| The Hero With One Thousand Faces | Joseph Campbell | Describes the hero’s journey and how to identify opportunities in your life depending on where you are in your hero’s journey. Call to Adventure, Super Natural Aid, Threshold, death and rebirth, transformation, atonement, return. |
| Algorithms to Live By | Brian Christian & Tom Griffith | Interpreting commonly used computer algorithms to make better decisions in your daily life. This book is all about how to use time more efficiently, effort more efficiently and reduce risk and stress by applying practical and easy to understand algorithmic formula’s |
| The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F**K | Mark Mason | Choosing better problems in life. Not getting bogged down by innocuous problems in life and determining what’s really important and worth giving a f**k about |
| The $100 Start Up | Chris Guillebeau | Starting a business online. Becoming an entrepreneur and business owner. How to build a customer base and retain them. How to identify your customer needs, and sell the products online. Facilitating business online with low fixed costs and overhead. Effectively this book is all about how to start the business you want in today’s new economic environment… Is a corporate job really that safe of a bet anymore? Can we start a business for relatively cheap online and have the sustainable career?? This books is a roadmap on how to start your own business NOW |
| The E-Myth Revisited | Michael Gerber | The E-Myth is the idea that anyone with a strong skill (making pies) can start their own business. There are 3 people in each of us competing for space when we own our own business–the technician, the manager and the Entrepreneur–all 3 need to balance each other out as all three have different skills and value to provide to the company |
| Deep Work | Cal Newport | The importance of working on tasks that are mentally laborious requiring definite concentration without distraction. This book gives you ideas on how to find time in a busy corporate world to get deep work done–typically the deepest work a person can do is 4 hours in a day. So how can you get 4 hours of deep work in each day?? Eliminate the trivial many and focus on the important few and commit to a deep dive in those task, skills, or project |
| Sapiens | Yuval Harari | The entire story of human history. How we came to be the dominant species. How our cultures, systems, political structures, and world has evolved through the eyes of homo-sapiens… Are we really that special? What makes up unique? Is it our brains or maybe our ability to tell stories and believe in our collective imagination? |
| Radical Acceptance | Tara Brach | Practical ways to approach acceptance throughout your life. Inviting whatever life brings into your soul as if it were a long lost friend looking for lodging for the night. Practicing empathy and understanding the mind and the heart This is one of my favorite books of all time and I actually got a phrase from this book tattooed on my inner arm. If you need a book to teach you about acceptable and self-compassion this is absolutely where you should start… Tara is a gifted writer and you feel almost as though you’re talking to a friend while you read each page. Take a read and enjoy the change in your life as you stop resisting what is and incorporate radical acceptance into your life |
| The Science of Enlightenment | Shinzen Young | American born PHD and Buddhist monk reviews the science that is now supporting the ancient and ubiquitous practices of mindfulness, lovingkindness, Vipassina, ect ect. Practical framework for taking your meditation practice further. Shinzen is super down to earth and explains things in a raw and authentic manner that is pleasant to digest while reading. I really like Shizen’s mediation practices here and I highly recommend you try them out! |
| The Book of Joy | The Dalai Lama and Arch Bishop Desmond TuTu | Where does true joy come from? How can we cultivate peace and compassion in our lives? True Joy comes from acceptance of what is and compassion for others. Loving Kindness and understanding that everyone ultimately wants to be loved and accepted. This book is the story about a week long retreat helps so old friends the Dalia Lama and Arch Bishop Desmond Tutu can gather and discuss the real source of joy and happiness. These men, from two completely separate religions (Tibetan Buddhism and Christianity) agree and much more than you might think. I highly recommend you read this beautiful story about two incredible men who spent a week together to teach us about joy. |
| Codependent No More | Melody Beattie | Understanding what it means to be codependent. Understanding the patterns and finding ways to detach from others approval and to detach from negative situation and people without ceasing to care, but by setting boundaries and know what is important to you in your life and what you want. Don’t be afraid to be who you are–be authentic. That’s the true cure for codependency. |
