100 books like The Wisdom of the Enneagram

I was already familiar with two of the four agreements: “doing my best” and “keeping my word” but the idea of “never making assumptions,” and “not taking anything personally” were mind-blowing and they were a big gift to my nervous system. 

I now understand that no one is waking up in the morning plotting ways to make me miserable and if I am miserable it is often because I took something personally or made a wrong assumption!

Everyone has a story to tell, and most peoples’ stories contain some kind of heartache, loss, or moment when life smacked them in the face and left them reeling.

This is a book about what it takes to get back up and how to do it in style. 

I loved how this book struck the balance between the frailty of humanity and the inner knowing that you can transform your life and make it work for you. 

If you want to learn how to turn your life’s lemons into lemonade, grab and copy and dive in. You will be immersed in a world of gorgeous characters, beautiful settings, and snippets of wisdom you’ll want to return to again and again.

Early in my career, I came into conflict with a prickly character who was known to bully his adversaries. Colleagues had told me tales of angry rants and threatened lawsuits, and eventually, there came a time when I found myself in the crosshairs. I was young, inexperienced, and scared, and I was dealing with an older person who had plenty of tricks. So I started casting around for resources that would help me up my negotiation game. I stumbled onto Power Plays, by Robert Mayer, a famous LA-based lawyer who had represented and negotiated for clients ranging from famous actors, to major corporations, to foreign governments. It changed my life.

One of the best-known business books of our time is Good To Great by Jim Collins. The book has sold millions of copies and is quoted in classrooms and workplaces all over the world all the time. But far fewer people know about Collin’s Good To Great and the Social Sector. It’s a critical work by one of the great business minds about the profound differences between for-profit and non-profit worlds. Every board member needs a copy.

Vivek Murthy has been Surgeon General of the United States in both the Obama and Biden administrations. Together is a book about the health crisis of loneliness facing America. When you go deep as the leader of an arts organization, no matter what your organization does, I think you’ll realize that what you do has the potential to address this crisis in powerful ways.

In The Infinite Game, Simon takes us to the root of why businesses make short-term choices versus long-term choices. 

He really peels back the distractions as he challenges leaders to choose the infinite game. Laying out the benefits both short-term and long-term for the infinite game, he passionately advocates for people before growth, people before profitability. 

He states growth is not a just cause! I could not agree more, and he supports his advocacy with examples. There is no finish line and Simon draws such a vivid picture of this. 

He correctly points out that a strong sense of belonging leads to high performance, higher standards, and a path towards full potential. A must read on business culture. 

I can’t overstate how much I learned from this book. I used to avoid anger at all costs. I was suffering from “nice lady syndrome.” Now I have come to see anger as a terrific little alarm system, letting me know a boundary of mine has been crossed. Like all emotions, as well as being temporary and tolerable it is a guide. I can listen to it and learn from it. I recommend The Dance of Anger to clients who experience discomfort with anger in general, marital problems, stressful in-law situations… the list goes on. If anger has been a trigger for your addiction, or you wonder how to deal with anger in recovery, this book is for you. 

So many women in recovery from addiction have also experienced disordered eating. The food behaviors might exist alongside your other addiction, be your primary concern, or emerge in recovery as a new attempt to cope with the feelings that are left behind. Geneen Roth is, in my opinion, the guru of emotional eating recovery. All of her many books are worth exploring, but I chose this one because of its deeply spiritual message. While she doesn’t use the word “mindfulness” explicitly, Roth encourages a mindful relationship with food and with your body: “Because when you evoke curiosity and openness with a lack of judgment, you align yourself with beauty and delight and love—for their own sake” (p. 106).

The female psyche presented in essays written by a plethora of excellent writers.

In addition to psychology, it also explores feminine spirituality, a favourite subject of contributory authors such as Jean Shinoda-Bolen and Sylvia Brinton Perera.

First published in 1990, this collection is truly insightful into ‘the birth of the conscious feminine.’ In places it describes very personal experiences.

I found it a book of healing, hence why I recommended it to some of my counselling clients. Being separate essays, if there is a particular writing style you do not like, it is simple to move on.

All the writers gave me something to contemplate and learn from. It is an incredibly nourishing read.

For many years the Science and Nonduality (SANDs) conferences have been bringing together scientists and mystics to discuss where science and spirituality meet.

This beautifully arranged collection of essays and insights highlight SANDs topics on the convergence of spirituality and science, weaving scientific theory and spiritual wisdom from some of the most influential thinkers of our time, with pieces that get straight to the heart of the matter. This volume offers timeless wisdom and new insight into humanity’s age-old questions that encourage our spirit and challenge our mind.