reading time: about 5 minutes
Have you ever read a book that disproportionately shocked you? Today’s post offers you 10 books that changed my life.
You are reading: 10 books that changed my life
the new york times last week published an article under the title “the book that changed my life”. the newspaper had asked its readers to choose a book that had influenced their way of thinking, acting or looking at the world and received some 1,300 responses from which they published 43 titles. this fascinating glimpse into the reading lives of others gave me the idea to do the same.
here are 10 non-fiction books that have changed my life. most (but not all) have something to do with writing and i have deliberately skipped many of the classics most of you will already be familiar with (eg anne lamott bird by bird or stephen on writing king).
1-the inner game of tennis
by w. timothy gallowey subtitled the classic guide to the mental side of peak performance this book was first published in 1974 and i read it that year (and again in 2016) even though i wasn’t a tennis player and had no desire to become in one. the book taught me that when you’re playing tennis (or indeed doing anything else) it’s better to focus on the ball (or what you want to achieve) rather than criticizing your serve or the way you hold the racket . . Using this same principle helped me develop my own coaching technique for advising clients to become imitators. in other words, start copying the writing of those whose words you admire.
See Also: How to Learn Faster with the Best Foreign Language Audiobooks | FluentU Language Learning
See Also: Audiobooks narrated by Jim Dale | Audible.ca
2-the power of habit
by charles duhigg. I read an excerpt from The Power of Habit in my local newspaper in 2012, shortly after the book was published. I’m a bit of a cheapskate, so I don’t usually buy hardcover books; I’m prepared to wait the year until they come out in paperback. but not this time! I found the excerpt so convincingly written that I rushed out and bought my own copy of the book right away. I now keep it on a shelf to my immediate right hand so I can grab it and read examples to my clients. Duhigg’s book is grounded in science, packed with verifiable evidence and pages of footnotes, but reads like a storybook with riveting characters, plot, and tension. What I learned about habits not only changed my life, it gave me one of the best books I’ve read in the last 20 years.
3-the habit of now
by neil fiore. Speaking of habits, this book is one I always recommend to my many academic clients who are struggling to write theses, dissertations, or articles for peer-reviewed journals. Is Fiore a psychologist who wrote his own dissertation on procrastinating academics writing (!) the opposite idea of him? an out of hours. he believes that most academics give themselves too much time to write, which not only makes them ineffective but also makes them dread the task. You don’t have to be an academic to get value from this book. If you procrastinate in any area of your life, read The Now Habit to learn some practical, yet counterintuitive, tips on how to be more effective.
4-the checklist manifest
See Also: How to Learn Faster with the Best Foreign Language Audiobooks | FluentU Language Learning
See Also: Audiobooks narrated by Jim Dale | Audible.ca
by atul gawande. I have been a fan of this doctor (a surgeon) ever since I started reading his writings in the new yorker many years ago. he is smart and extraordinarily modest and believes that checklists can help us all do many things better. Airline pilots use them, as do engineers, and after researching how checklists work, Gawande even helped design a surgical one for the World Health Organization. could checklists help writing? I bet they could run my own writing business using dozens of checklists every week. (Gawande’s writing is excellent across the board. Another life-changing book of his that I really admire is Being Mortal, which sensitively and thoughtfully explores the limitations and failings of medicine in the context of end-of-life) .
5-a small step can change your life
by robert maurer. this book even promises to change your life in the title. and guess what? will. Maurer recommends using small, simple steps (for example, walking for a minute or doing a push-up) as a way to develop new habits and increase self-confidence. As a doctor, he brings a lot of scientific evidence to his arguments and shows how small rewards lead to big profits. the book is only 228 pages (reader’s digest size) and you can probably read it in 90 minutes. it’s worth every second it takes.
