How To Take Smart Notes
How To Take Smart Notes
4/5
It is a useful resource for anyone who reads and wants to retain and use the information from what they read.
Students, researchers, and creatives of all sorts will benefit from reading this book or looking more into the idea of taking smart notes using a commonplace book.
The key takeaway from the book is that you should have an intelligent note-taking system that allows you to connect new ideas together and retrieve information when you need it.
This includes creating a workflow that you can stick to and formatting system for your notes and not changing it once it works.
Healing Mushrooms
Healing Mushrooms: A Practical and Culinary Guide to Using Mushrooms for Whole Body Health
5/5
Healing Mushrooms is a great resource for learning about the 10 most common functional mushrooms that can be used for a wide range of health-promoting effects. Tero is a fascinating and wise young man who has created a company that is doing amazing work in Four Sigmatic. This book is a worthwhile read for anybody interested in nutrition and health optimization.
The Rise of Superman
The Rise of Superman
Author: Steven Kotler
Rating: 5/5
The Rise of Superman is the perfect primer of flow and the eccentric characters who are pushing the limits of peak performance in the realm of action and adventure sports. Steven Kotler is a fantastic and engaging author and this book is written to pull you along for the ride of your life. If you have any interest at all in flow states and peak performance, you owe it to yourself to read this book. It covers all of the research that has led up to the modern day for flow as well as priming you on the conditions and neurochemical state of flow, plus the triggers for spending more time in flow for yourself and your tribe.
The Wealthy Entrepreneur
The Wealthy Entrepreneur by Bob Gauvreau is a great overview of some of the fundamental financial principles that startups need to consider in starting and growing businesses. The framework the Gauvreau has created offers a solid way to look at the big picture goals you have in your business and break them down into actionable steps to accomplish both in the mid-term and short-term.
The book does a really great job of walking you through step-by-step the Vision To Results framework with guidance on how to implement it into your system.
I feel like Bob has some very interesting stories to share and some better storytelling would have definitely helped this book.
If you’re looking to start your own business or already an entrepreneur, this book is a valuable resource to have and a quick read which makes it easy to implement. It’s free on Kindle Unlimited, so very easy to check out.
Rating 4/5
Brain Wash
The central idea in Brain Wash is that we have fallen victim to a condition known as “disconnection syndrome.” We have created routines and a world that leads us to be emotionally reactive and disconnected from our rational-thinking brains. Stress, lack of sleep, nature and nutrient deprivation, and instant gratification in the form of technology have all led us to rely less on our higher thinking and react more from our primitive instincts.
There are many solutions to this problem as outlined in the book, and the combine to make up the Brain Wash program including 8 days of recommended actions you can take.
The program includes taking stock of your digital life, empathy in interactions with others, nature exposure, nutrition, sleep, movement, mindfulness, and finally relationships.
These are topics that I like to talk about a lot as they make up the majority of themes for creating a balanced and complete goal wheel for your life.
The chapter on nature and forest bathing was particularly interesting to me as it is a practice that’s been lost in most modern cultures but is starting to see a resurrection in research that is showing a vast array of benefits to being exposed more to nature and particularly the essential oils found in plants that produce fragrance. These “phytoncides” are linked with improving the immune system, reducing blood pressure, handling stress better, and improving mood and energy. As John Muir said, “wilderness is a necessity.”
Overall this book is a good primer on all of the subjects that it covers. Because of the brevity of the chapters and the amount of information packed into them, it somewhat feels like a laundry list of benefits and “studies show that…” which I don’t mind but takes away from making it a great book as there is too much to go into depth on in a 200-page book. For many people struggling with disconnection syndrome, this book format will be exactly what they need to provide a little bit of ammo to combat the pitfalls of our “disconnected” world.
Rating 4/5
Stillness Is The Key
Rating 5/5
Ryan Holiday’s Stillness is the Key is one of my favourite books from 2019.
I believe that everyone can get something of value from reading Stillness and that you owe it to yourself to buy and keep on your bookshelf and turn back to regularly.
This is considered the third in a trilogy of books on Stoic philosophy that Ryan has written and while Obstacle and Ego are books that I highly recommend to people in certain instances, Stillness has something for everyone.
It’s also extremely practical.
