Top 10 Best Books I’ve Read This 2020
By: Tanya Anastacio
Tags: Productivity, Book Recommendations, Ratings, Book Review, Self Help

Photo by Lala Azizli on Unsplash

This year, I set out to read 30 books, which I already considered a stretch goal after reaching last year’s target of 25 books. Being stuck in quarantine, however, has made this much easier to accomplish since I pretty much had more time on my hands to read. So, from the 33 I’ve managed to read this 2020, I compiled my top 10 picks which I’d highly recommend to anyone looking for new books to read.

My top 3 here are actually part of the best books I’ve read ever since I began to read seriously around 3–4 years ago, while the rest in this list were chosen because of a specific insight or lesson I picked up from them. I share a little bit about what I learned from each book when I discuss each of them, so I hope that helps you see if you’d like to read one.

Note: I’m aware that some books here may have conflicting reviews, but I included them here because there are still certain insights that were explained well which I felt were worth mentioning. I also acknowledge that these reviews are subject to my own perspectives, but of course everyone has different tastes. If you do decide to read them for yourselves, remember to remain critical about the content you take in and be mindful about your own preferences, too.

Overall Top 3 Picks

Atomic Habits by James Clear

If you were one of the few people I got to talk to right after I read this book, I’m sure you’d remember how often I brought up the idea of habits (and I still do until now)! I’m not exaggerating when I say that my approach to routines and habits literally changed when I read the book, and I’ve heavily shifted to advocating for effective habit-formation as one of the keys to being more productive. Not only does James Clear do an incredible job explaining WHY habits are so important in improving our lives, but he also makes it as easy as possible to apply what he teaches in his book. If you’ve read the other well-known habit book Power of Habit by Charles Duhigg, you’ll find some of the concepts in Atomic Habits somewhat familiar, but much more enriched with James Clears’ experiences and examples. The writing style is also very clear and simple enough that it’s personally one of the best books I’d recommend people to pick up if they’re looking to get into the self-help or productivity space.

I’ve applied many of the points from this book, and actually read it twice. I first read it last 2019, and once more this year for work, where I planned a learning session to teach our leaders about the concepts in this book. Yup, that’s how much I loved what I learned here! Other insights I’ve gained here include:

There’s already SO much value if you improve even by just 1% every day for the next 365 days, even if you may not see results now

Making habits stick is more about changing your mindset about the type of person you want to become, rather than about changing specific behaviors

about the type of person you want to become, rather than about changing specific behaviors Even if you might have an unclear goal, as long as you have consistent and effective habits, that’s still going to take you somewhere (ie. “We don’t rise to the level of our goals. We fall to the level of our systems.”)

The Power of Now by Eckhart Tolle

One of the most common misconceptions about this book is that it’s your typical mindfulness or spiritual book — it’s not! While it is about mindfulness, it goes beyond just defining what it is and teaching you how to “be more mindful,” but it also discusses how you can still be present in spite of different circumstances you may experience. It’s not really a faith-related book, but he cites different teachings from different spiritualities as proof of the universality of the value of presence. The first chapter gives you a taste of the depth and tone of the book: it’s logical, straight to the point, and rich with substance in every chapter. It’s not exactly a hard read, but it’s not something you can finish in one sitting either. It’s a book you’d want to fully concentrate on when you read, otherwise you miss the point and you’d have to go through it again. I’ve tried and tested many of the lessons he teaches about focusing on the now, and in such a short span of time, it’s brought a lot of peace, clarity, and calmness in my life, despite all the many uncertainties and challenges I’ve faced.

This has been one of those titles I’ve seen in bestseller lists and highly-recommended book suggestions, but have never really thought of buying because it’s pretty pricey (even more than an average self-help book). Luckily, I got to borrow a copy from one of my friends, and now I’m considering getting my own! So yes, the price is definitely worth paying for if you want to change how you approach the world. My best takeaways include:

Everything happens in the now, and now is the only thing worth focusing on . And focusing on the present begins by dis-identifying with our mind.

. And focusing on the present begins by dis-identifying with our mind. When faced with any situation, we are left with three things to do: we can accept it, we can change what we can, or we can leave. It’s as simple as that.

Every little fear or worry is just another manifestation of the fear of death. Even the fear of being wrong, or of being rejected, is just a form of fearing death (just not in the physical sense). And this fear can be removed by focusing on the now.

The Courage to Be Disliked by Ichiro Kishimi and Fumitake Koga

My only regret after reading this book is that I didn’t read it sooner! I find this to be a good complement to The Power of Now because they have similar writing styles (ie. a dialogue or question-and-answer form between two people) and most points in both books beautifully support each other. This book is a mix of Adlerian psychology and philosophy, so if you’re ready to dismantle a lot of our preconceived notions about concepts like “freedom” and “courage” and “choice,” then this book is for you. I personally enjoyed the experience of following the dialogue between the philosopher and the youth mentioned in the book; it’s the type of story that leaves you with so much to think about and act on. It’s also not the type of book you’d finish in one sitting. I mean, I could if I wanted to, but the content was so enlightening that I really did my best to take my time to enjoy reading it.

