Best Kindle Unlimited Self-Help Books
Today I’m sharing some of the best self-improvement I’ve read that are part of Kindle Unlimited, a monthly subscription that grants you access to millions of books. Even if you don’t have a Kindle, you can download the app to your phone and read from there. I love my Kindle because it allows me to read more than I used to - I find myself opening the app on my phone when I’m waiting in line somewhere or have a few minutes to spare; it’s much more convenient than carrying a paperback or hardcover around everywhere. Over the last year that I’ve been using Kindle Unlimited, I’ve read a lot and made my way through many of the self-improvement books that are available to download. There were a lot of duds (if I’m being completely honest), so you can trust that there really are the diamonds in the rough that are worth reading. Below are my absolute favorites that I couldn’t put down, learned a lot from, and noticed actual changes in my life after reading them.
the best self-improvement books on kindle unlimited
you’re too good to feel this bad by dr. nate dallas
5/5 stars
This book is written by a dentist, and covers mind, body and lifestyle - topics range from breathing to money to meditation. It is one of the most comprehensive self-help books I’ve read.
The advice he gives is practical (not woo-woo at all) and the tips are ‘easy’ to incorporate in the sense that you don’t have to change your whole life. They’re habits you can stack into your daily life long as you are motivated, disciplined, and have a plan in place to stick to them.
This is the most comprehensive and straightforward self-help book I’ve read. If you read only read one, this is the book to read.
Biggest takeaways:
Voicing a problem is not the same as fixing it - know what you are doing and be honest with yourself.
“Learn to avoid damaging thoughts and emotions altogether, instead of needing a rescue.” (p. 95)
“We like to blame a lack of resources for our stagnancy, but the thing we are lacking is resourcefulness. We do what we want to do. Do you like to pretend that you are trying?” (p.109)
“Your mind is a crowded storage shed crammed full of thoughts, ideas, emotions, trash, memories, and broken things. It’s not really usable until you clean and organize the workspace. We can enjoy the 25 good things only after we remove the 700 that are causing the clutter.” (p.163)
When it comes to decluttering items that were costly or that you saved up to buy, “the good news is that you won’t have to work so hard to eliminate it.” (p.175)
Read it here.
so good they can’t ignore you: why skills trump passion in the quest for work you love by cal newport
5/5 stars
This book is primarily for people in their 20s starting their careers or those considering a passion-driven switch. It provides a clear argument against pursuing your passion as a career, as for most people “working right” is ultimately more beneficial than “finding the right work.”
It’s well-written and reminiscent of a persuasive essay because it’s logical, formulaic, and each chapter builds on the previous. The summaries are actually high-quality and beneficial. I also liked how the conclusion of the book showed how the author applied the principles to his own life, and what his results were.
One criticism I have of the book is that the author discusses leveraging your career capital in order to gain freedom, but doesn’t give many examples of what could be considered career capital. This varies widely depending on job responsibilities and industry, but it would’ve been more helpful if this was better expanded upon.
Overall, I loved this book. It made me think about my career choices and what I would’ve (or should’ve) done differently, and I think it should be required reading for high schoolers/ college students who might be unaware of the trade-offs that come with following a passion versus viewing career from a strategic standpoint.
Favorite quotes and takeaways:
Seek ‘open gates’ which are opportunities that are already available to you, as “they get you farther faster, in terms of career capital acquisition, than starting from scratch. It helps to think about skill acquisition like a freight train: Getting it started requires a huge application of effort, but changing its track once it's moving is easy. In other words, it's hard to start from scratch in a new field.” (p. 95)
Having a mission makes your career more meaningful, as “a good career mission is similar to a scientific break-through-it's an innovation waiting to be discovered in the adjacent possible of your field. If you want to identify a mission for your working life, therefore, you must first get to the cutting edge— the only place where these missions become visible.” (p. 147)
“If your goal is to love what you do, I discovered, ‘follow your passion’ can be bad advice. It's more important to become good at something rare and valuable, and then invest the career capital this generates into the type of traits that make a job great.” (p. 180)
“Working right trumps finding the right work—it's a simple idea, but it's also incredibly subversive, as it overturns decades of folk career advice all focused on the mystical value of passion. It wrenches us away from our daydreams of an overnight transformation into instant job bliss and provides instead a more sober way toward fulfillment.” (p. 201)
Read it here.
the source: a transformative guide to unlocking your mind, harnessing neuroplasticity, and manifesting success through the power of the law of attraction by tara swart, md, phd
4/5 stars
The title of this book is very woo-woo, but I think it’s the best-researched book on manifestation, especially if you’ve always been skeptical of it. Written by a psychiatrist, neuroscientist, and Senior Lecturer at MIT, this book connects science to many of the widely-known manifestation practices (like abundance and visualization), showing how neuroplasticity, emotional intelligence, and logic informs our behavior and perspective to create our reality - for better or worse. The word “source” has almost become a cliché, but in this instance, Dr. Swart refers to our brain as the source, which will appeal to logical thinkers.
