Sept. 15th marked a relatively monumental transition in my life. My 3+ year relationship left that weird breakup limbo and officially died. I entered what would be a whirlwind of depression and acquisition of knowledge. I dedicated myself fully to intellectual pursuits and swore off–with a few regretful exceptions–women entirely. Within that cycle, I was fitfully productive, reading at one point, 3 extracurricular books a week, running 25-30 miles, interning at Rudius, holding an editorship, and going to class everyday. Of course I see now, that I was doing everything I could to keep from analyzing what I’d done and why I’d gotten there. And now, in a better place, I’m finally able to look at the mistakes I’ve made objectively. But even as I was–literally and figuratively–running away from what ailed me, I got a lot done. And I got to know myself.
I know what I like. What I believe. Who I agree with. What’s bullshit. Where to find truth. Who speaks it. Where we came from. What we are. How I want to live life. Where I want to live it. How to do it. And most importantly, the dire consequences of a life without that sort of self-awareness.
The meta-lesson though, is that I realize (again, with many a relapse) that in the big picture, I know very little. And though I have what I’d call a head start, it’s worthless if I let up for even a second to breath. I must continually reaffirm the crucial answers that I found at the bottom of the hole I crawled into. I must ask myself again and again “What do I like, What do I believe, What’s Bullshit, What is truth, Have I found it, How can I keep it?”
And I was able to do that through the following books. So I thought I’d share them. I’d link them through Amazon to get the affiliate links, but honestly, it’s just not worth the time. Seriously though, read every single one of them. There isn’t a single I wouldn’t recommend–even if just to do the opposite of what the author says.
Rules for Radicals–Saul D. Alinsky
The Long Tail–Chris Anderson
The Moral Animal–Robert Wright
An Army of Davids–Glenn Reynolds
Sex on the Brain–Deborah Blum
The Discourses–Epictetus
The Rise of Theodore Roosevelt–Edmund Morris
The Big Picture–Edward Jay Epstein
The Meditations–Marcus Aurelius (4 times)
Fight Club–Chuck Palahniuk (2 times)
Choke–Chuck Palahniuk
The Origin of Consciousness in the Breakdown of the Bicameral Mind–Julian Jaynes
My Bondage and My Freedom–Frederick Douglass
Liar’s Poker–Michael Lewis
Next–Michael Lewis
The New New Thing–Michael Lewis
The Autobiography of Malcolm X–Malcolm X, Alex Haley
History of the Peloponnesian War–Thucydides
On War–Von Clausewitz
Gates of Fire–Steven Pressfield
The Virtues of War–Steven Pressfield
The War of Art–Steven Pressfield
Sperm Wars–Robin Baker
A Man in Full–Tom Wolfe
48 Laws of Power–Robert Greene (Again)
33 Strategies of War–Robert Greene (Again)
The Tipping Point–Malcolm Gladwell
Blink–Malcolm Gladwell
The God Delusion–Richard Dawkins
The Gift of Fear–Gavin De Becker
Made to Stick–Chip and Dan Heath
East of Eden–John Steinbeck
The Origins of Virtue–Matt Ridley
Wisdom of Crowds–James Surowicki
Boyd: The Fight Pilot who Changed the Art of War–Robert Coram
The Secret–Rhonda Byrne
Caesar–Christian Meier
Don’t Think of an Elephant: Know your values and frame the debate–George Lakoff
Whoever Fights Monsters–Robert K. Ressler
The Strategy Paradox–Michael E. Raynor
(And for class I read a few others that didn’t totally blow. The Sweet Hereafter, The World According to Garp, The Awakening, In the Bedroom, and then some textbooks…)
