Mark Hodder
Happiness and success through learning
Inspiring Books
These 10 books on motivation, change and the way our minds and bodies work that inspire me with stories of what is possible with video clips and links to the relevant websites if you don't have time to read them all.
Brain Rules
by John Medina
Sorry ladies but the truth is no one can multitask! An incredible factual manual for the brain, how get the most from your mind, live, learn and stay healthy. Presented with irresistible enthusiasm by a self proclaimed 'grumpy' scientist.
Best as an audio book, read by the author.
Drive
by Daniel Pink
The how to guide to get more Autonomy, Mastery and Purpose in your life - or how to increase the amount of flow you feel day to day. This book is full of proven ways to increase your 'Type I' or internal motivation and drive in life.
The video is an excellent summary.
Outliers
by Malcolm Gladwell
"Practice isn't the thing you do once you're good. It's the thing you do that makes you good."
Like the earlier Tipping Point, the stories in Outliers seem to become burned on your memory.
Bounce
by Matthew Syed
This book dispels the myth of talent and gives insight into how our access to opportunities and above all years of practice that counts in success. The reported research on the reasons for the many Kenyan marathon runners success is eye opening.
Made to Stick
by Chip and Dan Heath
Ideas that stick are:
Simple
Unexpected
Concrete
Credible
Emotional
a Story
Brain Rules for Baby
by John Medina
I can give no higher recommendation that to say the ideas in this book really work. We use them daily. Scientific reasoning brought to life for the rest of us. Written by a passionate father, for any parent who wants a smart and happy child.
The Upside of Irrationality
by Dan Ariely
Dan brings the concepts of behavioural economics to life. Economics tells us we are all rational beings, social economics tells how the world really behaves based on our behaviour. It's safe to say we are far more irrational than we might think, predictably so.
Thinking Fast and Slow
by Daniel Kahneman
More economics and this time a more serious look from the 2002 Nobel Prize winner. System 1 (fast thinking, intuition) and the mostly lazy System 2 (slow rational thinking) often work against our best interest and means we make irrational decisions. We often think 'what we see is all there is' when slowing down and thinking rationally would give us a much more true picture.
:59 Seconds
by Richard Wiseman
I could have chosen several of Richard's book but this one stands out most because in just less than a minute he tells us what works in the field of self-improvement and change. Another excellent research based book that tells us what really works in practice. Save many hours by reading this before you make changes in your life.
Switch
by Chip and Dan Heath
Using the metaphor of the rider (the mind), the elephant (the emotions) and the path (the change we want) Chip and Dan give us a way to direct the rider, motivate the elephant and tilt the path in our favour. If you like these metaphor also see the Happiness Hypothesis by Jonathan Haidt.