There are always certain points in our lives, where we are looking for answers. Answers about ourselves, answers about the future, about our potential, etc. This is the driving force everyone has in their lives to reach the point of self actualization. Most of the time, we’re unable to find an answer that satisfies our search for meaning. This is usually because we are looking at the wrong places.
To find deep, meaningful, and life changing answers, you need to be exposed to experiences that shake you from within. This is why, referring to books as a means to solace and solutions is the best thing you can do for yourself. Specifically, Self Actualization books. These books tend to have that ‘moving’ impact on us. Not only are they inspirational, but also motivational. They help you in imagining the pathway that your mind and heart wishes you to follow in order to reach greater and self satisfactory heights. These books tend to guide us towards the talents we have hidden within us and the potentials we could reach had they been explored. If you are also searching for answers or looking for a push towards Self Actualization, these are the 10 best self actualization books you can read to help you:
(Note: These books are listed in no particular order)
The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen R. Covey
This book is a great way to motivate yourself to search for the path towards success. In this book, the author emphasizes how the world is our own perception. We see the world in the way that we want it to be. If we wish to change that perception for the positive, there is nothing standing between us rather than our own way of imagining it.
If we want to bring about change in our life, we need to be able to change our outlook on life first. Everyone is looking for the path to success. But, in order to succeed, there are 7 habits that we must be able to identify and adopt. These habits will help us stay on the path towards success. The author also brings into accounts of various successful individuals and habits that they follow which have led them to the place they are today. By following in their footsteps, one can easily achieve the path towards self actualization.
The Power of Now by Eckhart Tolle
Reading this book is a great way to discover inner peace and to spiritually develop ourselves to find our true meaning. In this book, the author narrates his own account of pain and depression felt throughout his own life. He had suffered from anxiety for a long while and it eventually led him to suicidal depression.
The author wants us to take away from his experience of overcoming this pain and finding inner peace. This inner peace can lead us to discovering our true selves. To achieve goals, success and self actualization in our life, it is important for us to be present in the ‘now’ or the current time period, rather than focusing on irrelevant older thoughts. This book focuses on teaching us the ability to do so whilst providing great tips for mindfulness in life.
How to Win Friends and Influence People By Dale Carnegie
This book is generally regarded as a ‘life manual’ or a guide towards living life in the proper way. The main idea the author wishes to put forward in the book is that, the behavior of those whom you interact with can be changed, simply by changing your behavior in a certain way. The concept of leadership is a great focus in the book, which is a quality you will have if you are looking to reach self actualization. The book aims to guide you towards dealing with people and relationships in the correct manner whilst being inspirational, to lead a more successful life.
Think And Grow Rich By Napoleon Hill
The author of this book aims to link psychological thought with the path towards success. Great and convincing proofs are put forward in doing so. The author emphasizes that in order to be rich and successful, your mind and thought process is to be slightly changed towards the philosophical way the author suggests in order to attain self actualization and personal satisfaction. It is a great book to read if you are wondering how you can be successful just by changing the way you think.
Mastery: The Keys To Success And Long-term Fulfillment By George Leonard
This book is a highly relatable one for people who are looking for self actualization but haven’t been able to achieve it. The author emphasizes the importance of hard work and practice, just for the sake of being great at something. There is no short-cut towards success, as the author puts it. You need to work on various levels, for a while to understand their importance and master them, before you move on to the next. In this way, if you are on the path to self actualization, you are not far from it. Just continue on working on your current level with complete dedication and you will soon enough be rewarded for it.
The Subtle Art Of Not Giving A F*ck By Mark Manson
This book is aimed at those individuals who tend to get highly affected by the comments or judgements of other people on their lives. This is a great demotivating factor and usually takes us off the path towards our goal. The author therefore aims to teach individuals, through his life’s own account, of how these judgements should be ignored. Once you start ignoring these comments, you will be carefree and more motivated towards life and your work. This will lead you to being happier and satisfied with your life, to the point where you will eventually reach self actualization.
The Happiness Project By Gretchen Rubin
At times, the reason why we are unable to reach self actualization is because we are unsatisfied and unhappy with our lives. This is because of the high standards we have set in our lives for happiness. The author of this book wishes to document just this. She carried out a study of various ways happiness can be achieved without the need to sell your own kidney. Happiness is in the smaller things in life. If you begin to think in this way, you will be satisfied with what you have rather than sad over what you don’t have. This point will lead you to self actualization.
Unf*ck Yourself: Get Out Of Your Head And Into Your Life By Gary John Bishop
This book is a great reality check for those individuals who like to blame their life’s condition on to the most random things. The author aims to push us to accept reality in the way that it is. He wants us to step out of the imaginary bubble we have created and to be satisfied with what we have at present. The situation of your life cannot be changed unless you have a willingness to change it. A willingness for success and self actualization should be present within you if you wish to achieve it, as the book suggests.
12 Rules For Life: An Antidote To Chaos By Jordan B. Peterson
This book acts as a complete guide for your life. It covers aspects ranging from religion, spirituality, to science and philosophy. The author aims to compare and contrast the various ways to becoming a successful individual by incorporating 12 specific rules in our life.
The Six Pillars Of Self-Esteem By Nathaniel Branden
Self-esteem or belief in yourself is a fundamental need for every human being. However, this is the place where many of us tend to lack on. Our self-esteem tends to get deteriorated as we grow older in this cold world and face various incidents that change us. The author of this book therefore wishes to teach us how to live consciously and to accept ourselves, as a means to boost our self-esteem. There are six pillars which the author highlights as the basis of doing so. Without believing in yourself, success is not possible. Remember that, when on the path to success, you are usually walking alone.
Self actualization is that point in your life where you are completely satisfied with all that you have achieved. You feel that you have done everything you could, to be where you are today. It is the feeling of reaching your optimum potential after exploring your hidden talents thoroughly. That version and point in life and its meaning can differ from person to person, but even then, a human being might never feel satisfied with their life until they feel they have reached this point. To help you and inspire you towards this, various life-changing books can be read, such as the 10 best self actualization books listed about, that will pull you towards reaching your point of self actualization.
Remember, like a black swan that can transform your life, the fact that you haven’t seen it before, does not mean that it doesn’t exist.