Admittedly, many of these learnings are more of mindset shifts than anything, but these changes in perspective, if understood and practiced well, can be life-changing. Again, since the points brought up here aren’t exactly common sense, it’ll take practice to get used to them, or even accept them. If, at the end, you don’t agree with what it teaches, the least is does is expand your perspective about how other people can view the world, which I think is still a pretty good win. A few paragraphs are definitely not enough to explain what I learned, but some of the ones that stood out are:

Living freely means living a life true to yourself, whether or not people like you for that

We’re so used to explaining how we behave in certain ways because of past experiences. This thinking, done to the extreme, can limit us and subject us to being “victims” to our past circumstances, rather than focusing on how we can achieve goals even if things may have happened to us in the past.

All problems can be traced back to being interpersonal relationship problems

The books above are what I would recommend overall! I purposely didn’t go too in-depth with my main takeaways so I don’t spoil much of the contents. If, however, you’re looking to deepen your understanding about specific topics, I highly recommend you grab any of the books below.

Top 7 Books for Specific Topics

Originals by Adam Grant

About: Leading and navigating through change and disruption, especially when this change is radical and new

Adam Grant shares what makes ideas original, and he explains how we can also champion change, especially when they’re very radical and uncommon. He does a wonderful job explaining what you need to do to be the type of person who, when introducing new ideas, will be taken seriously instead of being thought of immediately as absurd. Challenging the status quo and questioning the default are things that many of us may want to do, but reading this book showed me that it’s just like any other skill! Which is that it can definitely be mastered. If there’s another thing I learned also, it’s this: Coming up with a great idea is one thing. Sharing this idea with others and succeeding is a whole different matter.

Dare to Lead by Brene Brown

About: Learning concrete and actionable ways to step up and lead with courage, based on research, stories, and examples

Dare to Lead contains a summary of Brene Brown’s other bestselling books, so if you’ve read her other works, this will serve as a good refresher. What’s different here, though, is that she lists down very concrete steps to begin leading with courage and vulnerability (a key concept in all her books) that you can do alone, and within your team or organization. Her points are backed up by research she’s either done herself or gotten from other studies, so you can be sure that the suggestions are all well-supported by data.

Just Walk Across the Room by Bill Hybels

About: Trusting in the power and gravity of even our smallest decisions, if only we choose to do them

Bill Hybels brings up mostly his own examples of how just one small action can lead to big changes in another person’s life (mostly people getting to closer to God, given the nature of this book), making this a relatively easy read. He also talks briefly and explains how one small action may also not lead to big changes — and that’s okay. Though this book is more of a spiritual book that focuses on personal evangelization, it’s fast enough to read that it can easily motivate you to just say yes to opportunities to reach out to others.

Talking to Strangers by Malcolm Gladwell

About: Understanding very common but very human lapses in judgment when we interact with people we aren’t familiar with, and seeing the effects of those errors

I’ve always appreciated how Malcolm Gladwell can explain topics in a very clear and easy manner, backed up by research and many cases; Talking to Strangers is no different. What made his points easy to follow here is that he makes use of stories and tries to answer: “Why did this happen? And what does this say about us as humans?” He discusses common biases we have whenever we meet someone new, and overall just makes the reader more aware of those.

Though I appreciated how Malcolm Gladwell wove together his ideas by bringing up many stories and real-life examples, he discusses these in a lot of detail. TW: Some of these topics include cases about rape, pedophilia, suicide, and the like, so I wouldn’t recommend this for people who may be triggered by reading these stories.

Lean In by Sheryl Sandberg

About: Providing a general overview about the inequality, internal struggles, and challenges faced by women compared to men, supported by historical data and research

Reading about Sheryl Sandberg’s own experiences and struggles confirmed that the issues that women face are very, very real. She discusses issues from sexism in the workplace, to internal thoughts women have about doubting their own abilities, and even how history has led to this much inequality. Even if the perspective is a bit limited because its main perspective is more for American women in the corporate world, it’s still a good foundation to more deeply understand what women face just by… well, being women, and living in a society that imposes so much norms on who we should be and what we should do. (On a personal note, this was a powerful read for me because it reassured me that feeling so strongly against being denied leadership opportunities because I’m a woman is very much valid. But that’s a story for another time.)

The Speed of Trust by Stephen Covey

About: Defining and developing trust in oneself and others, and seeing how trust brings about positive results

As with any other Stephen Covey book, you’re in for a load of information with Speed of Trust, so I just had to include this in the list! He really does not skimp on any information and literally talks about trust in all perspectives possible — personal trust, trust for others, trust for organizations, how to build this trust in all levels, even what components there are to true trust, and more! Not to mention how he has exercises and worksheets that you can do to apply his lessons as soon as possible. This book was definitely jam-packed, informational, and backed up by well-known stories and personal examples. I thought I was already a person who understood what it meant to trust myself and others, but reading this book deepened my understanding and appreciation for the concept. This was such a refreshing perspective on trust!

Do Good Better by William MacAskill

About: Using logic and data to answer how we can do the most good that we can

This book logically explains how we can do the most good for others given the resources that we have. Simple as that. Be prepared for a bit of math and numbers also, as William MacAskill explains step by step how he uses different formulas to prove his points. If you’re like me and you prefer seeing hard facts before deciding what to do (in this case, it could be supporting which charity to donate to, or what career path to choose that will allow you to help others the most, etc.), then reading this will definitely enlighten you and show you that it’s possible to answer how we can really “do good better.” This is not an easy read, but the book does a wonderful job identifying not just what causes need the most help, but how we can do that the most effective way possible.

Let me know which ones you’ve read, too (or plan to read)! I’d love to discuss with you guys if ever!

(And if you’re looking for ways to read as many books as I have while effectively retaining & applying the information you learn, I’ll write something about that soon too!)