The best 53 Decision-Making books

1
Power vs. Force

Power vs. Force

David R. Hawkins
The Hidden Determinants of Human Behaviour
4.2 (324 ratings)

What's Power vs. Force about?

Power vs. Force (2014) explains how anyone can tap into their inner power to change their lives and the lives of those around them. It demonstrates that with consciousness, intention and discernment, anyone can find their truth and follow it toward a more fulfilled and impactful life. 

Who should read Power vs. Force?

  • People interested in alternative theories about science and humanity
  • Anyone who faces major doubts in their lives
  • Humanity nerds

2
The Science of Happily Ever After

The Science of Happily Ever After

Ty Tashiro
What Really Matters in the Quest for Enduring Love
4.5 (23 ratings)

What's The Science of Happily Ever After about?

The Science of Happily Ever After (2014) digs into the history of mating throughout the history of the human species and answers the question of why some couples live happily ever after and some don’t. Part history and anthropology lesson, part self-help, it offers explanations and advice for anyone seeking love.

Who should read The Science of Happily Ever After?

  • Love seekers
  • People wondering why it never works out
  • Couples in relationships who want to live happily ever after

3
First Things First

First Things First

Stephen R. Covey
To Live, to Love, to Learn, to Leave a Legacy
4.6 (604 ratings)

What's First Things First about?

This title provides you with valuable insights and guidelines that will help you focus your life on the things that are truly the most meaningful. You’ll learn how to set your priorities, make the best decisions, and develop a keen vision for the future. If you’re looking to create positive change in your life, this book is a great place to start!

Who should read First Things First?

  • Anyone who feels a lack of inner peace, balance or meaning in life
  • Anyone who wants to use his or her time more effectively
  • Anyone who has a hard time making big decisions
  • Anyone who wants to improve the quality of his or her life

4
Noise

Noise

Daniel Kahneman
A Flaw in Human Judgment
4.4 (675 ratings)

What's Noise about?

Noise (2021) is an exploration into the chaotic and costly role that randomness plays in human judgment. By uncovering the mechanisms behind how our minds and societies work, the authors show how noise – unwanted variability in decisions – is both inescapable and elusive. We can, however, with a few solid strategies, make our judgments less noisy and our world fairer.

Who should read Noise?

  • Behavioral economists, psychologists, CEOs, and students
  • Anyone interested in how we make judgments and how those judgments shape society
  • Anyone who cares about accuracy and fairness

5
Blink

Blink

Malcolm Gladwell
The Power of Thinking Without Thinking
4.1 (476 ratings)

What's Blink about?

Blink examines the phenomenon of snap judgments, meaning the split-second decisions we make unconsciously. These snap judgments are important decision-making tools, but can also lead to bad choices and all manner of problems. Blink explains how we can best make use of them.

Who should read Blink?

  • Anyone interested in intuition and decision-making
  • Anyone interested in ridding themselves of their prejudices and stereotypes
  • Anyone who wants to know when to trust their intuition

6
Know Thyself

Know Thyself

Stephen M. Fleming
The Science of Self-Awareness
4.5 (322 ratings)

What's Know Thyself about?

In Know Thyself (2021) cognitive neuroscientist Stephen M. Fleming lays out the basic principles of metacognition – the way we think about what we think. This revealing book shows by understanding of our metacognitive processes, we can turn them to our advantage, to make accurate, informed judgments.

Who should read Know Thyself?

  • Psychology buffs 
  • People grappling with difficult decisions
  • Anyone who wants to know more about why they think what they think

7
Nudge

Nudge

Richard H. Thaler and Cass R. Sunstein
Improving Decisions about Health, Wealth and Happiness
4.1 (350 ratings)

What's Nudge about?

The message of Nudge is to show us how we can be encouraged, with just a slight nudge or two, to make better decisions. The book starts by explaining the reasons for wrong decisions we make in everyday life.

Who should read Nudge?

