24 Books that Changed the Way I Look at the World
At the end of college, and the two or so years after, I started an existential quest to discover the purpose of life. This was somewhat accidental. I didn’t quite realize I was doing it. But heading into adulthood I was with questions I needed answers to. (Most of which can’t ever be answered indefinitely).
This journey won’t ever end. It’s a continual process for humans to answer spiritual, philosophical, ethical, moral, and career questions. This process is how we position ourselves to live structured and fulfilling lives. Each of these areas are ever-changing, and unforeseen events in our lives can create new levels of understanding or renewed searches for answers.
I started with a curiosity of self-help literature. The genre has a lot of useful material. Depending on how you define it, any book that improves you as a person fits into the category. There’s a common goal, however, to think positively and aim for happiness. This didn’t fully align with my sentiments. I thought the harsher realities of life needed to be addressed, along with the answers as to why anyone would have questions burning enough that they’d need answers.
After self-help I explored mindfulness. I figured that if I could calm my mind, I’d never have an existential thought, and I’d continue on my merry way. Mindfulness and meditation are useful. They’ve changed the lives of many people. But aiming to center myself didn’t quite give me the answers I was looking for — why I have a self and why that self would need to be centered, for instance. This couldn’t be a stopping place, so I kept looking.
I went back to where I started as a kid. I was raised with Judeo-Christian principles and ideals, so I looked there. It was comforting, and it felt familiar. The idea that a ‘big Man’ upstairs kept things in order was soothing. It seemed useful to believe, even if it wasn’t true. But this still failed to answer other philosophical questions. Was God just a human creation made precisely to solve for existential dilemmas?
Here’s a cliff hanger — I can’t tell you that I found a secret answer or formula. But I can tell you that I found what’s been referred to as “quake books.” These are books that shake the foundation of everything you know and help you get a new perspective on the world.
Some of these books are psychological, philosophical, or plain practical. Some are dense, deep or dark, and some are light-hearted and easy to digest. These books are helping me create a playbook for how I can conduct myself and make sense of the world.
This list is by no means complete. It will only grow as I do. But If we can understand the needs of humans and how history’s greatest thinkers approached monumental questions, we can piece together frameworks to use for our individual needs and to orient ourselves in the world.
1. 12 Rules for Life: An Antidote to Chaos by Jordan B. Peterson
Peterson’s ideas come from a premise that’s common in many religions and schools of thought that we seem to have forgotten — life is suffering.
He outlines how we can reconcile our suffering, find strength and meaning despite it, and conduct our lives in a manner that eliminates the chaos that is possible to emerge because of suffering.
The book is deep but it’s practical. Its lessons are timeless and their shared through the lens of a credible source, a clinical psychologist. He has a firm grasp on the leading thinkers in psychology, philosophy, and religious ideas. Some advice is as straightforward as ‘standing up with your shoulders straight,’ and ‘pursuing what’s meaningful, not what’s expedient.’
2. Man’s Search for Meaning by Viktor Frankl
Frankl is a psychiatrist and holocaust survivor. His book shares wisdom for how to find purpose in life, and meaning despite despair, through the vantage point of a survivor of one of the greatest atrocities in human history.
The German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche said, “He who has a why to live for can bear almost any how.” Frankl regurgitates this message with the depth and reason of a psychiatrist. He even shares his own version of the same idea by saying, “A man who becomes conscious of the responsibility he bears toward a human being who affectionately waits for him, or to an unfinished work, will never be able to throw away his life. He knows the “why” for his existence, and will be able to bear almost any “how.”
3. The Gulag Archipelago by Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn
This is the retelling of Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn’s experience as a prisoner in the forced labor camps of the Soviet Union.
It’s a heavy book that serves as a report of the atrocities of the camps. It was banned in the Soviet Union, and for great reason. Its lessons helped bring down communism. Solzhenitsyn’s work helps us understand how evil manifests itself and why we are all inflicted with its capacity.
He wrote the chilling passage, “Gradually it was disclosed to me that the line separating good and evil passes not through states, nor between classes, nor between political parties either — but right through every human heart — and through all human hearts. This line shifts. Inside us, it oscillates with the years. And even within hearts overwhelmed by evil, one small bridgehead of good is retained. And even in the best of all hearts, there remains … an unuprooted small corner of evil.”
