duck Dynasty why are you so hilarious!?) and it has kinda got me bummed out. It is sooo easy to sit in front of the TV and waste a few hours without even noticing! Since I just started paying for TV again I told myself I could enjoy it until January and then I would have to cut back and force myself back into my good old habit of reading at least every evening. When my dear friend Rachel was visiting me from LA a few weeks ago we visited an awesome local book store, The Tattered Cover, so she could pick up a new book for her plane ride home. She told me that she decided to start reading all of the titles off of a list of 100 must read classics. She figured even if it took her 10 years it was a good goal and she would never be without a book suggestion.  I thought it sounded like an awesome idea and a great parameter for my 2013 goal of reading more. I could just go through the list and check each title off one by one. I talked about the idea with my other friend Emily, another avid reader, and we looked over a few different 100 lists but none of them suited our fancy. We had either already read too many of the titles and didn't want to read them again ( Harry Potter books for instance) or didn't want to read them in the first place ( aka The Bible). And then lighting struck...BANG...let's start our own book club and read books we want! We decided to do it together so we could keep each other on track and discuss the books as we go. In my aim to share my goals, struggles, ideas and accomplishments with the HBIC community I decided it would be awesome to start a full-fledged HBIC Book Club! Yippee! Another brilliant idea from the minds of babes...

So here is the plan:

Each month for an entire year we will read one book and our Facebook group will host open conversation and discussion as we read. We can vote on the next months topic and/or title so we read books that we are interested in but also new to us. We hope that some other fabulous women want to join in on this challenge and together we can read great books, have mindful discussions and accomplish something real! We took the liberty of deciding on January's book, The Girls of Riyadh by Rajaa Alsanea, so if you want to join the group then order it, pick it up from the library or borrow it from a friend and on January 1st start reading!  I will post reminders in the group and questions or thoughts as the month goes on so we can help each other stay on track and motivated. Feel free to post your own questions, thoughts and suggestions in the group as we go along. At the end of each month we will have a group convo about the overall book and then start our next pick! Sounds like fun right?? 

If you are interested in joining the official HBIC book cub then join the Facebook group and start reading! Everyone is invited and welcomed. I challenge you to take on a goal for 2013 that may seem a little too big, a little scary or a little out of your comfort zone and then reap the sweet rewards of self-affirmation when you kick that goal's ass. Maybe your goal involves the HBIC book club, maybe not, but whatever it is know that I support you!  When we support each other in our goals, we all accomplish more.

 Happy Holidays and a Fruitful 2013!!!