Fans pick 51 books like Tao Te Ching

I’ve read this book over and over and highlighted something new every time. Somehow, through the lens of Nazi death camps, Frankl validates everyone’s suffering, including my own. I’ve always known that suffering is an inescapable part of the human experience, but this helped me understand that to the brain, it isn’t relative in the ways I always thought.

Furthermore, this book helped me understand that my coping mechanisms inform suffering’s hold on me. Stories are a coping mechanism, and I learned that redirecting my attention and creating my personal narratives around what is meaningful to me rather than the source of pain is key to the cage of suffering. This book changed how I understand the importance of purpose and the power of what I build my stories around. 

Walter Isaacson’s biography is not just a mere recounting of the life of a Renaissance genius; it is an exploration into the mind of a man whose curiosity knew no bounds.

Isaacson details how that curiosity, combined with his ability to observe and question the world around him, led to groundbreaking insights and inventions.

This resonates deeply with my own pursuit of understanding human potential and performance.

This is the freshest account I’ve read by a leader of his company’s transformational journey: Ricardo Semler became CEO of his father’s company, SEMCO, at the age of 21, and wrote the book in his early thirties, not to forget the transformative journey he just led.

But even more than the narrative itself, I loved Semler’s philosophical reflections, densely packed throughout the book. Example: “We simply don’t believe our employees have an interest in coming in late and doing as little as possible. After all, the same people raise children and elect mayors and presidents. They are adults. In SEMCO, we treat them as adults.”

Semler, twice chosen as Brazil’s businessperson of the year, proves how a leader, driven by authentic beliefs, can lead a transformation that makes people and—consequently—the company thrive.

I have always found profound inspiration in the teachings of Carl Rogers, who I consider a philosophical mentor.

His principle of 'unconditional positive regard' resonates deeply with me, both personally and professionally. This concept emphasizes the importance of offering unwavering support and acceptance to another person, which I believe is crucial in discovering, revealing, and unlocking the beauty and potential that lies just beneath the surface of conscious awareness.

Bruce Lee was radical in every sense. He understood form and structure on an intimate level and then broke it apart to create his own discipline.

This book shows how Lee's journey was not just about martial arts; it was a deeper quest for self-expression, knowledge, and personal growth. His commitment to pushing against convention inspired me. He lived and understood the complete integration of mind, body, and spirit. 

This is the most impertinent yet constructive book on leadership I’ve ever read (and I've read many with one of these qualities, but none with both).

It’s written by the former CEO of AVIS, who led a radical transformation of its organizational culture, resulting in unmatched performance. First published in 1970, it quickly became the NY Times N°1 bestseller. Its commemorative 2007 edition is adorned with even more gems, including a nine-page segment that earns you a PhD in Leadership.

It starts with, “To hell with centralized strategic planning. If you don’t have a good leader, it’s all nothing; just a bunch of papers flying around.” Enjoy!

I love basketball and was thrilled that John Wooden, ESPN's best 20th-century coach, wrote on leadership. What intrigued me even more is that the book contains few basketball stories. Its theme is universal: How a leader builds a value-and vision-based organizational culture, resulting in perennial success.

Everyone knows that Wooden’s UCLA team won 10 NCAA championships in a span of 12 years, but I was surprised to learn that it took Wooden 15 years to transform UCLA and win the first title.

I admire Wooden’s key to leadership: “Success is peace of mind, which is a direct result of self-satisfaction in knowing you made the effort to become the best you are capable of becoming.” As a byproduct of this success, UCLA won 10 titles. Now, I understand why my team—the Knicks—is not getting there.

I instinctively resonate with Robert Greenleaf’s servant leadership philosophy, as do numerous business writers and, more importantly, leaders.

Greenleaf had a dream job at AT&T: read, think, and write about management. I admire how his book draws not only from management authors but also from philosophers, political thinkers, poets, and novelists. I fully agree with his diagnosis that organizations "have the resources to do so much better than the [current] mediocre level because so much leadership is poor." He also devised a solution to this challenge: leaders who serve others by tending to their needs and aspirations.

I appreciate Greenleaf's benevolence but also expectation towards those in charge. He observes that "many guilty people are walking around with an air of innocence" because they have not embraced servant leadership when they had the freedom to do so.

Tao de Ching is the basis of the Taoist belief system, which, unlike other spiritual text, is filled with not just profound, but practical advice for navigating this world in a way that benefits the self, others, and the world at large. 

Tao de Ching simply means ‘The Book of the Way’. The name of the sage to whom this book is attributed, Lao-tzu, could be translated to mean ‘the Old Master’.

I was so inspired by these writings that I wished to create a book about such a Master - based in the time of those great adepts like Confucius, the Buddha, and indeed Lao-Tzu - and weave these life-changing teachings throughout. 

Hence the idea for my own book was ignited.

I used to tune into the late great ancestor Dr. Wayne Dyer every Monday at 4 pm EST on Hay House Radio to recalibrate my mind. He often quoted, “The Tao that can be named is not the Tao,” from the Tao Te Ching by Lao Tzu, and that wisdom truly resonated with me. In "Change Your Thoughts, Change Your Life," Dr. Dyer dives into the Tao Te Ching and translates the ancient teachings into practical, everyday guidance.

This book transformed my mind by teaching me how to approach life with intention and grace. My favorite part is that Dr. Dyer’s words feel like having a powerful spiritual mentor by your side who helps you navigate self-doubt and embrace your highest self.