| Stealing Fire | Jamie Wheel and Steven Kotler | Using taboo means to achieve extraordinary results of the mind. Using existentialism as a tool for enlightenment and increased cognitive. New science is emerging suggesting that drugs like LSD and magic mushrooms, under the right circumstances, can produce lasting changes in people’s behavior, sense of purpose and happiness. This is a super interesting counter-culture book (although not so much anymore) and if you are looking to expand your mind and your ideas about the world of psychedelics take a read and enjoy! |
| Language and the pursuit of Happiness | Chalmers Brothers | Understanding that language is not passive. Language creates the world we all inhabit. Language to humans is the same as water to fish in that it’s all around us, and we don’t realize how much it impacts our lives. Making requests and promises and how relationships succeed and fail largely based on effective communication and the fulfillment of promises based on requests. What is said tells you more about the observer than the object being observed. |
| The Millionaire Next Door | Thomas J. Stanley and William D. Danko | • Having income is not the same as having wealth • those that have income fall into two classes: prodigious accumulators of wealth and under accumulators of wealth • no matter how much your income is it’s best to play good defense in order to create wealth • those who are wealthy, are frugal and invest as opposed to consume • -it’s critical to teach your children how to be frugal and thrifty as opposed to how to live a lifestyle of consumption. • Children are very impressionable, and will not follow rules that you do not follow yourself in regards to money habits • There is no specific type of industry millionaires tend to own, however, it seems to be that many of the industries are what many would consider to be boring |
| Influence: The psychology of Persuasion | Robert Cialdini | 1. Weapons of influence—i.e. reason why. i.e. Showing higher prices leads to more spending 2. Reciprocation—i.e. Social Obligations: Humans inherently don’t like being indebted to others. Doing for others will influence them to do for you. i.e. Reject & Retreat: Ask for the stars but only hoping for the moon 3. Commitment and Consistency—i.e. Living up to our identity – “We are what we repeatedly do”. We will act in ways that are consistent with our identity, beliefs and values. American 4. Social Proof–People are influenced by what others do. Herd mentality 5. Liking—people prefer to say yes to the request of those we like 6. Authority–The greater the perceived authority of a person, the more likely people are to comply i.e. (electric shock experiment aka Stanley Milgram experiment) 7. Scarcity—we are more motivated to act if we think we are going to lose something, than if we are to gain something. |
| If this is a Man | Primo Levi | The story of Primo Levi’s survival from concentration camp during WWII. Primo accounts every detail of his life in Auschwitz during his one year stay. Accounts of work, killing, starving, surviving, bargaining, and finally of their survival are all detailed |
| Truce | Primo Levi | The Truce is the story of Primo’s return trip back to Italy after being released and freed from the concentration camp. The books spans over 1 year as primo navigates through a new Europe and a new world |
| The Tao of Seneca | Senica | The Tao of Seneca (volumes 1-3) is an introduction to Stoic philosophy through the words of Seneca. Periodically rehearse the worst case scenarios to toughen up yourself mentally A well-ordered mind is a man’s ability to remain in one place and linger in his own company Linger among the limited number of master thinkers and digest their works if you would derive ideas which shall win firm hold in your mind If a man is contented, he is not poor. It is not the man who has little, but the man who craves more that is poor What the proper limit to wealth is? First, to have what is necessary. Second, to have what is enough If you consider someone a friend whom you do not trust as much as you trust yourself, you are mistaken Make judgement before when getting to know someone, and then make them your friend without any more judgement Share all your worries and reflections. Regard him as loyal, and you will make him loyal No man can have a peaceful life who thinks too much about lengthening it Nature provides what is necessary. It is the superfluous that makes men sweat He who has made a fair compact with poverty is rich Be persistent with your studies and make it each day your endeavor to become a better person Do not be conspicuous with your philosophy. Inwardly, we are to be different in all respects. Our exterior, however, should conform to society |
| A Brave New World | Aldus Huxley | A book set in the future–2550–where everyone is “happy” there are no struggles in life and everyone belongs to everyone else. John is not from this new world order and he begins to question some of the methods in which everyone maintains a state of happiness. At the end of the book it is clear that although tough times can be difficult, they are part of what makes life so worth living |
