Ask HN: Which books have made you a better thinker and problem solver?

This might sound odd for those who know it, but the "48 Laws of Power" I've always felt worth recommending. It gives insight into how the power-hungry think and act, and is a valuable tool for helping to recognizing when a sociopathic/narcissistic person is trying to manipulate or undermine you. I think it crumbled away some of that social naivety I used to have, but in a good way. It made me more empathetic to people who's motives I previously would have failed to understand, and think more clearly about how I approach situations with people who don't have my best interests at heart. In short, it's a great book for making you think deeper and come up with solutions in the social realm.

Interestingly enough, I recommended it to a few friends of mine who quite clearly to me had toxic partners. In both instances, they thanked me for the book recommendation and took action to remove those people from their lives. Especially in relationships, it's good to have a frame of reference to tell whether someone truly has your best interest at heart, or they just want power over you and use your good nature to get that.

Keep in mind that the book is written in such a way to sound like your getting an education in politics from a full-blown psychopath, but once you get past that there's a lot of worth to be found.

Plato: Theaetetus, Charmides, Apology

And Aristotle's metaphysics and Nicomachean ethics

They had an integrated understanding of the different kinds of knowledge and the phenomenology of the mind and the resulting errors we tend to make.

And since their traditions were esoteric, it's a nice challenge to read them critically to get what they're pointing at.

For those sniffing that these aren't mathematical models or category theories, realize that the entire family of logic can only tell you what's not possible. The real action in thinking is topologically sorting what's relevant, and that mostly depends on understanding yourself and others.

However, reading them is an exercise in frustration without a good classics scholar; they are rare and getting rarer.

Cross-examination

Basic Economics by Thomas Sowell.

Spent a few years trying to figure out how Help people without trying to force businesses to do what’s right.

Anytime I hear a new fiscal policy or laws idea I can usually figure out if it’s going to work or cause problems

https://www.amazon.com/Basic-Economics-Thomas-Sowell/dp/0465...

Having read that book, I can agree with this a lot.

The book is amazing at teaching you to solve problems, as it helps you analyze and understand the behavior of others.

It teaches you both what to do and what not to do in any given situation, but it also teaches you how to spot those who play the game of power as well.

It's a tool that not only helps you obtaining/maintaining power, but also how to take away power from others.

The principles in the book can mostly be applied to other things as well.