A few weeks ago I brought you the 5 worst non-fictional books I’ve read, so now it is time to get into those that I loved! Because I am fortunate enough to have A LOT of recommendations, I’m going to split it into two parts. Today I’m going to tell you about the non-fictional books I physically read. Next time it’s going to be those I listened to on Audible. Agreed? Here are the best non-fictional books in my collection – part 1!
Atomic Habits by James Clear
Atomic Habits by James Clear is a hot contender for actually being my favorite non-fictional book. At least when it comes to personal growth and development. The book teaches you how tiny (= atomic) changes in your daily routines can create a huge impact in the long run. For example: If you improve on something by just 1% every day, in a years time, you will have improved almost 37-fold. Isn’t that remarkable? Doing 1% better everyday isn’t hard, you won’t even be able to feel it. But then looking back a year, that’s when you’re going to see amazing improvements.
Clear also teaches his readers on how to start new (good) habits. His advice for people trying to get started on a fitness routine: Drive to the gym, get on the treadmill for 1 minute, then go back home. Each and every day, increase the duration on the treadmill by just 1 minute, until you have reached your goal. It sounds a bit crazy; why would you go trough all those troubles to get to the gym if you’re only going to be there for a couple of minutes?
To build the habit of going. If you have made the decision to start a workout routine, you’re probably eager and motivated to get to it. If you’re like most people, that motivation is going to fade quite quickly. By only going for a short amount of time, you’re making sure you’re not overdoing it, and exerting your motivation faster than is good for you. So start slow, but keep steadily increasing.
Obviously good habits do not only come in handy in a health and fitness sense. They can also help you keep your home neat and tidy or on top of your to do-list. Whatever the task may be, good habits are going to help you minimize your effort, while simultaneously maximizing the output. Win-win!
7 Habits Of Highly Effective People by Stephen R. Covey
Speaking of good habits and win-win: 7 Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen Covey is another one of the best non-fictional books I’ve read. Summed up, these 7 habits are:
- Be proactive
- Begin with the end in mind
- Put first things first
- Think win-win
- Seek first to understand, then to be understood
- Synergize
- Sharpen the saw
Each of these habits teaches you valuable lessons, without a doubt. Some of can be a little painful. Let’s take the first one – be proactive – as an example. What Covey means by that is that YOU are in charge of your life. In every sense of the way; your family and relationships, jobs, hopes and dreams. If you don’t put the work in, who is? He encourages you to think “What needs to be done?” rather than “There’s nothing I can do”. There’s always something you can do. It’s just not very pleasant sometimes.
My favorite out of all of the habits though was #4, Think win-win. I think this one is more important than ever in our super competitive society. Too many people have a Win-Lose mentality. But the truth is: There doesn’t have to be a “loser”, in order for there to be a “winner”. If you’re living or working together with somebody else, instead of doing it my way or the highway, find a solution that works for everybody. Sometimes, that solution might even be better than what you would have gotten originally. I think we should all work together much more, rather than against each other. We accomplish more that way.
Thinking, Fast And Slow by Daniel Kahneman
#3 on my list of the best non-fictional books is Thinking, Fast and Slow by Daniel Kahneman. The Nobel prize winning author teaches you in this book about the 2 systems ruling your brain: The impulsive, fast System 1, and the more considerate, slow System 2. Here’s an example:
A baseball bat and a ball cost $1.10. The bat costs $1 more than the ball. How much does the ball cost?
Don’t lie. Your immediate response was $0.10. That’s your system 1 “helping” you. Now take a step back, and think again. If the ball way $0.10, and the bat costs $1 more, your total would be $1.20. Now, activate your system 2, and try again. (The ball is $0.05.)
As we go through every day life, system 1 is active quite a lot of the time. And it is in fact very helpful for survival. If you had to think long and hard (system 2) before moving out of the way of a speeding car, you wouldn’t last very long. System 1 gets you running away within a matter of seconds. So there is a time and place for fast, impulsive thinking/behavior. But sometimes, you should think a little longer about doing things.
Another thing Kahneman talks about is loss aversion. Here are 2 scenarios he uses to explain it:
- You’re given $1,000. Then you have the choice between receiving another, fixed $500, or taking a 50% gamble to win another $1,000.
- You’re given $2,000. Then you have the choice between losing $500, fixed, or taking a gamble with a 50% chance of losing another $1,000.
Which choice would you make for each one?
If you’re like most people, you would happily go for the fixed $500 in the first scenario, but take the gamble in the second one. Because we, as humans, have a bigger fear of losing what we already have, than hope to gain more. Now I personally think it very much depends on the person and how much money they have (or don’t have), but maybe we just have to adjust the numbers accordingly. What these scenarios teach us, regardless of income, is to leave the emotions at home when we’re talking money. Instead, we should focus on the numbers, outcomes, and probabilities. My math teacher was right. I will need that stuff again…
The Little Book Of Hygge by Meik Wiking
Meik Wiking’s Little Book of Hygge is another one of the best non-fictional books in my collection. I picked this one up in Copenhagen last year, for one because it’s got a beautiful cover, but also because I wanted to learn more about the hygge way of life. Because believe it or not, the Danish people are the happiest in the world. The feeling of hygge will vary for everyone, but generally it can be described as utter coziness and comfort. This is going to look different for everyone, of course.
This book is going to help you unwind after a busy day at work, and remind you of the things that really matter in life: you, your relationships, and pastries. Danish people eat A LOT of them, much more than any other nation. I take that as evidence that pastries do in fact make you happy, case closed, thank you very much.
Spoon-Fed by Tim Spector
Last on the list of the best non-fictional books I’ve read is the one I finished most recently: Spoon-Fed by Tim Spector. I’ve already mentioned it in my January 2023 Favorites, but because it’s so good, I had to mention it here again. It’s another very strong contender for “best non-fictional book ever”.
In his book, Spector debunks all kinds of myths around healthy eating. Evidence-based. And what I absolutely LOVE about it is that is able to change his mind on things. For example, he used to recommend vitamin D3 or calcium supplements to his osteoporosis patients. But since there is evidence no longer supports the claim they should help, he stopped doing so, and even advises against it now. He definitely isn’t stuck on old beliefs.
Because the author specializes in research regarding the gut microbiome, you’re going to find a lot of information regarding that in this book. At one point it did annoy me a little bit, because there obviously is more to the body than it’s microbiome. But of course he’s right, more and more evidence suggests said microbiome is basically a whole organ and should be looked after accordingly.
I would recommend this book to literally everyone, because there is going to be a food myth in there you didn’t know wasn’t true. Promised.
Until next time
That’s a wrap – part 1 of the best non-fictional books in my collection! Stay tuned for part 2 soon 😉 And since I keep finding more and more amazing books, maybe there’s going to be a part 3 and 4 at some point. If you have any suggestions what I should read next, make sure to let me know!
Lots of Love,
Lena
Disclaimer: This post is not sponsored.
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