| Just So | Alan Watts | Philosopher Alan Watts discusses the meaning of existence. How to see the world for what it really is. Alan helps break the illusion of the ego and by doing so guides you in living a fuller more present life. This book is a series of lectures and has a wide range of topics but is a great way to expand your mind and the preconceived notions we hold about our reality |
| Ego is the Enemy | Ryan Holiday | The useless struggle to preserve ones identity. The ego leads to you and the world–or separateness. When you live in the ego you can’t see the forest through the trees and can end up hurting many more people other than yourself in the process of preserving the ego. This book gives countless examples of individuals that both express ego significantly and those who do not. This book ego is defined by any sense or feeling of self-importance. In this case you feel detached from the whole and spend your whole life trying to fill that void. In summation: “all of waste precious life doing things we don’t like, to prove ourselves to people we don’t respect, and to get things we don’t need. |
| Benjamin Franklin-An American Life | Walter Isaacson | An auto biography of Benjamin Franklin’s life. From his early beginnings as a printer. To the poor Richards almanac, to Mr. Franklin’s later life as a diplomat to the US during the revolutionary war. BF helped mold this new nation and his attitudes of frugality, acceptance, and the pursuit of scientific invention are still at the cornerstone of the American Dream |
| Essentialism | Greg McKeown | The book outlines a minimalist approach to tasks and obligations by focusing on truly important goals and learning to turn down opportunities that do not directly contribute to meeting those goals. Essentialists know that less means better is much more effective than more means better. Knowledge means to add something. Wisdom means to subtract something. |
| The Obstacle is the Way | Ryan Holiday | The book can be summarized by the following parable: Once day back in ancient Roman a kind wanted to test his people because he thought they were getting complacent. So, the king decided to place a giant bolder in the middle of the only road leading into town. He watched with excitement as one person after another approached the rock simply signed, cursed the king and walked away. Others would give the giant rock a push but with little effort and give up. Then finally an old man approached the rock and investigated its component. With a mighty push the old man determined he couldn’t move the rock by himself. So, he went into the woods next to the road and grabbed a large stick to help him get leverage. After several hours the man was finally able to move the rock out of the road and to the old man’s surprise there was a chest full of gold and a note that said “on the other side of the obstacle is your treasure–from your king” |
| The How of Happiness | Sonja Lyubomirsky | Happiness is largely under your own control, and that the benefits of happiness are available to just about anyone. Drawing upon years of research, including many of her own studies, Lyubomirsky argues that happiness is like a sport: Practice the right exercises and you are very likely to improve.
Sonja emphasizes that happiness practices must fit your personality, and so each of the 12 science-tested, happiness-inducing activities (1) Counting your blessings: |
| Real Artist Don’t Starve | Jeff Goins | This book revisits the idea that artists must practice scarcity to inspire work. Jeff gives you 3 lessons that teach you how to hone and master your skills. Some bits of advice include: practice in public, know when to sell out, practice multiple things–not just one, take advantage of the new creative revolution, charging the right amount for your work (don’t work for free), and be an apprentice to a mentor of someone successful in the field you chose and practice in public |
| The One Thing | Gary Keller & Jay Papasan | Often time people get distracted. They invest in too much and before you know they are over extended and everything comes crashing down. The one thing teaches you how to hone in on the vital one and leave the trivial 99 behind. The goal is to go an inch wide and a mile deep. The most successful companies find their one thing, master, succeed and then if need be (based on marketing conditions) alter their one thing. Focusing on all the shiny objects spread your resources too big and you won’t be able to outrun your costs! One thing leads to economies of case and lower variable costs. |
