12 Books That Made Me a Better Man

Five of these books were gifts, four were borrowed after perusing a friend's bookshelf, two were recommendations, and only two that I stumbled upon on my own. Some have sentimental value, some found me at just the right time and place, and some serve as references to read again and again. But all have affected me positively and added flavor to my life.

Here they are in random order along with some tidbits of what they taught me:

The Magic of Believing - Claude M. Bristol

When I asked my Great Uncle Richard what the key to his success was, his answer was to give me this book. It has become a perennial read for me. Whenever I feel like I am beginning to lose my faith in humanity or feel pessimism begin to creep in, this is the manual I turn to. Belief sets forces in motion that can't fully be rationalized and there truly is magic in believing. We can all use a little more magic in our lives. Thank you Uncle Richard.

The Success Principles - How to Get From Where You Are To Where You Want To Be - Jack Canfield

Jack Canfield is a master at studying the techniques that successful people use and distilling them into actionable steps to share with others. I consider this book to be The Bible of Success. You can read a hundred other books on success or just read this one. Here, Jack has already read the other personal growth books, taken the seminars and training programs, and compiled a lifetime of experience studying success into one easily digested volume. I've already read this one cover to cover a few times and am now going through it again rereading one chapter per week in order to really practice and apply what he teaches over the course of a year. Before I was familiar with Canfield and his work - most notably the Chicken Soup for the Soul series - I had a chance to meet him in Portland, Oregon at a free talk and book signing. At one point during his mini-seminar he held up a copy of this book, The Success Principles, and asked, "Who wants this book?" While everyone raised their hands or waved and called out, he just stood there. It suddenly clicked for me. I got out of my seat, rushed forward, grabbed the book from his hand and said, "Thank you." He smiled and said, "You're welcome, you earned it." That lesson remains a great reminder for me about the importance of always taking the required action.

The Four Agreements - A Practical Guide to Personal Freedom - Don Miguel Ruiz

This book is written simply but is profound. The agreements you make are with yourself and incorporating them into your life helps you to live in a way that you can feel proud of yourself. The four agreements are: Be impeccable with your word, don't take anything personally, don't make assumptions, and always do your best. We often make life much more complicated than it needs to be. Bringing it back to these four tenets or fully adopting even one can be life-changing. I would say it's more of a reminder of what you already know and a gentle nudge to get you to begin to practice living it now. The small shifts have dramatic effects.

Rich Dad Poor Dad - Robert Kiyosaki

Kiyosaki teaches in this book a different way of looking at money. He talks about the differences between finding a career vs being your own boss and the difference between assets and liabilities. He lets us in on the secrets that the rich teach their kids that the poor do not. It is very easy to understand and will absolutely get you started in a way of thinking of money as a tool you can use to buy your freedom from the rat race.

Endurance - Shackleton's Incredible Voyage - Alfred Lansing

If you didn't know that it was a true story, you would say that it was a great book, just not very believable. But it is the true story of Captain Ernest Shackleton and his crew sailing to Antarctica in 1914. When their ship, the Endurance, becomes locked frozen in thousands of miles of surrounding ice their journey changes from one of exploration to one of extreme survival and optimism. This book is just fascinating to read and inspiring to see the tenacity and will of the human spirit against seemingly impossible odds. The impossible exists only in our minds and Shackleton and his men are proof of that.

"The quality I look for most is optimism: especially optimism in the face of reverses and apparent defeat. Optimism is true moral courage."

Ernest Shackleton

Wizard: The Life and Times of Nikola Tesla - Marc J. Seifer

It is astonishing how much Nikola Tesla's work has impacted our daily way of life, and yet he is uncredited for. He was an absolute genius and incredibly prolific inventor in the late 1800s and his genius advanced any field of study he turned it to. It is his system of transmitting electricity through alternating current that we all use today, yet when the public thinks of electricity, they think of Edison. Tesla's work changed the face of our planet. He was an eccentric foreigner, a visionary, an obsessive compulsive, a recluse, and yet a humanitarian. This book is by far the best biography of the man I have read. Seifer doesn't shy away from telling the full tale of his life through massive victories and crushing defeats. He made fortunes and lost fortunes. Tesla rubbed shoulders with some of the most powerful people of the time and at one point was one of the most famous men in America. It is appropriately titled as it does an excellent job of not only relating what took place, but painting a picture of what all of the scene of young America looked like then. Seifer's writing really brings into scope how dramatic the advancements that Tesla made were in relation to what was happening in the world around him. It also gives a more personal glimpse of who Tesla was, his idiosyncrasies, and his relationships with others through his letters and a fascinating study and analysis of his handwriting. This book is as captivating as a man of Tesla's depth, color, and contribution deserves. When people today talk about standing on the shoulders of giants, whether they know it or not, they're talking about Nikola Tesla.

The Abs Diet - David Zinczenko

Diet has become a "four letter word." It is used here to mean everything you eat and drink - a lifestyle - not something you go off and on. What I love about this book is that reading it feels like taking a class in nutrition and the science of food. David Zinczenko is the former editor of Men's Heath Magazine and he brings what he has learned there to this book. It taught me all about the dangers of High Fructose Corn Syrup and what hydrogenated oils are. In a simple and direct way, it is a crash course in reading nutrition labels. The recipes are crafted by a man who doesn't like to cook, so they are delicious and healthy but most importantly, "bachelor easy". It's an education that really sticks with you and information that you can use every single day thereafter.

