I naturally love to read, write, research, collect data and then analyze the said data and concoct interpretations or insights about that information.  From a very young age I always kept a diary, or as I say in my adult years, a journal.  But it was more for personal use.  I love to go back through my personal writings to read about how I felt, what I experienced and to revisit the memories I built.  Writing is my outlet to allow my creativity to flow and keep things organized.  It is something I do simply and only for me.  But just as important as writing is in my life, reading holds an even greater influence in my life.

Reading a book can be a magical experience.  You can literally sit in your bedroom and experience travelling through space, time or into another dimension.  The power of your imagination takes you to new heights based on the words you read off of a page.  A book has the power to change your life.  A book has the power to change you.

Have you noticed that a book does not discriminate.  It cannot tell you not to read it because it doesn’t like how you look, or talk.  A book has only one purpose and that is to teach.  It will teach you things, take you away to far off places and teach you about different cultures.  A book will teach you, most importantly, about yourself.

Throughout the years I’ve come across some very influential books that changed my life.  For the past 5 years, however, I’ve been on an inward journey toward self-development.  I went through a divorce and had to find my identity.  I attempted to self heal and learn about topics that made me curious.  Anything that literally tickled my fancy I picked up and read.  At first I was intrigued by topics on history then religion quickly followed as I tried to sort out my own personal demons.  I am fascinated by every religion and set out to read and try to understand the various religious books as a means to connect with a higher power.  I like to make my own judgements based on what I personally know and learn.  After going through my religious spell I opted for a more scientific explanation of understanding my purpose and place in this universe.  I researched high and low and found books that touched on religion and how science refuted the existence of religion.  This created a growing curiosity and led me to  books on spirituality which fuse science and religion together in a happy medium.  I learned about consciousness and the mind, meditation and yoga.  After a few discoveries I started to look more inward and realized I need to pay more attention to my health and fitness.  I turned to various health and wellness conscious books to help me improve physically and to understand my priorities in life.  I then read books on abundance and wealth which focused on creating wealth and building an external world to match my inner world.  Finally, I pursued topics about leadership and entrepreneurship to help train me with the tools necessary to be successful as a business owner.

I read and read and read till I couldn’t read anymore.  I just had to shove as much information into my head as I could because that’s just the type of person I am.  So after all that reading what have I learned?  A lot!  But, I don’t want to talk about what I learned.  I want you to go back and look at what you took away from the books in your life.  What books were you lucky to come across?  If you are searching for answers to certain questions, I may not be able to answer them, but, what I can do is open up your mind to certain books that have the ability to change your life.  Take a look at some of the most powerful books that I have been blessed to come across (in no particular order).

Most Powerful Books:

• “The Portable Nietzsche” Author, Friedrich Nietzsche
• “Discourse on the Method” Author, René Descartes
• “Darwin” Author, Charles Darwin
• “The Essential Confucius” Author, Confucius
• “The Art of Happiness” Author, Tenzin Gyatso, 14th Dalai Lama
• The Bible
• The Koran
• The Zohar – Kabbalah
• “The God Delusion” Author, Richard Dawkins
• “Relativity” Author, Albert Einstein
• “The Power of Now” Author, Eckhart Tolle
• “Tao Te Ching” Author, Laozi
• “Bhagavad Gita” Adaptations, Bhagavad Gita
• “Autobiography of the Soul” Written by, ATMA – The Soul http://bhaktimarga.org/
• “The Art of War” Author, Sun Zi, Sun Tzu
• “Secrets of the Millionaire Mind” Author, T. Harv Eker http://www.harveker.com/
• “The Secret” Author, Rhonda Byrne
• “Think and Grow Rich” Author, Napoleon Hill
• “Rich Dad, Poor Dad” Authors, Robert Kiyosaki, Sharon Lechter
• “Outliers: The Story of Success” Author, Malcolm Gladwell

“The value of a book is what you take away from it” ~ anonymous