| Zero to One | Peter Thiel | In this book Peter Thiel, co-founder of PayPal talks about what it takes to bring a new product to market that no one has seen before. This book describes no to invent products that have impact as opposed to iterating on the same old products over and over with only marginal improvements. A new product can produce monopolies and these are the best markets to pursue since real competition is ultimately a race to the bottom and all companies lose profits Peter also talks about mastering one thing instead of being average at all things and master of none. Then Peter talks about looking for Niche markets and avoiding global competition because it eats profits. Capitalism and competition are not the same–in fact the oppose each other. competition is about maximizing growth but squeezes margins and profits while capitalism is about generating long term growth for a company indifferent to what competition is doing |
| Man’s Search for Meaning | Victor Frankl | Viktor Frankl chronicles his experiences as an Auschwitz concentration camp inmate during World War II, and describing his psychotherapeutic method. Being that Frankl was a Jewish Doctor the Prison Camp did not dispose of him and put him to work. In this book Frankl describes his journey and encounters with patients. He later describes a model using one’s purpose in life to feel positively about your current surroundings—no matter how dreadful they might be. |
| The Theory of Everything | Stephen Hawking | Hawking explains sophisticated and complex mathematical ideas in an unsophisticated, perhaps childlike way. He briefly covers the history of ideas about the universe from Aristotle, Augustine, Newton, Einstein, Hubble, and Feynman. He then explains the Big Bang, black holes and space-time and incorporates these thoughts into the search for a unified theory of everything. Although Hawking does not announce the arrival of the Theory of Everything, he does explain, in simple metaphors, the flavor of what such a theory would encompass. |
| The Art of Happiness | Howard Cutler | In this book Howard follows the Dalia Lama during a speech circuit he did at universities back in the 90’s. The DL teaches us how to live a happier and fuller life through realizing we are not alone and by developing compassion for other. To get to these states of mind the DL proposes some meditations and thought experiments such as imagine others people you love suffering and imagine a state of no mind |
| The Four Agreements | Miguel Ruiz | The 4 agreements are a way of life. When we realize that the culture we were born in and the life we inherit is mostly not of our choosing. In fact we didn’t get to decide most of the things that comprise modern living. The agreements help break through the dream of “human life” and guide you on a path to living a more meaningful and impactful like. Agreement #1: be impeccable with your word. Agreement #2: Don’t Take things personally. Agreement #3: Don’t make assumptions. Agreement #4: Always do your best |
| Tao Te Ching | Lao Tzu | The Tao Te Ching also known by its pinyin romanizations Daodejing and Dao De Jing, is a Chinese classic text traditionally credited to the 6th-century BCE sage Laozi.. The English translation of Tao Te Ching is the “Book of the Way”. In this old 6th century book Lao Tzu talks about what is and isn’t really in this world. What is and isn’t benevolent in this world. How to act and how to live a meaningful and peaceful life. The book is around 180 lessons and each lesson is aimed at showing you a better way to live your life. |
| How not to Die | Michael Greger | This book is basically the bible for vegans. Michael discusses all the new scientific research on plant based diets vs. meat based diets. The details are shocking but just what you need to hear if you are interested in reducing your consumption of animal products. The environmental and spirtual impacts are definitely real, but Dr Greger shows you that the health implications are just as real and as important! The book ends with practical models and recipes on how to obtain the daily dozen which is the correct minimum of all the best nutrients one will need throughout the day |
| We need to talk | Celeste Headlee | This book gives you 10 easy steps to having a better and more meaningful conversation conversation
Don’t multitask – be present |
| Out of your mind | Allan Watts | A series of lectures from author Alan Watts where he discusses the reality of our existence, death, space, reality, the ego and reincarnation. Another beautiful book from a wonderful man Alan who always leaves you questions your reality and with a sense of ease and peace for the way things are. Alan has an ability to make life playful and fun! I highly recommend checking out this audio book! |
| Unbeatable Mind | Mark Divine | Mark, a former navy seal gives you tips and techniques to improve your ability to stay calm in tenuous situations, focus, and succeed in life and experience happiness. The book covers everything from breathing techniques to setting goals and accomplishing what you were meant to do in life |
| How to Win Friends and Influence People | Dale Carnegie | This is an American classic. In this book, Dale covers 4 main subjects—-1. Fundamental techniques in Handling People 2. Six Ways to Make People Like You 3. Twelve ways to Win People to Your Way of Thinking 4. Be a Leader: How to Change People Without Giving Offense or Arousing Resentment. This is one of the best books I’ve ever read. The tips I learned in this book like “if you give people a high expectation to live up to, they usually meet the challenge” and “asking questions instead of directing orders” still help me today |