How To Be Twice As Smart - Scott Witt

Who wouldn't want to be twice as smart? This book is packed with useful tips and tricks to help you get more bang for your brain. Everything that I have put into use from this book has worked. It covers everything from memory tricks, to speed reading, quick mental math, creativity, and relationships. If you pick up even just one technique from this book, you will be better for it. But you'll want to come back for more.

The Four Hour Workweek - Escape the 9-5, Live Anywhere and Join the New Rich - Tim Ferriss

Ah, Mr. Ferriss - a kindred spirit. Thank you for putting into print what I have felt my whole life. The world has changed and if you can see a better way, shouldn't you take it?

It's not so much "the rules don't apply to me" as it is "you make the rules for your life, I make the rules for my life." This is not a book about laziness. It is about effectiveness. It's not about wasting time, it's about harnessing time. If you can make your living in 4 hours per week, why spend 40? Spend the other 35 hours to design the lifestyle that you want and drink up as much of this life as you can. Your work is important, but so are your dreams and when balanced with the proper perspective, they can take turns fueling each other. Your dream lifestyle is out there. This book helps you to define what it is, realize it's closer than you think, and then gives you actionable steps to head straight for it.

Code of the Samurai - A Modern Translation of the Bushidō Shoshinshu of Taira Shigesuke (circa 1730), Translation by Thomas Cleary 1999

This little book is so fun to read. Though the original was written over 400 years ago, it feels like it was written yesterday. It illustrates how living by a code and conducting yourself as a man of honor is timeless. Every culture has their band of elite warriors and studying Bushidō - the Way of the Warrior - will teach valuable skills anyone can use toward any achievement. It emphasizes the enduring importance of education, will, honor, gentlemanliness, frugality, and courage to make the tough choices. At the time this book was written, Japan was emerging from a 500 year stretch of military rule and martial mastery. The samurai had been disbanded and needed to find a new way in a new era. This book is written for the warrior with no war to fight. They needed to preserve what was valuable from their old way of life and carry it into the new one. It "was composed to provide practical and moral instruction for warriors, correcting wayward tendencies and outlining the personal, social, and professional standards of conduct characteristic of Bushidō, or the way of the warrior, the Japanese chivalric tradition." Doesn't that sound like a useful manual? Chivalry is not dead, it's been sleeping. Read this book and wake it up.

Man's Search For Meaning - Viktor Frankl

You think your life is hard? Here's some perspective. I hadn't started reading this book yet, but I had set it in the empty seat next to me in the airport while waiting to board my flight. A woman sitting in the row behind me, deep in conversation with her friend, stopped mid-sentence, turned to me and blurted out, "Frankl!...Are you reading that book? It is amazing. It just...you realize that everything is nothing. I mean...what you think are problems, after reading that book you know that you can get through anything." Even after that set up, I was not disappointed. This book is powerful. Dr. Frankl was a Jewish psychiatrist who lived through the Holocaust. He unflinchingly tells his story of imprisonment and survival through 4 concentration camps and the atrocities that took place there. This is not an easy read, parts are outright horrific, but it ends in triumph. Frankl describes the lessons he learned, and how he lived his newfound philosophy of Logotherapy to not only heal, but to thrive after the war. Finding meaning and value is possible in literally every situation, even profound suffering. We always have a choice and it is our choices that define us. "Everything can be taken from a man but one thing: the last of human freedoms - to choose one's attitude in any set of circumstances, to choose one's own way...When we are no longer able to change a situation...we are challenged to change ourselves."

"Everything can be taken from a man but one thing: the last of human freedoms - to choose one's attitude in any set of circumstances, to choose one's own way...When we are no longer able to change a situation...we are challenged to change ourselves."

Viktor Frankl

Robinson Crusoe - Daniel Defoe

This book started it all. My favorite book from childhood. Mine is a 1975 Golden Press version "Retold by Jane Carruth" and masterfully illustrated by John Worsley. I've had this book for longer than I can remember, though I have no idea how it ended up in our family. Sailing, adventure, travel, pirates, tropical paradise, survival, and self reliance - what's not to love? This book and especially the illustrations are so inspiring, it sparked passion for adventure in me which continues even today. I'll be honest, I STILL want to be Robinson Crusoe. It's probably also the one responsible for my love of books overall. It taught me that reading itself could be fun and exciting - a book can be its own adventure. Every kid should be so lucky to have this book.

The Magic of Believing - Claude M. Bristol

The Success Principles - Jack Canfield

The Four Agreements - Don Miguel Ruiz

Rich Dad Poor Dad - Robert Kiyosaki

Endurance - Alfred Lansing

Wizard: The Life and Times of Nikola Tesla - Marc J. Seifer

The Abs Diet - David Zinczenko

How To Be Twice as Smart - Scott Witt

The Four Hour Workweek - Tim Ferriss

Code of the Samurai - Taira Shigesuke, Translation by Thomas Cleary