  • Anyone who wants to live a healthier, more disciplined life
  • Anyone interested in how countries and companies can influence people’s decisions

8
Financial Intelligence

Financial Intelligence

Karen Berman + Joe Knight with John Case
A Manager's Guide to Knowing What the Numbers Really Mean
3.2 (103 ratings)

What's Financial Intelligence about?

Financial Intelligence (2013) is an accessible handbook that helps managers and decision makers interpret financial data and understand its importance.

Who should read Financial Intelligence?

  • Managers who want to become more financially literate
  • Decision makers seeking to improve their company’s financial results
  • Anyone who’s confused by cash flow statements

9
Start, Stay, or Leave

Start, Stay, or Leave

Trey Gowdy
The Art of Decision Making
4.3 (59 ratings)

What's Start, Stay, or Leave about?

Start, Stay, or Leave (2023) provides practical advice for individuals at any stage of their career who are seeking guidance on how to make informed and fulfilling career decisions. Doing so relies on the importance of self-awareness, defining one's purpose and values, and creating a clear plan for achieving one's goals. 

Who should read Start, Stay, or Leave?

  • People looking to start a new career
  • Workaholics trying to adjust their priorities
  • Anyone looking for advice on how to make life’s big decisions

10
The Paradox of Choice

The Paradox of Choice

Barry Schwartz
Why More Is Less
4.6 (291 ratings)

What's The Paradox of Choice about?

The abundance of choice that modern society presents us with is commonly believed to result in better options and greater satisfaction. However, author Barry Schwartz argues that too many choices can be detrimental to our psychological and emotional well-being. Through arguments based on current research in the social sciences, he demonstrates how more might actually be less.

Who should read The Paradox of Choice?

  • Anyone interested in why making decisions can be so difficult
  • Anyone who wants to learn about the consequences of being faced with many choices

 

 


11
The Great Mental Models

The Great Mental Models

Shane Parrish and Rhiannon Beaubien
General Thinking Concepts
4.4 (347 ratings)

What's The Great Mental Models about?

The Great Mental Models (2019) provides a crash course on how to upgrade your thinking and decision making. Drawing from a wide variety of disciplines, it will equip you with nine of the most essential tools for understanding and navigating the complicated world around you.

Who should read The Great Mental Models?

  • Decision makers
  • Analysts
  • Anyone who wants to give their thinking an edge

12
The Slight Edge

The Slight Edge

Jeff Olson
Turning Simple Disciplines into Massive Success and Happiness
4.6 (265 ratings)

What's The Slight Edge about?

What’s it about?

The Slight Edge (2005) explores the power of all the small choices we make every day. Far from being insignificant, they are a step in our journey toward success or failure.

Who should read The Slight Edge?

Who’s it for?

  • Individuals wanting to achieve success in life
  • People trying to develop new habits or stop bad ones
  • Entrepreneurs who want to build successful businesses

13
The Power of Regret

The Power of Regret

Daniel Pink
How Looking Backward Moves us Forward
4.6 (673 ratings)

What's The Power of Regret about?

The Power of Regret (2022) is a rebuttal of the “no regrets” worldview. Drawing from human psychology, it shares actionable steps for transforming emotion into action and using past disappointments to shape purposeful futures. 

Who should read The Power of Regret?

  • Anyone who’s ever had a regret, no matter how big or small
  • Followers of the “no regrets” lifestyle who are ready to hear a new perspective 
  • Psychology fans who want to explore the underpinnings of a popular phenomenon

14
Predictably Irrational

Predictably Irrational

Dan Ariely
The Hidden Forces That Shape Our Decisions
4.5 (344 ratings)

What's Predictably Irrational about?

Predictably Irrational (2010) explains the fundamentally irrational ways we behave every day. Why do we decide to diet and then give it up as soon as we see a tasty dessert? Why would your mother be offended if you tried to pay her for a Sunday meal she lovingly prepared? Why is pain medication more effective when the patient thinks it is more expensive? The reasons and remedies for these and other irrationalities are explored and explained with studies and anecdotes.

Who should read Predictably Irrational?

