Two Booked Up

In this, our final episode for the year, we wrap up season four and bid farewell to 2024 with a deep dive into one of our all-time favourite topics—reading! We’re sharing our summer reading plans, and our favourite must-read fiction and eye-opening non-fiction from this year.  We're excited to explore the intriguing concept of the "anti-library," a space filled with books we haven't read yet, and...

In today’s captivating episode, we dive into our very first memoir, one that continues to inspire readers worldwide: Bronnie Ware's “The Top Five Regrets of the Dying—A Life Transformed by the Dearly Departing”. This bestselling book, translated into 32 languages and read by over a million people, offers profound insights drawn from Ware’s experiences in palliative care.  Prepare for a heartfelt e...

This new episode is about Shelley and Rowena’s two favourite topics—reading and books! They dive into the latest update on their 24 for 2024 reading challenge. It's been a while since they last shared their reading progress, and they are excited to chat about all things reading and books!  Quick recap: The 24 for 2024 Reading Challenge is designed to elevate our nonfiction reading experience by in...

This is a special episode of the Two Booked Up podcast, where Rowena and Shelley take the conversation further, something they love to do. In this week's ‘side-bar’ episode, they discuss whether the ideas around human behaviour and motivation presented in "Drive" by Daniel Pink can work with "The Four Tendencies" by Gretchen Rubin.  Both books offer unique insights into what drives our actions and...

Rowena and Shelley delve into the insightful book "Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us" by Daniel Pink, one of Shelley’s favourite books! Shelley reflects on how the book's message about motivation, centred on autonomy, mastery, and purpose, has left a lasting impact since its publication in 2009.  Together, Rowena and Shelley then explore the relevance of these concepts in the mod...

Rowena and Shelley are delving into a book that's likely on many of your must-read lists if you're on a quest to improve your daily life: "Better Than Before" by Gretchen Rubin.  The book focuses on habits—how we form them, why we break them, and how we can use them to create a more fulfilling life. As busy working parents and business owners, finding ways to make our lives smoother and more effic...

In this new episode of Two Booked Up, Rowena and Shelley discuss Arthur C. Brooks's bestseller, "From Strength to Strength: Finding Success, Happiness and Deep Purpose in the Second Half of Life."  Once again, Shelley dons the interviewer’s hat, and Rowena is in the hot seat. Together, they discuss the book's focus on finding true happiness and satisfaction as we navigate the second half of life,...

In this new Two Booked Up podcast episode, Rowena and Shelley discuss the challenging task of organizing kids' books. Shelley, a homeschooling mom and our resident expert in this field shares her insights into managing a home filled with books. They introduce the Lazy Genius Process from The Lazy Genius Kitchen, focusing on five key steps: prioritise, essentialize, organize, personalize, and syste...

In this episode of Two Booked Up, Shelley and Rowena tackle the challenging task of organizing your book collection. If you're tired of having books scattered around your home, this episode is for you! They take a break from their usual book discussions to delve into practical strategies for reining in those unruly bookshelves. Using Kendra Adachi's The Lazy Genius Kitchen as a guide, Shelley and...

In this episode, Shelley and Rowena celebrate the launch of Season 4 of the Two Booked Up podcast and two years of literary love, laughter, and friendship!  Shelley and Rowena are thrilled to have reached this incredible milestone and want to take you behind the scenes of their journey over the past year. From the ups to the downs, they’re sharing all the insights and reflections gathered from the...

In this special between-seasons episode, Shelley and Rowena delve back into one of their most downloaded episodes, discussing the unique principles of Essentialism presented by Greg McKeown in his widely acclaimed book. And it’s no wonder why.  The principles of Essentialism, as shared by Greg McKeown, have a profound impact on our businesses and personal lives. We believe revisiting this topic wi...

In this episode, as Rowena and Shelley gear up for season four, they revisit a fan favourite and one of their most referenced books and episodes: Gretchen Rubin's The Four Tendencies.  This book has been a game changer for both of them—in the way they run their businesses, understand themselves, and even interpret the books and ideas discussed on this podcast! Are you like Rowena, self-directed an...

