Books That Have Changed My Life
By Stefan Auvache
No habit or hobby has changed my life more than reading.
Reading can teach you about how agriculture and economics shape modern borders, how to be a better public speaker, or how to find comforting humor in difficult times. It will endlessly educate, entertain, and fascinate you if you let it.
In my office, I keep a shelf of books that have changed my life in some way. I universally recommend them to everyone.
Here are the books on my shelf and the life-changing lessons they have taught me:
The Alchemist
Paulo CoelhoLife is about the journey, not the destination. Find your personal legend—the path in life that calls to you, and follow it.
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Man's Search for Meaning
Viktor FranklWe don't ask ourselves what the meaning of life is. Life asks us that question when we experience trials and hardship. We answer the question by how we live our lives.
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The War of Art
Steven PressfieldOur desire to do anything worthwhile is met by Resistance—the personification of the force that keeps us from doing our work. As a human being with work to do, your main goal each day is to overcome Resistance.
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Deep Work
Cal NewportThis book completely changed my working life. You can be impressively productive by learning to work deeply. You also find incredible satisfaction through deep work.
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Little Princes
Connor GrennanThis is a true story about how selfless service changes who you are. It reminds me over and over again that happiness and meaning are found in serving others.
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Freakonomics
Steven D. Levitt and Stephen J. DubnerFreakonomics taught me that thinking can be endlessly entertaining. Things aren't always as they seem. Don't be afraid to ask questions.
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Mastery
Robert GreeneMastery isn't just something that everyone is capable of; it is our duty as members of society to find and follow our path to mastery. Search your soul for passion, and then to pursue it with everything you have.
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Meditations
Marcus AureliusLife is short, fragile, and outside our control. The only thing we can truly govern is our character. Live with virtue, act with integrity, and accept what comes.
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12 Rules for Life
Jordan PetersonTake responsibility for yourself. Stand up straight, tell the truth, and treat others with respect. Order your own life before trying to fix the world.
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Tao Te Ching
Lao TzuTrue strength is found in humility. Go with the flow of life, embrace simplicity, and stop fighting battles that don't need to be fought.
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Nobody Wants to Read Your Sh*t
Steven PressfieldNobody owes you their attention, and no one cares how much effort you put into making something. If you want to write (or build) something useful, cut your ego and respect your audience. Focus on telling a better story.
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Surviving Hitler
O. Håkan PalmEven in the worst circumstances imaginable, we can choose kindness, courage, and faith. No situation can take away our ability to do good. You can always do something to make things better.
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The Phoenix Project
Gene Kim, Kevin Behr, and George SpaffordWork is a system. To succeed, you must limit what's on your plate, strengthen the flow of work, and continually improve. The same is true in life. This book helped to inspire my personal development philosophy.
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Principles
Ray DalioAll decisions in life can be systematized through principles. Create clear principles to guide your life, refine them through trial and error, and let them anchor you when things get hard.
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Perennial Seller
Ryan HolidayThis book gave me a formula for doing creative projects that are useful, have potential to be successful, and that I can be proud of for a very long time. To do work that lasts, focus on quality, usefulness, and meaning.
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On Writing
Stephen KingLearn the tools of your trade and get to work. Find a useful activity that pushes your craft forward (like writing), set a quota, and meet it every day without fail.
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Creativity, Inc.
Ed CatmullThis is the best book on business, creativity, and finding long-term success that I have ever read. The keys to building a successful team are trust, candor, and facing problems head-on. It is as entertaining as it is inspiring and useful.
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