As we say in our About page, Life’s Too Good (this website) is a collection of articles and ponderings tending to be in one of the following areas:

• Lifestyle Design
• Financial Freedom
• Business Success

32 Recommended Books

This article then, to further support our interest in these areas, is quite simply a list of books I’d recommend which relate to each of the above.

The list also includes some books relating to psychology or philosophy which I’d say in turn relate to all 3 areas.

Enjoy!

1. The Goal – An excellent business book about bottlenecks and the theory of constraints. Told in the form of a story, it’s a great and easy read. Not just a business book, a book about problem-solving in general. I didn’t expect to like this book as much as I did but I really loved it.

2. The E-Myth Revisited – A superb business book. A must read for a modern small business entrepreneur. It will teach you why so many businesses these days follow the franchise prototype model and also why inside the owner of every small firm there exists a battle between The Entrepreneur, The Manager and The Technician (and why failing to attend to the needs of each invites failure).

3. Re-work – A great, easy & short read about agile business. It relates very well to the modern world and particularly the world of tech where agile software methodology often trumps traditional big company software methods, but the lessons within could equally apply across all business fields. The book has great reviews in general and some mixed reviews but is basically a bunch of bite-sized business concepts with minimal fluff, here’s a concept, here’s why it works, here is an example/analogy. It’s a book that at the very least you should find thought provoking and worthwhile. Interesting to read this and e-myth and compare the two (as they are two very different perspectives on modern business – emyth being about growing a big franchise prototype empire with repeatable procedures and this one about being small unique and agile).

4. The Celestine Prophecy – A very interesting read. As far as philosophy goes, I’m a big fan of the simplicity of Cicero’s 6 mistakes of man (and wrote about this here: Self-Help: Why Cicero’s 6 Mistakes Of Man Is All You Need). I tend to believe that a lot of books like this one with it’s 9 Insights are an extension of these lessons, but it is also well written and leads us to ask some pretty deep questions about the human condition and our relationship with each other, the world around us, the universe and existence itself. Many find this book deeply spiritual. Personally I find it contemplative, interesting and entertaining, providing some good food for thought.

5. The Road Less Travelled – I read this book over 15 years ago and still remember many of the concepts it introduced me to. The one that sticks in my mind is that of ‘balancing’. There is a definite overlap between some really great insights and the author’s own clearly religious views, which he clearly tries to weave into some of the lessons in the book (which I found unnecessary) and religious or not it leads the reader on a journey of self-exploration including the role our sub-conscious plays n our every day lives. Still a classic & still relevant today.

6. Zen in The Art of Archery – A simply amazing book explaining the Zen philosophy through the art of archery. It’s a short book and a quick read – a real page turner. I am not going to say too much more about it here because I already wrote a lot about it in my article about Zen here: Zen, The Inner Child & The Perfect Cup of Tea, so read that if you want more info on the book. Or just get yourself a copy, you won’t regret it. Great book.

7. The Inner Game of Tennis – Another amazing book, another short read. The author (Tim Gallwey) describes us as having 2 selves (Self 1 & Self 2) representing our conscious & unconscious minds. Powerful stuff & a great read. Like Zen in the Art of Archery, I cite this book in this article: Zen, The Inner Child & The Perfect Cup of Tea, and Gallwey was clearly influenced by Zen in The Art of Archery. It’s about more than just tennis, I personally bought it to help me with my Table Tennis game & the lessons are definitely just as applicable.

8. Flow – One of my favourite favourite books and concepts. Flow is pretty well understood these days as a concept but this is the original book which explored the concept and explains it well, and in detail. Flow, or optimal experience is a state that is hard to describe but basically encompasses measured, precise concentration on an intellectually or physically satisfying task. When you get into the state of flow, you achieve heightened focus, efficiency and fulfilment. I’d highly recommend this book.

9. The Lean Startup – With this book, I’m recommending a look at the concept really more than the quality of the writing. I do highly recommend the book and have long been a fan of (and also worked with) Lean processes, but the book could be better written. Anyone with some exposure to Lean (as I already had when I first read this) will have no problem with the book whatsoever and for them it will be a good read, maybe even a great read but I can imagine that for anyone for whom Lean is a new concept, it could really be clearer. This is because Ries spends a lot of time building his credibility and talking about the benefits of Lean at the start of the book before really explaining (clearly) what it’s all about. Nevertheless if you do wan to learn about Lean, about cohort analysis and market research (lean style) then read this.

