Books That Changed My Life By Changing How I Think

Photo by Chris Lawton on Unsplash

These are not books that simply made me think. These are books that went a step further and changed how I think. They continue to have an impact on my life beyond the time I spent reading them.

The words “life-changing” seem a little too grand, even though it’s technically accurate. If a book has a lasting impact on me, no matter how small or large, I guess it has in some way changed my life. The more important note is these five books changed how I think and see the world.

Break the Wheel

Ironically enough this book is about questioning best practices (take a sneak peek at the third book I’ve listed below). But it also talks about intuition and doing what works for you, not what others have said works for them. 

Of the five books I’ve listed this is the one that has done the most to change my life. It’s led to me questioning what others claim to be “the right way,” or “the best way.” Honestly, it’s also led to me cringing every time someone in a meeting asks:

“Well, what’s the best practice for…”

I have no problem hearing and learning about what has worked for others. But I do have a problem with adhering to best practices without a second thought or any follow-up questions. Which is how I think most people operate when they bring up a best practice. I’m not above stealing a good idea, but it needs to be a good idea that makes sense.

Break the Wheel dives into self-reflection and leveraging your personal strengths. The greatest lasting impact of this book is questioning what others have declared a best practice. My new motto is, something’s a best practice until it gets labeled a best practice.

Born on a Blue Day

For someone who never took a psychology or sociology class, I’m incredibly interested in how people think and act. I have a lot of interests in general, but something that seems to cut across my interests, from politics to poker; is what are they thinking, and why are they thinking it.

The book Born on a Blue Day is written by someone who is classified as an autistic savant. Daniel Tammet has autism and can do high-level mathematics and other calculations at extraordinary speeds. He even goes deep into how his mind works, like associating numbers with specific shapes, colors, and textures.

Photo by Markus Spiske on Unsplash

Now how did this book change my life and the way I think? 

It taught me to try and not force people into thinking about something or looking at it the same way I do. Each person’s brain is different. No matter how hard I try to explain the way I look at something, does not mean they look at it that way or will even understand how to look at it that way.

This inadvertently gave me a lesson in persuasion. Just because I understand the argument this way, does not mean that’s how I should explain it to everyone else. I need to first see where they are approaching the issue, and from there figure out the best way to connect them to what I believe, or the outcome I’m working towards.

The Journal of Best Practices

I chose The Journal of Best Practices based on the recommendation of a co-worker. It’s a memoir of someone who has Asperger’s syndrome with an emphasis on navigating marriage and family life. Now, I’m not married, nor do I have a family of my own. But again it’s that interest in how other peoples’ brains work that drew me to this book.

I’m someone who shy's away from social settings and prefers living in my own mind. No, I could not completely understand what the author was going through, but I feel as if I could relate to a small degree. Plus, thinking about the wants and needs of others is something I can improve on.

The reason this book specifically changed how I think is because it opened my eyes to relationships. Relationships I had not yet experienced (marriage) but someday probably will. It also organizes each chapter into a life lesson. Things everyone can take a moment to reflect on.

Some notable chapters include:

• Get inside her girl world and look around.

• Just listen.

• When necessary, redefine perfection.

• Take notes.

Ethics in the Real World

Ethics in the Real World is a book I can’t recommend enough. It’s a collection of brief essays, each exploring a different ethical issue under these main topics:

• Animals

• Human Life

• Bioethics

• Sex and Gender

• Charity

• Happiness

• Politics

• Global Governance

• Science and Technology

• Living, Playing, Working

This is one of those books where there’s something for everyone. What I appreciate most is the author Peter Singer doesn’t include his opinion on every issue. Some he does, but others he simply states the two competing ideologies on the ethical issue.

This is how it changed the way I think. I became more dedicated to a) looking at both sides of an argument, and b) being ok with not having an opinion on everything. The latter is something that doesn’t seem all that common as I look around.

People love sharing their opinions on everything (which is not inherently bad), but it seems we’ve reached the point where you’re expected to have an opinion on every issue. I’m now more comfortable than ever saying, “I’m not sure, I haven’t looked into it enough to have an opinion.”

Photo by Javier Allegue Barros on Unsplash

What Money Can’t Buy

The final book on this list is another that talks about ethics, What Money Can’t Buy. But, it’s also about how to get the outcomes you want in relation to objective X, or goal Y. It’s not just should we do this, it’s, is this the best way to do it? 

This book taught me to question not just whether the method for achieving an outcome is ethical, but what are the unintended consequences of said method. 

Some of the more interesting topics the author dives into include:

• Should we pay kids to get good grades?

• What are the consequences of paying people to lose weight?

• The case against gifts.

• Life insurance and death pools.

• Seating at sports games.

• Paying people to stand in line for you.

On the surface, many of the topics seem rather plain and obvious to me. Who cares if the government pays someone to get healthier if it means they have fewer health problems in the future? What’s so wrong about having skyboxes at sporting events for those who can afford them?

I learned how deeply you need to look into something before you actually get a grasp of its unintended consequences. From there, we still have the question of whether or not the consequences are worth the outcome. Which depends on your own personal beliefs.

But, it really emphasizes the importance of questioning the most mundane things. This is where we can learn some truly amazing things.