This book is concise, easy to read, and provides “proof” for some of the gaps that other manifestation books encourage you to “just believe.” Divided into four parts, the first won’t reinvent the wheel for those who are familiar with manifestation, but it’s worth it to stick around for parts three and four, which put the research into practice and give you action steps to take.
Favorite quotes:
“Selective attention is the cognitive process in which the brain attends to a small number of sensory inputs while filtering out what it deems unnecessary distractions... Are you confident your brain is choosing well when it comes to what you should pay attention to and what you should ignore?” (p. 35-36)
“We assume our brain has everything it needs to do its job well and expect it to get on with it. We wouldn't treat our car with such lack of care; we would ensure it was regularly serviced and, if anything seemed out of sorts with it, we would take it to be checked. So why do we tend to assume our brain will maintain its ability to function at its optimum level and be able to prioritize our best interests when we are overtired, eat badly and work in a stressful job without regular breaks? Or when we just ‘zone out’ for large parts of the day?” (p. 79)
“We used to believe that logical, analytical thinking occurred in the left half of the brain, and creative or emotional thoughts in the right. However, modern neuroscience tells us that any sophisticated decision-making utilizes both sides of the brain and is integrative in its nature… All information flows from left to right, back to front, bottom to top and, in all cases, vice versa. The more agile and healthy the brain, the better this whole-brain connectivity works.” (p. 171)
Read it here.
the subtle art of not giving a f*ck: a counterintuitive approach to living a good life by mark manson
5/5 stars
Don’t let the title dissuade you; I think this is one of the best mindset books ever. Some self-improvement books dive deep on psychological triggers, others suggest journaling as the solution to everything, and a few provide action plans that only work if you can throw your whole life away. This book does none of that, and it’s fundamentally impactful. It sheds light on how your thinking influences your actions, which then create the life you’re currently living. Topics include values, entitlement, death, and success; it’s well-rounded yet fast-paced and easy to read.
As you can tell from the title, the writing style and tone is different from most self-improvement books. It’s sarcastic and witty with hints of dark humor, but more importantly, it’s authentic. The writing feels very conversational and true to the author’s personality, but instead of making it all about him, it’s direct with the reader in mind - it doesn’t cut corners, nor does it over-inflate.
What I loved most about this book is that articulates things you may have noticed but couldn’t put into words in a very clear manner. For example, the word entitlement has a negative connotation, yet Manson explores what it looks like in action, whether that’s through self-victimization or a hero-complex, which then helps you identify a more balanced perspective.
While you can get lost in the abundance of advice in some self-improvement books, this one connects everything to your values. Once you identify them, you then have a roadmap for what’s important in life, and what is not worth your time/ energy. Values are the core of your life; they give you a sense of direction to move towards goals, as well as a foundation that keeps you grounded when things get rocky.
Favorite quotes and takeaways:
“A lot of people hesitate to take responsibility for their problems because they believe that to be responsible for your problems is to also be at fault for your problems. Responsibility and fault often appear together in our culture… But there are also problems that we aren't at fault for, yet we are still responsible for them.” (p. 97)
Manson’s law of avoidance: “The more something threatens your identity, the more you will avoid it. That means the more something threatens to change how you view yourself, how successful/unsuccessful you believe yourself to be, how well you see yourself living up to your values, the more.” (p. 136)
“We don't actually know what a positive or negative experience is. Some of the most difficult and stressful moments of our lives also end up being the most formative and motivating. Some of the best and most gratifying experiences of our lives are also the most distracting and de-motivating. Don't trust your conception of positive/negative experiences. All that we know for certain is what hurts in the moment and what doesn't. And that's not worth much.” (p. 119)
“Our culture today confuses great attention and great success, assuming them to be the same thing. But they are not.” (p. 207)
Read it here.
how to do the work: recognize your patterns, heal from your past, and create your self by dr. nicole lepera
4/5 stars
This book went viral not too long ago, and I was pleasantly surprised to see it included with Kindle Unlimited.
The author, Dr. Nicole LaPera, is known on social media as “The Holistic Psychologist.” She approaches healing through a comprehensive approach by combining mental, physical, and spiritual wellness practices.
Topics include attachment styles, the mind-body connection to stress, trauma bonds, boundaries, the four pillars of reparenting, ego consciousness and inner child work. Each chapter has different exercises to help you implement the information shared, more than I expected.
As far as the depth of information goes, I found the examples to be meaningful and purposeful. The author includes her own history and personal experience, but not everyone will connect to it. A friend referred to this as addressing “little t trauma” instead of “big T trauma” and I do think that fits
Overall, this is great for self-starters who want to dive into making more sustainable and balanced lifestyle choices, but I wouldn’t recommend this if you have more intensive, layered trauma to work through.
