In today’s post, you’ll learn all about my favorite self-improvement books to shift your mindset and get inspired to go after your dream life. I share what each book helped me the most with, as well as my biggest takeaways from each self-improvement book.
Want to add some amazing motivational books to your to-read list? Then let’s dive in.
1. Eckhart Tolle – A New Earth: Awakening to Your Life’s Purpose (2005)
“The primary cause of unhappiness is never the situation but your thoughts about it.”
― A New Earth: Awakening to Your Life’s Purpose
When it comes to self-improvement books, Tolle is easily my favorite author. I read a few of his books and each and every one of them is a journey to myself. This book helped me realize that every situation is neutral. Only when we attach our opinion and emotions to the situation, it becomes negative or positive.
I learned how to accept every situation in my life as something that is happening only to show me a lesson needed for my growth. He also talks about the present moment as the only one we have. With that in mind, I started stressing out less about the future and making sure I’m happy today.
The truth is, when we think about a year or especially 10 years in the future, it makes us anxious and not satisfied with our current reality. We set goals from the point of scarcity, and often the journey is not that enjoyable. We sacrifice today for the better tomorrow, and it becomes a habit. What I learned from this book is that in 5 years that moment will be the present moment, so we should practice living in the present moment and asking ourselves how we can make it enjoyable.
Consequently, in 5 years we will focus on our well-being of that present moment, rather than chasing future moments and taking the current ones for granted.
To learn all about ego, your purpose, and what are the two main elements of living, I would highly recommend this book.
Read next:
4 Things to Do When You Can’t Find Yourself
How to Take Back Your Power and Become the Best Version of Yourself
2. Esther and Jerry Hicks – The Vortex (2009)
“Your life is supposed to feel good to you.”
– Esther and Jerry Hicks – The Vortex
This is my favorite Law of Attraction book and one of my absolute favorite self-improvement books, in general. I read a lot of books on that topic in the past few years, and this one has taught me the most. The most valuable lesson I got from it is that you know that you’re on the right path if it feels right. So simple, and so effective.
To start manifesting the amazing things in your life, you need to make sure you feel good now. You can’t attract money from the point of lack. You can’t attract happiness if you’re feeling anxious. The only way to attract abundance is by feeling gratitude for what you already have.
Simply by being aligned to the best version of yourself, you will become that version. There’s no need to work work work all the time. Taking inspired action and being in a state of gratitude will help you attract what you want.
When you do what you’re passionate about, you’re in the vortex. When you do things that make you feel good, you’re in the right place to attract abundance. That way, you’re a magnet for good things to happen.
Read next:
How to Manifest Money with the Law of Attraction
5 Steps to Manifest Your Dream Life Using the Act ”As If” Law of Attraction Technique
How to Use Visualization to Get What You Want
3. Eckhart Tolle – Stillness Speaks (2003)
“Here is a new spiritual practice for you: don’t take your thoughts too seriously.”
― Stillness Speaks
If you haven’t read anything by Tolle, I’d suggest starting with this one. It’s a simple read and he touches upon a variety of subjects.
This book taught me a lot about relationships with other people. One of the most valuable lessons was when he said that if someone else’s past was our past, their suffering ours, their level of consciousness ours, then we would think and act just as they are. By learning that, you can become forgiving, understanding, compassionate, and at peace.
A lot of times we don’t understand other people’s actions. Just a few weeks ago I was in a situation when someone couldn’t understand why I refused to do something for them. They didn’t ask for the reasons as to why I made that decision. They just said Ok and later were judging my choice. The thing is, that person has a completely different life and different values. Therefore, it’s hard for them to understand my point of view.
But, with this lesson in mind, you can realize that if you had the same life experiences and the same past as someone else, you would do the same as they are doing.
P. S. If you’ve been on your own self-improvement journey and you want to dive deeper, check out my journaling bundle.
The bundle includes 3 guided journaling workshops for building confidence, creating the next-level version of yourself, and setting goals. It’s so powerful to help you dig deeper within yourself and start making a change in your life. Sound good? Then get your bundle on the link here and snag some pretty cool bonuses!
4. Gretchen Rubin – The Four Tendencies (2017)
“I’m obsessed with The Four Tendencies! The framework has helped me to understand how I respond to expectations, and how I can harness my strengths and compensate for my weaknesses. It has been eye-opening in my relationships with family members or colleagues.”
– Deborah, Recruitment & Employer Branding Manager at Blinkist
This one changed my productivity level the most. I realized that my tendency is a Rebel, which means that planners, habit trackers, and accountability partners don’t mean anything to me. I’m the type of person who resists both inner and outer expectations. I’ve been failing at keeping track of my habits and planning my days a week ahead. Only with this book, I realized that that’s not what motivates me.
Some people find having someone to keep them accountable works great for them. For me, a rebel, I couldn’t care less about what someone expects me to do. I need to find motivation within myself. I need to ask myself what my WHY is. And if it’s strong enough, I will take action to achieve my goal. With this book, I learned so much about myself, and it absolutely deserves a place in my top 5 self-improvement books.
Whatever tendency you may be, knowing more about yourself can help you succeed in work and life.
Take a quick The Four Tendencies quiz to find out what tendency is yours. Let me know in the comments what’s your result. I’m curious to know!
Read next:
4 Goal-Setting Questions to Set Yourself Up for Success
3 Powerful Ways to Stay Committed to Your Goals
5. Richard Koch – The 80/20 Principle: The Secret to Achieving More with Less (1997)
“The way to create something great is to create something simple.”
― The 80/20 Principle
This book not only taught me how to focus on the right tasks but also what to focus on in life in general. It made me ask myself a question What 20 percent of activities in my life produce 80 percent of my happiness. With that in mind, I started finding ways to travel more, since traveling is one of the things that make me feel most alive.
I’m writing this post from the wonderful Bucharest, as I intend to travel as much as I can. Traveling is one of the 20 percent things I do that give me 80 percent of happiness. If you want to know more about my self-development journey, check out my 100 Steps Closer eBook where I share all the action steps, journal prompts, and affirmations (and quotes, of course) that kept me motivated and focused on living my best life.
I’m so grateful for this job that I’ve created for myself. It allows me to travel and work from wherever I want. These self-improvement books have helped me shift my mindset to good things in life, focus on the present moment and love myself and the journey that is life.
Read next:
3 Ways Minimalism Will Make You More Productive
Q: What are some of your favorite self-improvement books? Let us know in the comments 🙂
Until the next time,
Ivana
I’m adding these books to the long list of books I have already. I’m really trying to work on my self help, motivation, and drive. Thank you for sharing.
Thank you for sharing these incredible self-help books. I would like to know more about the 80/20 principle.
Just two days ago i was thinking that i need to buy some useful and motivational book, and while i was looking for it your post appeared, thanks a lot for sharing;
it’s really a useful post!