Smart Thinking Books

Interview with Jodie Cook, author of Stop Acting Like You're Going To Live Forever

Interview with Jodie Cook, author of Stop Acting Like You're Going To Live Forever.


Jodie Cook, author of Stop Acting Like You're Going To Live Forever recommends a great range of books this week! Before jumping into the interview, please check out Jodie's book Stop Acting Like You're Going To Live Forever:

Stop Acting Like You're Going To Live Forever

Stop Acting Like You're Going To Live Forever : 36 articles to help you think differently and achieve your version of success, now.

Jodie Cook

Review from Book Depository: These articles have been written to help you create the reality that matches your personal version of success. They are here to challenge your thinking, show you a different way, or perhaps confirm what you already suspected. They can serve as your personal hype playbook or be there to remind and reassure you that others have faced the challenges you're working through right now.

Articles include:
How To Be Happy (Nearly) All The Time
The Alternative Way To Be Rich
How To Stop Caring About What Everyone Else Thinks
Cruelty Is Weakness And Everyone Knows It
6 Things You Need To Get Over To Become A Successful Entrepreneur
Consumption Is Killing Your Success
No One Cares About Your Problems, So Make It Look Easy

Buy On:

Book Depository €9.42

(Prices accurate at time of writing)

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Q. Do you have a favourite smart thinking book (and why that book)?

My favourite book is The Courage To Be Disliked. I love the concepts introduced in the book and I find Adlerian psychology really interesting. I also like that the format is different to most books - it’s a conversation between a student and a philosopher.

The Courage to Be Disliked: How to Free Yourself, Change your Life and Achieve Real Happiness

The Courage to Be Disliked: How to Free Yourself, Change your Life and Achieve Real Happiness

Ichiro Kishimi,Fumitake Koga

Review From Book Depository: The Japanese phenomenon that teaches us the simple yet profound lessons required to liberate our real selves and find lasting happiness.

The Courage to be Disliked shows you how to unlock the power within yourself to become your best and truest self, change your future and find lasting happiness. Using the theories of Alfred Adler, one of the three giants of 19th century psychology alongside Freud and Jung, the authors explain how we are all free to determine our own future free of the shackles of past experiences, doubts and the expectations of others. It's a philosophy that's profoundly liberating, allowing us to develop the courage to change, and to ignore the limitations that we and those around us can place on ourselves.

Buy On:

Book Depository €8.43 Waterstones £8.99

(All links earn commission from purchases. Prices accurate at time of writing)

Q. What's the most recent smart thinking book you've read (and how would you rate it)?

I recently read Atomic Habits by James Clear. I think my habits were fairly productive any way, but it’s inspired me to be significantly more intentional. I have since created a 30-day challenge that includes those things I want to make sure I do every day. It’s already had a profound impact on how I spend my time.

Atomic Habits: An Easy & Proven Way to Build Good Habits & Break Bad Ones

Atomic Habits: An Easy & Proven Way to Build Good Habits & Break Bad Ones

James Clear

Review From Book Depository: Transform your life with tiny changes in behaviour - starting now. People think that when you want to change your life, you need to think big. But world-renowned habits expert James Clear has discovered another way. He knows that real change comes from the compound effect of hundreds of small decisions - doing two push-ups a day, waking up five minutes early, or holding a single short phone call. He calls them atomic habits.

In this ground-breaking book, Clears reveals exactly how these minuscule changes can grow into such life-altering outcomes. He uncovers a handful of simple life hacks (the forgotten art of Habit Stacking, the unexpected power of the Two Minute Rule, or the trick to entering the Goldilocks Zone), and delves into cutting-edge psychology and neuroscience to explain why they matter. Along the way, he tells inspiring stories of Olympic gold medalists, leading CEOs, and distinguished scientists who have used the science of tiny habits to stay productive, motivated, and happy. These small changes will have a revolutionary effect on your career, your relationships, and your life.

Buy On:

Book Depository €14.20 Waterstones £15.99

(All links earn commission from purchases. Prices accurate at time of writing)

Q. Do you have a favourite childhood book?

So many! As a child I read all the time. I enjoyed reading World War II fictions. When Hitler Stole Pink Rabbit, The Book Thief and The Diary Of Anne Frank were three of my favourites. I remember being fascinated hearing what the protagonists in those stories were going through and how they dealt with everything.

