Books Completed 2022 (Reverse Chronological Order)
(I started a new book list for 2022 since the old list with books from '20-'21 was getting a bit laggy.)
* - A book I really enjoyed
* + Orange Text - Favorite that I will reread
16. Strangers to Ourselves: Discovering the Adaptive Unconscious by Timothy D. Wilson
Motivation for Reading:
This book I believe was recommended on TIP's We Study Billionaires quite a few episodes ago and has been on my list for a while.
Takeaways:
This book took me quite some time to get through because I continuously got distracted by other things and kept opting to listen to new podcast episodes or listen to music instead, but I am glad that I finally finished getting through it. It touched on a lot of the same concepts that I have encountered in other books and in the class that I took in the fall, but these types of concepts are helpful to be repeated over and over again because they are so impactful yet at the same time are very easy to forget about. I am still very interested in psychology and how our minds work as I feel it helps to inform my world view and helps to frame just about everything else that I am learning about. Being aware of these various psychological principles has helped me to deal with emotions and recognize my reactions and instincts in various situations so that I become less adherent to my impulses which I believe is something we all strive for.
15. The Inner Game of Tennis: The Classic Guide to the Mental Side of Peak Performance by Timothy Gallwey
Motivation for Reading:
This book was mentioned as one of Tom Brady's favorite books or something to that end on a podcast I think I listened to at some point. I could be totally making this up because I do not remember the exact origins but that is how I came to read this book.
Takeaways:
I enjoyed this book and I think a part of the reason why is because I enjoy playing tennis and have only really recently gotten into it, recently as in the past two years or so. As with anything there is way more nuance to something the more you learn about it. A quote I like is "as the island of knowledge grows so do the shores of ignorance." I have found that it is easy from the outside of any domain to oversimplify things because you simply are unaware of all of the complexities of various things. This was the case for me with tennis. Since I am a novice player and never had instruction I never have even thought about most of the lessons that were covered in this book. Beyond tennis and even sports in general, there are lessons for how to go about your daily life as in all things it is important to sometimes let your instincts take over as getting in your own head and overthinking. This was the primary message of the book and it meshed well with a lot of the philosophical and psychological principles that I have encountered elsewhere.
14. Meditations by Marcus Aurelius
Motivation for Reading:
This was actually my first reread since I started this reading journey about two years ago, so I was not really sure whether or not to include it.
Takeaways:
I started rereading this book on my trip to Italy which seemed fitting as we were seeing a lot of ancient art and architecture reminiscent of the time period which was pretty cool. As with all of my second read throughs of books, I would prefer to go through more slowly with a physical copy and highlight, underline, or take notes as I go so that I can distill the book to its main messages and engage with the material more deeply. This was pretty easy with Meditations as it consists of a series of short quotations some of which are more meaningful than others. It is harder to take notes on a book like this, but I do so already with my consumption of the various forms of the Daily Stoic which includes daily podcast clips, book passages, and journal entries. It is still very cool that a lot of the lessons taught and struggles that Marcus deals with 2000 years ago can be applicable today.
13. Richer Wiser Happier by William Green
Motivation for Reading:
I had heard William Green come on a few podcast episodes and thought that the concept of the book seemed very interesting.
Takeaways:
I thought this book was super helpful in getting some perspective in life especially as I am going to be entering the job market for the first time and am starting to think about money and long-term wealth and happiness. Green helps to distill the wisdom of different investors across time and asset classes with different strategies and shows how they became so successful in their craft and the philosophical lessons that they learned along the way. I think that it is amazing that information like this from the highest achievers in arguably the most competitive industry in the world is so readily available and can be put into a format where anyone can gain value even without investing knowledge. Even though I have heard some of the lessons already, they are all so beneficial that the more I hear them the more they can stick and become a part of my daily life.
12. The Book of Satoshi by Phil Champagne
Motivation for Reading:
This book was recommended on a podcast that I listen to (TIP's We Study Billionaires), and I am always interested in learning more about Bitcoin.
Takeaways:
I started reading this in the middle of a bear market in order to gain some more confidence and learn more about Bitcoin because I see its value as an asset and have found myself believing in the long-term vision. Whenever the price takes a dive and you see a lot of FUD everywhere it is easy to lose sight of what drew you in, so this book was helpful because I have not had much exposure to Satoshi except through the white paper and some of the stories surrounding Bitcoin's origins. I thought it was really interesting and helpful to hear all of the writings of Satoshi especially chronologically because you can see how Bitcoin got from where it started to where it is today. It definitely seems like an improbable story given all of the ups and downs along the way, but now that it is so established across various institutions in the world today I do not see it going anywhere which means these writings are all the more interesting.
11. The Score Takes Care of Itself by Bill Walsh
Motivation for Reading:
This book was recommended to me by a Princeton Football alum.
