Best Motivation Books — 76 Honest Reviews
Every book below was read and judged on one question: will it change what you do on Monday morning? Each review tells you who should read it, who should skip it and the three ideas worth keeping.
See You at the Top
Zig Ziglar · Motivation
The warmest book on this list; outdated in its details, timeless in its tone.
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Unlimited Power
Tony Robbins · Motivation
Big, uneven and energetic; useful in parts, best read with a skeptical pencil.
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Be Obsessed or Be Average
Grant Cardone · Motivation
A shot of adrenaline with no nutritional value; sometimes that is the right prescription.
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Maximum Achievement
Brian Tracy · Motivation
A sprawling survey; good as a diagnostic, average as a cure.
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The Motivation Manifesto
Brendon Burchard · Motivation
A sermon for the self-directed; inspiring in small servings, tiring in one sitting.
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The 5 Second Rule
Mel Robbins · Motivation
One useful tool and three hundred pages of packaging; the tool earns the purchase.
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Girl, Wash Your Face
Rachel Hollis · Motivation
Breezy, personal and polarizing; useful if the voice lands, grating if it does not.
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Start
Jon Acuff · Motivation
Encouraging and loose; good company for the first step, not the fiftieth.
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The Energy Bus
Jon Gordon · Motivation
A short, sugary parable that works better as a team conversation than a solo read.
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Training Camp
Jon Gordon · Motivation
Straightforward, wholesome and best shared with a younger reader.
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Lead the Field
Earl Nightingale · Motivation
Gentle, old-fashioned common sense; a good antidote to shouting.
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Acres of Diamonds
Russell H. Conwell · Motivation
One durable lesson in a dated wrapper; read the story, skim the sermon.
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Tribe of Mentors
Timothy Ferriss · Motivation
A grab bag with real gems; dip in rather than read through.
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The Art of Impossible
Steven Kotler · Motivation
Intense and systematic; useful for high performers, heavy for everyone else.
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The Book of Five Rings
Miyamoto Musashi, translated by Thomas Cleary · Motivation
Austere and compelling.
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Several Short Sentences About Writing
Verlyn Klinkenborg · Motivation
Strange and genuinely useful.
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The Elements of Style
William Strunk Jr. and E.B. White · Motivation
Slim, durable, essential.
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Dare to Win
Jack Canfield and Mark Victor Hansen · Motivation
Classic, upbeat, unqualified.
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What to Do When It's Your Turn
Seth Godin · Motivation
Godin, oversized and random-access.
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Enthusiasm Makes the Difference
Norman Vincent Peale · Motivation
Cheerfulness as a method.
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The Passion Paradox
Brad Stulberg and Steve Magness · Motivation
For people with too much drive.
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Stop Saying You're Fine
Mel Robbins · Motivation
Rough early work with the core idea visible.
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Creative Confidence
Tom Kelley and David Kelley · Motivation
Encouraging and practical; creativity democratized.
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Where Good Ideas Come From
Steven Johnson · Motivation
Elegant and thoughtful; innovation as ecology.
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