I Recommend These Books

In my own Purposeful Growth journey I’ve read and re-read many, many books. I’ve gained something from nearly every book I’ve read, but some stand out as exceptional contributors to my personal growth. Perhaps they’ll be helpful to you, too.

Following are the best of the best (for me). The book cover pictured is a link to Amazon.com where you can read excerpts and reviews and purchase the book I recommend or others by the author. I receive a small (~4%) associate commission from Amazon if you purchase through a link on my site. Perhaps you’ll consider this your donation for value received.

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If you only buy one book to aid your Purposeful Growth, make it The Power of Now, by Eckhart Tolle. This is one of my favorite books. Tolle focuses on one concept; that life is now. Focusing on now allows one to avoid much of the complication and difficulty brought on by worry for the future or guilt about the past.

Tolle makes the point–a powerful one–that focusing your energy and attention on now will remove fear from your life. So much of our lives are fear-driven that this one concept alone is worth the cost of this book. Think of a life without fear. What if you could live without fear every day? You can read reviews and excerpts of The Power of Now by clicking the book cover link above.

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In Stillness Speaks, Tolle’s small book of short, but powerful pieces, he reinforces the power of a quiet mind. For example, “What will be left of all the fearing and wanting associated with your problematic life situation that every day takes up most of your attention? A dash–one or two inches long, between the date of birth and the date of death on your gravestone.” This book is deceptive in its size; it packs a wallop.

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My spiritual journey began with Conversations with God Book 1, by Neal Donald Walsch. This was the book that made God real for me; a loving and non-punitive God. Written in a conversational question and answer format, the book explores and answers many questions about life, death, and God. Some concepts may be shocking for those raised in fundamental religions, but for me this book’s description of the God/human relationship felt right. To read reviews and excerpts click the book cover link.

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Walsch has written many books since publication of Conversations with God. My favorite after his initial book is Friendship with God. Think of it, a friendship with God, isn’t that a novel thought? That God is not your judge, not your protector, not your father, but your friend.

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If you’ve always wanted to control your own destiny, create your own tomorrow, and bring your dreams to reality, you’ll want to read Ask and It Is Given, by Jerry and Esther Hicks. This is part of the Abraham series, and is a very powerful and easily understood manual for creating just the life you desire. If you’ve wondered about the Law of Attraction and how to make it work for you, this is the one book to read. Like Tolle’s The Power of Now, the Hicks book explores one theme and one theme only: we create our lives by our thoughts, actions, and emotions. Thinking positive (high frequency vibration) thoughts attracts events and circumstances of similar frequency–positive. Likewise, negative thinking (low frequency vibration) brings more of the same. Click the book cover link to Amazon for more information.

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“Once you learn how to die, you learn how to live,” Morrie Schwartz said to his former student, Mitch Albom. This is just one of the pearls of life captured in Tuesdays with Morrie, by Mitch Albom. Morrie contracts ALS, Lou Gehrig disease, and is dying. His former student, Albom, comes to visit each Tuesday and they talk about life and death and everyday things. Albom records these Tuesday conversations in a heartwarming and peaceful little book that features a courageous Morrie facing death full on.

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Dr. Wayne Dyer has many wonderful books, but my favorite is The Power of Intention. You may have seen Dyer on PBS, where he is a frequent guest; if not, watch for a future show and tune-in. The Power of Intention comes at the Law of Attraction from a broader perspective and is well worth the reinforcement of a second view of Attraction.

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If you want to introduce your children to spiritual principles without the baggage of religious doctrine, there are two books I recommend:

Sara and the Foreverness of Friends of a Feather teaches the Law of Attraction through a story about Sara and her friend, Solomon the owl. Don’t be surprised if you find you enjoy this story, too.

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The second book I recommend for children is The Little Soul and the Sun, by Neale Donald Walsch. This book describes the little soul who decides to return to human form to continue its infinite cycle alternating between human life experience and spiritual soul existence. Beautifully told, this story suggests that our human-experience adversaries and advocates are all “soul volunteers,” signed up before birth to provide our life experiences.

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A recommendation for parents of small children; please read Unconditional Parenting, by Alfie Kohn. Kohn, a psychologist by training and practice, is also a parent. Unlike other books on childcare, most of which are based on personal experience and anecdotal reference, Kohn’s book displays his scientific training; his theories and conclusions cite relevant research studies. What is unconditional parenting? It is unconditional love, applied with special care under the trying circumstances of raising children. Read a full review>>

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A basic goal and drive for all humans is happiness. But what is it and how do we achieve it? Authentic Happiness, by Dr. Martin Seligman combines sound research results with tips and hints to help individucals attain greater happiness. Dr. Seligman, a professor of psychology at the University of Pennsylvania, is the former president of the American Psychological Association and a leader in the new positive psychology movement. In Authentic Happiness, Seligman tells us that we can increase our level of happiness by simple daily exercises of gratitude and kindness. His web site has a brief happiness self-assessment as well as many other free assessments that are of value in self understanding. I recommend Authentic Happiness to anyone serious about purposeful growth.

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A Whole New Mind, by Dan Pink will give you a fascinating look at the success requirements for the future. If you’re serious about purposeful growth and personal development, you’ll want to read Pink’s latest book. Pink makes a compelling argument that success in the future will depend more on right-brain creativity than left-brain logic. That’s a 180 degree reversal from what it takes to succeed today. Doctors, lawyers, scientists, accountants, and business leaders are all predominately left-brain oriented.

In the future, Pink argues, successful people in Western cultures will be big picture thinkers, visualizers, story-tellers, and visionaries.