Inspiration & Resources

The internet presents an overwhelming abundance of resources you can use to improve your life. I’ve found some of these to be really transformational. I hope you’ll put them to good use!

Berkshire Hathaway Annual Reports Warren Buffett writes a letter every year offering both market commentary and an update on the operations of Berkshire Hathaway. These are one of those rare documents that continue teaching something new with each new reading. Excellent education for investing and business.

Why Software is Eating the World, by Marc Andreessen Software is the fifth force of nature. It has neither substance, nor weight yet is transforming our entire society. This makes our species more resourceful than ever; many physical materials have been replaced with software, and many time-consuming tasks have been automated. Yet the dynamism introduced through software comes with tremendous uncertainty. To understand this strange new world which you now inhabit, start here.

Jordan Peterson Biblical Series The most vital role of the faith and religion isn’t to tell you what’s literally, historically true about the world, but to tell you how to engage with reality, personally. Peterson makes the bible relevant and interesting at a psychological level. His other lectures are also fantastic if you want to learn how to analyze stories and get more out of your reading. 

Book Recommendations:

Finance, Business, and Investing:

  • Stocks for the Long Run by Jeremy Siegel
  • The Snowball by Alice Schroeder (great Buffett biography, taught me a lot about how he thinks)
  • The Most Important Thing by Howard Marks
  • The Hard Thing About Hard Things by Ben Horowitz
  • Zero to One by Peter Thiel
  • Anti-Fragile by Nassim Taleb
  • Shoe Dog by Phil Knight
  • Range by David Epstein
  • Start with Why by Simon Sinek
  • The Effective Executive by Peter Drucker
  • Double Your Profits in 6 Months or Less by Bob Fifer (some of these cut past the fat and into the bone, but there are sure to be a few takeaways for your business)

Sales/Persuasion

  • Influence by Robert Cialdini
  • Never Split the Difference by Chris Voss
  • New Sales. Simplified. by Mike Weinberg
  • High Profit Selling by Mark Hunter
  • Fanatical Prospecting by Jeb Blount
  • The Science of Storytelling by Will Storr

Understanding the digital economy:

  • Ready Player One by Ernest Cline This book has recently become a minor cult classic, yet Cline understood years ago what the rest of us are just waking up to: The digital world is eclipsing the physical world in importance and relevance. Our online identities are increasingly important, and we spend more interactions there than in face-to-face (don’t believe me? Check your email, facebook, instagram, reddit, and twitter accounts). The biggest insights are not in the plot (giant evil tech corp controls entire world), but in the setting. He captures the ethos of the internet. If you have neglected this world until now, get up to speed. And besides, it’s a fun read.
  • The Everything Store by Brad Stone
  • Elon Musk by Ashlee Vance

Creativity

  • The War of Art by Steven Pressfield

Quality of Life

  • Man’s Search for Meaning by Victor Frankl
  • When Breath Becomes Air by Paul Kalanithi
  • Why We Sleep by Matthew Walker
  • The Inner Game of Tennis by W. Timothy Gallwey
  • Psycho Cybernetics by Maxwell Maltz (crosses back and forth over the line of “woo-woo,” but a very useful takeaway for me: your brain learns better and gets oriented towards the results you want when you focus on what you’re doing well, or what doing well looks like, rather than on what you’re doing wrong).
  • The Subtle Art of Not Giving a Fuck by Mark Manson
  • The Obstacle is the Way by Ryan Holiday
  • Grit by Angela Duckworth
  • Chef’s Illustrated: The Science of Good Cooking

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