Hello, book lovers!
It is the season of gifting and resolutions.
What better than creating a plan to level-up your game in the coming year by adding some mind-boggling self-help books?
Not a fan of the term “self-help”, podcaster and co-founder of Booknerds, Rohan Raj prefers to refer to these recommendations by him as “Books to Level-up!”
“Do consider reading these books which have helped me immensely in the past 2-3 years to level up my entrepreneurial journey and feel free share to your recommendations as well in the comments or reach out to me on social,” he says.
Here’s his go to list to up your productivity:
1.The Almanack of Naval Ravikant
The Almanack of Naval Ravikant is a gold mine if one wants to create more wealth, be happy or just in general learn more about life.
Naval Ravikant is an Indian-American entrepreneur and investor.
My favourite quote from the book is:
“I don’t actually read a lot of books. I pick up a lot of books and only get through a few, which form the foundation of my knowledge.”
― Naval Ravikant
2. Think Again: The Power of Knowing What You Don’t Know by Adam Grant
Think Again: The Power of Knowing What You Don’t Know explores the importance of being open to new ideas and being willing to change your mind. The book encourages us to think like scientists and not like politicians, preachers or prosecutors.
Scientific thinking is all about seeking new information which may or may not prove us wrong which is extremely important in contemporary times.
Adam Grant encourages us to look at topics with a sense of “how” rather than “why”.
My favourite quote from the book is:
“A mark of lifelong learners is recognizing that they can learn something from everyone they meet.”
― Adam M. Grant
3. Building a Second Brain: A Proven Method to Organize Your Digital Life and Unlock Your Creative Potential by Tiago Forte
Building a Second Brain takes the concept of note taking, organizing and increasing productivity to an all new level by introducing the concept of developing a “second brain” and not try to overburden our brain with information which we don’t really need to!
A must for people who want to be super-productive and pack a lot into their day.
My favourite quote from the book is:
“The greater the burden you place on your Biological Brain to give you everything you want and need, the more it will struggle under the weight of it all”.
-Tiago Forte
4. Hyperfocus by by Chris Bailey
This book focuses on knowing our biological primetime and accomplishing our most important and creative tasks at that time to increase productivity and effectiveness.
Read the book to know whether you are really a morning person or not!
My favourite quote from the book is:
“By removing every object of attention that’s potentially more stimulating and attractive than what you intend to do, you give your brain no choice but to work on that task.”
― Chris Bailey, Hyperfocus: How to Work Less to Achieve More
5. Rework by Jason Fried
Rework is a book which will shift your mindset towards building businesses. The common perception is that one needs a lot of resources and investment to build a business but on the contrary, if an entrepreneur concentrates on the basics like building a good product, maintaining a positive and stoic outlook it isn’t that difficult after all!
My favourite quote from the book is:
“If you want to do something, you’ve got to do it now. You can’t put it on a shelf and wait two months to get around to it. You can’t just say you’ll do it later. Later, you won’t be pumped up about it anymore. Inspiration is a magical thing, a productivity multiplier, a motivator. But it won’t wait for you. Inspiration is a now thing. If it grabs you, grab it right back and put it to work.”
Pick up any or all of these books from any Kunzum store or WhatsApp +91.8800200280 to order. Buy the book(s) and the coffee’s on us.
About the Author:
Rohan Raj
Podcaster and Co-founder, Booknerds | Linkedin
Rohan Raj is a bibliophile, podcaster and an entrepreneur. He has moderated more than 250 book sessions since the inception of Booknerds, a literary startup that he co-founded with his wife Neha Raj in October 2015 to revolutionise how book lovers read and engage with authors which is 25K strong now!
In the past eight years, he has hosted eminent authors like Namita Gokhale, Anand Neelakantan, Deepak Ramola, Vir Sanghvi, Devdutt Pattanaik, Mayank Shekhar, Alan Rosling, Easterine Kire, John Keay, Kevin Missal, Moin Mir, Samir Soni, Jugal Hansraj, Andy Griffiths, Kabir Bedi, Rashmi Bansal, Sudha Murty and many more on the Booknerds Podcast.
The Booknerds Podcast has reached out to more than 200,000 readers.
He has been featured in the Times of India, The Statesman, National Herald and many more newspapers. He has also coordinated and curated various book sessions for libraries, schools, colleges and lit fests. When not reading books or writing about books on LinkedIn, he spends time with his daughters.
Booknerds Book Club was awarded as the Best Reading Club of India at the Hyderabad Literature Festival – 2023.