There is a nearly irresistible social force pushing us to live life in "acceptable" ways. This book impressed me with the shape it gave to this force, and its destructiveness to the texture of life.

I was waiting for this book to get lighter but it didn't. Main character turns into a bug and shows what becomes of a person valued only for what he provides. Brutal portrayal of family, not all invalid.

I generally don't vibe with stoic philosophy but intriguing to read how a first century slave could craft himself such a sophisticated mind and character through deliberate thought and discipline.

I loved this book. Such a powerful story about a little prince seeing the world with love and curiosity, reframing most adult pursuits as absurd and meaningless. I want to live like him.

Very pointed self inquiry loosening identification with the mind/body to recognize the Self. It personally doesn't work for me tbh (feels too constricting) but the spiritual pointers are nice.

Really nice, poetic descriptions about the nature of reality and source. It provoked in me all-encompassing feelings of beauty and harmony, but it would not be useful as a starter spiritual text.

In my top 3 fav self development books. I liked the emphasis on speech having special power. “Be impeccable with your word” is such a satisfying principle for creating a good personal reality.

Quite a feel good. Setting aside the supernatural events, I feel like the concept of everyone having a Personal Legend (purpose), and things falling into place for those embracing it, is profound.

Good mapping of addiction psychology and the pain/pleasure balance. Reading this book coincided with me quitting doomscrolling for good. Must read for anyone trying to quit anything.

Practical guidelines on how to make money and be happy (from a founder/VC). They map well to reality but it all feels pretty familiar to me having been in the Silicon Valley bubble for a while.

Overall pretty good emphasis on staying humble and measuredly improving yourself/your craft. Substance over grandiosity. I mostly agree but I wouldn't immediately condemn overconfidence.

Very aesthetic summary of the major recurring themes from the last 5000y of human history. Some generalizations but I found a lot of their observations about humanity very satisfying.

A foundational text of anarcho-capitalism, calling for the complete elimination of the state in favor of individual sovereignty, and free markets. It goes way too far but holds some very important truths.

Must read book for everyone. Maps the overall landscape of longevity really well. Exercise (zone 2 efficiency, vo2 max, strength & stability), nutrition, and sleep are the 3 holy pillars.

Good intro to PE explaining the fundamentals. Useful for understanding the technicalities (leverage, buy-and-build, management equity, exits), but light on the messier realities of integration.

Pretty cool and esoteric take on reality being an infinite, stationary information matrix containing all possible pasts and futures, with awareness and intention being the keys to sift through it.

This felt like a holistic founder improvement guide and led me to closely audit my execution. Pretty sick you can learn from the same guy who coached Sam Altman, Brian Armstrong, Naval, etc.

Fun read about a really simple management style focusing on creating expectations, praising, and redirecting people very clearly, immediately, personally and concisely.

Super short, tactical guide on how to raise venture money written by a founder who has raised a billion. Fun and instructive read for anyone building startups.

A series of practical tips for UI design from the creators of Tailwind CSS. It was useful to me to see what good looks like for each granular element in relation to others. Very skimmable.

Best book for anyone starting a startup. Presents very important truths you have to know when playing in the venture ecosystem. Contrarian truths, differentiation > competition, and the power law.

The OG manifestation book. I come back to it often. Emphasizes staying in the feeling of the wish fulfilled to create external reality. I find it loosening my grasping for things.

I really like this book for showing that higher consciousness and enlightenment is accessible here and now. It is our very being and inheritance. Nothing external or unattainable.

Reading this made me realize just how much there is to let go. And how it's a skill to be practiced moment to moment. It requires tremendous strength to face yourself fully. Very meditative read.

112 concise meditative techniques. Each meditation beautifully showcases everyday human experience to be a manifestation of God. Nothing to be renunciated; everything to be used for awakening.

Very direct pointers to non duality without any rituals or dogmas. I really like the sharp, aphoristic verses that point directly to ultimate truth. I prefer this over the normal Gita.

Probably my favorite spiritual book. Extremely clear pointers to awareness, and energetic blockages. Shows how we can choose nonresistance and allow life to unfold without clinging or pushing away.

Profound story about someone who stopped fighting reality and let life take him on an unexpected and fulfilling journey. Powerful lessons on surrender and letting go of the illusion of control. I love it.

I had so much fun reading this book. Crazy how the author followed him around and was able to get in so deep and share it publicly. His childhood, psyche, thinking and feeling styles are very compelling.

Very dark and degraded life story of a pimp. It was uncomfortable to read at times but very intriguing to learn the underlying psychology and brutal games such characters indulge in to survive.

Beautiful mapping of the creative process, giving shape to the internal force of resistance, fighting it with discipline, and tapping into the divine Muse through prayer and intention.

Introduces a very simple yet easily overlooked point in business that you don't have to do everything yourself to move forward. Too bloated for me; the title is pretty much all you need to remember.

In most of life, operating from the frame of this book costs you much more than the gain. Also most principles here are easily n/a given small changes in context and should not be taken as dogma.

This book feels like common sense. Nothing unique or new. The only thing that makes it interesting is that it's 2500 years old and today's common sense was applicable and derived back then.

Must read for everyone. Much more can be negotiated than we expect and we leave too much money on the table. The strategies presented here are immediately applicable and effective.

This changed my entire writing style and my intentions when writing. Having empathy, care and trust for/in the reader is what produces the best writing and it's much harder than it sounds.

Peak sci fi. Presents the universe as an infinite, self-correcting loop, conceptualizing "God" as our own cosmic descendant, presenting a beautiful answer to the ultimate mystery of existence.

Perfect starter spiritual book introducing the Now, the illusory nature of time, and the profound concept of a pain-body, introducing a somatics-inclusive approach to enlightenment.

A guide to pranic healing by a renowned pioneer of yoga. Too unsubstantiated and formulaic for me but I like the title mantra as a tool for cultivating love, healing, and spiritual union.

Made me much more careful about my sexual energy expediture and solidified my retention and transmutation practice. Sexual energy is the most potent force we can harness.

This book felt like it was written for me. It was the missing puzzle piece in my spiritual journey. It explains awareness and liberation perfectly; I finally see it.

Charts several paths to Self realization, and is surprisingly direct and simple to understand. I feel like it stayed pretty high level and lacked sufficient detail on how to follow these paths though.

Incredibly inspiring story of one of the strongest people alive. His mental toughness, dedication, persistence, pain tolerance and raw power are extraordinary and terrifying.

With a few caveats, the core idea of this book is if you have a burning desire for money, and you plan/take definitive action, and believe it is yours, money is inevitable. This is true to my experience.

Beautiful descriptions of several manifestations of healthy masculine energy. I can feel each archetype within myself and want to nurture and grow them. The Magician appeals to me most.

This book had quite a significant impact on my psychology. It illustrated to me, for the first time, masculinity and femininity as two distinct energies present in all of us.

My first intro to the concept of shaping the external reality by programming the subconscious mind. Naturally I was dubious throughout, but I have since been convinced of its truth.