Improve your decision-making, communication, breathing, and more…
A new year means new opportunities.
Opportunities for learning, growing, and improving.
One of the best ways to do that is to read great books. And we are here with 6 super amazing books to help you get ahead of life.
Put them on your New Year’s Resolutions so you don’t forget.
Here we go!
It’s time to take off the blindfold.
Daniel Kahneman won the Nobel Prize in Economic Sciences (2002).
He is known for applying psychological insights to the field of economics. This book of his is filled with insights, information, and years of research.
“We can be blind to the obvious, and we are also blind to our blindness.”
The author introduces two systems that exist in the human brain. They are not two separate physical systems. This example is given so we can understand the brain’s decision-making process.
Kahneman explains:
System 1 is fast and automatic. It makes use of emotions and biases.
System 2 is slow and rational. It evaluates and makes logical decisions.
“This is the essence of intuitive heuristics: when faced with a difficult question, we often answer an easier one instead, usually without noticing the substitution.”
The book then introduces us to heuristics and biases, both of which form the basis of System 1’s decisions.
It also tells us about “cognitive ease”. System 1 is lazy so it does the easiest thing. System 2 can override that when actively engaged.
“Expert intuition strikes us as magical, but it is not. Indeed, each of us performs feats of intuitive expertise many times each day.”
This book will help you understand the pitfalls of your decision-making process. As a result, you can be aware and make better choices.
A trip down mankind’s past.
Harari has done a great job of bringing us a concise history of humans.
The book starts from the time before humans i.e. the Big Bang and the evolution of life on Earth.
“Our language evolved as a way of gossiping.”
The author acquaints us with hunter-gatherers, humans who hunted and foraged to survive. And then the agricultural revolution happened. As Harari puts it, wheat domesticated us.
The author talks about mankind’s inclination to believe in shared ideas. He calls them myths. Myths include religions or other ideologies. They allow humans to collaborate on a large scale.
Regardless of differences in culture, language, and religion, there is one thing that everyone believes in. Money. It is the most efficient system of ‘mutual trust’.
“Money is more open-minded than language, state laws, cultural codes, religious beliefs, and social habits.”
The book goes on to discuss the industrial revolution and the scientific revolution as well.
Apart from history, this book covers many philosophical questions as well which will make you reflect deeply.
“Tolerance is not a Sapiens trademark.”
Sapiens is one of the most accessible and easy-to-read history books. It should be on your bookshelf in 2024.
Our phones are killing our attention.
The author (like all of us) was dependent on his digital devices.
After observing his grandson being addicted to his phone, Hari started reflecting on how technology is molding human behavior.
The author also went on a 3-month digital detox, which was very difficult (obviously).
“…we want to take the easy way out, but what makes us happy is doing the thing that’s a little bit difficult.”
The Internet has brought us information and connections. But… is that amount of information good for us? Do we even remember all of it?
“The more information you pump in, the less time people can focus on any individual piece of it.”
The author discusses attention, memory, and sleep deprivation.
Attention is possible when something is hard to do but we have a clear goal in mind, like artists. When we are truly focused, we experience the state of ‘flow’ which is incredibly rewarding.
Whereas using our phones is the easiest thing to do. But it is not good for us.
“Slowness… nurtures attention, and speed shatters it.”
Sleep deprivation and overstimulation are killing our ability to be attentive.
The book also discusses the role of tech companies and the need to ban surveillance capitalism.
This book will kickstart your path to forming a healthier relationship with your technological devices.
All solutions start from effective communication.
Marshall B. Rosenberg is an American psychologist. He is the creator of the concept of Nonviolent Communication. (NVC)
This book discusses NVC in detail.
“My theory is that we get depressed because we’re not getting what we want, and we’re not getting what we want because we have never been taught to get what we want.”
The author wants us to focus on what connects us all. Our humanity, our need for happiness, and our longing for connection.
When we approach a situation with an NVC mindset, we are clear about our own desires and needs. We are also open to listening to others.
“Analyses of others are actually expressions of our own needs and values.”
NVC consists of the following:
Observing
Feeling
Needs
Making Requests
“Blaming and punishing others are superficial expressions of anger.”
The author also discusses the opposite of Non-violent communication. That is Life-alienating communication.
He says that life-alienating communication makes people think in binary. And when they do so, it becomes easy to dictate the definitions of right and wrong. Hence, this type of communication benefits the people at the top e.g. ‘kings, czars, nobles’.
This book will help you communicate right!
Fix your breathing!
Thanks to processed and liquid diets, we are not breathing properly. We are increasingly breathing from our mouths.
The author did an experiment where he breathed from mouth exclusively for 10 days. For the next 10 days, he breathed from his nose only.
The difference in blood pressure, stress hormones, snoring, etc, was profound. Yup, it was worse when the author was mouthbreathing.
“When the nasal cavity gets congested, airflow decreases and bacteria flourish.”
After doing experiments with athletes, a sports researcher found that just training yourself to breathe from the nose will cut exertion in half.
I breathe through my mouth when sleeping. Not intentionally though. When I wake up, my throat is parched and my body is begging for water.
I understand when the author says:
“Mouthbreathing causes the body to lose 40 percent more water.”
Mouth breathing doesn’t only cause physical health issues. It also causes deformities in the mouth.
When monkeys were forced to breathe from their mouths, within months, the shape of their faces changed.
“Ninety percent of children have acquired some degree of deformity in their mouths and noses.”
The message of the book is simple (Breathe from your nose!) but we have forgotten about it. That is why this is an important read.
A treasure chest of wisdom.
Jordan B. Peterson is one of the people whose wisdom I admire.
I have my disagreements with him though. I don’t think there is any person with whom one would agree on everything anyway.
This book is a testament to Peterson’s wisdom and maturity. Using psychology, philosophy, religion, and mythology, he brings us valuable gems for life.
“To stand up straight with your shoulders back is to accept the terrible responsibility of life, with eyes wide open.”
We won’t take our own medication on time. But if it is a pet or a loved one, we’ll make sure they get their doses right.
Why?
We don’t respect ourselves.
The second rule says, ‘Treat Yourself Like Someone You Are Responsible for Helping’.
“It takes careful observation, and education, and reflection, and communication with others, just to scratch the surface of your beliefs.”
The book touches on many important aspects of human life in every rule. There are lessons about parenting, truthfulness, friendships, and progress.
“There’s some real utility in gratitude.”
Perhaps the last rule is the most important. ‘Pet a Cat When You Encounter One on the Street’. Being a cat lover, I endorse it.
The message in each chapter is far more elaborate than the one-liner chapter heading.
You’ll have to read the book to truly benefit from it. And 2024 is the best time to do that.
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If you enjoyed these book recommendations, check out the rest of my book lists on my blog- https://www.thenovelnest.com/blog
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