  • Anyone who wants to understand why we indulge in irrational behaviors like procrastination, overeating and overpaying, and how we can avoid this
  • Anyone who wants to learn how to counter their innate irrationality and make better decisions
  • Anyone interested in social psychology and people’s decision-making behavior in general

15
The Self-Driven Child

The Self-Driven Child

William Stixrud and Ned Johnson
The Science and Sense of Giving Your Kids More Control Over Their Lives
4.5 (242 ratings)

What's The Self-Driven Child about?

The Self-Driven Child (2018) shows us how our instinct to control our children’s lives can result in stressed-out, uncooperative, and poorly motivated kids. Instead, the book argues, we should try to help our children come to informed decisions themselves – and trust them to make the big calls. 

Who should read The Self-Driven Child?

  • Parents of stressed, overworked kids
  • Child psychologists and pediatricians
  • Anyone interested in the complex dynamics between parent and child

16
How to Decide

How to Decide

Annie Duke
Simple Tools for Making Better Choices
4.4 (281 ratings)

What's How to Decide about?

How to Decide (2020) investigates the way we make decisions, as well as common types of bias and faulty techniques that afflict them. It teaches you how to identify different types of decisions, and then design practical processes to help slow down or speed up the deliberation process accordingly.

Who should read How to Decide?

  • Anyone interested in decision-making strategies
  • People who like psychology
  • Business managers who make big decisions regularly

17
No Rules Rules

No Rules Rules

Reed Hastings and Erin Meyer
Netflix and the Culture of Reinvention
4.6 (367 ratings)

What's No Rules Rules about?

No Rules Rules (2020) sets out the principles of Netflix’s unique company culture, based on employee freedom and responsibility, and optimized for maximum innovation. In doing so, it charts the incredible journey of Netflix, a start-up fairytale.

Who should read No Rules Rules?

  • Anyone who works at a start-up
  • Fans of the film The Social Network
  • Those who are wary of Silicon Valley’s increasing dominance

 


18
Rationality

Rationality

Steven Pinker
What It Is, Why It's Scarce, and How to Get More
4.2 (381 ratings)

What's Rationality about?

Rationality (2021) explores the faculty that sets us apart from other species: reason. The ability to think rationally drives individual and social progress. It allows us to attain our goals and create a fairer world. But rationality isn’t just something we do as individuals – it also sustains our best institutions.

Who should read Rationality?

  • Would-be rationalists
  • Philosophical thinkers
  • Anyone who loves big ideas

19
Decisive

Decisive

Chip and Dan Heath
How to Make Better Choices in Life and Work
4.4 (223 ratings)

What's Decisive about?

The book identifies the main issues that typically stand in the way of decision making: a narrow view on our problems, short-term emotions, and overconfidence when it comes to predicting the future. It gives knowledgeable insight into how our decisions are formed and how to avoid making bad ones.

Who should read Decisive?

  • Anyone interested in the process of decision making
  • Anyone that has to make reliable decisions everyday
  • Anyone who is repeatedly revisiting past decisions

20
Decision Making and Problem Solving

Decision Making and Problem Solving

John Adair
Break Through Barriers and Banish Uncertainty at Work
3.9 (63 ratings)

What's Decision Making and Problem Solving about?

Decision Making and Problem Solving (2019) explains decision-making, problem-solving, and creative thinking. It provides instructions for building and improving these skills and explores the importance of these abilities enabling you to expand your practical thinking capacity.

Who should read Decision Making and Problem Solving?

  • Business leaders who want to improve their teams’ decision-making and problem-solving.
  • Employees seeking to polish their practical thinking skills
  • Anyone interested in elevating their capacity for creative and critical thinking

21
The Great Mental Models Volume 3

The Great Mental Models Volume 3

Rhiannon Beaubien and Rosie Leizrowice
Systems and Mathematics
4.3 (268 ratings)

What's The Great Mental Models Volume 3 about?

