Recommended Reading

A year or two ago I rediscovered my love for reading. I read a lot when I was younger, but it kind of faded away over the years as life got the better of me.

Anyway, I’ve picked it up again, and it’s amazing. I’m older now, too, so I’m interested in different stuff and it feels like I have a whole new world to explore.

We all know reading is helpful, but some of the books I’ve bought have had a much bigger impact on me that I would have thought, especially creatively. I didn’t even have creativity in mind when I got a lot of these, so it was a nice little bonus.

These books aren't necessarily from the last two years - I've just read them in the last two years. They're not in any particular order either, unless you count the order in which I've pulled them out of my wardrobe.

Here we go!

1. Mindset – Carol S. Dweck, Ph.D.

This is all about the two different mindsets: the fixed mindset and the growth mindset. This helped me 1) realise I was actually in a fixed mindset a lot of the time when I thought I was in a growth mindset and 2) start to change my mindset at any given time, especially when making music. Now I don’t give up on a track nearly as easily as I used to because I understand the importance of effort and perspective.

2. Tools of Titans – Tim Ferriss

One of the most inspiring reads ever (along with Tribe of Mentors). It’s full of legendary people talking about their “tactics, routines and habits”. The book is divided into three sections: Healthy, Wealthy, Wise. They’re all great. One of my favourites from memory is Derek Sivers’ little section, which brings me to:

3. Anything You Want – Derek Sivers

Short and sweet, it’s the story of how Derek created and grew CD Baby and how he did it his way. He’s so loveable and it’s super inspiring. Read this if you want to create something but you’re intimidated by business tactics, etc. like I am. Amazing things can happen if you just do it.

4. 12 Rules for Life – Jordan B. Peterson

He’s getting so much attention for a reason. A good reason. Along with Jordo’s YouTube videos, this book is possibly the most life-changing book I’ve ever read. I am now starting to develop a whole new understanding for life, people, myself and probably a bunch of other shit I can’t think of right now. As it says on the cover, it really is an antidote to chaos. I can’t recommend this highly enough.

5. How to Fail at Almost Everything and Still Win Big – Scott Adams

The guy who created Dilbert has an unbelievable amount of useful shit to say. It’s funny, too, would you believe? He talks about embracing failure and how he became a success, but it’s so much more than that. It’s like he’s dipped a toe in every area of life and has come back to share all the best bits in one book. No one wouldn’t enjoy this.

6. Discipline Equals Freedom – Jocko Willink

I don’t know why Jocko’s words are so fuckin’ powerful, but they are. Maybe it’s because he lives what he says. This book is all about starting now, going forward, just getting it fucking done. It’s the boot up the arse you need, and I reach for it regularly.

7. The Defining Decade – Meg Jay, PhD

This is really good if you’re still in your twenties. She talks about making the most of them and not falling into the “30 is the new 20” thing. I read this when I was 28 and struggling with where I was at in life, and I still felt good after reading it. If you’re in your thirties, forties, etc. don’t stress! It doesn’t mean it’s all over – at all.

8. Waking Up – Sam Harris

I don’t know how, but he makes very clear sense of the craziest shit. It’s about “searching for spirituality without religion”. What I found most interesting in this was the way he talks about consciousness. I can’t explain things like he can, so I won’t try to. Just read it – it’s eye opening!

9. Quiet – Susan Cain

This is all about introverts. It made me feel so much better about being one, and reminded me that it’s OK to be the way I am. There’s also a lot of good examples of how introverts can smash life. Very inspiring and relatable.

10. The Power of Now – Eckhart Tolle

I found this in the boot on my car one day. It was my dad’s – he must have been trying to get enlightened before he died. For a while after I read this, I saw the world as nothing but a beautiful place. I talked to trees (not out loud) and found a whole new love for nature. The book is all about being present and how amazing it is. It’s true, it is, but it takes practise just like anything else. Definitely worth reading if you struggle to keep your head from running wild.

11. First, We Make the Beast Beautiful – Sarah Wilson

I got a lot out of this one. My girlfriend said to me something like, “it’s interesting to me that you don’t read about stress and anxiety much but you’re super anxious and stressed and love to read”. Those are my words, but good point, I thought. She told me about this, and we decided to buy it. At times it’s a bit scary because of some of Sarah’s stories, but overall it’s super interesting if you suffer from anxiety.

12. Vipassana Mediation as taught by S.N. Goenka – William Hart

I read this a while ago, but I remember it having a really big impact on me. It goes into meditation in a lot of detail, with a strong reminder that you have to actually do it to get the results – you can’t just understand it. Wise words!

13. The 5am Club – Robin Sharma

This is a story about a billionaire whose secret to success is getting up at 5am every morning and smashing the day. It sounds weird, but it’s awesome. I tried this for a bit, and it was hard, but it was great. I’ll definitely be working my way back to getting up so early because the benefits are worth it. If you feel like you don’t have enough time to get shit done and you want to “elevate your life”, read this one.

14. The Subtle Art of Not Giving a Fuck – Mark Manson

I listened to the audiobook of this and I can’t recommend it enough. I legitimately laughed all the way through the book, while also thinking “fuck yeah, this is so inspiring!” What I liked most about this was this idea of “stop giving a fuck about things you shouldn’t and start giving a fuck about things you should”. It’s made me realise that I care more about being creative and doing what I love than what that looks like to someone else. It’s also a nice wakeup call and challenges you to address your own shit. Two thumbs up.

15. Lying – Sam Harris

Or anything by him, really. This is a pretty short book about the important of telling the truth, even when it’s really hard. The best thing about this read for me, was realising how dangerous lying to myself is. It was sometime around reading this and 12 Rules for Life that I started being a lot more honest with myself and others.

16. Enlightenment Now – Steven Pinker

To be honest, I didn’t get through this entire book, but it’s awesome! I think I just got distracted by something else. But what I did read was really nice. It made me see the world in a different way, and that things aren’t so bad nowadays. This is something that’s sometimes hard to accept, but he uses data to show us how things are going. It’s an uplifting one and I recommend it.

17. Do the Work – Steven Pressfield

This is literally about creativity and smashing through the inevitable resistance you encounter while you’re trying to get something done. It’s motivating in the same way Discipline Equals Freedom is, but it’s more relatable sometimes because it’s directly about making art. It’s little, too, so you can breeze through it in an hour.

18. Steal Like an Artist – Austin Kleon

This one is like a creativity journal or workbook. It’s fun! You’re supposed to fill out a page or so every day to get your creative brain doing its thing. This one forced me to start thinking a bit more outside the box, which is never a bad thing when it comes to being creative.

And that's it!

Happy reading :)