10. The Star Principle – I have no idea from where I got this book, it was just lying around in my house so one day I read it. I think I may have bought it in a car bot sale or a charity shop. In any case, it was a superb discovery and I loved reading it and learning all about the star principle. It’s really well written and basically explains what is meant by a ‘Star’ business (a leader in a high-growth sector), furthermore Koch (the author) explains how to identify or even create such businesses. What I particularly remember about this book is that it underlines many benefits of finding and working in a Star company that had not occurred to me. Also of interest because I once had a colleague who often talked to me of finding a certain type of startup company to work for and whilst I could see the attraction and understood his reasoning (i.e. holding equity in a company that has sky-rocketed), I probably didn’t quite see it as a realistic or feasible ambition or understand the benefits and what would be involved fully, I chatted to him about it but without really thinking it was something I was interested in (we both worked for a big tier-1 corporate at the time). After reading this book, I got it and could understand completely what he was raving about. A great read & well written too, very interesting stuff.

11. Antifragile – Brilliant book. Though it has to be said, even though Taleb is a great writer, he is also a very comprehensive writer and this book does take some reading. I found it fascinating though. The whole concept of antifragility is amazing. The book goes way beyond interesting and once you have read it you just may never look at life quite the same way again.

12. Zen & The Art of Motorcycle Maintenance – The book is about a road trip but also about a relationship between a father and his son, about a man dealing with mental illness, about some of the big questions we have in life and, of course about Zen. The book is not a quick read and I have to admit struggling to read it around mid way through but it’s worth sticking with it as it is a great book with plenty of sub-plots and life lessons woven throughout it’s journey. The ongoing discussion about philosophy and quality is a challenge that the author openly shares with the reader, causing you to stop and reflect about what he is trying to say. A deserved classic and bestseller.

13. Bounce – So I met someone, Phil, playing golf who suggested I come and watch him play Table Tennis at my local village community centre. Though I thought this a very odd suggestion I turned up because it’s just a few minutes away from our little cottage. Phil wasn’t even there. “Let’s see what you’ve got then.” the coach, Tony, said and invited me to play, so I tried. It wasn’t anything like the type of table tennis I’d played on holiday (mainly due to the superior equipment – i.e. ‘proper’ bats with decent rubbers & sponges) and I was rubbish. “You can come and play but you’ll have to start again completely from scratch…” Tony told me. Coincidentally at the same time I was reading this book, from ex UK #1 Matthew Syed which is all about there being no such thing as natural born talent. The book basically suggests that with enough focused practice, anyone can become an expert at anything. And, (building on the 10,000 hours theory) it is this hard work and many hours of focused practice that is responsible for all of the greats across all of the disciplines, not natural born talent. It was a light bulb moment for me, ‘Perfect’ I thought. I love a challenge and was 100% up for testing what this book was telling me. So now I’m obsessed with Table Tennis which is the perfect sandbox for this theory. I have been improving for 4 years. Still a long way off 10,000 hours but my journey so far in this sport, some of the people I’ve met and the conversations I’ve had have certainly been thanks to and enriched by this book as have other areas of my life.

14. The Power of Habit – This book shows us not only how habits form in individuals but also how they form in organisations and societies. By looking at the science behind habit-forming Duhigg explains how we form habits and how, once we understand this we can change our behaviours and effectively program new, better habits. The writing style and use of references and analogies makes for an easy read and I was finished this book in no time.

15. Rich Dad, Poor Dad – The only book on wealth I’ve really read as most of my financial decisions come from experience rather than reading. That being said, this is a great book and has possibly influenced my thinking on investment if I wasn’t already of the same mindset as the author. Of particular note is Kyosaki’s cashflow quadrant which says it all really in a very simple model (get yourself into the ‘I’ quadrant). The book is deservedly a best seller and tells the story of Kyosaki having 2 dads – one dad who worked hard and did the right thing, saving his money and teaching his son to do the same, and another dad who tried to get a return on every penny, making his money work for him rather than saving it by making deals. Guess which one was the rich dad and which one was the poor dad. Whether you can or you can’t (but particularly if you can’t), read this book. Incidentally, Kyosaki also created a game based on this book: The Cashflow 101 Game which is pretty cool. If you want to avoid buying the over-priced board version, just buy it on your tablet, it’s just a few $.