The Great Mental Models Volume 3 (2021) is the third book in a series that shows how mental models from various disciplines can be applied to make positive changes to your life. This volume focuses on mental models from systems and mathematics. It demonstrates how you can use cognitive tools to improve everything from decision-making and relationships to healthy eating and personal productivity.

Who should read The Great Mental Models Volume 3?

  • Decision-makers
  • Problem-solvers
  • The intellectually curious

22
The Leading Brain

The Leading Brain

Friederike Fabritius & Hans W. Hagemann
Powerful Science-Based Strategies for Achieving Peak Performance
4.2 (76 ratings)

What's The Leading Brain about?

The Leading Brain (2017) dismisses the trends and gimmicks surrounding productivity in favor of hard science about how the brain really works in the everyday stress of a nine-to-five job. There is plenty of research and scientific data on how to create productive habits, build the perfect team and keep staff working at their best.

Who should read The Leading Brain?

  • Psychology students
  • Managers and supervisors looking to improve their leadership skills
  • Readers interested in self-improvement

23
Wild Problems

Wild Problems

Russ Roberts
A Guide to the Decisions That Define Us
4.5 (297 ratings)

What's Wild Problems about?

Wild Problems (2022) is an exploration of decision-making, particularly when it comes to the thornier issues of life that can have the deepest impact. Although the modern world offers algorithms and practical approaches to doing so, calculations are not always the best way to a life well lived.

Who should read Wild Problems?

  • Anyone interested in philosophy
  • People at the threshold of making major life decisions like marriage or a geographical move
  • Anyone struggling with becoming more decisive

24
One Decision

One Decision

Mike Bayer
The First Step to a Better Life
4.4 (212 ratings)

What's One Decision about?

One Decision (2020) is a guide to understanding the various thinking patterns that determine whether we see obstacles or opportunities. It breaks down why we often base decisions on the bleak outlook created by rigidity and confusion and provides practical tools for fostering an opportunity mindset and making life-changing decisions.

Who should read One Decision?

  • People who feel overwhelmed by obstacles
  • Those who are stuck in a cycle of bad decisions
  • Anyone who wants to create a better life

25
You’re About to Make a Terrible Mistake!

You’re About to Make a Terrible Mistake!

Olivier Sibony
How Biases Distort Decision-Making – and What You Can Do To Fight Them
4.3 (106 ratings)

What's You’re About to Make a Terrible Mistake! about?

You’re About to Make a Terrible Mistake! (2020) deals with the negative but often predictable effects that cognitive biases have on high-stakes decisions. Far from claiming that biases can be eliminated altogether, it demonstrates how every decision is colored by bias and outlines specific techniques that’ll help you make more rational, fact-based business decisions.

Who should read You’re About to Make a Terrible Mistake! ?

  • Businesspeople who have to make frequent decisions
  • Anyone interested in business strategy and behavioral economics
  • Fans of Daniel Kahneman or Malcolm Gladwell

26
The Hour Between Dog and Wolf

The Hour Between Dog and Wolf

John Coates
How Risk-Taking Transforms Us, Body and Mind
4.2 (57 ratings)

What's The Hour Between Dog and Wolf about?

The Hour Between Dog and Wolf is an illuminating look at the influence of human physiology on the thinking and behavior of stock market traders. The author, inspired by his experiences on the trading floor, investigates the hormonal basis of financial decision making, and demonstrates the way in which the body’s mechanisms can destabilize our financial markets. The book also explains what can be done to reduce the detrimental effects of our biology on the market, and even how we can use this knowledge to our financial advantage.

Who should read The Hour Between Dog and Wolf?

  • Anyone who is curious about the relationship between biology and stock trading
  • Anyone who is interested in how people think with their bodies
  • Anyone wondering how bubbles can form in the stock market

27
Why We Make Mistakes

Why We Make Mistakes

Joseph T. Hallinan
How We Look Without Seeing, Forget Things in Seconds, and Are All Pretty Sure We Are Way Above Average
4.3 (42 ratings)

What's Why We Make Mistakes about?

