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Ask HN: What book changed your life in 2014?

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Re: Ask HN: What book changed your life in 2014?

#122

Post by MrMattWright »

Inspired to do: Connected http://www.amazon.com/Connected-Surprising-Networks-Friends-...

I was utterly amazed by the concept of Social Network Analysis, how emotion travels through a network, how the 6 degrees thing works. Did you know someone you have never met can affect your weight? I was so amazed I started a company building a CRM from the ground up using graph theory. We launch in Q1 2015.

Inspired to be: The seven habits of highly effective people. A great book, which many read and sight. Forcing myself to write about my values and behaviours means you have to live up to them :) I read it once and now I am reading it again with my girlfriend actually doing all the exercises. You can read it in a week but to really take it all in you need to work on it over a lifetime. http://www.wikiwand.com/en/The_Seven_Habits_of_Highly_Effect...

Re: Ask HN: What book changed your life in 2014?

#124

Post by cgh »

krschultz wrote: post #101

Work - The Hard Things about Hard Things by Ben Horowitz. I'm not a startup founder, but I've been in a couple startups. It's really easy to say what the founders should have done (especially in hindsight). This book helped me understand the burden a bit more. Not Work - River of Time by Jon Swain. It's about Vietnam & Cambodia, and really reminds me to put things in perspective. Change the location from those countr…

If it's any consolation (probably not), per capita fewer people are dying due to warfare than at any time in human history. To further reduce conflict and death, consider the fact that no democratic nation has ever attacked another.

Re: Ask HN: What book changed your life in 2014?

#125

Post by dv35z »

rcconf wrote: post #51

The Bogleheads' Guide to Investing. Learning about the financial system really changed my perspective on how to deal with money in the long term. It has had immediate effects on my life. I learned about taxation in detail, opened an account on a discount brokerage, changed saving patterns, and have made a portfolio for the next 10 years. I have a spreadsheet of how much I can spend and componentize my bank cards. One…

Agreed - came to this thread specifically to mention this book. This book is enormously valuable to me, and I wholeheartedly recommend it to everyone (friends, family, colleagues). In fact, the related forum (http://www.bogleheads.org/) is one of the most helpful, welcoming, professional, and well-moderated forums I have come across, and is a great "next step" after reading the book, and developing/executing a plan. I know there are several HN frequenters there as well.

I also recommend accompanying Bogleheads Guide it with A Random Walk Down Wall Street (http://www.amazon.com/Random-Walk-Down-Wall-Street/dp/039333...). It ranks with me as another "life changing" book. Enjoy.

Re: Ask HN: What book changed your life in 2014?

#130

Post by moarsel »

david927 wrote: post #43

Capital in the Twenty First Century, Thomas Piketty http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Capital_in_the_Twenty-First_Cen... I've always been a bit embarrassed for the economics profession; it's always seemed to me that it could be where math meets sociology and psychology, but is instead where politics meets unfounded conjecture. Piketty changed that for me. He does true science here. I read it because I noticed that it has…

Somewhat related is "Enlightenment 2.0" - Joseph Heath Politics professor explains why contemporary politics is becoming irrational by showing how certain cognitive biases in the political atmosphere make political deliberation more difficult.

If you are interested in economics, cognitive biases, and why governance is so bad, it is a must read.

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