4. Montaigne: Essays by Montaigne
Michael de Montaigne is a philosopher from the French Renaissance who wrote profound essays on all of life’s crucial topics: educating children, death, solitude, philosophy and more, while insightfully looking at the human condition and behavior.
He influenced many of the west’s greatest thinkers, including Rene Descartes, Jean-Jacques Rousseau, Blaise Pascal, Francis Bacon, and Friedrich Nietzsche. His ideas will surely influence you, too.
5. Meditations by Marcus Aurelius
Marcus Aurelius was the last of the five good emperors of Rome. He was the most powerful man in the world and lived a life plagued by constant war, sickness in old age, and possible infidelity from his spouse.
Despite his position of power and the difficulties he faced, Marcus wrote reminders to himself each day to suppress his ego, meditate on the infinite, and be a good man. These Meditations were never meant for an audience. The original translation is titled “To Himself,” because that’s what Marcus was doing.
Most troubles you’ll have are addressed in thoughtful, simple, and effective messages. Having a tough time getting out of bed? He says, “At dawn when you have trouble getting out of bed, tell yourself: I have to go to work as a human being. What do I have to complain of, if I’m going to do what I was born for — the things I was brought into the world to do? Or is this what I was created for? To huddle under the blankets and stay warm?”
Need a reminder to be a good person? His message is just as simple. “Waste no more time arguing what a good man should be. Be one.” This is timeless advice for all genders.
6. Discourses and Selected Writings by Epictetus
Epictetus is another Stoic philosopher, and his school taught Marcus Aurelius. Unlike the Emperor, Epictetus was once a slave, and a man with physical impairments. Despite that adversity, he realized that the only useful approach to life is to separate what is in our control from what isn’t. And that we humans have the power to choose how we respond to any circumstance, because they are only what we perceive of them.
The Art of Living by Sharon Lebell is a translation that’s short and easy to digest, but Epictetus’ writings are all accessible. I’ve found him to be the most soothing of the Stoics. He has a way of reconciling the harsh realities of life with optimism and strength.
7. On the Shortness of Life by Seneca
“Life is long if you know how to live it.”
Seneca’s hypothesis is that humans don’t lack time, we simply don’t know how to use it.
How often do we fail to say ‘no’ to things we don’t want to do? Or sign up for tasks we don’t have time for? Spend hours commuting when there’s a better solution?
This book is a short and sweet reminder to look differently at the way we use time.
8. As a Man Thinketh by James Allen
Despite the title, the book provides wisdom for readers of any gender. The book was published in 1903, so it’s lessons are over 100-years-old. Many of the ideas in this book felt rather Stoic, and similar to Zen Buddhism.
Rather than making a claim that success is based on dreaming and meditating on what one desires — like most modern self-help — As a Man Thinketh reminds readers that as their minds and thoughts go, so do their bodies.
If we can tame our minds, we can mold it for our own needs. This shouldn’t be confused with self-help literature that endorses positive thinking and visualization — which I don’t believe works, because the world is unpredictable and positivity has its limits and delusions — it encourages readers to properly control their thoughts and mind.
9. The 48 Laws of Power by Robert Greene
If there’s a book that every worker should read, it’s the 48 Laws of Power. This book is an expose of the power games that happen between humans. You can use these lessons to help you understand the world, and make sense of the dynamics that are at play in broader society and your local surroundings.
It also has advice that we should adhere to for practical reasons. For example:
- ‘Never outshine the master’ — because we should always respect those that paved the way for us.
- ‘Always say less than necessary’ — because saying less shows that we’re listening and that we’re being careful to be precise, accurate, and thoughtful with our speech.
Some of the laws in the book are vicious and cruel. It’s important to remember that it was written as a historical and unfiltered examination of human behavior. Not every law should be applied.
10. Ego is the Enemy by Ryan Holiday
If someone’s work can mentor you from afar, Ryan Holiday’s did. This and his book The Obstacle is the Way introduced me to Stoic philosophy. It’s a practical philosophy that can be directly applied to our lives and work.