Why We Make Mistakes is about the kinds of mistakes we commonly make, and the reasons behind them. With a broad focus encompassing neuroscience, psychology and economics, the book provides convincing explanations for our often fallible perception, our inability to recall simple data and the many biases that direct our decision making without us being aware.

Who should read Why We Make Mistakes?

  • Anyone eager to understand the mechanisms behind human error
  • Anyone who always wonders why they never find mistakes in their own work
  • Anyone who wants to know why they can’t seem to remember names, PINs or their own password

28
The Next Right Thing

The Next Right Thing

Emily P. Freeman
A Simple, Soulful Practice for Making Life Decisions
4.1 (119 ratings)

What's The Next Right Thing about?

The Next Right Thing (2019) takes a fresh look at common decision-making wisdom. Drawing upon personal anecdotes as well as stories from the Bible, these blinks offer soulful advice to guide you through decision fatigue or chronic hesitation so that you can find your next right thing.

Who should read The Next Right Thing?

  • Christians interested in finding spiritual guidance
  • Recent graduates or people going through a time of transition
  • Ditherers looking to become more decisive

29
The Marshmallow Test

The Marshmallow Test

Walter Mischel
Mastering Self-Control
4.6 (54 ratings)

What's The Marshmallow Test about?

The Marshmallow Test explains why being able to delay gratification and exercise our self-control is essential for living a successful life. Using insights gained from several psychological studies, it explains how exactly our self-control skills function, and what we can do to improve them.

Who should read The Marshmallow Test?

  • Anyone who wants to improve his or her self-control
  • Anyone interested in psychology
  • Anyone hoping to help children develop good self-control skills, especially parents

30
Both/And Thinking

Both/And Thinking

Wendy K. Smith
Embracing Creative Tensions to Solve Your Toughest Problems
3.7 (43 ratings)

What's Both/And Thinking about?

Both/And Thinking (2022) offers a new framework for decision-making. With an either/or mindset, your world appears full of complex choices and difficult sacrifices. By adopting a both/and mindset, you can transform tough choices into fruitful opportunities – no sacrifices necessary.

Who should read Both/And Thinking?

  • Anyone who thinks sacrifice is the only path to finding success
  • Busy professionals struggling to prioritize professional and personal obligations
  • People whose lives are full of complications – but who want to thrive anyway!

31
The Desire Map

The Desire Map

Danielle LaPorte
A Guide to Creating Goals with Soul
3.8 (57 ratings)

What's The Desire Map about?

The Desire Map (2014) is your guide to harnessing the positive power of desire. From fostering creativity to providing motivation for you to chase your goals, desire with a healthy dose of self-awareness can help you on your way to fulfillment.

Who should read The Desire Map?

  • Women and men who feel sad or unfulfilled in their lives
  • Teenagers or anyone trying to find his or her place in the universe

32
Strategic Kaizen™

Strategic Kaizen™

Masaaki Imai
Using Flow, Synchronization, and Leveling Assessment to Measure and Strengthen Operational Performance
4.4 (66 ratings)

What's Strategic Kaizen™ about?

Strategic Kaizen (2021) examines the principles and practices of corporations that have embraced lean thinking – a paired-down, customer-oriented production process pioneered in postwar Japan. Also known as the Toyota Production System, this managerial philosophy is all about maximizing efficiency and reducing waste by making many small changes. 

Who should read Strategic Kaizen™?

  • Managers and leaders
  • Technophiles and car lovers
  • Strategists and planners

33
The Scout Mindset

The Scout Mindset

Julia Galef
Why Some People See Things Clearly and Others Don't
4.6 (560 ratings)

What's The Scout Mindset about?

The Scout Mindset (2021) explores two very different mindsets: that of the soldier and that of the scout. It explains that most of us have a soldier mindset – we cling to our beliefs and often ignore evidence that might prove us wrong. But we can all learn to be scouts, seeking out truth and improving our “map” of the world.

Who should read The Scout Mindset?

