Quarterlife: The Search for Self in Early Adulthood
Quarterlife is an insightful and pretty helpful book about the phase of life between the late teens and mid-thirties. I recommend it!
The Good Life: Lessons from the World's Longest Scientific Study of Happiness
The Good Life is one of those rare “self-help” books that actually uses all its pages well. I really appreciated the way it not only presented the research but also provided helpful, actionable tools to carry to its advice in real life.
Four Thousand Weeks: Time Management for Mortals
For me, personally, the arrival of Four Thousand Weeks in my lap felt life-changing. I’m going to be recommending it to my fellow burned-out, anxious millennials for a long time.
Futureproof: 9 Rules for Humans in the Age of Automation
Interesting, approachable, and compelling, Futureproof was a pleasant surprise among this kind of nonfiction. It offers both moral and practical insights, and it reads quickly.
Calling Bullshit: The Art of Skepticism in a Data-Driven World
A slightly mathy but surprisingly useful book about how to think critically about the information and research we read about in the news.
You’re Not Listening: What You’re Missing and Why It Matters
You’re Not Listening is a well-written, readable, persuasive book that underscores the importance of true, unselfish listening and will inspire you to get better at it.
The Catalyst: How to Change Anyone's Mind
The Catalyst is a helpful, well-researched book about lowering the barriers of resistance in people’s minds. There were some really good nuggets in there that I will probably use quite often.
Good Habits, Bad Habits: The Science of Making Positive Changes That Stick
I was pleasantly surprised that this book did NOT feel like so many others that had come before it. Wendy Wood is an accomplished neuroscience researcher who also has a knack for translating her results into helpful, clear prose.
Biased: Uncovering the Hidden Prejudice That Shapes What We See, Think, and Do
As soon as I had this book in my hands, I was excited to read it. Biased is a scientific, uncompromising, empathetic look at bias (often specifically racial bias).
Talking to Strangers: What We Should Know About the People We Don't Know
Talking to Strangers is, without a doubt, Malcolm Gladwell at his finest. His skill at combining stories and examples with scientific study in order to keep you engaged and demonstrate complex psychological phenomena is unparalleled.
Farsighted: How We Make the Decisions That Matter the Most
Rating: 4/5 | I read Farsighted as part of my subscription to the Next Big Idea Club. It was fun to have it paired with Joyful, which was about the small things, because Farsighted is about the big things. Big, important decisions and the ways you can ensure that you're making the best choices possible. (Click the post to read more.)
Joyful: The Surprising Power of Ordinary Things to Create Extraordinary Happiness
Rating: 3.5/5 | I read Joyful as part of my subscription to the Next Big Idea Club, and it was really, really interesting. Ingrid Fetell Lee is a designer who's spent years researching the aesthetics of joyful things (like confetti and balloons and the Rockettes). Then she goes into how you can bring the same aesthetics into your own surroundings (short of throwing confetti around your home). (Click the post to read more.)
When: The Scientific Secrets of Perfect Timing
Rating: 4/5 | Anyone who reads a fair amount of nonfiction will tell you: Too many nonfiction books say pretty much nothing new. Refreshingly, When is not one of those books. I read it as part of my subscription to the Next Big Idea Club. It taught me new things about myself and about the world and gave me real-life takeaways that I can implement. I only wish that it had been longer! (Click the post to read more.)
Endure: Mind, Body, and the Curiously Elastic Limits of Human Performance
Rating: 4/5 | I read Endure as part of The Next Big Idea Club with Malcolm Gladwell, Adam Grant, Daniel Pink, and Susan Cain. It was very, very interesting, and one of those books that I may not have otherwise picked up but am glad I did. Alex Hutchinson presents a thorough view of the different theories and research about human endurance (is it physical or mental?), weaving stories about real athletes into each chapter to keep you engaged and intrigued.(Click the post to read more.)
The Checklist Manifesto: How to Get Things Right
Rating: 4/5 | The Checklist Manifesto was a delightful little book. It didn't necessarily teach me anything profound about checklists or how to make them, but it did take a bunch of things I already knew or understood and rearranged them in a way I hadn't considered before. The writing was great; it used good storytelling to feature many exciting examples, so I stayed attentive and intrigued. (Click the post to read more.)
Made to Stick
Rating: 5/5 | I am always looking for ways to learn new things, especially as it helps me get closer to accomplishing my professional goals. As a result, I've read a lot of books in this "self-help-for-business" genre. At this point, I sometimes feel like I've read all the advice before. This book pleasantly surprised me; all of it was engaging and entertaining as well as educational and thought-provoking. I learned something new and related the lessons back to my experiences with every turn of the page. (Click the post to read more.)