5 must-read self-development books

Self-development books will teach you what you didn’t learn in school

I preach about self-development and self-improvement all the time. This is because I know the impact some self-growth can have on your life. I have witnessed it. Self-development does not only help you conquer your professional goals. You also get to have good relationships, know what you want and go for it, deal with issues such as self-esteem, self-doubt, anxiety among others, as well as increase your productivity. Here are some life changing self-development books you really should read.

How to win friends and influence people –Dale Carnegie

Relationships are a big part of our lives and they highly influence our levels of happiness and fulfillment in our lives. The better relationships you have with those around you, the better your feel about yourself and life in general. This book teaches you how to form good relationships at work, in business and in your personal life. I especially recommend this book for people in managerial and leadership positions. After reading this book, you will realize how the way you talk to your subordinates influences their attitude towards you and the organization in general. In terms of personal relationships as well, you will realize the right way to talk to your partner, what to say and how you say and how this it influences their response and therefore the overall communication in your relationship.

The richest man in Babylon – George S Clason

I am not a big fan of how much George Clason embeds his lessons in a story, but with patience, I managed to get a good lesson from this book. This is about saving. Before I checked my spending habits and started saving, I analyzed my earnings for a whole year at the end of the year and was embarrassed about how much I earned versus how much I spent. I was ashamed that I could spend so much and have nothing much to show for it. This book teaches you about the basics of savings since, even if we know them, we still spend a lot and only think about how much we could have saved after the money is gone. I recommend this book for someone hoping to adopt a saving habit. It really doesn’t matter how much you earn, you can really watch your spending and get rid of unnecessary spending.

Emotional intelligence- Daniel Goleman

Have you ever let anger get the best of you such that you did something you regret? Or have you been feeling sad, low, and moody and have no idea how to get out of this feeling? Or do you always sabotage your relationships and really cannot understand why? Do you ever want to be more productive but you are still not disciplined enough? If you answered yes to any of the above questions, you may be needing a lesson on emotional intelligence. Emotional intelligence, why it can matter more than IQ, by Daniel Goleman is one of the best books that I have read and I am still reading it. This is such a complex such that a friend and I were discussing on how it should have been made into three books. On the other hand, such a book shows you about how well researched it is and that the writer did not shallowly skim over topics but really dived into them and gave you the best. The core of this book is that self-awareness is the basis of emotional intelligence. This book teaches you how to understand your emotions, and manage them, and even put them into good use. This book brings some deeper understanding into some of the decisions you make such that you become equipped to make better decisions in the future.

The 4 hour workweek- Tim Ferriss

As I write this, I am still reading this book. While there are so many lessons taught by Tim Ferriss in this book, the best lesson that I got from it is that you can live a happy life no matter what you do for a living. A lot of people have been made to think that they do not live a full life just because they are not entrepreneurs. Many people have been made to think that there is something wrong about being employed and they should jump into the entrepreneurship wagon. This is why I wrote an article that entrepreneurship is not for everyone, and so is employment. Tim Ferriss brings up the term the New Rich (NR) people who understand that richness is not about accumulating millions in the bank, but living a satisfying life. You really have nothing to gain by accumulating millions in the bank and dying of a heart attack when you are forty because you did not pay attention to your body. Or you worked so much, worked through your leave days, haven’t traveled at all because you spent your life working and before you know it you are retiring tired and unmotivated. This book was like a breath of fresh air (I said the same about The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck) because the authors talk against what we are so used of hearing that we have believed it. I will probably review it after I am done, but for now, why not check it out?

Today matters- John Maxwell

I cannot express how much I love this book and I think it is one of the most underrated books ever. I bumped into it when I was looking for John Maxwell books about leadership which is a topic I love. This book talks about how the activities you do today influences your tomorrow, and how important it is to make today your masterpiece. All you have to focus on today, and then tomorrow you do the same and your life takes shape. John Maxwell, a renown author and preacher, talks about how your attitude, priorities, health, family, thinking, commitment, financial decisions, relationships, generosity, values and growth choices you make today plays part for the rest of your life. My favorite part about this book is probably about attitude (I am likely to come up with other favorites in the future as I am always going through the book). Your attitude really influences how your day turns out. If you choose to have a bad attitude, your day listens and gives you exactly what you are focusing about. Your attitude gives you possibilities. The full title of this book is, Today Matters- 12 practices to guarantee tomorrow success. Here are some quotes by John Maxwell about attitude.

You cannot win buy or win happiness, you must choose it.
Like any discipline, your attitude will not take care of itself. You need to attend to it daily

What’s your favorite self-development book?