Each chapter includes advice to apply the practices talked about which is something that wasn’t emphasized as much in OITW and EITE.
We live in a busy and chaotic world. Everyone is gasping for air as our attention is pulled in countless different directions and the key to it all is to find stillness in whatever way works best for you.
This book shares why stillness is so importantly (and has literally saved the world from meltdown) and how you can get more stillness in your life to become better at everything you do.
Quiet
Rating 5/5
I put off reading Quiet by Susan Cain for a number of years because I assumed I knew all I needed to about the introvert/extrovert divide and experience in the business world.
Extroverts and those with higher energy who talk more have always been perceived as smarter and as leaders. This book challenges those assumptions and shows how these perceptions are flawed and limiting great business leaders who prefer to operate with less publicity.
The information about nervous system differences between introverts and extroverts was fascinating. Introverts are more sensitive to stimuli even from infancy and this is one part of what contributes to the displayed quietness.
This book is also one of the first to dispel the shyness and introversion myth and show the differences between shyness which is more of a social anxiety issue with introversion being a tendency to recharge your batteries in solitude rather than with others.
In Quiet, Susan offers up practical advice for introverts on how to find balance and thrive in the business world which has also been reportedly very beneficial for extroverts who read this book and better understand and respect the needs of the introverts around them.
When it comes to being an introvert, know that you don’t have to follow the status quo with your leisure time by going to the bar with friends. It’s ok to get into nature alone or curl up and read a book. Also carve out restorative niches for yourself - these are places and activities in your work and home environment that help you to recharge.
Read this if you identify as an introvert and feel like it is holding you back or you have quiet children. This book is also hugely valuable for any leaders or business owners to understand their team better.
This Is Marketing
This Is Marketing is the latest book by Seth Godin and might be the most valuable thing I’ve ever read on the subject of marketing. Seth is a marketing genius who practices the art in the most ethical and conscientious way possible. He is not a guru and his wisdom puts to shame anyone who peddles “top secret marketing hacks.”
For anyone running a business or in the marketing field, this book deserves a place on your bookshelf and perhaps perpetually sitting on your desk. Seth’s to-the-point writing style makes each page relevant and poignant. You can literally flip to any page in the book and get something out of it that you can immediately apply.
Seth is a great storyteller and so this book is entertaining and memorable through and through.
The Richest Man in Babylon
The Richest Man in Babylon may be the most recommended book on personal finance that I have ever heard of. George S. Clason wrote this book as a parable to help make the principles more memorable.
The principles of personal finance revolve around having the discipline to stick to a particular budget.
In this budget, you must always set aside at least 10 percent of whatever you earn for savings.
70 percent of your income should be the upper limit of your living expenses. This includes all essentials, like housing, clothing, and food.
The remaining 20 percent is yours to do with in whatever fashion you like, although many people who start to see their money grow like to start saving more of their money towards accumulating wealth and security.
With the 10 percent of your income that you are continually saving, you need to make that money work for you and not just sit. In the modern era this often means investing your money into things like index funds and stocks. One part of this principle that is made clear in the book is to adapt as quickly as possible to setbacks in your investing strategy and finding trusted professionals who have more experience than you and investing with them. You should not invest your money in areas where you are not familiar.
The Perfect Day Formula
Craig Ballantyne is one of the ultimate mentors in the world of fitness. I’ve always been an underling of many of his mentees more than Craig himself, but his impact on the fitness world has resonated strongly within me.
The Perfect Day Formula is Craig’s take on how to accomplish more and make the most out of every single day on this planet, because you never know when your time might be up. Memento mori.
This short book is well worth the price of admission. It breaks down the perfect day into three steps:
Control. Conquer. Concentrate.
Control your mornings - plan the night before, have a routine, and avoid distractions like phone calls and emails.
Conquer your afternoon - Maintain discipline with deadlines and making sure that meetings are limited to what is essential.
Concentrate in the evening on what is important to you - family time, walking your dog, hobbies, and productive winding down for the night (not glued to the tv).
Leaders Eat Last
Leaders Eat Last by Simon Sinek is an exploration of leadership and a call for the urgency of more leaders being needed in the world.