| Conscious Capitalism | John Mackey and Raj Sisodia | John, who is one of the founders of wholefoods discuss the change in market expectations and how Stakeholder integration (the idea that all stakeholders are part of the whole and even non customers are customers in the sense of social responsibility). John and Raj also discuss how the employee employer relationship has changed–1/4 reports and happy customers are no longer the right way to approach your employees because ultimately, happy employees make happy customers who make strong 1/4 reports |
| The Slight Edge | Jeff Olson | This book is all about taking small action, consistently and achieving profound success. Those who do the small things right every day tend to build better lives. The magic of compound interest does not only apply to money–it also applies to life. Every time you choose the right food, exercise, work towards a goal, you are building on that compound interest and success in inevitable. As Jeff puts it “success is a process, not a destination” |
| Where Ever You Go, There You Are | John Kabat Zinn | This book is an excellent intro to the theories and secular practice of meditation. In this books John discusses the science of CBSR (Cognitive Based Stress Reduction) as well as provides you with simple meditations to get you started in your practice. John gives you several varieties of practices including laying meditation, walking meditation and standing meditation |
| The Compound Effect | Darren Hardy | This book is very similar to the slight edge in that it drives home the magic of the compound effect. Meaning, doing the right thing consistently over time will pay off and lead to great success. IN this book, Darren gives you empirical evidence to support the compound effect as well as practical strategies to pursue in order to find your skills, leverage your environment and build long term success. One of the main themes of this book is CONSISTENCY! |
| The Buddha’s Brain | Richard Hanson | The Practical Neuroscience of Happiness, Love & Wisdom. This book gets at the heart and science of why meditation is a powerful tool to increase happiness. The brain is malleable and can therefore change. This book uses science to show how meditation and compassion are keys to a happy life |
| Think and Grow Rich | Napoleon Hill | This is one of the most influential books of our past. In this first of its kind personal help book, Mr. Hill interviews over 500 of the 20th centuries most well know business man in the world. Through these interviews Napoleon highlights several consistent messages from all successful business man including, establishing desire, using visualization, training your subconscious mind to hone in on what you really want in life, becoming a specialist, using your imagination as a tool for success, planning, mastering procrastination and keeping fear at bay. Basically, this book teaches you how to have the mindset for success. |
| The Charge: Activating the 10 Human Drives That Make You Feel Alive | Brendon Burchard | Brednon teaches you how to live your best life by using your 5 baseline “charges” in conjunction with forward drives. These drives include control, competence, congruence (my favorite and biggest takeaway) caring and connection. Further drives include embracing change, challenge, cultivating creative expression, contribution to society and finally, a drive that cannot be understated, consciousness |
| Life’s Golden Ticket: A story about second chances | Brendon Burchard | This is a fictional book about a man who is given a chance to go back in his life and change the things he doesn’t like about his current life. The character struggles to find out who he is while trapped in the magical theme park. With each chapter come a new challenge and a new life lesson to help the main character understand the best version of himself. The lesson are not confined to just the main character as some lessons help the protagonist find better relationships-specifically with his whole who in the beginning of the book recently left him |
| The Four Hour Work Week | Tim Ferriss | If you have ever thought about starting a business, this book is a great place to start! Tim shows you how he built a vitamin and supplement company into a passive stream of revenue. In this book you learn how to automate, delegate and differentiate between the vital few and the trivial many. This book is insanely practice and for those of you know that Tim Ferriss, you know he likes to share a lot of excellent and usable information |
| As a Man Thinketh | James Allen | If you are new to the idea of mindfulness or want to know more about the power of thought and action this book is for you. Written in the early 20th century, most of the lessons in this book are still true today. The book itself contains a very simple message; see you thoughts and then you can choose your thoughts. See you actions, and then you can chose you actions. Chose our actions and you can live a better life |
