The 8 Essential Books for A Life of Independence and Purpose

EVERY MOVE YOU MAKE is for the Purpose of Living a SUCCESSFUL LIFE.

Successful life means a few things:

• Every day you love what you do, even though it's not always easy.
• Every day you make progress toward more of what you love to do.
• Every day this progress maintains you and those you care about.
• This maintenance fulfills your basic needs.
• Your basic needs are met and therefore you are equipped for life in a healthy way.
• Because you are well equipped, you're focused on having rich experiences rather than on survival.
• You are capable of showing others, by your example, that it's possible to live life that way.

The most daunting part of successful living is the beginning.

The hardest part of creating the success you desire to have is the part after you realize its value. Where do I start?

This is the problem with anything you want to achieve in life. There is a pile of steps in front of you, and you don't even know where to begin stepping.

I have compiled a list of books for you to read to eliminate that confusion. After reading these, you will have a road map to your own personal life of independence and fulfillment.

You will be able to answer questions like:

• What is it that really matters to me and how do I get more of that in my life
• How can I eliminate things in my life I would rather not have in favor of what I would?
• Everyone is talking about "designing their life." So how do I go about that practically without making rash decisions?
• Where can I find information from experts to understand the value topics like this?

No matter where you want to go, you need a map to get there. This list is THE MAP! I am so serious about this that I even put them in order for you.

'The Alchemist' by Paul Coelho

This book was pivotal, for me, in understanding what Life's Purpose means. It dispells misconceptions/concerns that most of us have in relation to it.

It explains how destiny, determinism, and free will are not at odds, how freedom is not taken away from the individual in pursuit of their life's purpose, and inspires you by digging a trench in your heart about how important you are for the progress of the world.

Even seeing the cover of this book brings back the memories of how it felt to read it.

The book describes how a life of purpose means a life of adventure and fulfillment. After you are finished, you will be convinced of the value in the pursuit of your personal legend and never look back.

'The One Thing' by Gary Keller

I love this book so much first because Mr. Keller writes just as I do: With purpose

The worst thing about books of knowledge is an ineffective presentation. Gary Keller takes the successful life and tells us what it's NOT, followed by the WHAT IT IS.

Do you think that success means getting more things done?

Do you think you have to be extremely qualified?

A few notes:

• All those things that make you feel you can't succeed are myths.
• You can accomplish everything you want each day by making easy behavior changes.
• The keys to success are simple, easy to understand concepts that small children know.

This book backs you into a corner. Our lives are formulated around success. Most of us are simply unaware of the tools to use. They're all in here!

'Managing Oneself' by Peter Drucker

This book helps you align with your own version of a successful life. Mr. Drucker will show you more of yourself by allowing you to understand where to start.

Honestly, this book is a primer and one that every successful person has read at some point in their life.

When you decide to "make something of yourself," which, for those like us, means:

1. Whats important to you
2. What allows you to lead a fulfilling life
3. What allows you to make the most impact on those you care about

... Read this book and Peter Drucker will teach you where to start. Success: What does it even mean?

It means:What am I good at? How do I do what I am good at? What is deeply important to me? What should I do, who do I do it for and where do I do it at?

'How to Build Self Discipline' by Martin Meadows

Let me repeat myself:I ONLY LIKE BOOKS THAT ARE PACKED TO THE BRIM.

Which is exactly Martin Meadows' style! Listen to me say SELF DISCIPLINE. Now pay attention to your thoughts. Were they:

• I don't have any.
• Not for me.
• Difficult and time consuming to achieve.
• Not fun at all and boring.
• Only for those with inner strength.

Something that really tugs at my strings is when someone things themselves unqualified and is shown practically that they too can have something if they'd only reach for it. This is exactly how Mr. Meadows does self-discipline.

Get rid of the myths!

You DO have self-discipline because you control so many things in your life already. You just need to put it into other areas conducive to your success.

It is not difficult or time-consuming. You do it every moment of the day while you're doing other things.