I found the title of the book confusing because even though Sinek briefly refers to how some leaders in the army eat after their subordinates, the book seemed to be more about the neurochemistry of human interaction and examples of good and bad leadership. I guess that means the title still works in the sense of eating last being one of the principles of leadership but it still confused me throughout listening to the audiobook.
Not a bad book about leadership but not great either.
Flow
Flow by Mihaily Cszkizentmihalyi is an essential read for anyone studying flow and world-class performers. This classic on the subject is the layman’s terms version of the decades of research that Cszikzentmihalyi did on studying and coining the term of flow state.
This book goes on a deep dive through the subject of happiness and optimal experience which is usually how flow gets defined.
It starts by exploring happiness and how we consciously process the state of happiness and then digs deeper into the state of flow and how it gets produced through various activities.
Ultimately flow requires a challenge be pushed to the limits of the individuals capabilities. Whether it is assembling widgets in a factory and striving to constantly do it a little faster, or free soloing a rock wall that has never been done before. Just about any activity or job can become flow-producing when the right conditions are met.
The Bullet Journal Method
I stumbled upon Bullet Journaling not too long ago which happened to be just in time for the Bullet Journal Method book to be released. Ryder Carrol, the creator of Bullet Journaling (fondly known as BuJo), is one of those thirty-something-year-olds who embodies the sage wisdom of an elder who has already lived a full life. I was captivated by the way he relates his journaling method to be more mindful and intentional with the tasks you do and your daily schedule. He explains it in a way that is a beautiful mix of zen and stoic, operating your notebook like an objective observer.
The Bullet Journal Method is a complete guide to how to put together your own Bullet Journal as well as a dive into the philosophy and science that ties journaling to practices of mindfulness. It is a very nice and fun to read book as it pulls in pages from actual Bullet Journals to showcase different components and examples which makes it feel like a field guide or perhaps like you are reading someone’s private journal. I liked it a lot. It was a fun read with a lot of good productivity advice as well as a very interesting take on mindfulness.
I’ve written previously about my thoughts on how the perfect productivity tool does not exist in an app and so when my timely discovery of BuJo came about I figured I would dive into the world of BuJo and see how it could benefit my organization. Bullet Journaling has been a simple, yet elegant solution to getting thoughts out of my head and onto paper as well as organizing my tasks. While many people seem to think that BuJo is life-changing or revolutionary, I’m fairly confident that anyone who has ever written things down before and kept a journal of their actions will find many similarities between the way they previously did things and Bullet Journaling but putting it altogether as a complete system does provide a lot more benefit to staying organized and intentional with your work.
Dichotomy of Leadership
Jocko and Leif are back at it with a follow-up book to Extreme Ownership, which still stands as one of my favourite business books of all time because of the real-world parallels they were able to draw between leadership on the battlefields of Iraq and leadership in the office of corporate America.
After four or more years since the release of Extreme Ownership, Dichotomy begins where it left off and reigns in some of the extremes from the previous book as the authors found business owners struggling when taking the concepts of the first book far too literally.
Dichotomy sets to soften some of the blows by being “in control, but not rigid” and helping readers see the gray area that is often where true leadership lies.
I liked this book but not as much as how fresh the idea was when I read Extreme Ownership. While the business principles are still solid, many of the stories from Iraq that Jocko and Leif tell sound familiar and rehashed to me. Some of them are from the previous book and it could just be that I’ve recalled them from some of the Jocko Podcast episodes but I think that it is more so from the previous book. Sure, they’ve retold the stories from the dichotomous perspective but I’d still have liked to get more fresh stories from the book than feeling so much like a repeat of Extreme Ownership.
Braving The Wilderness
Braving the Wilderness by Brene Brown follows the track of Brene’s other books and her field of research which is about vulnerability and courage and leads us on the quest to find our true belonging.
BTW shares stories and advice on how you can act with more courage about sharing your vulnerabilities and this is what will ultimately allow people to get out of their own way for success and finding their place of belonging in the world.
Brene has one of the most-watched TED talks, which if you haven’t seen before is worth watching to decide whether this book is something worth checking out for you or not.
I definitely think the message in Braving the Wilderness is a strong one that many people can benefit greatly from by studying through a few times and then some more.
Anything You Want
Anything You Want by Derek Sivers is collection of short stories and lessons about how Derek built CD Baby, his online music store for independent musicians. CD Baby became renowned for its customer service as Derek built it to great success.