Takeaways:
I was actually surprised at how much I enjoyed this book. It was divided up in a way that was very easily digestible and the lessons and examples that were given were very clear and actionable. I did not really know anything about Bill Walsh going into this book, but I have definitely taken a lot of wisdom away from the lessons that he has left. A lot of the time as an athlete you are told that the skills you learn will be applicable in other areas of your life, but it is often hard to see or believe that, especially as I have not had any significant work experience. This book did a really great job at showing the various ways in which Bill Walsh was able to draw from different disciplines to have great success in a leadership role and permanently leave his mark on the game of football and leadership more broadly.
10. How to Change Your Mind by Michael Pollan
Motivation for Reading:
This was a popular book on my library app.
Takeaways:
I did not know much about this book going in, but upon reading the description and praise I thought it would be a worthwhile read. I do not know much about psychedelics, but I have been pretty interested in the brain and how it works due to the Huberman Lab podcast. We are now living through the legalization and acceptance of a lot of different drugs that were previously anathema in the public sphere. I was interested in learning about the history of these various chemicals and seeing how they affect different people differently. I have learned about how drug laws in America have changed over time through various sources, and it is amazing to see just how many people's lives have been ruined or seriously affected by policies that do not necessarily have a medical basis. I really enjoyed this book and think that anyone even remotely interested in psychedelics and their history would gain a tremendous amount of knowledge from reading it.
9. Greenlights by Matthew McConaughey
Motivation for Reading:
This book is really popular so I figured I would check it out while I was in the memoir mood from my last book.
Takeaways:
There were a lot of surprisingly good lessons to be learned from this book and cool takeaways, not least of which was getting some insight into the life story of McConaughey which was incredibly interesting. I think that anyone who is at the top of their industry, regardless of what industry it actually is, will always have lessons that can be applied to just about anyone's situation. This was definitely the case with this book. A story like this serves to humanize someone who seems to be larger than life, and it is nice to learn that everyone in every type of situation tends to wrestle with the same problems and has the same emotions. I enjoyed this book much more than I thought I would going in, and think it offered some insight into McConaughey's life story which was certainly entertaining.
8. *When Breath Becomes Air by Paul Kalanithi
Motivation for Reading:
This book was recommended by a guest on a podcast, I think it was a guest on the Huberman Lab podcast but I am not positive.
Takeaways:
I was not sure what to expect when I started this book given the topic, but I was pretty blown away. It covered a lot of deep topics and wrestled with our mortality from someone who is going through an extremely tough battle with cancer. You can tell just how well-read and thoughtful Paul was during his life as this book reads like a poem. He truly has a way with words and I definitely related to him trying to figure out what makes life worth living. In a different way, as I am trying to decide what job I want after graduation, I am starting to think about a lot of the same things. Even though I am young, I have to think about what my goals are and what is important to me, because that will shape my decisions over the next couple of years. Kalanithi is asking himself these questions as he knows he is dying at a young age which makes his answers all the more profound. This book is definitely unforgettable and I will be sure to give this one another read in the future.
7. *Bad Blood: Secrets and Lies in a Silicon Valley Startup by John Carreyrou
Motivation for Reading:
I had read about Theranos as a case study in my Entrepreneurship class and it has been on the news a lot lately so I thought it could be interesting to learn more.
Takeaways:
I was really glad that I decided to read this book even though I had already had some knowledge of the case. This book went into a lot of detail about the background and all parties involved and really showed how crazy the whole situation was. Often these stories of different events in history can be dramatized, and I feel like in some of the books that I have read you get that sense, but this one is different. For example, the Ben Mezrich books really seem like they are made to be streamlined into a film, but this was more realistic because Carreyrou actually was behind breaking this story in a major way. I think that anyone who is interested in getting a better idea of what happened behind the scenes of this wild tale would really enjoy this book because it was so well done.
6. *The Like Switch: An Ex-FBI Agent's Guide to Influencing, Attracting, and Winning People Over by Jack Schafer and Marvin Karlins
Motivation for Reading:
This book was recommended on a podcast I listen to (TIP's We Study Billionaires).
Takeaways:
With all books that discuss body language or human interaction, you sort of get the feeling while reading it that you are an alien or a robot trying to decipher how humans behave with one another. That being said, I thought this book was incredibly interesting and definitely warrants an additional closer read. I am pretty fascinated with the various reasons behind subconscious body language, and it always makes you more conscious of how you are presenting yourself to others. Additionally, you start to notice different behaviors in others that may or may not be signaling certain feelings. With slightly limited social interactions on campus, and nearly two years of COVID isolation while reading a lot of books, you could imagine that my social life has not been very active. The lack of having multiple in-person conversations daily where you can see people's expressions and read body language has definitely had an impact on how I interact with others, and I look forward to the days when we will once again be able to go out and talk to real people instead of a screen and hopefully put some of the tools in this book to use.
5. Lean In: Women, Work, and the Will to Lead by Sheryl Sandberg
Motivation for Reading:
This is a very popular book and I have previously read Option B which is also by Sandberg.
