10 Best Personal Development Books

I read this in college and it did more than improve my romantic relationships; it changed how I viewed all my relationships. It explained the dynamic between my mother and I (Acts of Service vs Words of Affirmation), why I chose men who said all the right things but didn't follow through, why my dad and I understood each other even when we were pissed at each other, and why I thought my sister was shallow and materialistic (Gifts). This book has had a greater impact on my life than any other. I also took the "5 Love Languages in the Workplace" survey with some of my team members and found it equally insightful.

Maybe the most popular finance book of our generation. I consider this book a "paradigm shifter". Some books give you new information that changes how you see the world, but this book gives you a whole new set of eyewear. It redefines assets vs. liabilities and introduces the Cashflow Quadrant, all at a 5th grade reading level. It demystifies a lot of what makes finance scary and for a short book that took me maybe 4 hours to read, it has had a life changing effect on the way I look at finance.

This book is the epitome of people-skill development. Every time I re-read it I'm like "man, I still have so much to learn...so many areas in which to improve". Just one single chapter title "Don't criticize, condemn, or complain" has become a mantra that positively impacted my relationships at home and in the workplace. Being a hyper-critical perfectionist, this one chapter has had more impact on my ability to succeed in the workplace than anything else I've ever read.

If you want to improve your thinking, this book is the one to start with. The most popular chapter is the one that helps to overcome "excusitis - the failure disease". I come back to this one all the time. Highly recommend this book to help you get your thinking right.

While this book may not immediately transform everything in your life the way that it and the movie claim, it will explain the Law of Attraction in a way that makes it easy to understand and create a starting point for implementation. I constantly tell myself "what you want wants you" and that phrase alone has helped me to acquire friendships, romantic relationships, and career opportunities. It's not everything, but it is a vital starting point.

Like Rich Dad Poor Dad, this one was a paradigm shifter for me and I think these two books complement each other. Tim Ferriss is so good at staying focused on living life and not just acquiring money for money's sake. He also places more value on time than money and I think that is a great reminder for those of us who have big financial goals to remind ourselves what exactly is it that we are working for. I love listening to this audiobook. Tim's books The 4-Hour Body and The 4-Hour Chef are also excellent.

It's been a little while since I've read this one, which means that it is back at the top of my list to re-read. This book has been read, quoted, and shared by some of the top motivational speakers and authors. It is very quotable and inspirational. I consider it to be one of the books that changed my life by changing my thinking and has helped me to have the success I currently enjoy.

Zig Ziglar is one of my favorite authors because he is so focused on how we help each other. I am constantly quoting "You can have everything in life you want if you just help enough other people get what they want". He also promotes confidence through public speaking and reading this book was one of the final reasons I decided to join Toastmasters 8 years ago. I haven't read many of his other books, so I can't say if this is his best one, but it is definitely a great one.

I only wish that I had read this book by Dr. Townsend earlier in life. Because of the situation in which I grew up, I was not taught good boundaries. I spent many years of my life as a victim because I was not empowered to ask for and get what I wanted. This book was the catalyst for many of the most positive changes that I have made in my life in recent years. I am happier and have better relationships with the people I choose to allow into it because of this book.

I like this one because it uses data to tell real stories about true millionaires. It also focuses on financial defense where so many others focus just on financial offense (the acquisition of money). For me it was eye-opening to see that so many of my conceptions about wealth were not only inaccurate, but opposite of what is actually true. I also like that, being a Texan, they referred to our Texas saying "big hat, no cattle". If I had to sum up what this book taught me, it is just that. So many people have the appearance of wealth, but have not actually created the legacy that their image attempts to propose.