The over/under on books actually read is 1.5.
- Michael Jordan: The Life. This is the Steve Jobs book for anyone who likes or follows sports. Not clear what Jordan thinks of this book but the author got great access.
Thinking, Fast and Slow. The authoritative book on how to decide and the biases that affect the choices we make. This is thick in every sense of the word. It’s going slowly. Small font.
The Sense of Style: The Thinking Person’s Guide to Writing in the 21st Century. I have no idea why I’m reading this. I was a big fan of The Elements of Style and I’ve heard good things about Stephen Pinker. This too is going slowly.
The Unwinding: An Inner History of the New America. Dan Shih from Tilt recommended to this me. Usually I buy this type of book, never read it and place it prominently on my bookshelf so it looks like I’m a learned man. But this one is a surprisingly easy read.
Slaying the Tiger: A Year Inside the Ropes on the New PGA Tour I love these “Inside the ‘X’” books – particularly when it’s a good writer. A little pop psychology – lots of parallels between young prodigy golfers and great founders.
The Productive Narcissist: The Promise and Peril of Visionary Leadership. Again – maybe some more pop psychology here but decent nuggets on personality types.
The Mindful Athlete. Mindfulness and meditation has helped me a lot. Especially during a time when I was very scared, anxious and uncertain. I started mindful based stress reduction because I read that professional athletes practiced it. I don’t like the recent rhetoric that mindfulness is a magic elixir that solves any and all problems (“How Meditation Can Make You Happier!”). It sounds like the insufferable folks who talk about how crossfit is a “way of life.” But if you believe that your mind is the most important muscle, then it’s a way of exercising the mind. And to top it all off, the author of this book, George Mumford, is a fascinating person who has mentored Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant among others.