Before I introduce to you my chosen book for April, did anyone manage to read Call me by your name? Having finished the book, I found time to see the film and was equally blown away at the power of the story, and in particular the ending. I won’t give away any spoilers for those who haven’t seen it but it is definitely worth watching and is bound to leave you feeling inspired by love.

How to be an overnight success

Talking of inspiration, this month’s book is by the wonderfully talented Maria Hatzistefanis, called ‘How to be an overnight success’. Maria is Founder and CEO of beauty company Rodial and this book is her personal story of how she went from growing up in a small town in Greece, followed her dreams and now runs a global business in the world of beauty and fashion. Even if you’re not looking to get into this particular industry the book is packed full of advice, truths and the reality of setting up your own company. I love things like this!

Maria breaks this up into sections so that it’s really easy to read and follow. You’ll discover stories of; her childhood in Greece, her first job in fashion, being fired, moving to New York to study, getting into the world of investment and earning A LOT, setting up a business in the corner of her flat, building her brand, getting noticed, going through the notions of making difficult business decisions and then all the glamour (and hardships) that comes when you make it big. What’s particularly useful is at the end of each chapter Maria summaries her point and gives you key pieces of advice or questions so that you can start to think about your dreams and take action.

There’s something really honest about how Maria opens up about the things that went wrong on the course of her journey to where she is today but she also shares the lessons she learned from this which is really valuable. This book demonstrates that it’s incredibly hard work to be an entrepreneur and you’ll have to make sacrifices but it is also incredibly rewarding when you get it right.

Give this book a read and it will get you thinking about your future career and what you might want to pursue. It might even give you that boost that you need to take your idea to the next level.

One thing’s for sure: success does not come overnight…

March book club