Here is a list of simple books which contain knowledge significantly more than pricey course books.

I don’t regret going to college, but looking back, I realise that the knowledge I gained by sitting through hours of lectures and reading numerous textbooks was of little use to me once I graduated. I rapidly came to the conclusion that a library, not a classroom, was the best location to look for the information I needed to advance in life and develop as a person. The saying “Formal education will make you a living; self-education will make you a fortune” is attributed to Jim Rohn. I wholeheartedly concur with this statement. People frequently undervalue books, their influence, and the knowledge they can provide. However, the majority of the life lessons I’ve acquired that were worthwhile came from books. Here are four amazing books that, with absolute certainty, taught me far more than my pricey degree.

1. You Are Not So Smart by David McRaney

How intelligent do you believe you are? Humans aren’t the logical beings we think they are, which shouldn’t come as a big surprise. Most of the time, we don’t perceive things objectively. We constantly fool ourselves, from the number of Facebook friends we have to the smartphones we decide to buy. The perpetrators behind our mental errors? Heuristics, fallacies, and cognitive biases. Our decision-making will be better and more reasonable if we comprehend them and learn to spot them. In this outstanding work, the author dissects 48 psychology principles and explores a wide spectrum of psychological studies to explore how our biases affect how we perceive the world.

Reasons to read this book – This book’s challenge to your worldview and all you believed you knew about how your brain works is what I found so appealing about it. Most of the information in it is very helpful in the process of becoming more self-aware and making more logical judgements at work, at home, in your relationships, and even in your daily interactions because it covers a wide variety of topics. The author clearly did his study because everything he says is supported by statistics and studies, which lends the book legitimacy.

2. Against Empathy by Paul Bloom

People seem to be so preoccupied with empathy these days. Did you realize, though, that empathy can breed injustice and immorality? That our capacity to feel for and detect other people’s emotions could be biassed and self-serving? Before reading this book, I had no idea that utilising empathy as a moral compass may be harmful to me. The psychologist who wrote the book contends that empathy frequently taints our judgement and causes us to make unjust decisions in every aspect of our life. He examines the limitations of empathy and presents us with a superior substitute: logical compassion, while supporting his claims with empirical data.

Reasons to read this book – Both empathy and the answer we need to help others are not flawless. That is the book’s most crucial lesson, which, in my opinion, is very significant given people’s concern with “improving their empathy” and “learning new empathy techniques.” Reading the book will help you recognise the differences between selective empathy and logical compassion, as well as how to use the latter to influence others positively and make better judgements.

3. Firestarters by Raoul Davis Jr./Paul Eder/Kathy Palokoff

What distinguishes folks who only think about making things happen from those who actually do? No professor I had in college or dozens of books could respond to that question.but not this book. It’s one of the few books that actually pushes you to actively seek and realise your objectives. It includes anecdotes about successful people from a variety of industries (CEOs, entrepreneurs, etc.), each detailing what made them become achievers.

Reasons to read this book – The pearls of knowledge presented in this book will surprise you if you’re sick of reading the same dull and essentially useless advice you find in the bulk of self-help books. The authors provide a tonne of helpful advice on how to figure out what you really want from life and the measures you may take to get it. But if we’re being completely honest, sometimes reading advice—no matter how helpful—isn’t enough. throughout order to help you “ignite your own fires,” the writers have gone above and beyond by incorporating self-assessment activities, checklists, questions to get you thinking, and other useful tools throughout the book.

4. Prisoners of Geography by Tim Marshall

Given that geopolitics was covered and analysed in one-third of my classes, this is one of my all-time favourite nonfiction books and is rather near to my degree. But none of those classes covered geopolitics in this book’s comprehensive, educational, and entertaining manner. Geopolitics is the study of how geography shapes political outcomes and provides insight into the interactions of the world’s political, social, and economic factors. Even if you aren’t particularly interested in geography, history, or politics, you should at least have a fundamental understanding of how international leaders think and behave. This is especially important now that you have witnessed how the Russia-Ukraine conflict has affected the entire world. Using facts, maps, and his amazing sense of humor, the book takes you on a voyage around the globe while illuminating the complicated relationships between them and how geography limits their leaders.

Reasons to read this book – Do you ever find yourself watching the news and finding it difficult to follow the analysis because you are unaware of the circumstances around the events? It’s time for you to read this book, I suppose. Even if geopolitics isn’t your thing, you should read the book to learn more about how different countries relate to one another and how important geography is to a state’s future. After finishing it, you’ll be far more knowledgeable about politics, history, and geography than the average person is, and you’ll have a greater understanding of current events on a worldwide scale.

Hi, I’m Garima and I write about life experiences. I have several books available on Amazon. Check them out today! Any purchases or KDP reads will be greatly appreciated. If you like my books, do leave a review. Here’s my author page on Amazon – https://www.amazon.com/-/e/B0BQDZXYNV