See Also: How to Learn Faster with the Best Foreign Language Audiobooks | FluentU Language Learning
See Also: Audiobooks narrated by Jim Dale | Audible.ca
6-if you can talk you can write
by joel saltzman. I first came across this book as an audio title, narrated by the author, a former comedian, and found it funny and very clever. I subsequently bought a print copy and devoured that version as well. Saltzman argues that writing is like “talking” (only in print) and that hardly anyone suffers from “speaker’s block.” my favorite expression of his is “blah blah blah gold…”, which he uses to point out that we should write a lot of boring/useless words (blah) until we get some good ones (gold). ) his book helped me develop my own shitty first draft principle, which in turn led me to my recent book, your happy first draft.
See Also: How to Learn Faster with the Best Foreign Language Audiobooks | FluentU Language Learning
See Also: Audiobooks narrated by Jim Dale | Audible.ca
7-10% happier
by dan harris. This book’s funny subtitle says it all: How I Tamed the Voice in My Head, Reduced Stress Without Losing My Edge, and Found Self-Help That Really Works: A True Story. An ABC Nightline TV show host Dan Harris found himself dabbling in cocaine, leading to an on-air panic attack. Highly motivated to make sure such a trauma never happened again, Harris gave up his drug addiction and learned to treat his anxiety with…wait…meditation! I find meditation to be a useful practice for most writers and have written about it in a writing context here. Harris’s book is a great read if you’re a bit skeptical about meditation. However, if you’re already convinced, you can check out one of Sylvia Boorstein’s books: Either Happiness Is an Inside Job or Pay Attention for God’s sake.
8-whatever you want
by derek sivers. i like the creative and sensible attitude of sivers to build a business. his book, subtitled 40 Lessons for a New Kind of Entrepreneur, promotes starting small and caring about your customers more than yourself. Sivers started his own business, CD Baby, in 1998 to help his musical friends distribute his recordings, selling it just eight years later for $22 million. then, usually, he gave away most of that money to a foundation called the independent musician’s charitable trust, which will fund music education after his death. if you’re a freelance writer, the sivers book will give you some great and innovative ideas to succeed with your own business.
See Also: How to Learn Faster with the Best Foreign Language Audiobooks | FluentU Language Learning
See Also: Audiobooks narrated by Jim Dale | Audible.ca
9-willpower: rediscovering the greatest human strength
by roy baumeister and john tierney. Baumeister, who is an innovative social psychologist currently working at the University of Queensland, was smart enough to team up with the New York Times science writer. together, they produced this best-selling and highly readable book on willpower. Drawing on cutting-edge research, the book describes how to focus your strength, resist temptation, and be more realistic when setting goals. I tend to favor habit building over the use of willpower, but the act of creating the habit may require some willpower to get started. this book will tell you how to do it.
10-sound of a wild snail eating
by tova bailey. if you were to point a gun to my head and force me to declare my favorite genre, I’d probably go for memoir. Today, I’m not going to list any of the fine and intensely popular memoirs (like the one brought up by Tara Westover) that you’re probably already familiar with. instead, I want to highlight a short and profoundly beautiful book about disease and the wonder of the natural world. When Tova Bailey became bedridden with a neurological disorder, a friend of hers gave her the “gift” of a wild snail. she then spent her entire illness watching him and taking care of him. superbly written. it’s a writing lesson just reading this extraordinary work.
See Also: How to Learn Faster with the Best Foreign Language Audiobooks | FluentU Language Learning
See Also: Audiobooks narrated by Jim Dale | Audible.ca
reading, in fact, can change our lives, if we let it. be sure to let it work its magic on you.
*
my video podcast from last week described how to write a book as well as a newsletter. or view the transcript and consider subscribing to my youtube channel. If you have any questions about writing that you’d like answered, be sure to email, twitter, or skype them to me and I’ll try to answer them on the podcast.
*
What book has changed your life? We can all learn from each other, so please share your thoughts with my readers and me in the “comments” section below. anyone who comments on today’s (or any other) post by jan. 20/31 will be put into a drawing for a copy of my first book, 8 1/2 Steps to Typing Faster, Better. please scroll down to the comments, directly below the “related posts” links, below. note that you do not have to join disqus to post. see here to learn how to post as a guest. it’s easy!
See Also: Top 30 Best Civil War Books Of All Time Review 2022