| The Magic of Thinking Big | David Shwartz | The magic of thinking big is another oldie but a goodie. In this book, David teaches you the concept of thinking big and shows that when you think big, even if you miss your mark, you can still achieve extraordinary results. David also talks about how to get results through a “big thinkers” mindset and how to help other people see your vision |
| The Practicing Mind | Thomas Sterner | This short book is a great gateway for those of you that are new to meditation. In this book, Tom talks about how he uses his meditation and mindfulness practice to be a better musician, husband and father. Things as little as a morning routine can be done with mindfulness and Tom shares his experiences through mindfulness with such activities |
| The Miracle Morning | Hal Elrod | This is one of my all-time favorite books and has literally helped me change my life in more than one way. Hal is a former Cutco salesman and he has created what he calls the “seven savors” that each person should do every morning to prepare themselves to life their best day, These “savors” include moving your body, getting some personal clarity through journaling, adopting an introspective practice , etc etc. I highly recommend this book for those of you who say you’re not a morning person–Hal’s book might change your mind |
| The Art of Exceptional Living | Jim Rohn | Another classic! Jim gives you one powerful lesson on life after another. Lessons on how to tip correctly, who to associate yourself with (average of the 5 people you hang around most) how to dream big and go for it and how to plan the life you really want. A must read for anyone looking for motivation to live the life you know you’ve always wanted |
| The Positive Dog | Jon Gordon | This is a fictional story about a dog that gets lost and finds himself in a pound where he meets several other dogs. Some dogs are grumps and some, like an old wise dog, are positive and teach powerful lessons. The biggest lesson I learned in this book is the theory of the positive and negative dog–which ever one you feel will grow so you might as well feed the positive dog |
| Relentless: From Great to Unstoppable | Tim S Grover | Tim is the former trainer for Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant. In this book he talks about the three different types of people he’s come to see in his career as an elite athlete trainer–coolers, closers and cleaners. Tim tries to show you the difference between the 3 and how to become a cleaner (someone who will not stop at anything for success) |
| Grit | Angela Duckworth | Angela does an AMAZING job teasing out what makes people more successful in their fields compared to others. These Paragons have several things in common but it all boils down to GRIT. Grit is the ability to try many options and keep going, to know that talent X effort = skill and skill X effort = achievement. In other words, effort counts twice. The notion that people find their passion is somewhat flawed and in reality, finding what you were meant to do is an iterative process and requires many rounds of trial and error |
| The Black Swan | Nassim Taleb | An absolute must read!!! Nassim shows you that the bell curve and our normal scientific methodology leaves much to be desired. This book is about how to see the unforeseeable and how to look at empirical data differently than the prevailing Plutonian cause and effect models. In this book you learn about black swans (something no one thought could happen) and how to take advantage of them. For if you see 1,000,000,000 white swans, you can NOT say there is no black swans with 100% confidence because it only takes 1 Black swan to prove their existence. |
| 10% Happier | Dan Harris | Dan Harris, podcaster and News Anchor for ABC, is one of my favorites! 10% Happier is his first book where he tells the story of his life and career which ultimately led to a panic attack live on Good Morning America. This panic attack, along with a fortuitous assignment to study religions ultimately led Dan to meditation. For those of you who are new to meditation, Dan’s books is one of the best entry points! Highly Recommend! |
| In the Plex | Steven Levy | This is the story of google. From the beginning years at Stanford to the later days in mountain view. Steven gets inside access to some high level executives at Google and shares of their amazing stories and concepts of building a strong culture and now to do it. This is a very thorough history of Googles early years up to 2011! |
| The Alchemist | Paulo Coelho | I do a lot of fiction books but this one is a must read! If you haven’t heard the plot line by now basically, Santiago (the protagonist) goes on physical and spiritual journey to the Pyramids when he meets an older alchemist who encourages him to find his passion in life. Through the story, Santiago learns how to listen to himself and the soul of the earth to help him find his passion |
