Over the last 15 years, I have read over 700 books. A significant percentage of these have been self-help and personal improvement books.
I am so incredibly grateful for the authors of these books because they have helped me become better. Also, each, in their own individual way, has influenced my thinking and writing as I have written my upcoming book: Becoming Better: The Groundbreaking Science of Personal Transformation.
I want to share with you my top recommendations for the best self-help books broken down in two different ways:
- By topic area (e.g., Mind, Body, & Brain Health; Self-Leadership)
- By where you are in your development journey
I have starter-level books for people who are new to that space, deep-level books for people who want to dig deeper, and deeper-level books for people who really want to sink their teeth in.
My Recommendations
Taking the Leap from Good to Awesome
Starter-Level:
- The Traveler’s Gift by Andy Andrews
- The Go-Giver by Bob Burg & John David Mann
Deep-Level: You Are a Badass by Jen Sincero
Deeper-Level: The Mountain is You by Brianna Wiest
Taking the Leap from Awesome to Amazing
Starter-Level:
- High Performance Habits by Brendon Burchard
- Be Your Future Self Now by Ben Hardy
Deep-Level: The Art of Possibility by Rosamund Stone Zander and Benjamin Zander
Deeper-Level: Daring Greatly by Brené Brown
Inspirational & Powerful Memoirs of Personal Transformation
Starter-Level: Man’s Search for Meaning by Viktor Frankl
Deep-Level: Can’t Hurt Me by David Goggins
Deeper-Level: The Choice by Edith Eger
Mind, Body & Brain Health
Starter-Level: 10% Happier by Dan Harris
Deep-Level: Outlive by Peter Attia
Deeper-Level:
- Breaking the Habit of Being Yourself by Dr. Joe Dispenza
- The End of Mental Illness by Daniel Amen
Healing Yourself
Starter-Level: The Gifts of Imperfection by Brené Brown
Deep-Level: What Happened to You? by Bruce Perry & Oprah Winfrey
Deeper-Level: The Body Keeps the Score by Bessel van der Kolk
Self-Leadership
Starter-Level:
- Atomic Habits by James Clear
- The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen R. Covey
Deep-Level:
- (Pardon the self plug): Success Mindsets by Ryan Gottfredson
- Positive Intelligence by Shirzad Chamine
Deeper-Level: Mindsight by Daniel Siegel
Self-Awakening
Starter-Level:
- Attached by Amir Levine
- How to Meet Yourself by Dr. Nicole LePera
Deep-Level: The Seven Primal Questions by Mike Foster
Deeper-Level: Loving What Is by Byron Katie
Your Turn
What self-help books do you feel should be included in this list? Put your recommendations below in the comments.