  • Anyone who wants to overcome their inherent biases
  • People who want to learn how to be wrong
  • Truth seekers

34
Why Managers Matter

Why Managers Matter

Nicolai J. Foss & Peter G. Klein
The Perils of the Bossless Company
3.5 (173 ratings)

What's Why Managers Matter about?

Why Managers Matter (2022) outlines the benefits and drawbacks of different company organizational styles. It explains when and why a company might prefer hierarchies vs. a bossless environment depending on its workflows.

Who should read Why Managers Matter?

  • Business executives deciding on the best structure for their companies
  • Scholars and leaders comparing hierarchical structures and flat organizations
  • Anyone interested in organizational structure and managerial strategy

35
Thinking 101

Thinking 101

Woo-kyoung Ahn
How to Reason Better to Live Better
4.4 (410 ratings)

What's Thinking 101 about?

Thinking 101 (2022) asserts that by understanding and overcoming thinking biases, we can better solve or even avoid most problems, from everyday conflicts to larger societal issues. 

Who should read Thinking 101?

  • Problem solvers interested in thinking differently
  • People who want to understand the actions and motivations of others
  • Students or other academics interested in cognitive psychology

36
Super Crunchers

Super Crunchers

Ian Ayres
Why Thinking-by-Numbers Is the New Way to be Smart
3.6 (21 ratings)

What's Super Crunchers about?

From building a wine cellar to finding your happily ever after, modern life is increasingly ruled by number crunching and algorithms. Super Crunchers (2007) is about the sheer power of the large data sets that are fed into algorithms and the way they’re revolutionizing our businesses, medical treatment and even our governments.

Who should read Super Crunchers?

  • Anyone interested in the power of statistics
  • Computer and math nerds
  • Business owners, politicians and baseball coaches

37
Don’t Trust Your Gut

Don’t Trust Your Gut

Seth Stephens-Davidowitz
Using Data to Get What You Really Want in Life
3.9 (210 ratings)

What's Don’t Trust Your Gut about?

Don’t Trust Your Gut (2022) turns that tried-and-true wisdom about trusting your gut on its head. Not only does trusting your gut instinct often lead you to make the wrong decision, there’s a pretty foolproof method to ensure you make the right decision – analyzing the available data and acting on it.

Who should read Don’t Trust Your Gut?

  • Regretful impulsive decision-makers
  • Those so overwhelmed by decision-making that they rarely make any decisions
  • Anyone who’s ever resorted to a coin flip to make a particularly tricky decision

38
The Prepared Leader

The Prepared Leader

Erika H. James and Lynn Perry Wooten
Emerge from Any Crisis More Resilient Than Before
4.4 (248 ratings)

What's The Prepared Leader about?

The Prepared Leader (2022) is a guidebook for those seeking insights on how to manage and persevere through a crisis. One thing is certain: it won’t be long before another crisis hits. The Prepared Leader shows how you can be ready and successful in weathering the next storm.

Who should read The Prepared Leader?

  • Group leaders and executives
  • Business owners
  • HR professionals

39
Meetings That Get Results

Meetings That Get Results

Terrence Metz
A Facilitator's Guide to Building Better Meetings
4.2 (185 ratings)

What's Meetings That Get Results about?

Meetings That Get Results (2021) is a practical guide to the art of running more effective and efficient meetings. Designed for leaders tasked with facilitating meetings and group discussions, it emphasizes collaborative approaches to decision-making and problem-solving. 

Who should read Meetings That Get Results?

  • Leaders and organizers 
  • Tinkerers and optimizers 
  • Team players

40
Risk Savvy

Risk Savvy

Gerd Gigerenzer
How To Make Good Decisions
3.7 (57 ratings)

What's Risk Savvy about?

Risk Savvy is an exploration into the way we misunderstand risk and uncertainty, often at great expense to our health, finances and relationships. However, if we better understand risk, we can develop the tools necessary to navigate this highly complex world without having to become an “expert in everything.”

Who should read Risk Savvy?

