10 books like The Four Agreements

In apposition to the Levi book I listed first, Frankl becomes more of what he already is, which is a transformation of a completely different sort. The author’s professional life becomes magnified, his thought processes on suffering become exponential. The Holocaust experience affects him so much, so deeply, that he emerges with a new field of thought that shakes up the foundational thought on mental health that Freud had well established. One is not a slave to his own mind; one can attain mastery under any circumstances with certain shifts of reason. Resonant for all time, and certainly for our time.

This book, and a couple of seminars with Byron Katie, really did change my life! I was stuck in negative thinking and couldn’t seem to get out of it. She offers a straightforward method to challenge your thoughts and turn them around to other possibilities. It‘s almost magical how your hurtful beliefs can be changed into accepting “the way it is” without the hurt.

Get this book and get some relief from whatever is bothering you. Truly.

This book is a classic in the field of persuasion and influence and it is a must-read for anyone looking to improve their ability to influence customers in a business setting.

The book provides a comprehensive understanding of the psychological principles of persuasion and how they can be applied in a business context. It covers topics such as social proof, authority, scarcity, liking, consistency, and commitment. Each principle is explained in detail with practical applications that can be used in a business setting. The principles discussed in the book are based on decades of research and experiments, making it an authoritative source of information on the topic.

This book changed my life. I learned how to maximize my energy, so I perform at my best and enjoy my life. The book focuses on four kinds of energy: physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual. It is full of practical suggestions – my favorite is, “Life is not a marathon, it is a series of sprints.”  

I have known Richard Rumelt for decades and served for seven years with him on the faculty at UCLA. He is the deepest thinker about strategy I know. Dick took over 30 years to write his first book for practitioners rather than academics, but it was certainly worth the wait. He explains how a good strategy is a specific and coherent response to, and approach for, overcoming the obstacles to progress. A good strategy works by harnessing and applying power where it has the greatest effect. A bad strategy uses vague values, buzzwords, slogans, and unlikely goals. A good strategy has to be crafted and is not produced by adherence to some simple template. The book also puts the reader in the room with Rumelt in his interactions with top executives.

This book shares insights into why some strategies are far more effective than others. The authors explain the difference between a “red ocean” strategy and a “blue ocean” strategy. The book is filled with real-world examples of both strategies and the results they produced. I like this book because it is thought-provoking. It helps me think “outside the box”.

I was 28 years old and living in Seattle in 1971 when this "counterculture bible" was first published. Reading about meditation, dropping acid, and searching for my "true self," I decided it was time to take my spiritual journey seriously.  Discovering Eastern philosophy, the power of breath, ancient yoga techniques, and "being here now" resonated strongly. A psychologist told me of a near-death experience that he, Ram Dass, and four others experienced with a small plane's engine failure while flying to an island off the Washington State coast. The psychologist and others knew fear. Ram Dass began laughing long and loud! "Isn't this great?" he yelled. "What a way to go!" They didn't crash, thank God.  

In my own book, The Buddha in the Classroom, I tell the story of my fortuitous and life-changing first encounter with this book, while in my first year of college. Foreshadowing my career as a teacher of eastern philosophy, it lit the fire of my ongoing interest in Zen and had a profound impact on my personal journey into meditation. I sensed that the ironic title held some precious secret. I would discover, within its pages, the magic that happens when we learn to lean into the unknown, rather than fight against it. Indeed, the search for assuredness in life only seems to perpetuate the angst that is at the root of all the anxiety that characterizes the human condition... at least for many of us! Through letting go, we become more free.

This is part of an anthology of collected talks by the beloved Yogi, Paramahansa Yogananda, which also includes Man's Eternal Quest and Journey to Self-Realization. They are what I keep in my own nightstand and what I open during times of trouble. And this one is my favorite of the three.

Paramahansa Yogananda is direct and loving in tone. This is the kind of book that doesn’t need to be read at once—you can open up to any page and find solace for any plight. The theme revolves around the importance of dropping the self-sabotaging bad habits that keep us from true joy.

I work with groups and communities in studio environments where people worldwide encounter past baggage about their artistic expression or lack of it, all of which invariably arouses intimidation, fear, doubt, and resistance. This concise, 138-page text has been the go-to book in affirming universal and quality participation. Less experienced artists appreciate the value of beginning and veterans let go and begin anew. The goal for all is authentic expression, or as Suzuki-roshi says, “to express your true nature in the simplest, most adequate way and to appreciate it in the smallest existence.”