If there is something that I’d wish to have started doing sooner, it would be to read more books. Books have the power to change our lives. They contain an abundance of knowledge and experience from people who have achieved things that we may aspire to achieve ourselves. So we have an opportunity to learn the knowledge that they share in such a short space of time. And although there are too many books to list now, starting somewhere is key. Here are 3 books that could change your life, as they have mine:
1. The Secret – by Rhonda Byrne
This particular book and was the first real insights into new possibilities in my life. It gave a new awareness that we really do have the power to create our own lives. If you are familiar with the law of attraction, then you may have heard of The Secret.
The book contains interviews many of the world’s great thought leaders and discusses universal laws that apply to each and every one of us. It is great if you are struggling in your life, feel lost, unhappy, and unfulfilled. The Secret is a great read for expanding your mind and creating new ideas.
“A lot of people feel like they’re victims in life, and they’ll often point to past events, perhaps growing up with an abusive parent or in a dysfunctional family. Most psychologists believe that about 85 percent of families are dysfunctional, so all of a sudden you’re not so unique. My parents were alcoholics. My dad abused me. My mother divorced him when I was six…I mean, that’s almost everybody’s story in some form or not. The real question is, what are you going to do now? What do you choose now? Because you can either keep focusing on that, or you can focus on what you want. And when people start focusing on what they want, what they don’t want falls away, and what they want expands, and the other part disappears.”
Jack Canfield
― Rhonda Byrne, The Secret
It opened my awareness to a whole new world of possibilities and gave me so much hope for an incredible future.
Oftentimes, when we experience trauma, deep unhappiness, or stuck in our life, it can be hard to remain positive and upbeat about our futures. Having an awareness of this is absolutely essential if we are to do something about it.
Learn more about awareness in my post: The 7 Levels of Awareness
Main takeaway: This book gives you an understanding that you are your own creator, and you can be, do, or have anything that you want. However, a misconception that some people have, is that positive thinking alone will change your life. But a big factor in success is the action you take. It’s not about hoping a million dollar cheque will show up at your door, but it’s about changing your mindset so that you begin to think and act in a way that would help you achieve that.
Every thought we think, emotion we feel, and action we take, will determine the lives we live.
2. Think and Grow Rich – by Napoleon Hill
Recommended by many of the world’s most successful entrepreneurs and thought leaders, Think and Grow Rich is a blueprint for success. One of the biggest shifts in mindset comes when you realize that any successful person in the world isn’t there by accident and that all successful people tend to do things in a certain way. We were all born equal on this planet. Some of us are born a little more fortunate or unfortunate than others. But our attitude and focus towards life will be reflected in the quality of it.
Think and Grow Rich is a book that was created by Napoleon Hill after spending years studying successful people, and sharing their commonalities and principles in this book. The book discusses the importance of having a strong desire for something and then following the laid out principles for its attainment. It is particularly useful to highlight areas that stand out to you and to keep going over them, again and again.
“The starting point of all achievement is DESIRE. Keep this constantly in mind. Weak desire brings weak results, just as a small fire makes a small amount of heat.”
Napoleon Hill, Think and Grow Rich
A mentor of mine, Bob Proctor, introduced the book to me and he personally reads it every single day because of its power. We can read many books, but it’s the repetition and application of the ideas that are what will or won’t change our lives.
Main takeaway: This book is a blueprint for success. It is laid out into chapters, that are the principles for success. By following and studying them, you will start to see changes in your own life. Following what many other successful people have in common can only lead to the same results.
But if we keep doing the same thing over and over again with the wrong results, we will remain bound and never progress or grow.
3. The Power of Now – by Eckhart Tolle
This really is one of the most powerful books that I have ever read. I would highly recommend it to anybody who has a desire to live a happier life.
The world we live in today is full of filters over our lives, mental health problems, expectations to be something special, or someone we’re not. Many people are living from a place of fear and worry. Many relationships are formed on neediness and built with expectations.
Find out more about expectations in relationships in my post: Why Relationships Fail
Eckhart Tolle does an incredible job of teaching about our ego and pain bodies in The Power Of Now. One of the biggest lessons is learning to accept what is. Understanding that we no longer need to control everything, justify failures, or play scenes over and over in our heads of why things didn’t work out a certain way. And when we do this, we become free, present, and awake.
“The moment that judgment stops through acceptance of what it is, you are free of the mind. You have made room for love, for joy, for peace.”
Eckhart Tolle, The Power of Now
It has had such a profound effect on my own awareness that I have benefited in day-to-day life experiencing moments of pure stillness. Feelings of complete gratitude and happiness for no other reason than just because I noticed my own presence.
At first, if the ideas in this book are new to you, it may seem a little out there. But if you give it time and read over it a few times it will start to resonate with you. I benefited from reading it multiple times and still go back to it from time to time.
To conclude
I will provide more book recommendations in the future, but these 3 are extremely powerful and can help you begin to shift your awareness and consciousness immediately.
I’ll leave you with the following quote:
“You are the books you read, the films you watch, the music you listen to, the people you meet, the dreams you have, and the conversations you engage in. You are what you take from these. You are the sound of the ocean, breath of the fresh air, the brightest light and the darkest corner.”
Jac Vanec