  • Anyone whose decisions greatly affect others
  • People involved in the finance industry
  • Anyone who wants to make better decisions in their lives

41
You Are What You Risk

You Are What You Risk

Michele Wucker
The New Art and Science of Navigating an Uncertain World
3.9 (215 ratings)

What's You Are What You Risk about?

You Are What You Risk (2021) explains how your relationship with risk defines your life in a unique way. Countless factors influence both how you perceive risk and how you respond to it.

Who should read You Are What You Risk?

  • People searching for new ways to make decisions
  • Economists looking to better understand risk
  • Thrill-seekers and scaredy-cats wondering why they are how they are

42
Dedicated

Dedicated

Pete Davis
The Case for Commitment in an Age of Infinite Browsing
4.4 (54 ratings)

What's Dedicated about?

Dedicated (2021) makes the case for commitment in an age of infinite browsing. Based on the author’s Harvard Law School graduation speech, “A Counterculture of Commitment,” it explores how keeping our options open creates inner tension – and why commitment is the solution. 

Who should read Dedicated?

  • Commitment shirkers and seekers
  • Anyone experiencing FOMO
  • YOLO thrill-seekers looking for a deeper connection

43
Framers

Framers

Kenneth Cukier
Human Advantage in an Age of Technology and Turmoil
4.1 (60 ratings)

What's Framers about?

Framers (2021) takes a bird’s eye view of the issues facing our world today, from pandemics to political polarization, and presents a visionary solution. That solution lies with framing –⁠ the conscious or unconscious act of viewing the world through a particular lens. By recognizing and rethinking the frames we use, we can optimize our attitudes toward the world and give ourselves a leg up in the face of major social, economic, and scientific challenges.

Who should read Framers?

  • Abstract thinkers concerned about global issues
  • Decision-makers who tend to over-rely on their gut instincts
  • Innovators struggling to bring their vision into reality

44
Wiser

Wiser

Dilip Jeste with Scott LaFee
The Scientific Roots of Wisdom, Compassion, and What Makes Us Good
4.8 (89 ratings)

What's Wiser about?

Wiser (2020) combines a scientific approach to wisdom with practical tips on how to grow wiser today. Drawing on decades of research and cutting-edge studies, it pairs explanation and advice in its investigation of compassion, aging, decision-making, and more.

Who should read Wiser?

  • Busy twenty-first-century folk hungry for old-fashioned wisdom
  • Amateur scientists interested in discovering more about the brain
  • People who want to get wise before they get old

45
Dream Big

Dream Big

Bob Goff
Know What You Want, Why You Want It, and What You're Going to Do About It
4.5 (253 ratings)

What's Dream Big about?

Dream Big (2020) shows us how we can reconnect with our dreams and turn them into reality. Rather than a life half-lived, Dream Big encourages us to dig into our deepest motivations, face our obstacles, and make plans for our most cherished ambitions.

Who should read Dream Big?

  • Anyone looking to reconnect with their dreams
  • People in the wrong career, wrong relationship, or wrong life
  • Those in need of the courage to start again

46
Provoke

Provoke

Geoff Tuff and Steven Goldbach
How Leaders Shape the Future by Overcoming Fatal Human Flaws
4.6 (24 ratings)

What's Provoke about?

Provoke (2021) draws lessons from provocative entrepreneurs who pinpointed key trends early and rode them to phenomenal success. What’s more, by outlining the key principles of future-oriented strategy, it shows how anyone can act to provoke the future outcomes they want for their business.

Who should read Provoke?

  • Anyone wondering how to future-proof their business
  • Entrepreneurs who’d like to turn their vision into reality
  • Managers who want to lead boldly and strategically

47
Mistakes Were Made (But Not by Me)

Mistakes Were Made (But Not by Me)

Carol Tavris and Elliot Aronson
Why We Justify Foolish Beliefs, Bad Decisions, and Hurtful Acts
4.3 (44 ratings)

What's Mistakes Were Made (But Not by Me) about?

Through studies and anecdotes, these blinks explain why, when we make mistakes, we often come up with self-justifications instead of admitting the mistakes to ourselves. It also shows how detrimental these self-justifications can be to personal relationships, medicinal care, the justice system and even international relations.

