Bookshelf

“A reader lives a thousand lives before he dies”, said Jojen. “The man who never reads lives only one.” 

George R.R. Martin, A Dance with Dragons

Books have had a more profound impact on my life than any other form of media.

In 2015, inspired by Zuckerberg, I set a New Year’s resolution to read one book every two weeks. The idea was simple: most books take at least two years to research, write, edit, and publish, often far longer. By that logic, hitting my goal would mean absorbing over 50 years of concentrated human thought in a single year. Over two decades, that compounds into something closer to a millennium.

I fell just short in the first two years, missing by four books each time. But since then, I’ve consistently met or exceeded the target.

What follows is a list, in no particular order, of the books that have shaped my thinking the most and brought me the most enjoyment.

Business

Life & Philosophy

  • Being Mortal by Atul Gawande
  • Man’s search for meaning by Victor Frankl
  • The Rational Optimist by Matthew Ridley
  • The Richest Man in Babylon
  • Meditations by Marcus Aurelius
  • The Prince by Nico Machiavelli
  • The Untethered Soul by Michael Singer
  • When Breath Becomes Air by Paul Kalanithi
  • How will you measure your life by Clayton M Christensen
  • The Brain: The Story of You by David Eagleman
  • Sapiens by Yuval Noah Hariri

Thinking clearly

  • The Great Mental Models by Shane Parrish
  • Thinking Fast and Slow by Daniel Kahneman
  • Poor Charlie’s Almanack by Charlie Munger

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