Books That Changed My Life

I picked up my first book (that wasn't for school) in Year 11  I think it was 'Relentless' by Tim Grover, after that I realised how much power comes from reading. You are stealing the experiences of everyone successful who came before you, it is literally taking the condensed version of the most valuable parts of someone's entire life experience and letting that be a guide for whatever area of life you want to improve in. We all take the advice of looking twice before crossing the road without having to test it out for ourselves so why not read instead of lying down in the middle of road in every other aspect of your life?

Anyways, there is literally no greater investment I've made in my life than reading, it has helped grow and shape my mindset, my productivity, my emotional maturity, my health and learning to make better decisions (and also a source of entertainment and peace)

There are couple that I'd put in the 'Kenny's Hall of Fame of books', you have to read those, just trust me. Then at the end there is a full list of good books I've read by category and I will give you guys the name and a short description of what I got out of it.

Favourites

1. Can't Hurt Me - David Goggins

2. The Obstacle is the Way - Ryan Holiday

3. Extreme Ownership - Jocko Willink

Mindset/Motivation

-        Can’t Hurt Me – David Goggins

o   Most inspiration story I have ever come across, puts anyone who has ever blamed circumstances for their lack of action to shame

-        Extreme Ownership – Jocko Willink and Leif Babin

o   A hard, but ultimately liberating pill to swallow, is what much of my self-reflection is based on, teaches you to ask: “What could I have done better?” no matter what the situation.

-        Relentless – Tim Grover

o   A peek into the most competitive and cut-throat mindset in the context of basketball, gave me a perspective of how the ultimate competitor and winner thinks. One of the first books I ever read and I absolutely loved it, helped to spark a competitive mindset that has served me well in Year 11 and 12.

 

-        The Obstacle is the Way – Ryan Holiday

-        Ego is the Enemy – Ryan Holiday

-        Stillness is the Key – Ryan Holiday

o   The trinity combo of lessons and mindsets derived from the wisdom of Stoic philosophy blended with modern examples. Too much to even summarise, one of my favourite authors, highly recommended.

-        Discipline Equals Freedom – Jocko Willink

o   Simple concept that extends into almost all aspects of life. Short book, highly motivational, get you up at 5am to get after it, highly applicable and helps with immediate and relatable motivational issues.

-        The Mamba Mentality – Kobe Bryant

o   Favourite athlete of all time, epitome of hard work, major inspiration in my life. The book itself is short and sort of documentary-like, more written for collection purposes. Look up interviews and TED talk of Kobe.

Emotional maturity

-        The Subtle Art of not giving a Fuck – Mark Manson

-        Models – Mark Manson

o   Both Mark Manson’s books provided unique and insightful ways to many issues in life. I benefitted the most in the area of relationships and self-reflection, highly engaging writing, you won’t get bored.

-        Charisma on command – Charlie Houpert

o   More of a guide to confidence and values to becoming more emotionally secure, but also highly practical tips to become more sociable.

Productivity

-        The Productivity Project – Chris Bailey

o   One of the first books regarding productivity, has pretty much the advice of most of the videos you will ever watch on being more productive, high utility value.

-        The Compound Effect – Darren Hardy

o   A very inspiring book for one centred around productivity, highly insightful and practical advice for growth.

-        A mind for numbers – Barbara Oakley

o   A book about learning, highly relevant for high school.

-        Deep Work – Cal Newport

o   One of my favourite authors, a book emphasising focus. Nothing is more important than focus when studying.

Career

-        So Good They Can’t Ignore You – Cal Newport

o   A very insightful and unique book that defies conventional advice of following one’s passion, gives an interesting perspective on what factors to consider when it comes to career choices.

-        The 4-Hour Work Week – Tim Ferriss

o   A refreshing message that I refused to take seriously at first as it sounded too good to be true, one that is a must-read for those with entrepreneurial ambitions and wanting to build an extraordinary lifestyle.

Fitness and health

-        Why Sleep Matters – Matthew Walker

o   Why sleep matters, stop reading, go to sleep. Will scare you into sleeping 8 hours every night guaranteed (I stayed up reading this once lol), very relevant for teenagers who don’t sleep enough.

-        Bigger Leaner Stronger – Michael Matthews

o   Lays the foundation for getting into training and nutrition.

-        Jump Attack – Tim Grover

o   A workout program that helped me reignite my dream of dunking again after 2 ankle injuries since Year 11. More on this journey very soon. Some of the hardest workouts I’ve ever done in my life, this is not quick fix fad book, be mentally prepared if you want to try it, it won’t be fun (but the results will be).  

Science

-        Hacking Darwin – Jamie Metzl

o   Really interesting book on genetics (no cloning armies of super soldiers yet, spoilers), personal area of interest of mine.

-        A Brief History of Time – Stephen Hawking

o   Very confusing but very fun.

-        Astrophysics for people in a hurry – Neil deGrasse Tyson

o   Super interesting, slightly less confusing but still confusing.

Most practical combo to help ace high school

-        Deep work - how and why to focus. Focus > time

-        The Productivity Project - productivity 101

-        Discipline Equals Freedom - immediate motivation 

-        The Obstacle is the Way - the mental operating system for high stress situations