Who should read Mistakes Were Made (But Not by Me)?

  • Police officers, lawyers, judges, doctors, nurses, scientists and politicians
  • Anyone who wants to know why they don’t admit their own mistakes and how they can learn to admit them so as to reap the benefits
  • Anyone who wants to have healthier relationships, both romantic and otherwise

48
Illogical

Illogical

Emmanuel Acho
Saying Yes to a Life Without Limits
3.8 (220 ratings)

What's Illogical about?

Illogical (2022) is the story of how Emmanuel Acho, former pro football player turned media star, decided to take the illogical path to fulfill his potential and his dreams. Instead of following society’s rules, expectations, and constraints, he decided to break all of them –⁠ and in doing so, he became what he is today. And guess what? You can do the same.

Who should read Illogical?

  • Dreamers looking for advice on how to achieve their goals
  • People who want to change careers but feel nervous about taking the next step
  • Anyone feeling a little lost in life

49
Read the Face

Read the Face

Eric Standop with Elisa Petrini
Face Reading for Success in Your Career, Relationships, and Health
3.4 (181 ratings)

What's Read the Face about?

Read the Face (2021) is a beginner’s guide to the millennia-old art and science of physiognomy, or face reading. It provides a brief history of the practice, outlines techniques and methods, and includes insightful case studies.

Who should read Read the Face?

  • Anyone curious about physiognomy
  • People eager to understand themselves and others better
  • Couples interested in finding out about love compatibility

50
Honeybee Democracy

Honeybee Democracy

Thomas D. Seeley
A fascinating story of collective wisdom and effective decision-making
4.5 (54 ratings)

What's Honeybee Democracy about?

Honeybee Democracy (2010) traces the fascinating story of how bees decide where to build their new hive. Using highly evolved skills, like independent research and community debate, the bees’ deeply democratic decision-making process is a model we can all learn from. 

Who should read Honeybee Democracy?

  • Popular science enthusiasts with a fondness for insects
  • Politics buffs who want to learn about democratic systems
  • Anyone and everyone who thinks bees are cool

51
The Art of Choosing

The Art of Choosing

Sheena Iyengar
Tips for making better decisions.
4.1 (27 ratings)

What's The Art of Choosing about?

The Art of Choosing draws on the results of fascinating psychological experiments in order to offer you insight into how we make decisions. In this book, you’ll discover the common pitfalls that prevent us from making the right choices, and you’ll receive practical tips for making better decisions in the future.

Who should read The Art of Choosing?

  • Anyone who has ever become overwhelmed by the options on the supermarket shelf
  • Anyone who wants to make better choices in life
  • Anyone who sometimes feels mysteriously compelled to buy a product

52
Lessons from the Titans

Lessons from the Titans

Scott Davis
What Companies in the New Economy Can Learn from the Great Industrial Giants to Drive Sustainable Success
4.3 (42 ratings)

What's Lessons from the Titans about?

Lessons from the Titans (2020) tells the stories of ten industrial companies in the United States. From General Electric to Boeing, Honeywell to United Rentals, it looks at which strategic decisions led to success and which disastrous missteps created new obstacles. By analyzing the past performance of such legendary businesses, it offers greater insight into which companies today will stick around – and which won’t. 

Who should read Lessons from the Titans?

  • Business gurus fascinated by economic shifts
  • Entrepreneurs looking to future-proof their companies
  • Economists curious about market shifts

53
Everything is Obvious

Everything is Obvious

Duncan J. Watts
How Common Sense Fails Us
4.2 (16 ratings)

What's Everything is Obvious about?

Everything Is Obvious offers insights into the failures of the most commonly used method of explaining human behavior: common sense. By offering sound solutions to common sense reasoning, this book gives the reader the tools to better attempt to understand human behavior.

Who should read Everything is Obvious?

  • Anyone who wants a better approach to explaining or predicting human behavior
  • Anyone involved in policy making or business strategy

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