16. Black Box Thinking – There’s no getting away from the idea that Failure is a word with negative connotations. Nobody likes to fail and we’re usually brought up tp believe that failure is a bad thing and we should instead try to succeed. But what if someone told yo that the best way to succeed was actually through failure? That’s exactly what Syed does, and does very eloquently (and as usual with plenty of backup, examples, science etc) in this book. The book contains a fantastic comparison between the medical industry and the aviation industry (the latter of the two informing the title) which really hammers home Syed’s main point and is an easy read from a great writer.

17. Big Data – I’d say in todays world, this is an essential read. Big data is all around us and this well written book tells us all about it and why it affects our everyday lives and our businesses. For example, what Google, Apple and the like can do with big data. You probably don’t realise how impressive some of the analysis and what can be done with big data actually is (I didn’t) or to what extent it is currently being used. This book will tell you both and what you should and shouldn’t be worried about regarding your online data and privacy. The only caveat about this particular book is that this is a topic that is moving very fast and as such I’m not sure the book will be as timeless as some of the other books in this list such as the ‘Zen’ books. For now though, highly relevant and highly recommended.

18. The Talent Code – If Bounce and the Power of Habit had a baby, this book might be it. It’s along the same lines. Namely that talent can be grown. Repeating the same actions over and over hard-wires our ability to perform those actions with more and more accuracy. Beyond muscle memory, the science here is talking about wiring of our neurology via myelin. Coyle proposes that growing myelin makes some neronal connections stronger than others and effectively builds stronger neural pathways in our brains making us reinforce our abilities to do any given thing (just by repeated practice). Whether or not the scientific argument in this book is 100% complete (because our bio-chemistry is a very complicated thing) I couldn’t comment on but it certainly makes for a very interesting read and I would be willing to bet that anyone who follows the blueprint laid out by Coyle in this book could not fail to see some kind of talent improvement. Very interesting stuff.

19. The 4-Hour Body – For me this one was not just a book because I also tried the diet. It was also an experiment (did I ever mention that I love experiments) and as such a great learning process. The book is very interesting, as is the author. It does feel a little self promotional in places and has lots of links in it which felt a bit OTT to me but then the material is quite different from the norm and Ferris is very much an online figure so I guess it goes with the territory. Thought provoking and potentially life-changing stuff. In the end I have taken what I have learned from this book and my experience with the slow-carb diet and adopted a slightly simpler, moderated version which basically amounts to move more, eat less & eat more natural, less processed foods (also informed by other reading, influences & experiences such as the Paleo diet which I’ve also tried).

20. The Power of Now – A beautiful book with a very simple concept, to live in the moment. Spend as much time in the moment as you can. This is something that relates very strongly to many of the articles on this website about mindfulness, simplicity and Cicero’s 2nd mistake (I love Cicero’s 6 mistakes of man). The book obviously also has a spiritual angle which may appeal to same but for me the simple lesson to live is always a good one.

21. The Psychopath Test – A book which amuses and educates in equal measure, The Psycopath Test is a thought-provoking read and a subject that really merits some reflection. The book is clearly well researched and provides significant facts about how the world really works. The Psychopath Test is interesting in itself. Of particular interest is how the book shows how our understanding of health disorders has changed over time, for example these days a child may quickly be labelled as ADD when in the past they may have just been seen as a little hyper-active. In todays world of mass analysis and data, this book is even more pertinent. The rush to fit people into pigeon-holes and label diseases and behavioural issues which may be overplayed has consequences and knock-on effects. It is great for business, for pharma industries, for insurance companies etc but what about society and the individuals themselves? I tend to feel that nature knows best and per a couple of other books in this list (antifragile and black box thinking) both of which I think mention iatrogenics, it is often best not to overplay things and let people heal themselves. When we have labels for things we have data. When we have data things get linked and correlated. It may be true but if it isn’t there is also a possibility of mass hysteria which may just be, well, unnecessary. This is not to say there aren’t new diseases discovered that are genuine and weren’t picked up previously, or that we shouldn’t analyse and links should not be explored – just that there is always a balance and we must also be conscious of the risk of going too far. Anyway, a very interesting book.

