Whenever I look back, I see that there are several books that ‘changed’ my life. Well, naturally almost all things that I read or experienced ‘changed’ me to some extent. But I guess these books came to me when I was receptive to them, and so they made a greater impact than all the others. So, below are the three that has influenced my personal life and outlook in the past few years.
The first book is titled ‘The Power of Now’, by Eckhart Tolle. You probably see that it’s number one on my Amazon recommendations list – it was that influential in my life. I couldn’t remember how I came upon that book, but I’m so glad I did because I was at the lowest point in my life. At that time, some of the ideas presented were totally foreign to me, and I couldn’t make out the first chapters or so. Luckily, my mode of reading was always to read stuff that interest me the most. So if it’s chapter 12 that looks interesting, that’s what I’m going to read first. So although I skipped the ones that didn’t seem to mean anything to me, I could understand some other chapters, and they made total sense.
The title is kind of new agey, and rightfully so, and it is what it is. Either you’re into that sort of thing, or you’re not. If you are, though, I think he is one of the people out there who’s written about the abstract so clearly, and got his meaning across. The Power of Now introduces you to a concept of living in the Now , the present moment (no surprise, right?), and for me that was the hardest thing to do. At that time, I was either living in the past, or in the future, but never in the Now. Now was crappy, Now was painful, and so obviously I didn’t want to stay there for long. Strangely enough, when I did try to just accept the Now, and try to live with it, to accept it, things suddenly didn’t seem too bleak anymore. Slowly it improves, and before I knew it, Now didn’t suck so much anymore. Not long after that, Now became bearable, tolerable.
Then I came across another awesome book, and for this one, I knew that it was through of reviews in Amazon. I love to read Amazon’s reviews. One is because I can find out what’s good and bad about the book, and two is because the reviewers usually also recommended some other awesome book that is worth reading. ‘Working on Yourself Doesn’t Work’ by Ariel and Shya Kane came to me this way. At first the title totally baffled me, and I wasn’t sure I wanted to read it. I still had some problems in the air, and I thought I needed all the help I could get. That largely means: to read more self improvement books. Working of yourself doesn’t work was like an antithesis of self improvement. And in a way it certainly was. A very good way. If I had thought that I was doing better after The Power of Now, this book totally transitioned me over to the next step.
This book is sort of like the practical application of The Power of Now. With The Power of Now, it’s all such a big concept. The past, the future; so many things can be encompassed in those two times. With Kane’s book, it became totally practical and doable. It basically wiped out all my wishes and desires for wanting the Now to be different that what it was. For example, I no longer wished that my co worker be more this or that, my boss be more this and that, or more importantly, that my life be different than what it was. It reminds me to accept them for what they are and for how they are. Then, after that, I could see things more clearly. I was able to adapt and problem solve whatever problem I was having. This, dear readers, the acceptance of what is, cut so much crap from my life. I am forever grateful to the Kanes for this book.
Then came ‘Love 101‘ by Peter McWilliams. He was one awesome guy; you can see that clearly from his books. If you ever want to love yourself, then this is the one book to read. I, literally, was falling in love with myself, and it was such a wonderful feeling. His basic thing is that we should appreciate ourselves, love our own company, love our own being, and be totally okay with being on our own. I still remember that afternoon after work when I was walking from the carport to my apartment. I could feel the wind blowing, the sun shining through the pine trees, and the blue sky with its clouds, and for no reason at all, I felt so happy and excited to be with me. And then it hit me. I was in love with my self; I was infatuated with my self; I didn’t think anyone out there was good enough to ‘deserve’ me. Loving me was one of the most bizarre feelings I’ve ever experienced. Granted, the infatuation didn’t last long. No infatuation will. But I was left with the knowledge and realization of myself, and the deep sense of responsibility for taking care of me.
I’d say Peter’s book is a great read, especially since you can read it for free, from his website. His other book ‘Life 101′ was great too (also free), I can’t really remember what it was about specifically, but I just remember the feeling that it was a freakin’ awesome book when I read it for the first time (ha..).
Obviously my life is not all roses and jasmines. But I do find that when problems come, by just remembering what I’ve learned from those three books above, my problems decrease in intensity somewhat. So, although I’m kinda done with self improvement, I am forever grateful for the above books. Well, if I’m being nitpicky, those three aren’t about improving, but more about accepting. But whetever, these three books rock. If I ever have kids, I’d be making sure that they have access to these books when they’re starting to grow up…LOL
Happy reading!
You can read Love 101 and Life 101 online for free at Peter’s website here.