When Hitler Stole Pink Rabbit

When Hitler Stole Pink Rabbit

Judith Kerr

Review From Book Depository: Anna is not sure who Hitler is, but she sees his face on posters all over Berlin. Then one morning, Anna and her brother awake to find her father gone! Her mother explains that their father has had to leave and soon they will secretly join him. Anna just doesn't understand. Why do their parents keep insisting that Germany is no longer safe for Jews like them? Because of Hitler, Anna must leave everything behind.

Buy On:

Book Depository €7.13 Waterstones £6.99

(All links earn commission from purchases that help fund this site. Prices accurate at time of writing)

The Book Thief

The Book Thief

Markus Zusak

Review From Book Depository: 1939. Nazi Germany. The country is holding its breath. Death has never been busier. Liesel, a nine-year-old girl, is living with a foster family on Himmel Street. Her parents have been taken away to a concentration camp. Liesel steals books. This is her story and the story of the inhabitants of her street when the bombs begin to fall.

Buy On:

Book Depository €10.28 Waterstones £8.99

(All links earn commission from purchases that help fund this site. Prices accurate at time of writing)

The Diary of Anne Frank

The Diary of Anne Frank

Anne Frank

Review From Book Depository: This special educational edition of Anne Frank's unique diary, describing her family's plight during the Nazi persecution, is accompanied by substantial background material and photographs to help students to contextualise this teenager's account.

Buy On:

Book Depository €13.21 Waterstones £11.49

(All links earn commission from purchases that help fund this site. Prices accurate at time of writing)

Q. Do you prefer reading on paper, Kindle or listening to an audiobook?

I read books on my Kindle. I only own two paperback books - Meditations by Marcus Aurelius and The Courage To Be Disliked. I bought both after reading on Kindle so I could highlight them and keep them on my shelf as a constant reminder of the messages within.

Meditations

Meditations

Marcus Aurelius

Review from Book Depository: Originally written only for his personal consumption, Marcus Aurelius's Meditations has become a key text in the understanding of Roman Stoic philosophy. This Penguin Classics edition is translated with notes by Martin Hammond and an introduction by Diskin Clay.

Written in Greek by an intellectual Roman emperor without any intention of publication, the Meditations of Marcus Aurelius offer a wide range of fascinating spiritual reflections and exercises developed as the leader struggled to understand himself and make sense of the universe. Spanning from doubt and despair to conviction and exaltation, they cover such diverse topics as the question of virtue, human rationality, the nature of the gods and Aurelius's own emotions. But while the Meditations were composed to provide personal consolation, in developing his beliefs Marcus also created one of the greatest of all works of philosophy: a series of wise and practical aphorisms that have been consulted and admired by statesmen, thinkers and ordinary readers for almost two thousand years.

Buy On:

Book Depository €14.30 Waterstones £10.00

(All links earn commission from purchases that help fund this site. Prices accurate at time of writing)

Q. Do you have a favourite bookshop (and why that shop)?

I’m often found in Foyles in Birmingham New Street's train station. I’ll usually leave ample time to catch my train so that I can pop in first. Although I read books on Kindle, I like seeing them in real life. I also pick up ideas on formatting and cover designs.

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Many thanks to Jodie for answering my questions and for such interesting recommendations!
Please don't forget to check out her new book Stop Acting Like You're Going To Live Forever.
Daryl


Image Copyrights: Jodie Cook (Stop Acting Like You're Going To Live Forever), Allen & Unwin (The Courage To Be Disliked), Cornerstone (Atomic Habits), HarperCollins Publishers (When Hitler Stole Pink Rabbit), Transworld Publishers Ltd (The Bok Thief), Pearson Education Limited (The Diary of Anne Frank), Penguin Classics (Meditations)


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Smart Thinking Books was born to shine a spotlight on books that can fuel your mind! Many smart thinking books have changed the way I look at the world for the better, so I started this site to help spread the word.
- Daryl Feehely

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