| The Power of Now | Eckhart Tolle | This is one of the quintessential books for people pursuing a mindfulness practice. Eckhart provides mostly anecdotal stories about the presence one experiences when they focus on the now. When you’re in the now, you’re more a live and you tap into the one time there ever is in your life—NOW |
| A New Earth | Eckhart Tolle | This is Eckhart’s second book and in it, he expands on many of the same principles he had in the 1st book–namely being present and living in the moment because there is really nothing else… In his second book, Eckhart dives a little deeper into our human tendencies of fear, regret and worry in what he describes as the ego’s pain body. Everyone has a pain body but the degree to which we feed it will dictate the degree to which it manifests itself in our lives. By living in the moment and being present and open hearted you can quit and ignore the pain body’s plead to grab your attention and hijack your body and emotions. |
| David And Goliath | Malcom Gladwell | I think the title says it al about this book. If you haven’t read any of Malcom’s books by now, I highly recommend that you do. He is a master story teller and presents empirical and investigative research in an entertaining and learned way. IN this book Malcom talks about the misrepresentation of the David and goliath story. He claims that David wasn’t and underdog at all and goes on to use historical data to prove his thesis. Much of the book follows the same narrative as he takes you from one journey to the next dispelling many of the old ideas we held about our worlds proverbial David’s and Goliaths. |
| The Tipping Point | Malcolm Gladwell | This is a great book for all you marketers out there! In this book Malcom does a masterful job dissecting what makes something “POP” He covers everything to from the Hushpuppies craze in the 80’s-90’s to the decrease in crime in New York. Simply put, this is a book about trends and fads, not from a consumer perspective but from the perspective of the people who help manufacture these fads that spread like a virus at a slow pace until a huge event “tipping point” occurs which then accelerates the trends like wild fire |
| Outliers | Malcolm Gladwell | This book was my first introduction to Malcolm Gladwell and I read when I was still in college–back in 2009. This book is one of my favorites of all times not because of the concept he illustrates throughout the book but because of how it taught me to think about things and more specifically, the circumstances of my life. In this book Malcolm shows you through a series of stories about the misconception people hold about “outliers”. Outliers are a small group of people, usually the tip of the arrow in their industry, that many people were gifted with special abilities that they leverages to become mega successful–think the Beatles and any sports superstars you idolized growing up. Malcolm argues that yes, those people are indeed gifted by just as much, if not more of the success can be a product of circumstances or the taking advantages of those circumstances. I love this book and highly recommend you read it! |
| What the Dog Saw | Malcolm Gladwell | This book is a hodge-podge of Malcolm’s greatest New York Times articles. Basically, Malcolm takes you from one great investigation to the next as he explores things from different types of Mustard, homelessness, college admissions at the nation’s top school, trying to invest the perfect cookie and hair dye post world war 2 . Again this book is highly interesting and engaging and as Malcolm usually does, it will push your conventional views about the world you thought you knew |
| 1984 | George Orwell | A Dystopian future not for the faint of heart. This book is all about big government and the role it plays on our lives and our perceptions of “how things really are”. This book reminds me a lot of a brave new world in that the social model is taken to the extreme and the “greater good” is used to manipulate people and keep them oblivious to the reality of life. Exception as opposed to a Brave New World, which uses drugs and the pursuit of pleasure to manipulate its people, the people who have power in 1984 “inner party members” use force, fear and deception to manipulate its people. Obviously this book is a classic and some could argue it has some relevancy in our culture today with the emergence of new technology |
| How to Stop Worrying and Start Living | Dale Carnegie | This is book is another Dale Carnegie classic. Although I wouldn’t say I enjoyed this book as much as I enjoyed How to Win Friends but I still think there is a lot of great information to glean from this book. Dale covers everything from how to stop worrying by dealing with the facts or facing the worst case scenario head on to how to take care of you body so you don’t build stress that compounds the worry. If you are new to a lot of strategies that deal with worry and stress then this book is ideal for you! |
