Self-Help Books

Self-Help Books describes a diverse selection of titles that focus on self-discovery and self-improvement. The self-help genre is characterized by literature that shares research and advice to promote self-understanding and prompt changes in one's outlook or behavior, thus improving one's quality of life. The Self-Help Collection features texts that discuss topics ranging from business and personal finance to interpersonal relationships, mental health, and sexuality.

Meditations

by Marcus Aurelius

Publication year 180

Genre Book, Nonfiction

Themes Religion & Spirituality, Fate, Perseverance, Good & Evil

Tags Philosophy, Ancient Rome, Philosophy, World History, Psychology, Psychology, Biography, Self-Improvement, Classic Fiction, Religion & Spirituality

Meditations is a collection of prose philosophical reflections and exercises composed in Koine Greek by Roman Emperor Marcus Aurelius, who lived from 121-180 and ruled from 161-180. Though the precise dating of his compositions is unknown and they are not believed to be presented in chronological order, at least some of the books were written while he was on military campaign in the north of Europe during his reign. Scholars are generally in consensus that... Read Meditations Summary

Men are from Mars, Women are from Venus

by John Gray

Publication year 1992

Genre Book, Nonfiction

Themes Marriage, Fear, Forgiveness, Love

Tags Self-Improvement, Psychology, Relationships, Love & Sexuality, Philosophy, Philosophy, Psychology, Romance

Men Are from Mars, Women Are from Venus (1992) is a self-help and personal development book by American author John Gray. The book is designed to help couples improve their relationships by accepting how different men and women are. Although the book was initially met with critical acclaim, it has lost popularity due to critiques about sexist content and the book’s worldview. Although this is Gray’s best-known work, Gray has published many similar books concerned... Read Men are from Mars, Women are from Venus Summary

Mindset

by Carol S. Dweck

Publication year 2006

Genre Book, Nonfiction

Themes Education, Self Discovery, Perseverance

Tags Self-Improvement, Psychology, Education, Education, Leadership, Business & Economics, Parenting, Psychology

In 2006, psychologist Carol S. Dweck, PhD, the Lewis and Virginia Eaton Professor of Psychology at Stanford University, released the book Mindset: The New Psychology of Success, as a layperson’s guide to her decades of academic research. Initially interested in areas of motivation, personality, and development, the author gravitated toward research in cognitive motivation theory. She eventually discovered that the concepts of “fixed” and “growth” mindsets explain what motivates some people to embrace challenges and... Read Mindset Summary

Misbehaving

by Richard H. Thaler

Publication year 2016

Genre Book, Nonfiction

Themes Economics, Community, Politics & Government

Tags Science & Nature, Business & Economics, Sociology, World History, Psychology, Psychology, Self-Improvement

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Never Finished

by David Goggins

Publication year 2022

Genre Autobiography / Memoir, Nonfiction

Themes Wins & Losses, Perseverance, Shame & Pride

Tags Psychology, Philosophy, Inspirational, Sports, Psychology, Philosophy, Self-Improvement, Biography

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Never Split the Difference

by Chris Voss

Publication year 2016

Genre Book, Nonfiction

Themes Economics, Power & Greed, Teamwork, Language

Tags Business & Economics, Self-Improvement, Leadership, Psychology, Psychology

Never Split the Difference: Negotiating as If Your Life Depended on It is a 2016 nonfiction book cowritten by Chris Voss, an international hostage negotiator turned business consultant and professor, and journalist Tahl Raz. In this book, which straddles the line between the business and self-help genres, Voss shares principles gleaned from decades of experience in high-stakes negotiations. Citations in this guide correspond with the first edition published by Harper Collins. Although Raz is credited... Read Never Split the Difference Summary

Nudge

by Richard H. Thaler, Cass R. Sunstein

Publication year 2008

Genre Book, Nonfiction

Themes Economics, Trust & Doubt, Politics & Government

Tags Self-Improvement, Psychology, Business & Economics, Science & Nature, Sociology, Psychology, Politics & Government

In 2021 the behavioral economists Richard H. Thaler and the legal scholar Cass R. Sunstein released an updated, “final” version of their 2008 book Nudge: Improving Decisions about Health, Wealth, and Happiness. Drawing on research from psychology, economics, sociology, and elsewhere, Thaler and Sunstein make the case for the importance of “nudges.” Nudges, according to these authors, are “aspects of choice architecture” that predictably alter behavior without forbidding or commanding anything (8). Choice architecture refers... Read Nudge Summary

On Death and Dying

by Elisabeth Kübler-Ross

Publication year 1969

Genre Book, Nonfiction

Themes Grief, Death, Family

Tags Science & Nature, Psychology, Philosophy, Philosophy, Self-Improvement, Religion & Spirituality, Psychology, Grief & Death, Health

On Death and Dying is a 1969 psychological study by Elisabeth Kübler-Ross. It is best known in popular culture for introducing the five stages of grief: denial, anger, bargaining, depression, and acceptance. Kübler-Ross’s work with terminally ill patients inspired the model. She wrote the study as a response to the lack of instruction in medical schools about how to handle the topic of death. It was the very first book written by Kübler-Ross in her... Read On Death and Dying Summary

On the Shortness of Life

by Seneca

Publication year 49

Genre Essay / Speech, Nonfiction

Themes The Past, Future, Death, Nature Versus Nurture

Tags Classical Period, Philosophy, Ancient Rome, World History, Psychology, Psychology, Philosophy, Self-Improvement, Classic Fiction, Religion & Spirituality

... Read On the Shortness of Life Summary

On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft

by Stephen King

Publication year 2000

Genre Autobiography / Memoir, Nonfiction

Themes Art, Childhood & Youth, Language

Tags Arts & Culture, Self-Improvement, Biography

Stephen King’s 2000 memoir, On Writing, details King’s formation as an author and provides writing advice. The memoir is divided into five sections: “C.V.,” “What Writing Is,” “Toolbox,” “On Writing,” and “On Living.”In “C.V.,” King provides a curriculum vitae describing how he was formed as a writer. He begins in his early childhood and describes his life with his mother, Nellie, and older brother, David. King’s father is not in the picture, and the family... Read On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft Summary

Originals

by Adam Grant

Publication year 2016

Genre Book, Nonfiction

Themes Perseverance

Tags Business & Economics, Psychology, Self-Improvement, Leadership, Science & Nature, Psychology

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