the 7 best

Self Help
Books
of All Time to Read at Any Age

Niklas Göke
Table of
Contents

Introduction

01 02
The Alchemist Atomic Habits
by Paulo Coelho by James Clear

03 04
Thinking Fast And Slow The Four Agreements
by Daniel Kahneman by Don Miguel Ruiz

05 06
The 7 Habits Of Highly Effective Best Self
People by Mike Bayer
by Stephen R. Covey

08
The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck
by Mark Manson
Self-help books are all about change. A change of habits, character traits, or your physical appearance
– you name it. The thing is, you have to make the change yourself.
Every New Year’s Eve, you commit to another version
of “new year, new me.” But how does it look a few
months later? Has it ever happened to you that you
ended up resolving to make the same changes again
the next year? Two years, three years, four years in a
row? Inevitably, we’ll ask ourselves:
How many times do I have to try this to succeed?
The honest answer is “Forever” – because there’ll
always be new changes you want to make, a new
person you’ll want to become. That’s perfectly okay.
Growth is what life is all about. When it comes to
making a certain set of new habits stick, however,
there are proven methods, tools, tips, and tactics you
can use. That way, you won’t get stuck trying to make
a single transformation over and over again.
At Four Minute Books, we’ve summarized over 1,000
books, most of them in the self-improvement
category.
In the process, we’ve learned a thing or two about
habits, and we’ve also discovered which books are
most efficient at helping us adjust our behaviors to
better serve our goals. All in all, we’ve found 33 books
that’ll support you in making the changes you want to
make and achieving your full potential
In this PDF, we’ve further condensed this list,
focusing on just the 7 best self-help books of all
time. These are the hardest hitters. They’ll drastically
improve your life, no matter how old you are. Self-
help can be a tricky thing initially, but if you embrace
it and stick with the process for the long run, it’ll
yield great rewards. Changing yourself is a never-
ending process. The books in our list will be a great
starting point for your journey.
If you want to live your best life and become your
most powerful self, here are the 7 best books you
should dive into. Discover their secrets and make it
happen!
01
 01
The
Alchemist

by Paulo Coelho

Favorite Quote

“When you want something, all the universe conspires to help you
achieve it.” — Paulo Coelho

The Book in One Sentence Key Takeaways

The Alchemist is a classic novel in which a boy 01 Listen to your heart if you want your dreams to
named Santiago embarks on a journey seeking come true.
treasure in the Egyptian pyramids after having a 02 Your fear is holding you back more than
recurring dream about it and on the way meets anything else.
mentors, falls in love, and most importantly, learns
03 “The secret of life, though, is to fall seven times
the true importance of who he is and how to improve
and to get up eight times.”
himself and focus on what really matters in life.

If you want to learn more, you can read our

Why should you read it?
free four-minute summary.
This novel presents a simple story, yet filled with
wisdom. Concentrating on the theme of destiny and Read on Four Minute Books
integrating mysterious characters, as well as
important lessons, it compels the reader to wonder
constantly and to come to the conclusion that destiny
is what we make of it.

02
 02
Atomic
Habits

by James Clear

Favorite Quote

“Habits are the compound interest of self-improvement.” — James

Clear

The Book in One Sentence Key Takeaways

Atomic Habits is the definitive guide to breaking bad
behaviors and adopting good ones in four steps,
showing you how small, incremental, everyday
routines compound into massive, positive change over
time.
01 Every time we perform a habit, we execute a
four-step pattern: cue, craving, response,
reward.
02 If we want to form new habits, we should make
them obvious, attractive, easy, and satisfying.

03 You can use a habit tracker as a fun way to

Why should you read it?
measure your progress and make sure you don’t
fall off the wagon.
What does it take to form a habit? There is a lot of
information out there in regards to this, but
sometimes you might just not have the time to go If you want to learn more, you can read our
through all of it. James Clear has put together this free four-minute summary.
useful and practical book, for you to achieve more
good habits and avoid the bad ones.
Read on Four Minute Books

03
 03
Thinking Fast
And Slow

by Daniel Kahneman

Favorite Quote

“Nothing in life is as important as you think it is, while you are

thinking about it” — Daniel Kahneman

The Book in One Sentence Key Takeaways

Thinking Fast and Slow shows you how two systems in
your brain are constantly fighting over control of your
behavior and actions, and teaches you the many ways
in which this leads to errors in memory, judgment and
decisions, and what you can do about it.
01 The biggest leaps in progress are vertical, not
horizontal.
02 Your brain is lazy and thus keeps you from using
the full power of your intelligence.

