The Courage to Be Disliked
by Ichiro Kishimi and Fumitake Koga
A dialogue between a philosopher and a youth that introduces Adlerian psychology: your past does not determine you, all problems are interpersonal, separate your tasks from others', and the courage to be disliked is the price of freedom. It is argumentative and sometimes abrasive, and it has changed many readers' relationship with approval.
Read it if…
you organize your life around what other people think and want out.
Skip it if…
you dislike the dialogue format or want research-based psychology.
Three things you will actually use
- Separate your tasks from other people's.
- Stop seeking recognition; contribute instead.
- Live in the present; trauma does not decide.
Do this first
Identify one decision you are avoiding because someone might disapprove, and whose task that disapproval is.
Our verdict
Provocative and freeing; a philosophy book disguised as self-help.
Compare with other Confidence books
Atlas of the Heart
Brené Brown · Confidence
A handsome, useful emotional dictionary; a browsing book.
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Feel the Fear and Do It Anyway
Susan Jeffers · Confidence
Kind and timeless; still the right book for the fearful starter.
CLICK TO SEEBrowse all Confidence book reviews or get the free Reality Code Cheat Sheet.
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