Ego is the Enemy is split into three stages — aspiration, success, and failure. It shows us why ego is toxic at all three stages of our lives and careers, destroying us just at the moments where we’re trying to get started, or right when we’ve had some success. His article on ‘grunt work’ and other musings on career are crucial for anyone getting started in a career.
11. Who Moved My Cheese by Spencer Johnson M.D.
When change happens, how do we respond? Do we embrace it with open arms? Head into its grasp kicking and screaming? Does it depress us and cause us to feel ambivalent?
Who Moved My Cheese is a lesson on how to maneuver through change in our lives. It’s written through the story of a group of mice, with a short and effective way of communicating its message.
It’s a crucial message for those who are constantly seeking to improve, because improvement always means constant change of self, environment, and lifestyle.
12. The Black Swan by Nassim Nicholas Taleb
The world is more unpredictable and irrational than we usually acknowledge. Events that no one foresees end up shaping our lives, countries, and globe.
Despite this, we live like randomness doesn’t have an immeasurable impact on us. We create narratives to make sense of improbability, and we fail to predict the future.
Taleb’s books aim to show us why randomness drives more of life than we realize. He’s given me a new lens to see the world, helping me take a breathe and appreciate life’s surprises.
13. The Bed of Procrustes by Nassim Nicholas Taleb
This book is a collection of philosophical and practical aphorisms. Some are harsh. Some are radical. And some are outrageous.
Whether you act these out or read for entertainment, you’ll be left with new ways of interpreting the world.
14. Predictably Irrational: The Hidden Forces That Shape Our Decisions by Dan Ariely
As much as we’d like to think that we make logical and rational decisions, we don’t.
This book is geared toward the marketing world, but it provides insight on how marketers exploit the blind spots in our decision-making processes, and why we should pay more attention to how we act, while also cutting ourselves some slack.
15. Subliminal: How Your Unconscious Mind Rules Your Behavior Leonard Mlodinow
This is an engaging and entertaining introduction on how our subconscious rules us in ways we don’t realize.
The book sites interesting research, and through it your get a glimpse at the processes that are at work in the hidden parts of your psyche.
16. The Art of Choosing by Sheena Iyengar
Decisions can cause anxiety. How to choose between two seemingly similar options is difficult.
I read this book when I graduated college and was struggling to choose between options. It alleviated my stress of decision making, while affirmed that I wasn’t wrong for not instinctively knowing which direction to go.
17. The Defining Decade by Dr. Meg Jay
Every college graduate and person in their 20’s should read this. Clinical psychologist Dr. Meg Jay explains why the 20’s are the decade that sets the stage for the rest of our lives.
She shows what roadblocks are ahead and how to avoid them, while laying out frameworks for career, marriage, and health. All of the anecdotes are useful and many of them are examples I’ve seen play out in peers I graduated with.
18. The Power of Habit by Charles Duhigg
How do we change habits? How does an alcoholic quit for good? Are we doomed to repeat our bad habits?
The Power of Habit examines what Duhigg describes as “the habit loop,” a cue, routine and reward mechanism inside of our brains that governs what we do. This book helps us better understand how our habits form and what we can do to get rid of the bad ones.
19. Extreme Ownership by Jocko Willink and Leif Babin
This book has the simplest lesson, but one of the hardest to accept.
Its message is extreme responsibility — of all the details of our lives. We have to own up to errors. We have to address flaws and mistakes. We have to be honest about failure, laziness, and procrastination.
It sounds simple, but the lesson of the book is in its application.
20.Wooden: A Lifetime of Observations and Reflections On and Off the Court by John Wooden with Steve Jamison
John Wooden is one of the greatest coaches in all of sports. Despite his accolades, he never became filled with ego. He stayed humble and focused on his mission. He aged gracefully with a healthy, supportive, and loving family.
If you’re a basketball fan you’ll love his words for how one should conduct themselves and live their lives.
21. Pitch Perfect: How to Say it Right the First Time, Every Timeby Bill McGowan and Alisa Bowman
This book wasn’t life-changing in an existential way, but it shares most necessary communication skills.