03 When you’re making decisions about money,

Why should you read it? leave your emotions at home.

The human mind is a wonderful, yet still

If you want to learn more, you can read our
undiscovered place. But what Kahneman can tell you
free four-minute summary.
is that two systems form our thinking. If you are
looking for a curious conversation about the human
mind, this book will not only get you thinking but Read on Four Minute Books
also transform the way you think.

04
 04
The Four
Agreements

by Don Miguel Ruiz

Favorite Quote

“Death is not the biggest fear we have; our biggest fear is taking the
risk to be alive – the risk to be alive and express what we really
are…” — Don Miguel Ruiz

The Book in One Sentence Key Takeaways

The Four Agreements draws on the long tradition of
the Toltecs, an ancient, indigenous people of Mexico, to
show you that we have been domesticated from
childhood, how these internal, guiding rules hurt us
and what we can do to break and replace them with a
new set of agreements with ourselves.
01 We’re domesticated from a young age and it
leaves us living by a set of rules we haven’t
chosen ourselves.
02 What people say and do to you is a reflection on
them, not you. Know who you are and you won’t
take things personally.

03 There are three ways to break your old

agreements and live with new ones you choose
Why should you read it?
yourself.
Our lives are usually conducted by a set of beliefs,
and they can sometimes limit us and keep us away If you want to learn more, you can read our
from our true calling. According to Don Miguel Ruiz, free four-minute summary.
four agreements could help us transform the way we
live our lives and experience its joys to the fullest.
And if you are passionate about ancient wisdom, then Read on Four Minute Books
this book might just be what you need.

05
 05
The 7 Habits Of Highly
Effective People

by Stephen R. Covey

Favorite Quote

“The main thing is to keep the main thing the main thing.” — Stephen
R. Covey

The Book in One Sentence Key Takeaways

The 7 Habits Of Highly Effective People teaches you 01 Do the funeral test.
both personal and professional effectiveness by
changing your view of how the world works and giving 02 Learn how to say no.
you 7 habits, which, if adopted well, will lead you to
immense success. 03 Practice active listening.

Why should you read it? If you want to learn more, you can read our
free four-minute summary.
Taking control of your life might seem like a difficult
thing to do without the proper advice. But Covey has
put together a few pieces of advice to help people Read on Four Minute Books
achieve exactly what they want, from proactivity to
success in both their professional and personal lives.

06
 06
Best Self
by Mike Bayer
Favorite Quote
“It’s not selfish to take care of yourself.” — Mike Bayer
The Book in One Sentence
Best Self will help you become the hero you’ve always
wanted to be by teaching you how to be honest with
yourself about what you desire, identify your toxic anti-
self, and discover the traits of the greatest possible
version of you that you can imagine.
Why should you read it?
Do people change in order to become happier? If you
are unsure how to answer this question, Coach Mike’s
book might be a good starting point, as it will help
you put into perspective where exactly your life is.
Knowing where you stand can show you what you
need to do and where to head to live a better life. Has
this book made it to your “must-read” list yet?
Key Takeaways
01 Don’t worry if you never learned how to reach
your full potential, simply start now by defining
the version of yourself that would make you
happiest.
02 Don’t worry if you never learned how to reach
your full potential, simply start now by defining
the version of yourself that would make you
happiest.
03 Help yourself first so you can take great care of
other people.
If you want to learn more, you can read our
free four-minute summary.
Read on Four Minute Books
07
 07
The Subtle Art of Not
Giving a F*ck

by Mark Manson

Favorite Quote

“Who you are is defined by what you’re willing to struggle for” —

Mark Manson

The Book in One Sentence Key Takeaways

The Subtle Art Of Not Giving A F*ck does away with
the positive psychology craze to instead give you a Stoic,
no bullshit approach to living a life that might not
always be happy, but meaningful and centered only
around what’s important to you.
01 Values you can’t control are bad values to
follow.
02 Don’t believe you know anything with certainty,
for it keeps you from improving.
03 Trying to leave a legacy might ruin your life.

Why should you read it? If you want to learn more, you can read our
free four-minute summary.
Nowadays, wherever you turn your head, you hear
that positivity is the key to living a happy and
fulfilled life. But according to Mark Manson, this Read on Four Minute Books
might be a flawed way of thinking and he will tell you
that in a raw voice that will make you rethink all that
you know about living a happy life.

08