Perhaps it's not fun or exciting, but the idea of what it brings is, which is the life you want for yourself.

Inner strength is a myth. There is only knowledge of what you are truly capable of, solid routine and continual progress. Everyone can develop these.

Am I actually going to tell you whats in the book though? Okay, fine!

1. Understanding that a life without selected discipline is always difficult and unhealthy
2. How to motivate yourself with what is most important to you and never lose sight of it.
3. Discipline and its relation to your physiology.
4. How to take proven steps and utilize techniques to maximize success.
5. Your discipline's positive effect on others.
6. An understanding Traps and pitfalls roadblocks to discipline.

'The Energy Bus' by Jon Gordon

The fantastic thing about Jon Gordon is his captivating ability to give knowledge and wisdom through storytelling. Storytelling is a better way to learn than just memorizing facts, especially when the fiction is believable. Our minds learn better through symbolic representation.

So when you read this story about a man whose life was seriously lacking in happiness and progress, you will understand that this is your life to whatever degree your joy is missing: Big or small.

This book taught me the importance of maintaining my most precious resource: my energy.

It does not matter how much time there is in a day. The only thing that matters is how much energy you put behind the things you're doing. When it comes to moving towards your success, you will need every atom's energy.

This book will teach you how to embrace your own energy and direct it properly, how to not waste it on those who are not "with your plan" and where to allocate every ounce of that precious stuff so you can accomplish what you want. Doing great things is not easy, but it becomes less difficult with a road map, and even more so with no leaks.

'The Positive Dog' by Jon Gordon

This is our sequel, at least in this list, to THE ENERGY BUS.

It's a smaller read with powerful bullet points. At this point, I was already convinced that positive energy, when understood properly, was a very practical weapon to have against failure.

I learned what it is, how to foster it, and how to maintain it. Simple as that.

Once we move towards our goals, we experience upsets and setbacks. This book will teach you that ONE thing that all successful people have in common.

THEY SEE OPPORTUNITY EVERYWHERE, even in times of great discomfort and setback.

This book is well worth the investment, simply for that one technique.

'Think and Grow Rich' by Napoleon Hill

I really don't need to write anything here. Remember when I said that everyone has read Managing Oneself by Peter Drucker (the third book in this list)?

Well EVERYONE, EVERYONE, EVERYONE has read Think and Grow Rich by Napoleon Hill

It is literally THE PRIMER.

For those of you who have no desire to be "rich," the book definitely does teach you how to become rich. However, I think the word rich in his mind really means plentiful OR abundant, like if you were to say that someone is "rich in character,"

Even so, "Money doesn't buy happiness, but lack of money you need causes a lot of unhappiness."

If you left this book out simply because of the money aspect, you would be making a big mistake.

Like having two jars next to you: one with peanut butter and one with glue, then not paying attention to where you put your spoon when you take that dip. HUGE mistake.

This man did the world a service by writing this book and it is one that will last forever.

'The Seven Spiritual Laws of Success' by Deepok Chopra

It was very easy for me to gravitate toward this book because I have always been interested in spiritual matters.

However, gold is gold wherever it is found, and if spirituality is not your thing, I would still recommend this book.

This book is filled with much information that blends the mysticism of life and the science behind it.

When I say scientific, I REALLY mean it.

There is a hypothesis, and it can be tested. There are experiments that anyone can recreate. The data you collect will confirm the hypothesis that Mr. Chopra posits.

I saved this book for last because it is my favorite and the one that I found most influential in my personal progress.

Within its pages, you will learn:

1. Success is ensured when it is service oriented.
2. Why it is honorable to pursue your life's purpose.
3. How to empower yourself and others with the inspiration required to live an amazingly balanced and creative life.
4. Sincerity is invincible.
5. How to understand yourself and others to create rich experiences with ease.
6. How to spiritually and scientifically understand that a life of serious achievement is within arms reach if done and understood properly.

All of these books are proven and tested essentials.

See each one as a kind of information you'll want to have mastered before you go after your chosen life of independence and fulfillment.