Takeaways:
I was not sure what to expect out of this one, but I was actually very pleasantly surprised. Inequality, in general, can be a hard topic to address in a way that is digestible for a wide audience, and I felt Sandberg did a pretty good job at covering a lot of the reasons behind gender disparities and how both men and women contribute to these differences. It is definitely easy to play the "us vs. them" game in a situation like this, but in my opinion, that seldom accomplishes the goal. Recognizing how everyone contributes to these greater societal roles is the first step in trying to do something about it. I also see that it can come off as elitist or almost "victim-blaming" to say that women can unintentionally hold themselves back from their careers, but with a lot of inequality that exists, I think a positive attitude is a way to persist even while the odds are against you. By adopting an attitude that you will succeed despite societal norms instead of feeling like it is hopeless, you at least can give yourself a chance to break these barriers instead of throwing in the towel from the beginning. Obviously, a positive attitude can only get you so far and real systemic change needs to happen, but until it does, slowly but surely women and other groups who are held back in some form or another can adopt these strategies to succeed in spite of the obstacles before them.
4. *Superforecasting: The Art and Science of Prediction by Philip E. Tetlock and Dan Gardner
Motivation for Reading:
This book has been brought up in a lot of the books that I have read as well as being discussed on podcasts and in other media.
Takeaways:
This book covered a wide array of topics in the realm of predictions under uncertainty and provided an extremely helpful roadmap for how to navigate various situations with unknown outcomes. This was definitely one of those books that dives into the area of "thinking about thinking" and I can see why this book has seen so much success. I almost feel bad that I read this book so late in my reading journey since I have previously seen a lot of the concepts covered, and as such, they were less novel to me. This book actually referenced 4-5 other books that you could find on the lists from these past two years. I am definitely glad to finally read the source material that is so often quoted and referenced, and I think that this book would provide a lot of value to anyone interested in improving their prediction and problem-solving capabilities. This book was extremely digestible and accessible to just about anyone, even those without prerequisite knowledge of the psychology of decision-making and judgment, and as such, I would definitely recommend it.
3. Noise: A Flaw in Human Judgment by Daniel Kahneman, Olivier Sibony, & Cass R. Sunstein
Motivation for Reading:
I have read Thinking Fast and Slow and Nudge, and felt that there was more to be learned in the realm of judgment from these experts.
Takeaways:
I thought this book offered a lot of new insights into the concept of judgment and decision-making under uncertainty than I have had exposure to previously. I have now read several books and taken a course in which we read many different studies on the errors in decision-making and judgment that arise from various biases, but the concept of noise is usually not at the forefront of this discussion. This book, if it was not obvious, makes noise a point of emphasis in that it is present across fields and decisions and leads to many preventable or at least reducible errors. I think that as a society we are increasingly becoming aware of how various biases impact judgments and decisions, but the concept of noise can easily fall by the wayside. The authors of this book make a good case for why we should care about noise and some specific steps we can take across different domains in order to reduce its detrimental effects.
2. The Power of Broke: How Empty Pockets, a Tight Budget, and a Hunger for Success Can Become Your Greatest Competitive Advantage by Daymond John
Motivation for Reading:
This book was recommended on a podcast I listen to (TIP's We Study Billionaires).
Takeaways:
This was also a book that I had put off reading for some time, but I figured I would read it after the Market Wizards book so as to stay in the realm of finance/business. I thought that this book and the stories presented therein were incredibly interesting. I definitely drew some parallels between the "power of broke mindset" and other methodologies such as that of the lean startup. Additionally, it reminded me of the lesson from The Art of War to not attack enemies who have their backs against the wall. By harnessing the drive necessary to achieve success John finds that being broke does not have to be a hindrance to progress, but could actually be an asset. Similar to how you would be desperate when backed against the wall, when you have no other choice to succeed, you will think more creatively, use resources efficiently, and maximize results with limited inputs and no safety nets. I also felt that this was a good introduction to John as a person as I really did not know much beyond what is presented on Shark Tank and what was mentioned on the TIP episode. Overall I thought this was a helpful book.
1. Hedge Fund Market Wizards: How Winning Traders Win by Jack D. Schwager
Motivation for Reading:
This book was recommended on a podcast I listen to (TIP's We Study Billionaires).
Takeaways:
This was one that I was putting off for a while but decided that it was time as I was starting off a new year. It turned out that that was almost a bad decision as this is one of the longer books in my lineup and this almost caused me to stop reading it after a few chapters. I have heard the praises of the Market Wizards series sung from different podcasts, investors, and colleagues, but never got around to reading any. I am glad that I did. A lot of the podcasts that I listen to are interviews with various successful people, especially TIP which interviews successful investors often. This book was a collection of various successful hedge fund managers, some of whom I had heard of, and how their strategies consistently beat the markets. I think it is very interesting to see the various philosophies and methods used by the different investors and the many lessons that can be taken from some of the most monetarily successful individuals of our time.