What I read this year, 2018
“Once you stop learning, you start dying” -Albert Einstein
I think this image pretty much sums up my year. Maybe the title shouldn’t be what I read this year, but apparently, what I did this year.
I compiled this list based on pictures from my phone and my amazon list, which only means that for sure I’m missing a couple of books, because everyone that knows me, knows that I go into a bookstore at least twice a week.
People are constantly asking me if I miss having a home, I always reply that I miss having a space where I can place all of my books, my records and my record player, now I can see why.
I don’t know if it was the effect of learning so much, but I finish of my year in a very happy place, not just physical, obviously writing this from Fuglen in Tokyo is not bad at all, but in a very happy mental and spiritual place.
Here are my top 5:
This is a very special book for me. My dad always told me it was one of his favorite books, and I have been buying copies of it ever since I started architecture school 17 years ago. Started reading it multiple times, but somehow never finished it until this year. Wow, what a book, written by Ayn Rand, the story of Howard Roark, supposedly based on the life of Frank Lloyd Wright. A great book not just for architects, but for anyone that is willing to risk anything for their craft and passion.
2. Bold: How to Go Big, Create Wealth and Impact the World
I think this is the book that completely changed my mindset regarding the world that we’re living in, the multiple future scenarios that we could inhabit and how we can have a big impact. Written by Peter Diamandis, founder of the X-Prize, a book I think everyone should read. The one that inspired me to launch a startup this year !
3. PEAK: How Great Companies Get Their Mojo from Maslow Revised and Updated
Written by Chip Conley, the founder of Joie de Vivre hotels, which he sold and eventually became head of global hospitality and strategy for Airbnb. A truly enlightening book. Using Maslow’s pyramid of needs, talks about how to understand the motivations of employees, customers and investors, and use that understanding to foster better relationships and build an enduring and profitable corporate culture. Inspiring, how we should all reach self actualization and live a meaningful life.
This book started with what is now one of my favorite quotes, one that I really identify with:
“A master in the art of living draws no sharp distinction between his work and his play. His labor and his leisure; his mind and his body; his education and his recreation. He hardly knows which is which. He simply pursues his vision of excellence through whatever he is doing and leaves others to determine wether he is working or playing. To himself, he always appears to be doing both”
-L.P. Jacks
I had never bought anything from Patagonia before reading this book, after reading it, I’m obsessed with the brand. Someone that did not follow any bussiness rulebook, that just went with whatever he believed was better for his team and for his planet. Absolutely inspiring, the world would be a way better place if there where more people like him.
5.THE HEADSPACE GUIDE TO MEDITATION AND MINDFULNESS
One of the things that I feel had most impact in my life this year, getting into meditating. I can’t recommend using the headspace app enough. Andy Puddicombe wrote this book to explain a bit more of the theory and history behind the app. We should all remember to breathe more often !
Some years I bought mostly architecture books, some were more focused on art, this year it was definetely startups, business and health. I’ve been very obsessed with the future and how to put a dent in the universe with our housing projects. I truly believe that we will change a lot of peoples lives very soon !
Here’s the list, most of them really good, otherwise I wouldn’t have finished them:
The Age of Ideas: Unlock Your Creative Potential
The Miracle of Mindfulness: An Introduction to the Practice of Meditation
Game Changers: What Leaders, Innovators, and Mavericks Do to Win at Life
Setting the Table: The Transforming Power of Hospitality in Business
Moonshots: Creating a World of Abundance
The Inevitable: Understanding the 12 Technological Forces That Will Shape Our Future
Zero to One: Notes on Startups, or How to Build the Future
The Third Wave: An Entrepreneur’s Vision of the Future
Blitzscaling: The Lightning-Fast Path to Building Massively Valuable Companies
Insanely Simple: The Obsession That Drives Apple’s Success
Shoe Dog: A Memoir by the Creator of Nike