Saying the wrong thing at the wrong time has consequences. You could lose the case for a raise. You could bomb an interview and not get the job. You may do permanent and irreparable damage to a relationship.
Knowing how to say the right thing is especially important at the beginning of our careers. Whether we work in communications, sales or other fields, having the ability to effectively communicate furthers our chances at success in both life and work.
22. Search Inside Yourself by Chade-Meng Tan
This mindfulness book was written by one of Google’s earliest engineers and personal growth pioneers.
Its content was used as a course at Google for employees, and it’s an excellent rundown on what mindfulness is and how to implement it into our everyday lives.
23. Deep Work by Cal Newport
Cal Newport has a useful hypothesis. The workplace needs knowledge workers. At the same time this demand is increasing, the number of workers who can perform knowledge work is decreasing. (Due to social media, internet addiction, and our limited attention spans.)
This provides a market opportunity for those of us who can increase our abilities as knowledge workers. We can become even more of a commodity by doing what he calls “Deep Work,” the long hours of concentrated and distraction free work needed to get various jobs done. Newport lays out the framework we can follow and explains why his hypothesis is correct.
24. The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*** by Mark Manson
In Mark Manson’s Subtle Art of Not Giving a F***, he uses ideas that I found to be rather Stoic. Though the title may make you believe that Manson is implying that people should not care about anything, it’s quite the opposite. Manson wants to show readers why they must determine who and what to care about, and at what times.
If we care about the wrong things we may overreact to trials, we may chase faulty goals, and we may never cut the negativity out of our lives to free up the mental energy and time to be productive and grow as people. Manson’s Subtle Art is a fun and simple explanation as to how we can determine what is important in our lives.
Useful Ideas from these Books
- Life is suffering. This is an inescapable fact.
- Happiness isn’t what we should strive for. We should strive for meaning.
- Communicate to be understood and known. Learn how to improve at it.
- Watch what other people say and do. This helps you listen, be engaged, and understand what they’re up to. With this you can build bonds and trust.
- Watch your actions and where they’re taking you.
- Don’t think, act!
- Be honest with others.
- Be honest with yourself. Don’t lie about interests, goals, passions, hobbies, or anything else.
- Don’t assume the formula for others works for you. We are highly complicated, and we hardly even understand ourselves. What works for someone else won’t necessarily work for you.
- Be open to change. This means changing environments, friends, and even and especially changing yourself.
- The subconscious is a monster of information and secrets.
- Reality can be played with and you can be molded and changed. Sometimes you’ll be surprised how much you’ve changed. (Even though you’re still staying the same. You is you!)
- Interact with the world with how it actually is, not how you wish it was.
- Never assume you know enough. Keep learning. You don’t know what you don’t know!
What happens next?
Even though books give you good lessons, and they start to work, learning doesn’t stop. You’ll never know enough. And you don’t realize what you don’t know until you know it.
I’ll be diving deeper into philosophers and psychologists. Some that I’m interested in are:
- Carl Jung
- Sigmund Freud
- Friedrich Nietzsche
- Soren Kierkegaard
- Michael de Montaigne
- Plato
- Aristotle
- Socrates
- Zeno
- Carl Rogers
- Abraham Maslow
I think it’s useful to engage these thinkers to understand how humans work. Once we know more about ourselves, we can use that knowledge to thoughtfully engage with our friends, families, workplaces, and communities.
I’ve also found that one of the most useful ways to live and aim at success is simply by copying what other people have done. (And learning what not to do.) This is accomplished by reading biographies. Some of the best are presidents and political figures. The founding fathers are a great place to start. To recommend a few:
- Thomas Jefferson: The Art of Power by Jon Meacham
- Boyd: The Fighter Pilot Who Changed the Art of War by Robert Coram
- Titan: The Life of John D. Rockefeller, Sr. by Ron Chernow
- The Power Broker: Robert Moses and the Fall of New York by Robert. A Caro
- Alexander Hamiltion’s Guide to Life by Jeff Wilser (Not a traditional biography, but a fun and comprehensive look at Hamilton’s life and valuable lessons.)
Let’s connect!
I’d love to hear your thoughts and what you’re reading.