Favorite quotes and takeaways:
On childhood trauma: “You might even say, ‘My childhood wasn't that bad. I shouldn't complain.’ I hear that a lot. I have to remind you: you are looking backward in time from the perspective of your adult brain with the awareness and maturity that can put things into proper perspective and alignment. Our child brains did not have these capabilities. Everything was bigger, more in-tense, more extreme than we can imagine now. Give your inner child the gift of acknowledging its wounds.” p. 132)
Ultimatums versus boundaries: “An ultimatum is a statement that assigns a consequence to someone else's behavior as a means of trying to effect a change in it. A boundary, rather, is a personal limit that is expressed so that your need will directly be met. It is an action we take for ourselves regardless of how the other person reacts. That the other person may change in some way is a secondary gain. An important aspect of setting boundaries is allowing others to have their own limits and boundaries and respecting and honoring theirs while you maintain your own.” (p. 185)
“We might not like all parts of who we are, and yet they exist and must be acknowledged. When our core sense of self is so variable and dependent, so open to outside influence, even what we think others believe about us can shape the way we see ourselves. There is no place for maturity in a state of boundarylessness.” (p. 227)
Read it here.
the art of letting go by damon zahariades
4/5 stars
Another quick read, this is broken into three parts that focus action steps and exercises, rather than contemplation or a deep-dive into psychology. The author emphasizes emotional awareness and regulation, non-attachment as a lifestyle practice, and finding the balance between self-ownership and self-forgiveness.
The exercises are primarily journal entries that take between 5-30 minutes to complete. They help you identify patterns, reframe different experiences, and recognize what you value and prioritize, so you can begin to “let go” of the rest.
Overall, this book would not be the best resource for those seeking to let go of deep-rooted trauma, but if you’re looking for a resource to kickstart you into action and redirect your energy, it’s a great read.
Favorite quotes and takeaways:
Create a time budget, where you list all your responsibilities to see exactly how much free time you have to work with. Time is finite, and seeing how little free time you actually have will make it easier to say no to favors or obligations that don’t align with your priorities.
Make a list of activities that make you feel good. Sounds simple, but having that list in your self-care toolkit will remind you to “let go” by turning your attention towards something positive, instead of dwelling on something you can’t control or change.
“The proper way to let go involves recognizing our negative thoughts and emotions, determining why we're experiencing them, and moving from the denial and bargaining stages to the acceptance stage of grief.” (p. 15)
“The more we blame others, the more we see ourself as a victim. The more we see ourself as a victim, the less agency we feel we possess. Without this sense of agency, we feel powerless to control our fate, which only increases our fixation on our frustrations, disappointments, grievances, and painful memories. The most effective way to counter this tendency is to take responsibility for problems that affect us. This doesn't mean we immediately accept blame for such problems. Rather, we simply stop blaming others, recognizing that doing so is pointless. Rather than attributing our problems to those around us, we commit to taking action to resolve them.” (p. 139-140)
Read it here.
dopamine detox by thibaut meurisse
3/5 stars
Like a lot of Kindle Unlimited self-improvement books, this is simply written and almost like a formulaic essay. It’s only 64 pages and something you could finish in under an hour. Short and sweet, it’s a solid introduction into the topic of how dopamine affects us without going into too much detail. I’d consider this to be an overview or like the Cliff Notes version, as there are other topics that are more thorough or include more research.
Straight to the point, there are quite a few action steps or “dopamine detox” plans presented dependent on how much time you have to dedicate to the challenge. I personally disagreed with the idea that you have to pause exercising as part of your “dopamine detox,” especially since the author said you could do stretching exercises.
That being said, this is one of those books where the results directly mirror your effort to applying its lessons. It’s a much more productive way to spend an hour than watching TV, and while it wasn’t entirely life-changing, it did provide a few perspective shifts that I saw results from.
Favorite quotes and takeaways:
When it comes to dopamine, differentiate between what brings you fulfillment versus excitement. One gives you long-term satisfaction; the other is closer to instant gratification.
“Dopamine is not a pleasure chemical; it is a neurotransmitter that is activated when you anticipate a potential pleasure.” (p. 15)
“To achieve long-term goals in your personal or professional life, you must regain control of your attention and rewire your brain to focus on the long term. To do so, you should start by staying away from highly stimulating activities.” (p. 20)
“A dopamine detox helps reduce stimulation, thereby allowing you to revert to a more natural state. When you need less stimulation, seemingly challenging, boring or tedious tasks will become more appealing — and easier to tackle.” (p. 29)
“Ask yourself the following questions: If I stopped doing only one thing, which one would increase my focus and boost my productivity the most dramatically? What other activity do I need to avoid in order to help me increase my focus most significantly?” (p. 34)
Read it here.
