Reading Recommendations

If you’re looking to continue your development and growth, reading is key. A large factor of who I am today is based on the books I’ve read over the years. I continually find books to be my main source of inspiration, motivation, and learning. Because books have have played such an important role in my life, I wanted to share some of my favorite books I’ve read in the past year in the categories business, science, and personal development.

Business:

Principles

If you are like me and didn’t know much about Ray Dalio, first google him, and second read this book. In my personal opinion Ray Dalio is the OG of algorithms for business. For more information on how he has been using algorithms in business, you can check out his LinkedIn post here. Although Principles does touch on how he used Algorithms to make Bridge Water and Associates successful, the majority of the book is about Dalio’s business principles and how living by these principles helped him achieve success. Personally, this was a huge encouragement to me to start to develop my own set of principles in business and has become a trusted fondation for me to go back to when making key decisions.

Verbal Judo

When it comes to business, communication is everything regardless of your role. This book provided some great tips on how you can change your delivery in a simple manner that makes your communication much more effective. At the end of the day don’t we all just want to be heard? Taking the time to invest in your communication efforts is a task that will always prove beneficial.

Never Split the Difference

I’ve read a few negotiating books, but this by far is my favorite. Chris Voss provides captivating stories while at the same time explains how to negotiate with empathy and and engage in negotiations where each person walks aways having enjoyed the conversation. This book made me excited to negotiate and put into practice these new ways of thinking.

Science:

The Jazz of Physics

The minute I saw the Jazz of Physics on the book shelf I knew I had to buy it. This books sings to my soul as I have an affinity for physics and music. However, if you’re not as crazy about wave forms and vibration as me, I still recommend this book as a great example of how to combine what may seem like disparate subjects in an eloquent and understandable fashion. Both artist and scientist could benefit from the thought form that is shared in this book.

The Physics of God:

Obviously you can see a trend here, this last year I was really interested in physics and it’s correlation with other disciplines. If physics and music aren’t your thing, try physics and God :) But seriously, if you want to go on a journey to think more deeply about M-Theory and Transcendence, this book is for you. No questions is left too big to answer.

Life 3.0

This is the most elaborate, honest, and fact driven book I have read about AI. If you want to know the state AI it is currently in and the over and under hype of the dangers, then read this book. Tegmark does an excellent job of explaining the current state and why it will have such a large impact on our world by playing out a few different scenarios of what life may look like in the next 5, 10, and 20 year from AI.

Personal Development

12 Rules for Life: An antidote to Chaos

I first heard about Jordan Peterson by stumbling upon some of his lectures on YouTube. I was really captivated by his language and ability to use deep psychology concepts to explain the state of humanity and common questions we have for society. I found his “rules” for life very simple - “Tell the truth – or, at least, don’t lie”, but deeply rooted in thought. If you’re a fan of Carl Jung you’ll definitely love Peterson, but I think anyone can gain immediate results from applying his “rules”.

The Law of Attractions The Basics of the Teachings of Abraham

I’ve read multiple books on the laws of attraction from The Secret to Wishes Fulfilled, but sometimes it’s about hearing the right message at the right time. This book was was just that for me. Hicks explains these laws in a simple and relatable fashion, and when you can’t get enough, there are countless YouTube videos to watch as well.

Xenophon’s Cyrus the Great: The arts of Leadership and War

Cyrus has been describe as one of the greatest leaders to have ever lived, so if you want to know leadership then you want to know Cyrus. The one thing that stood out to me with Cyrus was his love for his people. He was willing to put off immediate praise and glory for his people, and his true north was always guided by the greater good.