This short book / audiobook contains a lot of important lessons for any entrepreneur to pay attention to and is worth reading through a few times at least. At lot of books belabour their points with overdrawn arguments but not this one. So if you’re short on time but need to absorb a lot of knowledge from a successful entrepreneur, you’ll enjoy Anything You Want.
The audiobook is also read by Derek who’s a great storyteller and so I highly recommend checking out the audio version if you can.
Life Value 5/5
Entertainment Value 5/5
Why We Sleep
Why We Sleep by Matthew Walker is the definitive answer if you need any convincing of how important sleep is to our health and performance both on a daily and long-term basis.
I listened to an audiobook version of this but think that it’s so valuable that it’s well worth buying a hardcover copy of for note taking and referencing whenever you need an answer for how something related to sleeping works.
Each chapter in the book details a specific benefit of sleep and what happens when we deprive ourselves of enough quality sleep.
Sleep is deeply tied to our evolution and our ability to build shelters to allow ourselves to get into a deep sleep with both hemispheres of our brain is suggested to be part of what allowed us to advance compared to our primate ancestors.
Sleep is important for everything from memory retention to athletic performance to blood sugar control and weight gain so if you need any support for why you need enough sleep, check out this book.
Who
Who by Geoff Smart is the definitive guide to hiring employees. I’ve heard Tim Ferriss recommend this book countless times to anyone in HR or entrepreneurs needing to hire employees and now that I’ve read through it I can see that it’s for good reason.
Who is a great step-by-step process for finding and hiring the right employees to fit the needs of the job you are looking to fill. By understanding more deeply the role you are looking to fill, how it fits in to your company culture, and the outcomes expected from the job, you will be able to better narrow in on what are called the A Players who will lead your company to greater success.
Who is a great step-by-step process for finding and hiring the right employees to fit the needs of the job you are looking to fill. By understanding more deeply the role you are looking to fill, how it fits in to your company culture, and the outcomes expected from the job, you will be able to better narrow in on what are called the A Players who will lead your company to greater success.
Who is a great step-by-step process for finding and hiring the right employees to fit the needs of the job you are looking to fill. By understanding more deeply the role you are looking to fill, how it fits in to your company culture, and the outcomes expected from the job, you will be able to better narrow in on what are called the A Players who will lead your company to greater success.
The book provides detail on each step of the hiring process from identifying your needs to finding the right candidates to hiring and retaining the right employees. If you ever hire employees, it is worth it to get a copy of this book to refer to when you are preparing new job postings and going through the interview and recruitment process.
Jab, Jab, Jab, Right Hook
Jab Jab Jab Right Hook by Gary Vee is a great book on building and representing your brand on social media. This book gives rock solid advice on being creative and generous with your social media content instead of always trying to sell and have a call to action with everything you do.
While a little outdated now as far as discussing the algorithms and features of the different social media sites presented in the book, the core essence of each of the platforms Gary talks about remains the same and so this book still remains valuable for both the rules to follows and the excellent case studies each chapter provides on what to not and what not to do.
This book is well-worth reading if you do any social media marketing.
Relentless
Relentless by Tim Grover is a book about the mentality of those who are unstoppable in their pursuit of perfection.
Tim Grover is a sports psychologist who primarily works with NBA players, most notably, Kobe, Dwayne Wade, and Michael Jordan throughout their careers. Grover is a no-nonsense coach who won’t bust his ass for anyone who isn’t willing to put in the work themselves. He believes there are different levels of athletes and people in general which he refers to as Coolers, Closers, and Cleaners. It is only the Cleaner mentality that Grover sees as being Relentless enough to achieve their dreams. People can hone their ability to become Cleaners but it is also a deeply innate characteristic. Just like with Carol Dweck’s Growth Mindset, some people start out with the right mindset for success and others need to put more work into getting there.
Relentless is a list of rules about the mentality of a Cleaner and how they operate which is interestingly all labelled as #1 because Grover believes that all of the aspects are equal in their importance and should not be ranked.
The book contains many great stories about the lives and mentality of Jordan, Kobe, and Wade while they were in their prime as well as contains much actionable advice about how to transform yourself into a Cleaner who is relentless in the pursuit of their goals.