What I’ve been reading lately

Thrive: The Third Metric to Redefining Success and Creating a Life of Well-Being, Wisdom, and Wonder

I received Arianna Huffington’s Thrive as part of an eCourse. I was excited to read it because I had watched her on a very thought provoking episode of Super Soul Sunday. Thrive is about going beyond commonly accepted metrics of success such as power and money to identify a “third metric” that is based on values such as well-being, wisdom, wonder and giving. I know the importance of redefining success all too well. For the longest time I let go of my well being, my creativity and my sense of wonder in order to chase a life based on material happiness and titles at work. I am not saying one has to quit their job and do what I am doing in order to redefine success – You can make small and meaningful shifts in your life to re-orient your self to what matters in life. That is of course, if you believe in the idea that there’s more to life than money and power. What I liked about Thrive is that it’s not just some book about lofty ideals but packed with practices and tips that you can immediately apply to your life. Meditation, Adequate restful sleep, time away from your smartphone, practicing gratitude are a few examples. For many individuals work is a drug of choice that they use to escape from pain and discomfort in their lives – this used to be the place work occupied in my life. I wish I had the good sense to read books like this back then to recognize what I was doing wrong – oh well! 🙂 Side Note: While the book was great and I enjoyed it, the Thrive eCourse was highly unremarkable and didn’t offer much more insight than the book.

Favorite Quotes

“Have you noticed that when we die, our eulogies celebrate our lives very differently from the way society defines success?”

“And whenever I’d complain or was upset about something in my own life, my mother had the same advice: “Darling, just change the channel. You are in control of the clicker. Don’t replay the bad, scary movie.”

“In our daily lives, moving from struggle to grace requires practice and commitment.”

Wonder

I checked out R.J Palacio’s “Wonder” because I wanted to see if the book was something that my nephew would enjoy reading before I recommended it to my sister. Wonder is the story of August Pullman also known as Auggie. Auggie has a severe facial abnormality that makes kids point and stare, call him names and even shun him. After years of being homeschooled and protected from the unforgiving world, he is about to transition to a school. The story takes us through this experience in Auggie’s life. It’s a quick read and a precious, feel good story that is about courage, empathy, acceptance and resilience. Even though this is labeled a children’s book, I think many adults would do well to read this book!

Favorite Quotes

“I think there should be a rule that everyone in the world should get a standing ovation at least once in their lives.”

“The best way to measure how much you’ve grown isn’t by inches or the number of laps you can now run around the track, or even your grade point average– though those things are important, to be sure. It’s what you’ve done with your time, how you’ve chosen to spend your days, and whom you’ve touched this year. That, to me, is the greatest measure of success.”

“No, no, it’s not all random, if it really was all random, the universe would abandon us completely. and the universe doesn’t. it takes care of its most fragile creations in ways we can’t see. like with parents who adore you blindly. and a big sister who feels guilty for being human over you. and a little gravelly-voiced kid whose friends have left him over you. and even a pink-haired girl who carries your picture in her wallet. maybe it is a lottery, but the universe makes it all even out in the end. the universe takes care of all its birds.”

Hyperbole and a Half: Unfortunate Situations, Flawed Coping Mechanisms, Mayhem, and Other Things That Happened

I had heard a lot about this book and eventually picked it up on a friend’s recommendation. It was so fun to read that I finished it in two days. I hope that should convince you of how enjoyable this book is. The book is a collection of author Allie Brosh’s comics from her popular blog by the same name. I love how these comics are intentionally unpolished and rough looking. I never thought one can get so many complex expressions out of such simple looking drawings. Apparently these were drawn using MS Paint! The stories are hilarious, laugh-out-loud stories and shine with vulnerability. I found some of my favorites on her blog. Check out: This is why I’ll never be an Adult, The Party and Dog.

Favorite Quotes

“And that’s the most frustrating thing about depression. It isn’t always something you can fight back against with hope. It isn’t even something – it’s nothing. And you can’t combat nothing.”

“However, I could no longer rely on genuine emotion to generate facial expressions, and when you have to spend every social interaction consciously manipulating your face into shapes that are only approximately the right ones, alienating people is inevitable.”

“Procrastination has become a it’s own solution – a tool I can use to push myself so close to disaster that I become terrified and flee towards success.”