Self Help books tend to be the ‘embarrassing Uncle’ of the bookshelf. Everyone has them but tends to try and keep them out of the public domain. I have a few books about how to become a property mogul. I tend to push them to the back of the bookshelf and pop an SBS World Guide or book on Japanese art in front.

Self Help books are a reflection of us wanting to re-shape our lives and be a better version of ourselves. Here are our top 5 books on self discovery:

Mindful Eating, Mindful Life by Thich Nhat Hanh

It is clear that standard diet and exercise methods are not working to resolve our modern struggles with weight and food. In Mindful Eating, Mindful Life, world-renowned Zen master Thich Nhat Hanh and Harvard nutritionist Lilian Cheung PhD share with you a new sustainable means of healthy eating and weight loss: mindfulness. Mindfulness is an approach to living that helps us be in the here and now – and to end our battle with weight once and for all.

Simplify: Ten Practices to Unclutter Your Soul by Bill Hybels

Overscheduled. Exhausted. Overwhelmed. Sound familiar? Too familiar? You are living at a velocity you know deep down is unsustainable. Your life is off course – too crammed with busyness, too out of focus. You keep waiting for things to get better, but they never do. In Simplify, bestselling author Bill Hybels identifies core issues that drive this kind of living and offers action steps to help you live a better way. By eradicating clutter from your inner world, you can experience immediate rewards: greater energy, clearer purpose, richer relationships and more. Your life won’t simplify itself. You must act. Isn’t it time?

Fooled by Randomness: The Hidden Role of Chance in life and in the markets by Nassim Nicholas Taleb

Everyone wants to succeed in life. But what causes some of us to be more successful than others? Is it really down to skill and strategy – or something altogether more unpredictable? This book is the word-of-mouth sensation that will change the way you think about business and the world. It is all about luck: more precisely, how we perceive luck in our personal and professional experiences.

Think and Grow Rich by Napoleon Hill

This all-time classic has sold more copies around the world and been responsible for the creation of more millionaires, than any other book in history. It’s the result of 25 years of extensive research into the secret of 504 of the world’s wealthiest people. Make no mistake; there is a secret to great wealth! The secret is so simple anyone can use it to become fabulously wealthy and successful in their chosen field. Are you ready to receive it?

Man’s Search for Meaning by Victor. E. Frankl

A prominent Viennese psychiatrist recounts his experiences in a Nazi concentration camp that led to the development of his existentialist approach to psychotherapy.  This involved identifying a purpose in life to feel positive about and focusing on the outcome of that thinking.