22. The $100 Startup – Probably the weakest recommendation on this list in terms of depth of information and research, but I included it because it’s an easy read, it’s motivational for anyone wishing to start a small business (particularly if it’s a passion based business) and there’s plenty in there to make the reader feel a whole lot more comfortable about taking the plunge because it shows plenty of examples of what to expect in this day and age. Not least that you can actually start a business these days with very little as the title suggests, but beware: low barriers to entry these days means also that: So can everyone else! Overall a great book which is well written in a nice, conversational style.

23. The Schopenhauer Cure – I read this book in German and as I’ve said below usually read fiction rather than non-fiction when reading in German or French because it’s easier. This is a novel, but like the Celestine Prophecy is basically a non-fiction book wrapped in a fictional story. The story is of a famous psychiatrist who learns he is dying and is therefore forced to come to terms with and explore his own mortality. Through telling a story the book makes some pretty dense philosophical ideas come to life and by using different characters and the dynamics of group therapy in the story (well written by Yalom who is himself a group therapist-psychiatrist) walks the readr through various issues and existential issues about life, death and the human condition.

24. The Tipping Point – The tipping point is about how small things can start an epidemic. Gladwell states that to start an epidemic (to reach a ‘tipping point’), Three rules need to apply. the law of the few, where you have connectors, mavens, and Salesmen, the stickiness factor, and power of context. then he goes through them in details with examples. The book doesn’t claim to contain any new research but instead Gladwell does a good job of curating pertinent evidence and research to support his arguments. The only obvious omission from this book is the emergence of social media and it’s impact on the world which relates strongly (we’ve all heard of things going ‘viral’, haven’t we) but that’s purely due to the timing of when the book was written. This doesn’t change the relevance of the book, it just would be interesting to have had that included – maybe an update will come out one of these days which does just that.

25. Influence – A superb book on the science of persuasion. Cialdini outlines 6 concepts which a ‘compliance professional’ may use in persuasion: Reciprocity, Commitment and consistency, Social Proof, Authority, Liking and Scarcity. It’s not the only book to cover some of these concepts but one of the first. The book looks at these concepts specifically from a sales and marketing perspective, both from the point of view of the salesman and also of the consumer. It looks at the consumer angle with the point of view that a little skepticism is a good thing because it guards against us being taken advantage of. He makes reference to the kind of ill-at-ease feelings we may get when we suspect we are being taken advantage of and encourages the reader (now armed with the tools to recognise how they may have been influenced by one or more of the concepts in this book) to do something about it.

26. Amarillo Slim in a World Full of Fat People – It may seem like a strange one to have on the list but this book is far more than just the story of one of the greatest gamblers of all time, it is a book about strategy. Particularly about what it means to stack the odds in your favour – to create a competitive advantage or in other words what it means to have an ‘Edge’. It’s not just professional gamblers who look for the Edge – useful lessons for business and for life. Check out the story of him betting the Taiwanese Table Tennis champ over a game of Table Tennis (and winning) – how he created the ‘Edge’ in that bet – one of the most famous bets of all time & #1 on this list: Top 5 Prop Bets of All Time. Oh and by the way, the book is well written too and an entertaining read.

27. Purple Cow – It is a noisy world we live in and with anyone and everyone able to publish something be it a blog, marketing for a business or anything else, it is increasingly difficult to get attention from people. Godin basically talks about attention as the new online currency and explains what we need to do to earn that attention – stand out from the crowd. Like a purple cow. Throwing money at advertising is no longer the answer, nor is being bigger. It is about being unique and this book is a beautiful little gem which will tell you how.

28. Six Thinking Hats – This is the only book on this list that I haven’t actually read. So why am I recommending it? I have read de Bono and I have read indirectly about the concept as well as actually using it for creative engagement in the workplace on several different occasions in various workshops and meetings. So being a fan of the concept I wanted to include this book in the list of recommendations.

29. Thinking, Fast and Slow – This book basically looks at two thinking ‘systems’ we all employ – the ‘fast’ system, our intuitive/instinctive mind, and the ‘slow’ system, our more rational/analytical mind. He explains why we have both, when we need both and when we sometimes need to override our instincts so we can access our more rational capabilities. The book has an array of examples that will definitely make the reader think. Thinking, Fast, and Slow is not a quick, easy read but is written by a true expert in his field and his depth of research and passion for his material shine through in the prose. The book is well written too, it’s just long. It could probably have been many books but is instead many well written chapters all put together for your reading pleasure. What does help is that at the end of each chapter, Kahneman summarizes the main points made with a “Speaking of . . . ” section.

