self discipline Book Summaries

The War of Art explains how you can do more creative work and overcome your procrastination, distraction, and paralysis. Steven Pressfield says inside all of us is Resistance, a tricky enemy that sabotages our dreams, and it is the source of our fears, doubts, excuses, and poor habits.

Can't Hurt Me is a guide to building mental toughness, and it's also the motivational life story of David Goggins. When he was young David survived abuse and racism, but later he transformed himself into a Navy SEAL, ultramarathon runner, and world record holder.

Grit says being a top achiever is less about natural talent and more about your "grit," which means working consistently and staying interested in one direction for multiple years. Angela Duckworth shares research on how we can become grittier, and help others do so too.

Deep Work is about focusing deeply so you can thrive in your professional career. Cal Newport says reducing distractions and increasing our ability to concentrate will allow us to learn new skills faster and produce higher quality work.

Atomic Habits is a guide to building good habits and breaking bad ones. James Clear says all our habits follow a 4-Step Habit Loop which includes: cue, craving, response and reward. He explains practical techniques to "hack" each step so we can achieve lasting personal change.

How to Fail at Almost Everything and Still Win Big is about the hilarious wisdom and many business failures of Scott Adams, creator of Dilbert. He shares pragmatic strategies for increasing our odds of success—by using systems over goals, building a talent stack and repeating (mysteriously powerful) affirmations.

Meditations shows how to become more self disciplined, stop caring what people think, and withstand life's emotional storms. Marcus Aurelius was a powerful Roman emperor and great Stoic philosopher. He wrote down all these thoughts in a private journal to himself.

Total Recall is a dream immigrant success story, but Arnold shares his many mistakes and flaws, too. People said he couldn't succeed because he had a strong accent and no money or connections. But by the end, you'll believe someone with a plan and determination can succeed in almost anything.