I love things, especially pretty things.
It became quite cemented in my psyche at a young age that luxury was for those of success. From that day on I've sought the finer things in life. But right before departing from my job at Barneys or as many would say “the job a million girls would kill for,” I felt a little lost.
I was making great money, could dine at the most fabulous of restaurants in NYC, and strut in some of the most exquisite footwear. To many, I was the greatest example of success. But inside I felt empty. I asked myself is this it? Yes, I guess my luxury acumen made people happy and I was ringing millions of dollars in merchandise, but inside I felt quite empty.
Since leaving Barneys I do feel a little less lost and empty. But it has not been easy. It is still not easy. Many don't possess the mental and emotional wherewithal needed to reinvent and take the necessary risks to grow and be happy.
The four books below played a crucial role in my personal development throughout the last couple of years and even helped me keep my sanity at times. Should you feel in a similar place, I hope that you pick one of these books up (or multiple); and that they enlighten you as much as they have enlightened me!
May you be well,
-nol
I like beautiful things. But things should be motivation—they should be purposeful and improve your life—not our sense of worth. We are incredibly materialistic, and we need to consume less and with more purpose.
In The Art of Being, the famed Psychoanalyst Erich Fromm argues that in the wake of the industrial revolution we mastered the art of having, yet our dependency on possessions has come at the expense of us truly “being.” Fromm not only provides examples of things to keep an eye out for, such as “great shams” and “trivial talk,” he further provides a set of tools (meditation, awareness, concentration, psychoanalysis, and self-analysis) to try to get us all from simply having to a state of being and fulfillment.
I most likely picked up “The Art of Loving,” immediately after having finished “The Art of Being.” I just needed more Erich Fromm in my life!
In the book, Fromm offers that love, as with every art, requires practice and concentration. Effort and knowledge. However, man has little discipline and wants quick results. Furthermore, because of its commercialization, we have come to hold a very narrow and vapid view of love. Love today is no more than a transaction.
Love is something you must continuously put effort into, and it should fulfill you and help you grow. So not only does Fromm want us to treat love more like an art, but in addition, he shows us that there are many ways to love and be loved.
It’s not just being a genius. Success is often related to one’s level of Grit, or so argues Angela Duckworth.
So what is Grit? Put simply, “to be gritty is to keep putting one foot in front of the other. To be gritty is to hold fast to an interesting and purposeful goal. To be gritty is to invest, day after day, in challenging practice. To be gritty is to fall down seven times, and rise eight.” Being gritty requires a discipline to get better.
If you would like to learn how to develop your grittiness, this book is a must add to your collection.
In “From the Ground Up” Schultz’s offers a message that viscerally resonated with me. He offers, “I have come to believe that people must not stand by in the face of human distress and broken systems. And if these two predicaments are intertwined––if human suffering is the result of others abdicating their responsibilities, or showing a lack of respect for another person––it becomes what can only be described as an injustice. In me, injustice sparks a restlessness I have tried to combat with the tools and resources I have at that time.”
Schultz’s shares how growing up in Canarsie, Brooklyn—what he loosely refers to as the “other side of the tracks"—and witnessing first hand how the lack of a safety net can deteriorate a family, led him to built Starbuck’s. Starbuck’s would not only be a financial success, but also respect, protect, and nurture its stakeholders.
Schultz believes this same vision can be applied outside the coffee shop and restore a broken America.