30. The Happiness Advantage – The author puts forward the idea that We succeed because we are happy, not that we are happy because we succeed. He makes the case for being happy, striving to be happy and seeing happiness as a worthy goal. Rather than being wishy-washy about it and purely motivational, this book presents the evidence and science behind the power of positive thinking, and provides seven principles to help guide the reader to a more positive outlook. Like a lot of the books in this list, the book contains plenty of research and examples to back up the author’s arguments and due to the nature of this particular book a lot of those examples are rather heart-warming. We learn for example that happiness is largely a reaction to the world around us – we can use our mind to make us happier despite the circumstances and that to help us build the habit of happiness, we need to make it a habit, not an exercise in will-power. The book also references other books with similar concepts including the power of habit which is on this list which is great because between these book we end up with a more rounded view of the concepts involved.

31. The Mind Gym – Some time ago whilst working for a consultancy a company called ‘The Mind Gym’ came in and gave us one of their Mind Gym Workouts. I enjoyed it so much that when I found out they had a book, I bought it. It’s a great book, containing 20 ‘workouts’ for the mind in 5 sections: Control, Influence, Communication, Stress/Relaxation & Creativity. The idea behind the book and the company is that we should give our mind work outs just like we do our body – to maintain mental fitness as well as physical fitness. The authors encourage the reader ‘not to read’ the book, but instead to choose a chapter that appeals to you and leave it at that. To dip in and out of the book. I’ve read about 15 of the 20 chapters. The book is great as a read if you’re interested in this kind of subject matter (I am) but probably most useful as a reference or a tool to actually use the practical exercises it contains.

32. The Art of Thinking Clearly – So I’m always banging on about us having our own version of reality and view of the world – and also that various biases such as Confirmation bias affect this view and form part of our filters. We tend to confirm and reconfirm our beliefs and ignore everything that contradicts our beliefs. When looking into these and other related topics (cognitive dissonance, scarcity, social proof, authority bias etc) I discovered that there is actually a huge list of cognitive biases that we are all prone to. So obviously when I discovered a book which goes through them all, I had to read it. I’m currently about 80% of the way through the book (reading chapter 79 at the moment) but I can already recommend the book. Very interesting indeed. Update: I’ve just finished reading this book and if like me you sometimes skip the prologue or epilogue in books, don’t skip the epilogue in this one. It’s excellent.

Exclusions

I read a lot. I also read books about fiction (primarily in French or German to keep in practice and because I find fiction easier to read than non-fiction in these languages) and some specific to certain pursuits (for example I’ve read lots of books on Table Tennis and Golf). These are excluded from the above list but if you’d particularly like me to recommend French, German, Table Tennis or Golf books, I’d be happy to – shoot me a mail (if you’re on the mailing list) or ask in the comments.

Some Books That I Enjoyed But Didn’t Quite Make The List

• Atlas Shrugged – I thoroughly enjoyed this book but it’s more political than anything else so doesn’t really belong in the above list – basically shows [Rands view of] how neither full capitalism nor full communism work and why (discuss…).
• Imagine – A very interesting book with great concepts which would have fitted into the above list aside from the fact that the book was discredited due to the author having been found to have fabricated many parts
• Good to Great – Good, not Great. This book was good in it’s day and kind of applicable to the above list but I just feel it’s a little outdated and though it contains extensive research, that research is also now outdated vs some modern business practices (such as outlined in re-work and the e-myth). Apparently a number of the ‘great’ businesses from the book are now bankrupt (ooops!)

Final Thought – I’m Not Done

I really do love a good book.

Sometimes a book – or even just a single, simple concept from a book – can be life changing. Some of the above have been for me.

I hope the above list is useful for you. It’s also been useful for me writing this to reflect on the books that I’ve really liked and would be happy to recommend.

So on that note, I just wanted to say, I’m not done. If I read more books that could be added to this list, then I’ll add them… and if you know of any you’d like to recommend (or have any thoughts on the above) feel free to comment below.