| Why Buddhism Is True | Robert Wright | This might be my favorite read of 2018. Robert does a Masterful job introducing the concepts of Buddhism to someone new to the practice. IN this book you learn the fundamentals of Buddhism but you also learn the science that backs it all up! Take a minute to listen or read to this gem and I can promise you, if anything else, you will be curious about Buddhism and meditation after you finish the awesome book. Who know, you might even want to start a meditation practice of you own after reading this book |
| Breaking the Habit of Being Yourself | Dr. Joseph Dispenza | This book, like the aforementioned, uses a lot of science and data to support its methodology and practices. The structure of the book is masterful in that the first part is designed to show you that it is possible to change who you are at a fundamental level (supported by scientific research) and the second part of the book is somewhat of a “how to” to put all that fancy science you learned about earlier into practice. This is an excellent and inspiring read! I definitely recommend checking it out!!! |
| Meditation For Fidgety Skeptics | Dan Harris and Jeff Warren | This is Dan’s follow up to the 10% Happier book as mentioned above. Another great read for those of you who are new to meditaiton. This book, however, as opposed to the first book, is by no mean autobiographical. Instead, Dan ask meditation teacher Jeff Warren to join him for an 11 day long road trip across the United States in hopes of talking to people and finding out why they don’t meditate. This book is packed with real road blocks that we all face when trying to establish a meditation practice and the corresponding mindful approaches to help you overcome those challenges. Jeff is a great teacher and they even throw in a few guided meditations from time to time! A great read for those you who hate the “fluff” and just want the emperical proof (dont worry, if this isn’t you, Jeff manages to get enough philisophical and fluff in the book if thats your thing too) |
| Einstein: His Life and Universe | Walter Isaacson | I think everyone needs to read something other than business books or books on personal development. As you can see, my books are most of that sort but every once and a while I like to read a biography of fictional book. Walter Isaaccson seems to be the king of telling somone elese’s story and this book about Einsteins life does not dissapoint. What a great read! It starts off with the beggining of Einsteins personal career with his days working at Swiss Patent Oiffce and ends with Einsteins death and the aftermath of his life as he tried to establish a new world governing power to protect ourselves from nucular holocost. Einstein was so much more than e=Mc^2. He was a gentle yet defiant soul whose story is sure to inspire you to follow you own compaass in life! |
| 12 Rules for Life–an antidote for chaos | Jordan B Peterson | Jordan does a masterful job of using modern psychology in conjunction with ancient practices and techniques to give you a road map for living a life of purpose and significance. In the books he outlines the following 12 rules: Rule 1: stand up straight-remember the lobsters Rule 2: treat yourself like someone you are responsible for helping Rule 3: be friends with people who aim up in life. Make friends with people who only want the best for you Rule 4: compare yourself to who you were yesterday not to someone else is today Rule 5: do not let your children do anything that would make you dislike them. Discipline and set clear rules for behavior Rule 6: make sure your house is in order before you start judging the world Rule 7: pursue what is meaningful not what is expedient Rule 8: tell the truth, or, at least, don’t lie. Rule 9: assume the person you are talking to might know something you don’t Rule #10: Be precise in our speech Rule #11: do not bother kids while they are skateboarding Rule number 12: pet a cat whenever you encounter one on the street-dogs are OK to |
| Option B : Facing Adversity, Building Resilience and Finding Joy | Adam M. Grant and Sheryl Sandberg | This was a surprisingly powerful book and I think the universe put it in my life at exactly the right time. In this book Sherly discusses the sudden loss of her husband due to a heart attack. In the pages that folow Sherly discusses why we get so down on ourselves when tough times hit and more importantly, how to get back to a place of confidence and how to build resilience that lasts. As sherly puts it, the reason we suffer so much when times are at their worst is because of the 3 P’s . 1. We think our problems are prevasive and that a problem in one area of our lives will translate to others. 2. we believe the problems are personal meaning we did something to deserve the pain and sufferring and 3. we believe our probems are perminent our pain will last forever. Sheryl and Adman grant do a great job using scientific data and anecdotal eveidence to dispell the notion of the 3 P’s. |