️ Shelley shares a few spicy takes in her discussion with Rowena about the classic business book, Start with Why by Simon Sinek.  Rowena is in the interviewer’s chair this time and Shelley’s mission is to fast-forward you to the best parts of Start with Why, while calling out a few other parts that left her frowning. It’s a pivotal book, but it’s also a bit dated and limited in its examples, so Sh...

In this special episode, Rowena and Shelley interview Mel Daniels, author of The Power of Content .  This is a fantastic episode for business owners who may be feeling a bit stuck with content creation and marketing. Mel has a refreshing new take on content that will help you tap into your content superpowers rather than getting overwhelmed trying to follow a bunch of made-up formulas. Not a busin...

In this episode, Rowena and Shelley are discussing the books they’ve been reading, and checking in on their progress for the 24 for 2024 Reading Challenge. The Challenge adds more purpose and variety to non-fiction reading choices and aims to inspire them and you to read more and read more widely, perhaps even trying out authors of genres you wouldn’t normally read.  Also, as you’ll hear in this e...

In this episode, Rowena and Shelley discuss Ali Abdaal's book Feel Good Productivity.  Productivity books are often full of tips for working harder, hustling longer and hacks to make the most of your time. This book is completely different! Instead, Ali Abdaal puts forth the idea that instead of more discipline, we can accomplish more by focusing on our well-being and embracing joy!  Specifically,...

Today, Rowena and Shelley are talking about regrets, specifically The Power of Regret: How Looking Backward Moves Us Forward — which is today’s book by Daniel Pink. Do you ever find yourself dwelling on past mistakes or missed opportunities, feeling regretful and wishing you could go back in time to do things differently? Living with regret can be a painful experience, but what if those regrets co...

Today, Rowena and Shelley are tapping into their inner chill and discussing Denise Duffield Thomas's book Chill and Prosper: The New Way to Grow Your Business, Make Millions, and Change the World . If you’re interested in running your own business but feel it's too hard, or perhaps you are running a business but find you’re frequently overwhelmed by the need to do all the things, then this book an...

In this episode, Shelley and Rowena discuss Gretchen Rubin’s latest book, Life In Five Senses: How Exploring the Senses Got Me Out of My Head and Into the World. (And a note from Rowena and Shelley, we just hit record on this episode and CHATTED about the book. Would you mind letting us know what you think about this more casual and slightly more raw format...? podcast@shelleysmithcreative.com or...

In this episode, Shelley and Rowena discuss Nir Eyal's book Indistractable: How to Control Your Attention and Choose Your Life. Perhaps you find yourself checking emails and replying to messages, and before you know it, hours have passed, and the work you were meant to complete is still waiting for you. If you’re tired of feeling like you're not making progress on your goals because of constant di...

Title: TBU#40: How to find tranquillity in the turbulence Artwork Title: How to find tranquillity in the turbulence    It’s the first book for 2024, and Shelley and Rowena are excited to be talking about their top takeaways from the book Tranquility by Tuesday by time management guru Laura Vanderkam.  Tranquillity is a beautiful notion and very appealing to many, especially amid the hustle and bus...

In this all-new episode of Two Booked Up, Shelley and Rowena are encouraging you to shake things up in 2024. Last year the bookworms reinvigorated their and your reading by taking a playful yet intentional approach.  And this year, they want you to read more and have more fun as you do it! After all, what we read affects our feelings, thoughts, our actions, our mood, and really how we show up in t...

Happy New February! At Two Booked Up, February is the new January! If you ever needed permission for a restart of the year, this episode provides that and much more. In this episode, Rowena and Shelley share their guiding words, or phrases, of the year and what these words mean for this podcast and their reading lives, as well as their lives in general.  They discuss why a guiding word or phrase c...

It’s that time of year, and Two Booked Up is celebrating with a Christmas Special episode. Rowena and Shelley will be talking about some of the ways that you can make this holiday season a little more bookish! If you want to read more this season and encourage friends and family to do the same, this episode has some fun ideas for you to try out. Rowena and Shelley also have some book recommendatio...

Shelley and Rowena love talking about books, but this episode is rather special because they are not just talking about a book they’ve both read.  They are talking about THE book Rowena has written! Rowena’s debut novel, Avoiding the Friend Zone, was published this week. It’s a perfect holiday read! Shelley dons the interviewer hat and interviews Rowena, and together, they explore the joys and cha...